Old American Golf Club : DFW

[Tstiles]

I think I've found my new " Favorite Course in Texas / Top 10 Anywhere "

 

Old American Golf Club

 

Architect : Tripp Davis with Justin Leonard

 

The course is Tripp & Justin's interpretation of Early American golf course architecture. Think National Golf Links of America / Shinecock / Pine Valley.

- Multiple Options from every tee ... Play Bold = Risk & Reward ... Always a legit conservative option ... Great Angles ... Not a Grip it & Rip it course

- Working around / over / short of Fairway Bunkers is a key to a decent round ... All Bunkers play as " thru the green "

- Approach shots must be well thought out ... there are some places you just don't want to miss it and others that offer reasonable recovery chances

- Every hole must be played backwards ... Locate what sector the pin it in , figure out where you need to be in the fairway to offer the best chance to reach that pin placement , try to hit it there after figuring out your chances for executing the shot ... You need to think your way around every hole ... Slashers are going to shot big numbers

- Green Complexes are generally elevated with bold bunkering schemes , excellent run out areas and multiple green sectors ... Don't expect alot of 2 putts from the wrong sector without some serious lag putting skill

Grassing scheme is Bold ... Mini Verde Greens are fast , firm and true ... Fairways are one of the improved hybrid bermudas ... Bunker surrounds are a tall , rough , blowing , zoysia ... Green surrounds vary .... Roughs have sections of bermuda , sections of buffalo , sections of zoysia ... The zoysia around the bunkers as amazing

- Routing plan brings Lake Lewisville into play or view on many holes

- Cart Paths are another bold statement , decomposed granite .... They fit the theme

- Flagsticks are 5 ft wooden with cotton flags ... there's no ball washers , tee signs , trash cans , signs , ect ... Just an amazing Yardage Book by Tripp that is as good as I've ever seen

- There are birdies to be made ... It's a stern test , but when properly executed , birdies are there ... You are going to make some bogies , work hard not to compound your errors and make big numbers

- It's a great match play course ... don't worry so much about your score and enjoy the match ... Closing holes ( 15 - 18 ) start with the very challenging par 4 # 15 where par will win most of the time ... # 16 is a 300 yard Par 4 that offers multiple options in how you play and can yield a birdie ... # 17 is a relatively short Par 3 that can yield a birdie but will sneak up on you if your careless ... # 18 is a semi cape style Par 5 that might be reachable for a few , but is a 3 shot for most that demands a precise layup to your preferred wedge distance .

- All in all it's just an outstanding , fun , thinking man's golf course

 

Old American is in the pre-opening phase so don't expect a big clubhouse , practice facility , service levels , and foo foo at this time ... Expect a fun day of outstanding golf ..... Location is in The Colony right next to The Tribute

[Tucson36]

[b]Excellent review. Thanks for posting.
[/b]
I've played The Tribute several times and love the golf course. I have been very curious about Old American, so your detailed review is very interesting and helpful.

Just curious about the green fee and was curious if they are (or are going to be) offering memberships.

Thanks.

[quote name='Tstiles' timestamp='1282962066' post='2664972']
I think I've found my new " Favorite Course in Texas / Top 10 Anywhere "

Old American Golf Club

Architect : Tripp Davis with Justin Leonard

The course is Tripp & Justin's interpretation of Early American golf course architecture. Think National Golf Links of America / Shinecock / Pine Valley.
- Multiple Options from every tee ... Play Bold = Risk & Reward ... Always a legit conservative option ... Great Angles ... Not a Grip it & Rip it course
- Working around / over / short of Fairway Bunkers is a key to a decent round ... All Bunkers play as " thru the green "
- Approach shots must be well thought out ... there are some places you just don't want to miss it and others that offer reasonable recovery chances
- Every hole must be played backwards ... Locate what sector the pin it in , figure out where you need to be in the fairway to offer the best chance to reach that pin placement , try to hit it there after figuring out your chances for executing the shot ... You need to think your way around every hole ... Slashers are going to shot big numbers
- Green Complexes are generally elevated with bold bunkering schemes , excellent run out areas and multiple green sectors ... Don't expect alot of 2 putts from the wrong sector without some serious lag putting skill
Grassing scheme is Bold ... Mini Verde Greens are fast , firm and true ... Fairways are one of the improved hybrid bermudas ... Bunker surrounds are a tall , rough , blowing , zoysia ... Green surrounds vary .... Roughs have sections of bermuda , sections of buffalo , sections of zoysia ... The zoysia around the bunkers as amazing
- Routing plan brings Lake Lewisville into play or view on many holes
- Cart Paths are another bold statement , decomposed granite .... They fit the theme
- Flagsticks are 5 ft wooden with cotton flags ... there's no ball washers , tee signs , trash cans , signs , ect ... Just an amazing Yardage Book by Tripp that is as good as I've ever seen
- There are birdies to be made ... It's a stern test , but when properly executed , birdies are there ... You are going to make some bogies , work hard not to compound your errors and make big numbers
- It's a great match play course ... don't worry so much about your score and enjoy the match ... Closing holes ( 15 - 18 ) start with the very challenging par 4 # 15 where par will win most of the time ... # 16 is a 300 yard Par 4 that offers multiple options in how you play and can yield a birdie ... # 17 is a relatively short Par 3 that can yield a birdie but will sneak up on you if your careless ... # 18 is a semi cape style Par 5 that might be reachable for a few , but is a 3 shot for most that demands a precise layup to your preferred wedge distance .
- All in all it's just an outstanding , fun , thinking man's golf course

Old American is in the pre-opening phase so don't expect a big clubhouse , practice facility , service levels , and foo foo at this time ... Expect a fun day of outstanding golf ..... Location is in The Colony right next to The Tribute
[/quote]

[ktedc]

Excellent review! Need to get over there.

[t_m_harris]

Played it a few weeks ago and couldn't have been more impressed!
Love just about everything about this place and cant wait to go back.

[sdrem]

Weekdays $150, Weekends $175, Yearly membership $5000. It is a great course, the bunkers look similar to what you see at Whistling Straits, but all bunkers are played as waste bunkers, so you may ground your club. Some are very deep, need to avoid.

[JP Page]

Old American is a great golf course. I played a few weeks ago and its a very challeneing course with some fun holes. If anyone is comeing to the DFW area I would recommend Old American over Cowboys. Cowboys is a better value if you include the food but I had more fun at old american.

[Roscoe P Coltrain]

I have not played a harder golf course than the Old American. My group and I have played there twice so far in two different wind conditions. The first time it was into a north wind with 25+mph gusts making reaching the first fairway an adventure at 469 playing 500 damn near. Holes 2,3 and 4 all played brutal then the rain cancelled the rest of our round.
We had the pleasure of going back 1 week later to the day and played with a southeast wind which made it first 4 easier and then we turned into the breeze which just started to kill our round. KJ Choi has the non competition recored at -2,69. Let's just say 4 good players in the group and the low man was 82 with a birdie on the par 5 18th that was down wind. Lake Lewisville supplies all the wind that you can handle on a daily basis with both Tribute courses being extremely windy.
Having never played any of the Whiltling Strait courses but I have played some difficult track ( Bethpage Black, Isleworth, Diamond Back, Hunter's Run) Old American is fair and true test of your game nerve and patience. For the money it's a better track than Cowboys Golf Club by far. The layout is first class and once the Clubhouse and all the other amenities are it should be added to your must play list for a Texan or a visitor to the area.