Kountryside Golf, Cope, SC

[SiberianDVM]

This is Masters Week here in Augusta, GA.

One of the local traditions is jacking prices up to fleece the Yankees, unfortunately we locals get caught in the crossfire. Most golf courses in the area raise prices 2-3 times their regular rates. Plus, you have to reserve a tee time weeks in advance.

So, I usually make a road trip the Sunday before The Masters. This time I decided to visit a course that was featured on The Golf Channel: Kountryside Golf, in Cope SC.

I called them at 1030 Sunday morning and was told to come on over, so after a brief excursion on Mapquest, I was on my way. An hour and a half and 75 miles later, I missed the sign leading to Kountryside golf.

I got it on my 2nd try, and pulled into the parking lot, that was moderately full. A small, new, and immaculately clean clubhouse was the first thing I saw.

AS I came inside, a nice lady greeted me with "You must be the fellow who drove over from Augusta." (I would have made a great spy, huh?) "Welcome to Kountryside, Julian".

That nice lady was Lynn Kilgus. She and her husband Bobby own and run Kountryside Golf. They also do all of the work. All of the work. Two nicer people you will never meet.

I usually walk when I play golf, if the course will let me. Lynn and Bobby looked at me kind of funny, as I guess most people ride here, but sid I was welcome to walk as much as I wanted.

$15 to walk 18 holes. $20 for riding, usuing a gas-powered Club Car cart. No GPS, though.

There is no warm up range. There is a putting green, though the grass was patchy with a mix of winter rye and dormant Bermuda. Bobby apologized that the heavy rain we had had for the last week had prevented him from cutting the greens for several days.

So I loaded up my Speed Cart and walked to the 1st tee.

(continued)

[SiberianDVM]

On the 1st tee, I could see some golfers in the fairway about 230 yards out ( I was playing the blue tees, as this course is short at 5801 yards). They were playing to the right, and a quick look at the map on the score affirmed that this 1st hole is a 90° dogleg right, playing 349 yards. So I grabbed my 3 wood and ripped a Hogan Tour Deep down the middle. My 1st shot of the day is usually my best, and I go downhill from there. Today was no exception.

Upon arriving at my ball, which was in perfect position, I found that the green was still occupied by a 3 some. So I waited, and waited, and waited.......about 10 minutes all together. It was going to be a long day. While waiting I took a picture back towards the clubhouse, and then one towards the green.

My second shot was 150 yards, I thought, to a smallish green. Make that a miniscule green. Freaking tiny. About the size of a pinhead.

So I missed it. With a darn 7 iron.

Luckily I also missed the small creek that was hidden from the fairway, and the small bunker that was also hidden. And the small pond on the other side of the green. Chipped on close, and made my 1st bogey of the day.

Back to the greens. The grass was bad on many of them. Some were OK. But some were really bad. There was no way to make putts on them, because the grass was so patchy and bumpy. That was truly the worst part of the course.

Oh, and I think Bobby Kilgus likes ponds. Lots of ponds. Dark, lilly covered, evil looking things.

When I got to the 2nd tee the turtles were still about 150 yards out trying to hit their 2nd, 3rd, and probably 4th shots, so I waited. An elderly gentleman finished #1. I invited him to join me and he did. His name was Tim Packer and he was 81 years old. So I cut him some slack because he was riding. Tim was wearing a US Open Torrey Pines hat and a Merion CC shirt. He had been playing golf all his life. We played the rest of the round together.

(continued)

[SiberianDVM]

Tim and I hacked our way around the front nine in the next 2 hours, neither one of us playing well, but hitting the occasional good shot.

It's hard to hit a green that is only about the size of my queen-size bed, especially when every darn one has a pond and a bunker in front of it, and a swamp behind it.

I forgot to tell you that Bobby Kilgus designed and built this golf course himself. And Bobby doesn't play golf, he's a farmer. He did play once, badly, about 18 years ago. It must have been hell and Bobby decided to have some fun with golfers.

