Reynolds Lake Oconee

Loved the course. Would go there again. Better bring your A game.

Played the Oconee course today at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro Georgia. Golf advisor did a trip with Matt Ginella in 2018 which you can watch on the website.

Nice range and practice area with the Taylormade Kingdom in the distance while on the range. From the start this is a very scenic golf course. Ponds, turtles, deer, and lake oconee can be seen and do come into play. The last 4 holes are my favorite because of the lake and they are just good holes.

This course was wonderful prior to the redesign but is even better nice. Just opened so greens are hard and cart path only. A great course for every level player and the scenery on the back can’t be beat

Good course, fun design with lots of elevated tees which I liked. However, paying $200 for punched greens is outrageous- definitely left a bad taste in my mouth. I would expect a steep discount when the ball is bouncing along and frequently thrown off course the intended line.

Obviously if you’re staying at the Ritz and are a golf nut like me, you’re kind of at their mercy so make sure to plan around the aeration schedule.

First, do not use my fee rate as an example of what you will pay., it was women's golf month so it was a special fee to encourage women to play! I was a guest of a friend that retired to Reynolds and was told the regular rate was $250 for guests staying at the Ritz. And, if you do a discovery package (if you consider moving to Reynolds), golf is part of the package so check out that deal.

It is a beautiful course - just check out the two photos I uploaded to Golf Advisor.

The course was in great condition expect the greens had sand on them from some type of treatment (not punch holes from aeration) that made them a a touch bumpy but not as bad as if they were aerated.

The big lesson I learned is that there are a lot of uneven lies so practice you shots with the ball above and below your feet before you play!

The reason I gave it a 4 Star overall instead of 5 was for pace of play. There was a foursome with a caddie (which my friends said means they were resort guests not residents) in front of us and it slowed us down but then again if they paid $250 each to play, I get them taking there time.

Overall, a beautiful place to visit and play golf!

This was my first time playing The Oconee at Reynolds Plantation. I love the course and the conditions were amazing.

At each hole I found myself saying, "this is a beautiful golf hole." The course and scenery is beautiful. Several views of Lake Oconee. The conditions were fantastic. The greens were firm, smooth and rolled true with lots of undulations, slopes and tricky breaks. This is one of the best courses I have played in several years. It ranks right along all the top courses (Blue Monster, Ocean Course, TPC Sawgrass, etc). I could and would play this course every week. Simply great!!!

Great Waters makes its name on almost ever list of places to play. The course (and the resort) is worthy of all the accolades. This is a Jack Nicklaus design and it is typical of his work.

To me, it seems that Nicklaus always allows the player an option to "bail out" of difficulty. That long par 4 where you can lay up short and not be in the water or the par 3 where short right won't put you in a deep bunker. I played this course during a scramble tournament so I did not get the full pleasure of my normally errant shots but the wonder of the course was nonetheless evident.

I have played 3 courses at Reynolds (and a few other non-Reynolds courses in the area like Cuscowilla) and this, by far, is the most pristine and challenging one.

This may be the first golf course built at Lake Oconee. With the prominence of the other Reynolds courses, this one is often overlooked. However, it is nonetheless a superb course.

The course is a good test of golf without being overly difficult. The key theme here is playable without making it easy. The natural uneven lies and the contours of the greens make for challenges that are not manufactured or contrived.

Also, the course is routed to make the most of the natural beauty of the surroundings. The best example is the par 5, 2nd hole, where the approach to the green is a bit elevated providing you a picturesque view of the lake as you make your second (and for most third) shot into the green. Then you play 4 & 5 along the shore and the course ends with 16,17, and 18 again along the shore. In between are some memorable holes as well.

The Landing is a good way to set-up a weekend of golf or perhaps downshift from the other more difficult courses at Reynolds.

This was my first time playing The Landing at Reynolds Lake Oconee.

I loved the course. It was in great condition, especially for early February when all the bermuda grass is dormant. The tee boxes, greens and fairways are overseeded so as long as you are in the fairway, you still have excellent lie and a great opportunity to get on the greens.

The course has lots of elevation changes along with lots of slopes, undulations as well as mounds in and around the fairways. There are several holes with spectacular views of Lake Oconee. The course is great. Take the opportunity to play if you have a chance. Great course with excellent service and friendly people.

I agree with GA editor Brandon Tucker's assessment that it's a shame this "exclusive" course isn't available to resort players or the rest of the members at Reynolds Lake Oconee. Because The Creek Club is definitely the most scenic and striking course at Reynolds. I thoroughly enjoyed it. With its wide fairways and bowled greens that feed balls toward the holes, you can make a lot of birdies out there, which makes The Creek Club a lot of fun, especially when you consider the amazing views. If regular golfers got to play this course, The Creek Club would certainly be a course that would be talked about when people mentioned Reynolds Lake Oconee.

With that said, this course isn't for everyone, especially seniors or any golfers who might have difficulty dealing with the deep bunkers or even the climbs back and forth from the cart paths down to the greens. It's a bit zany, especially on the greens. The par-3 13th yields more aces than the rest of the par 3s combined, but if you don't put it reasonably close to the hole, a four-putt is certainly possible (I know; I had to make a four-footer to prevent a four-putt).

Yes, it's anything but traditional golf. Variety is certainly the spice of life, and golf is no exception. Not everyone will like it, but that can be said about almost any golf course.

First off, The Oconee Course is simply beautiful. At almost every turn, the routing is solid and interesting, and there are lots of beautiful water features, including streams, waterfalls, ponds and lake views. Conditioning is also top notch and the greens were perfect the day I played them. This is certainly one of Rees Jones' best layouts. I didn't find one single hole boring. I could play this course every week. In fact, I've liked this course more each time I've played it.

