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"IF YOU LIKE GOLF"
weekly online golf column
by
Chris Dortch
August 12, 2003
With Chattanooga’s own Bear Trace at Harrison Bay closed while
its greens are being resurfaced, I decided to take a trip around
the state and check out the other four Bear Trace courses. I came
away impressed and wholeheartedly recommend them as a quick,
one-day golf getaway. Here’s my report:
In September 2002, on the grand opening day of the fifth Jack
Nicklaus-designed Bear Trace course in Tennessee, the big guy
himself flew in for the proceedings.
Of course Nicklaus brought his clubs, all the better to test
out first-hand his handiwork at the course, called Ross Creek
Landing. Midway through a round he seemed to be thoroughly
enjoying, Nicklaus made a comment that elicited knowing nods of
the head from those who heard it.
"I knew [Ross Creek Landing] was good," Nicklaus said. "But I
didn’t know it was this good."
It didn’t take long for Nicklaus’ opinion to be shared by the
golfing press. Less than a year after the course opened, it was
chosen as the best public course in Tennessee by Golf Week
magazine. Golf Magazine placed RCL on its list of Top 10
Places You Can Play for 2002.
Yes, Ross Creek Landing is good, great even. But is it the
jewel of the Bear Trace? That’s hard to say. Even Ron Bargatze,
vice president of operations for the Bear Trace courses, wouldn’t
make that claim.
"It’s sort of like trying to pick a favorite from among your
children," Bargatze said. "You just can’t do it. All the Bear
Trace courses are excellent in their own way. I have fun playing
them all. It’s impossible to rate them or rank them."
Since Ross Creek Landing opened, Tennessee golfers, and a
growing number of out-of-state players, have lined up to test the
give Bear Trace courses, four of which are built alongside state
parks, as was the original intent of the project. All are
picturesque, playable and challenging, which was the task
Nicklaus’ design firm faced when it was hired in 1994 to give
Tennessee an answer to Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Trail.
Nicklaus—with nearly 200 courses to his credit—was drawn to the
project because of his desire to build courses that the average
golfer could play. The old criticism that Nicklaus builds courses
according to his particular game and shot pattern is not valid at
the Bear Trace.
"That’s the way I used to design but I got a lot of criticism
for that," Nicklaus said at the Ross Creek Landing grand opening.
"Some of the golf courses, when guys walk out, they say that
Nicklaus has been here because it plays left to right. I don’t
think I’m stupid, but I certainly listen to that, to the
criticism, and figure out how to deal with that and try to mix up
the golf course and balance it out. Left to right, right to left.
I try to work with it to get a balanced golf course that's
balanced in direction, balanced in doglegs, balanced in water, and
I just try to get it balanced in all aspects."
Judging by the accolades each course along the Bear Trace (a
name created by combining Nicklaus’ nickname with the Natchez
Trace wilderness road that originated in Tennessee in the
1700s), Nicklaus and his design team achieved the balance he
sought.
Not so well thought out, it seems, was the location of the five
courses. Only one, our own Harrison Bay, is built within an easy
drive of a major city or close to an interstate highway. Thus far,
Memphis, Nashville and Knoxville, the state’s largest cities, are
without a Bear Trace course.
Indeed, traveling to some of the five courses might make
golfers wonder whether the old Natchez Trace is still in business.
We’re talking remote here. To play the Bear Trace, you have to
traverse our lengthy state and its many backroads, but given its
scenic beauty, that isn’t a bad thing. More than 40 million
visitors a year seek out Tennessee’s state parks, a market the
project’s originators clearly wanted to tap. Obviously there’s
much to see in Tennessee.
But what of the urban market? Some experts believe that any of
the current Bear Trace courses could set up shop near Memphis,
Nashville or Knoxville and churn out 40,000 rounds per year.
"We will not do any more courses unless they are near
population centers and easily accessible from the interstate,"
Bargatze said. "Any expansion would include increasing the rural
and urban balance. "We are interested in that and working on that
as we speak. We’re in the early stages."
For now, though, Bargatze, the state of Tennessee and RedStone
Golf, which runs the five courses and leases the state park
property, are happy with the array of courses that make up the
Bear Trace. Rounds per playable days (i.e., when it doesn’t rain)
are up across the board, except at Harrison Bay, where the course
was shut down for two months to install new putting surfaces.
Bargatze’s charge when he took over as the project’s director
of operations was to institute a membership plan (prices are
extremely reasonable) and making conditions optimum at all the
courses. Harrison Bay, for example, has undergone several cosmetic
and functional changes. Each of the courses have a country club
look and feel, all for $35 to $55, including cart.