On Kountryside, there is only one way to hit the greens: hit a high, soft shot with the exact yardage. Anything else will miss, roll off, or go in a pond or bunker.

I really need to have a talk with Bobby about that.

#8 is a short par 5, only 446 yards. I hit an poor drive, leaving me with 220 yards. Piece of cake 3 wood. Except....this....was....to....a....Bobby.....Kilg us....green.

For laughs, Bobby made this green the size of a king sized bed, enticing you to go for it, then he encircled the green with a ditch, filled with his dark, evil, pond water.

Kind of a TPC Sawgrass island green, swamp style.

So Mr. Tim talked me into laying up, leaving me with a full PW. Which I pushed just enough to catch the edge of the green, and bounced it into the ditch. R.I.P Hogan Tour Deep. Another bogey.

#9 is a driveable par 4, 265 yards, over yet another friggin pond, showing that Bobby Kilgus has mastered some of the elements of modern golf course design. I guess my golf hadn't impressed Mr. Tim too much so far, as he made me lay up again. A 4 hybrid off the tee put me at PW distance to the green. Look carefully and you can see my ball ahead and to the right of Tims'.

I missed the green into the bunker and made another damn bogey.

Made the turn in 44, 8 over par.

A quick stop for a chili dog, Pepsi, and a Tigerade: total cost $4. $4!!!!!! When was the last time you got out of the clubhouse for $4? And the chilidog was good, too, although I burped it for the next 9 holes. I practiced burping my A,B,Cs and got all the way to D once. That was a good chilidog.

I consider #10 to be Kountryside Golfs' signature hole, although #13 runs it a close second. More on #13 later.

#10 requires a 220 yard carry over the lake, not for the faint of heart. I'm proud to say that I carried the lake on my 1st try, although I was reduced to playing a NXT Tour, my supply of Hogans having taken a severe beating in recent weeks. A 3 hybrid pulled left bounced off a tree root and landed on the green, my 1st and only GIR of the day!!!!!!!

I missed the birdie putt, of course.

Bobby says he has been trying to get the pontoon boat running for some time. It will ferry carts and golfers across the lake to the #10 fairway. Meanwile it's a long walk around the lake. Mr. Tim was kind enough to give me a lift.

Apparently Bobby likes to fish and barbecue in his spare time. Barbecue, yum.

[SiberianDVM]

#13. Yes, a nice, little hole, all 123 yards of it. PW for me.

By the way, you can't see the green from the pin, only a tree. The green is down there, in a hole. Protected by a bunker. Behind the green is a swamp. Protected by snakes.

I took the bunker. Splash out. Two putts for bogey.

A pretty hole, though, in a blind golf sort of way. Kind of woodsy, though.

The rest of the round was about the same: hit the ball, go find it, hit again.
Didn't lose another ball, though, and shot a 42, 6 over on the back, for a 86.

By this time my dogs were barking, and I was glad to see the cart barn. Which is a real barn by the way.

[SiberianDVM]

After thanking Lynn and Bobby Kilgus for their hospitality, I packed up and headed home. On the way, I photographed some of the sights:

A 1950-1960 vintage tank destroyer outside Denmark, SC

A classic car business, in Elko, SC

A Piggly Wiggly, I forget where.

The TV towers in Beech Island.

It doesn't get much better than this.

[Rockford35]

Cool pics, Doc. Looks like a bit of a beater, but those tracks are classic and fun to play. You get lulled by pristine and manicured courses all the time and can appreciate what the vast majority of people play and love doing so.

Great storyline too.

R35

[mont86]

I remember hearing about them on the golf channel. Seemed like nice people.

[golfingforfun]

Very nice post. Thanks for sharing.

[mddubya]

Great read, I especially liked the part about how Bobby was getting back at golfers for his one and only bad outing,

[SiberianDVM]

The Golf Channel ran another series of video stories about Kountryside this week. I hope it sends some more business their way.

[warbirdlover]

Great review doc!!

[Cray]

Great writeup! I saw this on the golf channel and even tried to look
at the course on Google Earth.

The pictures really added to the review.

Thanks.