Like my colleague Jason Deegan alludes to in his 2014, review, I think what makes Great Waters so excellent is that the design blends wonderfully into the rolling land and lakefront property. The front nine begins with anticipation: "When, exactly, am I going to see the lake?"

The front nine meanders through rolling, densely forested terrain, and once you tackle the long, par-3 8th hole, the lake reveals itself in a big way on the elevated tee of the 9th. The routing really never leaves it after that, if only for brief moments. It's a very wet, drama-laden finish that I compare a bit to Edgewood Tahoe.

Reynolds is planning a big renovation with Nicklaus design in the spring of 2018. I didn't see a whole lot that needed to be tweaked besides some pesky overhanging trees. I'll be curious to hear details when it's announced.

We played the course just a few weeks after overseed, so the grass was really wet, but the greens were some of the smoothest I'd seen in a long while. A real joy.

A few days removed from this round and I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about the layout. But I will say this: architectJim Engh delivered a polarizing course that is sure to leave a lasting impression. The Creek is one of six courses at Reynolds Lake Oconee, and it's the only facility that is completely private. You have to be a platinum member in order to play here, or be escorted by one.

That's interesting to me because it feels a bit like a wild "calendar golf" course that tourists would love to play and get a kick out of, like Tobacco Road, for example. Nevertheless, Oconee members enjoy the exclusive and one-of-a-kind facility.

I've played some Engh courses before and so I had an idea of what to expect: Big fairways, spectacular vistas off the tee, split fairways, eye-popping bunkers and remarkable greens complex imagination.

What's interesting to me is that it's both player-friendly and not at the same time: Fairways and greens are generally bowled, so errant shots are easily corralled, but bunkers are deep and often in front of elevated greens. The bowls surrounding greens also mean you usually park your cart well above the green and tip-toe down. I'd be curious how elderly players manage here between the deep bunkers and mounding. You can also putt it off the green if you're in the wrong spot.

The 18th hole is, fittingly, an over-the-top finish. The elevated tee is spectacular, and Engh built three greens for this hole alone. We played high up to the left, but IMO the middle green seemed like the only one worth keeping. Anyways...

I'm glad I played the course, it's certainly got five-star scenery, even though it's mostly away from the lake, though I don't think resort guests should be knocking down the gates to play it with a lot of great golf to play on property. But for members at a six-course facility, having one like this is probably a hoot once in awhile.

Upon arrival our group was greeted by friendly cart attendants who took our bags and directed us to the golf house where the shop attendant checked us in very promptly. After hitting some range balls we headed to the putting green which is very we should have spent the majority of our warm up. While the greens had been punched about 2 weeks ago, they were extremely fast! Once we began playing we noticed the true beauty of the layout before us. The Ridge and the Bluffs nines had rolling fairways and beautiful bunker placements. The rough was very thick and provided a stiff penalty for missing any fairway. While the two nines did not offer many lake views (except for the par 3 #4 on The Bluffs which was beautiful) the course was gorgeous nonetheless and an absolute joy to play.

This was a very good golf course, in a beautiful place. Almost the whole back nine is on the lake.

The conditioning was also a 10.

That said, it is not a great golf course in my opinion that warrants a $260 USD green fee.

If you're looking for a course with generous fairways, interesting holes and terrific conditioning, then come to Reynolds and enjoy any of the courses here. The Oconee Course, however, is exceptional. Designed by Rees Jones, the course offers great views of Lake Oconee with a magnificent set of par 3s as well as good risk-reward holes. Arguably, it's the best layout at the resort, holes 1 through 18.

With six strong golf courses, it's easy for a course to get lost in the shuffle at Reynolds Plantation. That's sort of what happens at the Plantation course. It doesn't have as many lake holes as Great Waters and the Oconee course. It's not as highly regarded as the 27-hole National course by Tom Fazio, either.
But, when comparing it to most courses in most places, the Plantation is quite good.
Some nice elevated tee shots keep it fun and playable. The trees lining the fairways never feel like they're crowding the tee shots, yet you can still finding yourself fishing your ball out of them if you're not swinging well. Overall, a solid - not spectacular - choice.

To most people, the Oconee is the second-best course at Reynolds Plantation behind Great Waters. I'm guessing my three-star rating for conditioning would have been higher if I hadn't played the course in February one week after an ice storm AND an earthquake.
The movement of the land and feel of the course reminds me of Treetops in northern Michigan. Both are beautiful places.
The final two holes bring Lake Oconee into play, the 17th on the right side and the 18th along the left. They're the highlights of the day.
The food in the Linger Longer Steakhouse in the clubhouse is worth sampling after the round.

Great Waters is the undisputed star of Reynolds Plantation. Jack Nicklaus brings the lake into play one shot after another on the back nine. The views are just a byproduct. The front nine doesn't introduce the water until the ninth hole, but it's got plenty of fine holes as well. There are streams and ponds and tree-lined adventures. The best attribute of Great Waters is probably what's not there. Nicklaus wisely stepped aside and let the setting run the show. He never got overzealous with adding bunkers or mounding or extra design elements that weren't necessary. That ultimately keeps it playable and enjoyable for all, something Nicklaus didn't always deliver in that era.

The Plantation Course at Reynolds Plantation was my first private members course. I was astounded with every aspect of Reynolds Plantation from the service and amenities to the course conditions. The courses are well-maintained and in excellent condition. A few of the courses offer challenging lakeside shots and others require forced carries or conservative club selection based on power.

I would recommend the Plantation Course to anyone.