Austin Area Country Club Recommendations

[bigtex75]

possibly relocating to Austin and looking for a club to join in NW Austin. Possible clubs are UT Golf Club, Twin Creeks, Great Hills, River Place. Any recommendations are appreciated.

[CougarRed]

Played River Place a ton in law school. Had my first hole in one there. The course has a ton of elevation change, if you are into that.

Per the DMN, UT Golf Club ranks among the Top 35 in the state, while the others don't make the Top 100.

[J_Birdie]

I would order them literally in the exact order you listed them as far as I am concerned. ACC is NW Austin and I love that layout

[schwollo]

As someone who frequents those clubs and was a member of great hills, it comes down to budget and proximity. I think Twin creeks is one of the toughest if not the toughest course in atx. Much cheaper initiation than the rest aside from river place (you can play river place with twin creeks membership I believe). Twin creeks range isn’t the best but the short game and putting green is nice. River place is fun but very tight and slow greens. Lots of holes are layups off the tee. Great hills is short yet fair but greens are it’s main defense and are always in pristine shape. Lots of construction going on. UT is awesome as well and you’ll see a few pros out there (fritelli hossler etc) but it’s farther out and costs more than the rest. For me Cost/value/proximity I’d take twin creeks even though great hills is down the street. FYI I dropped membership bc had kids. ? message me w any questions

[toothysaw2]

TC and river place are now the same price and part of the Arcis network (along with onion creek in south Austin).

I was a member at TC for 5 years and left this year. The course is great, but as mentioned, it’s tough. If you’re over a 15 hdcp I don’t think it’s very enjoyable. The membership has also exploded in recent years and slow rounds and competition for tee times are real. That’s why I left, in addition to living 30 min away.

that said, TC is an amazing value compared to everywhere else in town IMO. Waaaay lower initiation and monthly than UT for a course that’s at least 80% as good. However, UT clubhouse and practice facilities are vastly superior.

if you travel much, the arcis reciprocal membership is amazing, some really sweet courses throughout the country.

[bigtex75]

Thanks for the recommendations. Sounds like most are happy with TC. Probably a big factor is if I located to Cedar Park or Steiner Ranch. I’m a 10hcp and pretty long, so I don’t want a shorter course. But I also want a regular play course that is enjoyable and doesn’t kick my a** every time.

anyone a member at UT? I’m wondering how it is and if there are battles for tee times given the different teams and tournaments they host.

[J_Birdie]

UT is an ass kicker type course

[Guest]

Not a member at UT so curious about tee times, but have gotten out there twice. Great course. Challenging raised greens, but can score if you strike it well. Greens are great. Also has a 6 hole par 3 course paid for by Spieth. Practice facility is awesome. The member I played with once absolutely loves it and loves the tournaments. Some really really good golfers play out there. If you live in CP, it might be a hike.

[LeftyTPH]

Great Hills would be my choice in NW Austin for best experience / value. They are building a new clubhouse, not sure if its done yet. 

Twin Creeks / River Place almost feel like daily fee courses to me. 

 

UT Golf Club is great, it's also really challenging.

 

ACC is beautiful on the water holes. The other nine isn't memorable. It's also the most expensive with a long wait list. 

Edited August 18, 2020 by LeftyTPH

[Mikolar]

ACC is great but a waiting list and cost.   WC and RP have almost daily fee feel.  Highly recommend Great Hills for a course that is much, much harder than its length, great pros that have been there a long time, a ton of local games that are easy to get into, great champions greens and a membership that is inclusive.   Member there until we moved out of Austin but still miss that course and club.  

[NJGolfer0624]

Sorry to thread jack - my wife accepted a job based out of Austin, TX and we have 1 year to relocate. Reading through the comments, it sounds like Great Hills is the way to go but is invitation only. Are they firm on this for out of towners?

[J_Birdie]

I doubt you really need an invitation in the sense you think. Give them a call and if you are interested they'll set you up with a group and generally one of those people will more than happy to "sponsor" you. 

[ryder2015]

Don't know that much where all the clubs in Austin are located but the absolute best in the area has to be Spanish Oaks for a pure golf club. Amazing course

 

[bmrowe]

How is Driftwood coming along? Surprised to see Discovery coming back after failing at Spanish Oaks. I don't see any home for sale on MLS, so I suspect they are still quite far out?

[LeftyTPH]

On 10/19/2020 at 2:11 PM, ryder2015 said:

Don't know that much where all the clubs in Austin are located but the absolute best in the area has to be Spanish Oaks for a pure golf club. Amazing course

 

Austin Golf Club beats it as a pure golf club 

[ryder2015]

On 10/24/2020 at 7:48 PM, LeftyTPH said:

Austin Golf Club beats it as a pure golf club 

I disagree. I found AGC to be in the best conditions I have ever seen but the course was not that interesting. Lots of the same and not that challenging. I also don't like that there are only 2 par 5's. I find Spanish has a lot more character as far as a course. AGC has a really cool vibe and better club house but if I was going to play a course everyday it wouldn't be AGC

[Schley]

For those who have played AGC, I certainly think it is the best golf club. ACC I haven't played, but on TV looks fun as a Dye course in the hilly property. I just don't see how it compares to AGC as those are very good greens and the clubhouse/vibe can't be matched IMO. Crenshaw tie is icing on the cake.

