Pros:
Where to begin..there are so many things that are just THERE with this course,from the instant we got out of the car,you knew there was something magical about to happen,we walked into the pro shop,and were greeted by Kelly's father,who talked to us for a bit,and was extremely kind,but i think we were all slightly antsy and we had to get to the first tee.
When you step up to the first tee,it is a solid hole,nothing to write home about,but it gets you feeling pretty confident,i took a par and was pleased and excited for the rest.
The second hole was a very fun downhill shot into a nestling of trees in the woods,but still nothing overly exciting.
Well,anything you have learned about this course you completely forget when you step up to the third tee,you instantly see why this place is special,an amazing par five,that takes great shotmaking if you want the birdie,or maybe slightly more conservative for par,450 feet from the tee to the first shore,then a 250 foot crossing,laying up is a tough choice to make,but if you don't you could lose your perfectly seasoned echo star wraith,like i did.
Now I could go on and describe every hole,but I would be here for quite a while,needless to say,this course is great,and it does not EVER get boring,there is a perfect blend of challenging par 3's,lengthy par five's,and perfectly placed 4's,a large variety of elevation changes also make for a perfect change of pace from hole-to-hole.
A few more random things,Kelly has changed 14-18 unless you are playing with Kelly,or a guide,which means no runway hole which is clearly the signature hole of the course(Unless as i previously stated,you are with a guide.) This was due to some people cutting it a little too close with the airplanes i would imagine,but do NOT let this deter you from coming,it is still amazing!
Cons:
There is one thing that ALMOST keeps me from giving this a five,that is the rubber teepads,we played after a light rain,with a slight drizzle throughout the day.
Not only does the material of the teepads get slightly frustrating at some points,but also the length is pretty varied throughout the course.
Some people complain about single set of chains on some of the baskets,but i don't really see it as a bad thing,sure there are better catchers,but you just get so lost in the course the first time,your score doesn't even seem like that big of a deal.
Other Thoughts:
To cap this off,there is truly one thing that sets this apart.
I haven't played a lot of the bigger courses out there,in fact,i've only played four,including flyboy now,but i feel like i would have a difficult time finding anybody nicer than the people that allow us to play,I had to call Kelly three times or so because the directions we had printed out did not help,and he kindly instructed us on how to get there,even after i annoyed him multiple times,I am sure,his parents were both extremely kind,and the land is absolutely beautiful.
Make sure you get a chance to play here,I can certainly say that I will be back here on a regular basis,and that's with an hour and a half drive,so no excuses if you're within the area!
EDIT; Also,I should add,a lot of people say this is not a beginner course,well I will agree to an extent,yes,this course is EXTREMELY challenging at points,but do not stop yourself from coming,i've been playing five months,and I shot a +11 thru the first 18,and then kind of stopped keeping score,I'm not saying that's a GREAT score,but for my first time out here it's not bad! You'll still enjoy yourself regardless of skill level!
3/7/11: Just got back from a day trip,this one was so much better than the first.
Today Kelly led us through and we played some of the newer layout with a lot of oldies(but goodies) still around,and it was amazing. This time I truly understand what people are saying about him,he's a great guy,he had just gotten back on little to no sleep for the past couple days,and still was gracious,and after the first 18,his mom even brought us out some hot dogs and cokes,it was an awesome trip,definitely have to get back and continue to redeem myself!