Country club conditions and playability at working man’s
prices? That’s what the Bear Trace is all about. Here’s a quick
look at each of the five courses:
The Bear Trace at Cumberland Mountain (Crossville, Tenn.)—This
course differs from the other Bear Trace layouts because of its
mountainous terrain. That makes for numerous elevation changes and
some stern tests on the more heavily contoured greens.
The 6,900-yard course was the first Bear Trace opened, in May,
1998. It takes its place alongside 11 other courses in the
Crossville area, but holds its own as one of the more challenging.
Cumberland Mountain’s signature hole is the 393-yard par four 7th
that features layered flagstone in front of the green and a
waterfall to the right. Don’t miss the green short.
The 10th tee offers an expansive view of the golf
course; it’s the highest point on the property. The 10th
is a 449-yard par four that begins a challenging stretch of holes.
No. 11 is a reachable par-5, No. 12 a driveable par 4 (at least
for big hitters) and No. 13 a brute of a par 4 at 466 yards from
the tips.
The Bear Trace at Tims Ford (Winchester, Tenn.)—Like Ross
Creek, it takes a little work to get to Tims Ford, but the trip is
well worth the effort. Built on Tims Ford State Park and
surrounded by Tims Ford Lake, this could be the most scenic of the
Bear Trace courses, and certainly it’s the most populated by
wildlife. Expect to see deer, geese and wild turkey during your
trip around the course.
If it’s the most scenic Bear Trace course, Tims Ford might also
be the most playable. The only one of the five on the Trace that
plays to a par 71, Tims Ford measures 6,764 yards from the back
tees. Fairways are fairly generous and most of the greens aren’t
heavily contoured.
The course turns a little less friendly toward the finish line.
No. 15 is a 377-yard par four that features a sharply sloping
green—the back is a good five feet lower than the front. Three
putts are plentiful there. No. 16 is a 549-yard par-5 that
features a split fairway that it shares with another par-5, No. 3.
If a player chooses not to test the long native grass on the right
and bunkers of the left of the fairway, he can simply blast his
tee shot left of a stand of trees and into the rough alongside the
No. 3 fairway. Bunkers continue to be in play as you journey the
left side of 16.
No. 18 might be the toughest test at Tims Ford. From the back
tees the par-4 plays 439 yards. Trees guard the right side of the
fairway and there is tall grass and a fairway bunker left. The
green is contoured and guarded by a couple of menacing bunkers,
one on either side.
The Bear Trace at Chickasaw (Henderson, Tenn.)—Chosen by
Golf Magazine as "One of the Top Ten Places You can Play,"
Chickasaw well deserves such accolades. Environmental concerns
delayed the course’s construction, but a balance was struck
between introducing a great golf course and protecting the natural
habitat. Heavily wooded like its Bear Trace brethren, Chickasaw
also features natural wetlands that come into play and Piney
Creek, which weaves its way across the course.
Chickasaw stretches to 7,118 yards form the back tees, and you
get a good idea of what you’re going to be up against for the day
from the very first hole. The 571-yard par five is surrounded by a
lake (left) and marshland (right). The second shot has to carry a
stream.
The Bear Trace at Ross Creek Landing (Clifton, Tenn.)—Play
this golf course once and it would be difficult to counter Golf
Week’s assertion that it’s the best public course in the
state. Some who have played both courses compare it favorable to
Pete Dye’s masterpiece in Chattanooga, The Honors Course. That
comparison is justified. Both courses offer stern challenges,
particularly from the back tees, and both are strikingly
beautiful.
Ross Creek Landing greets you in friendly enough fashion—the
trip to the first tee winds through an old barn that Nicklaus
wanted to keep largely intact. The first seven holes are
manageable. Then the golf course begins showing its muscle.
"The first seven holes kind of lull you to sleep," Bargatze
said. "Then 8, 9 and 10 slobber knock you."
Don’t be frightened by that assessment. These holes are fun to
challenge. No. 8 is a beautiful par-5 with water down the
left-hand side of the fairway. From the back tees, it measures 556
yards. Try to reach the green in two if you will, but the penalty
for a poor second shot is steep.
No. 9 is a brutish par 4 at 453 yards from the back, but its
fairway is generous enough to allow golfers to have a bash with
their drivers. No. 10, another par-4, requires length and
accuracy. Miss left and your ball is likely gone, but a drive in
the fairway is only half the battle. The green is guarded by a
gorge that requires a bridge to cross. Miss the green short and
you’re likely to part company with your ball— permanently.
Some Nicklaus standbys do show up at RCL. No. 4 is a driveable
par 4 that plays just 259 from the blue tees, 292 from the back.
No. 12 is a classic risk-reward par-5 that is reachable in two
shots—if you dare.
The Bear Trace offers several membership plans.
Call 866-770-2327 or go to
www.beartrace.com for more
details.
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