[Geddy Lee]

I have played Austin Golf Club, Spanish Oaks, and Austin Country Club more than a dozen times each.  I would rate the courses as: 1) ACC; 2) Spanish Oaks; and 3) Austin Golf Club.  While it is nice at AGC that it is usually not crowded, the course design is horrible.  It is almost like the designer was creating a spoof of Coore Crenshaw designs and put all of the bad elements of their designs into one course.

 

Spanish is a beautiful, fun course but is a little tricked-up.  ACC is a classic Dye course and you frequently see Tom Kite on the range and course.  His swing is pure and he if very friendly.  

[J_Birdie]

AGC tee boxes are the second best greens in Texas. 

[ohiohunter2]

Any opinions on Barton Creek? I live 5 min from ACC, but considering Barton Creek as well. Thanks!

[Geddy Lee]

Barton Creek is really nice.  Very much a corporate/resort style set up but it is really nice and you get 3 courses close by.  The new clubhouse facility at the Canyons is great.  The thing I dislike most about Barton Creek is their driving range balls are horrible, which is really not much of a bid deal unless you are a range maniac.  

[ousuxndallas]

On 10/24/2020 at 3:21 PM, bmrowe said:

How is Driftwood coming along? Surprised to see Discovery coming back after failing at Spanish Oaks. I don't see any home for sale on MLS, so I suspect they are still quite far out?

My friend is working for the developer on it. Lots started at 800k ish, now they are up to $3+ million. Course is carved out, they are laying sod now. 

[bmrowe]

On 4/24/2021 at 8:36 AM, ousuxndallas said:

My friend is working for the developer on it. Lots started at 800k ish, now they are up to $3+ million. Course is carved out, they are laying sod now. 

Crazy. Wonder if they will get traction at 4x the price.

[Schley]

On 12/4/2020 at 5:58 AM, Geddy Lee said:

I have played Austin Golf Club, Spanish Oaks, and Austin Country Club more than a dozen times each.  I would rate the courses as: 1) ACC; 2) Spanish Oaks; and 3) Austin Golf Club.  While it is nice at AGC that it is usually not crowded, the course design is horrible.  It is almost like the designer was creating a spoof of Coore Crenshaw designs and put all of the bad elements of their designs into one course.

 

Spanish is a beautiful, fun course but is a little tricked-up.  ACC is a classic Dye course and you frequently see Tom Kite on the range and course.  His swing is pure and he if very friendly.  

I can NOT agree with your assessment, so respectfully disagree about AGC. Ben Crenshaw is the architect and constantly tinkers to ensure it is exactly what he wants. Love the place and green complexes with shaved edges are tremendous. Really like the understated vibe and a true golf club.

[Golferpaul]

I've played almost every course in the Austin area and here is how I would rank them when considering only golf;

 

1.  Barton Creek - you cant beat their four courses which eliminates the boredom of playing the same course over and over.

2  Spanish Oaks - Very similar to BCCC Foothills and Canyons courses.

3. ACC - Wonderful P Dye course

4. AGC - you either like it or you don't.  I don't care for it other than haveing Ben there quite often and they do have perfect greens.  I wouldn't join here unless I could also be a member of another club.

 

Those four clubs are head and shoulders above everything else in the area but they all cost $100,000 or more to join.

[DandyDon]

Any thoughts on Lost Creek Golf Club?

[drewlaws]

On 6/13/2021 at 10:10 AM, DandyDon said:

Any thoughts on Lost Creek Golf Club?

I'd say it depends on where you live, your budget and your expectations. If it is not geographically convenient, I would look elsewhere.

 

It went from being undervalued to overvalued last year. My dues doubled, so I'm a little bitter. Since you are coming in only knowing the current pricing, maybe it is not as big of a deal.

 

My gripe is the dues are similar to tier 1 courses in town, but that is not even close to the experience. Granted, the initiation is significantly less but not really cheap anymore.

 

Pros:

Location (All other courses in Westlake are $100k+ initiation)

No homes on the course

Good walking course/culture

You can have your own cart if you live in Lost Creek (but not cheap)

Good family atmosphere

 

Cons:

Monthly dues are not reflective of the experience. It's overpriced by $150/mo IMHO

Club Corp culture focuses on milking every last dime they can out of you

Need to be on the ball to book prime tee times (but this is the case everywhere in Austin)

Food is meh and crazy overpriced without the ONE "discount" monthly fee.

You run into little annoyances like the clubhouse restaurant is closed on Saturdays (this is the kind of thing that makes you go WTF)

 

All that said, I complain about it but I am not seriously considering leaving. I live in Lost Creek so the convenience cannot be beat. 

[br61]

Although I'm not a local but I stayed in Austin for 8 nights, rented a house in UTGC. They let me practice and play on Speith 40 course. it was lot of fun. A friend from Austin who works at Twin Creeks, I was going to play there with him but they closed for aeration couple weeks ago. We went to River Place, it's nice but I would not want to be a regular there. Lot of elevation changes and got tired quickly with carts on paths (due to their recent rains)

 

My friend said that UTGC do get lot of play from members, conditions are excellent. I can't comment on other courses so I'll leave that up to locals. I'm interested though as I'll go back again later this year. I like NW Austin. I do know of a former or inactive member here as an instructor at Spanish Oaks. My friend spoke highly of that course.

 

Another friend is a member of Grey Rock, they said it's a very nice course but I didn't have time to play there. 

Edited June 16, 2021 by br61

[J_Birdie]

Grey Rock is ok. Never really in good shape from what I know 

[Schley]

Anyone play Cimarron Hills in Gtown lately? Any feedback ?