"IF YOU LIKE GOLF"
weekly online golf column
by
Stan Crawley

October 5, 2004

Come play, come live, come home to Hampton Creek will have a new meaning beginning Oct. 15.

That' when the golf course on Snowhill Road in Ooltewah changes from a short 9-hole facility to an 18-hole track measuring 7,184 yards from the back tees.

"It has taken a lot of work to get the back nine open,'' said Hampton Creek's Tony Cabrera, who shares club professional duties with Lea Alvey. "But it's going to be real, real good. We've over-seeded the fairways and tees with rye and the greens are absolutely perfect.''

The 18-hole Champions club golf course design is by Jay Morrish and Associates of Dallas. Morrish and Tom Weiskopf have designed numerous facilities, such as Troon Golf and Country Club in Scottsdale, Ariz., The Boulders in Carefree, Ariz., and Shadow Glen Golf Club in Olathe, Kan.

Hampton Creek's nine-hole custom course has been open for play since 1999.

"We've been on a pretty aggressive schedule to get the back nine open,'' said Rich Balthrop, Hampton Creek's operations manager. "This is a culmination of a lot of effort, and a lot of sweat and tears, literally.''

Balthrop said the weather hampered the opening of the back nine.

"We've only had 20 days in the 90s this summer and we usually get almost 50,'' he said. "That hurt us with the bermuda. And Hurricane Ivan hurt us with some water and washouts. We planted new grass and then it stopped raining. Still, I think we've got an outstanding product.''

Two par 3s on the front nine (Nos. 8 and 9) were turned into a par 4 that became No. 8. All the bunkers on the front have been re-worked and back tee boxes have been added.

"When you put the new front nine and the new back nine together, we have a better mix,'' Balthrop said. "We were known as a short course, but now having enough distance won't be a problem. We've only got about 100 yards of difference between length on the front and back.''

Cabrera said the par 5 No. 17 hole is a 626-yard monster. And the par 3 No. 12 hole measures 249 from the back tees.

"But the signature hole is probably No. 16, a beautiful par 4 with water in front of the green,'' Cabrera said.

The theme at Hampton Creek has been, "The rolling hills of Hampton Creek offer you the community, tranquility and security you deserve.''

Now, add in a gorgeous and challenging 18-hole private track that should eventually be on the same level with Council Fire and Black Creek.

"We've overcome a lot doing this, but it's going to be very, very nice,'' Balthrop said.

(E-mail Stan Crawley at wscrawley@earthlink.net)

*** Feedback ***
click here to give us your comments about this article,
 or suggest a subject for a future article