South Texas-two course review

[shank]

I played two nice tracks in the Rio Grande Valley over the past week and I thought I’d share a small course review for each. Keep in mind I’ve only been playing golf in West Texas and then only for 9 months.

My favorite course was the River Bend Golf Resort in Brownsville. This course was amazing. The fairways and greens were unlike any I’ve played. The entire course was just about perfect. This course plays along side the Rio Grande River with Mexico just a pitching wedge away.
From my tees the course played at 6276 yards. There was nothing bad I could say about the course except I was really not used to playing from deep grass in the rough. I’d never had to hit the ball out of grass that thick. I got the hang of it in the end.
The staff was nice and the pro shop was equipped with all of your needs. The carts were great and the range was well marked.

The second course I played was the South Padre Island Golf Club. Again, the grass was awesome and the course played very well. There were some rough spots here, but it is a fairly new course. It will fill in over time. I actually shot a better score here because the ball actually had some roll when it landed. This course played 6291 yards from my tees.
The staff here was very nice and I took a driver lesson while here. Their range and carts were in great shape and the carts were GPS equipped, but I failed to pay the fee. I now know that I need the gps when I play if it’s available. I had real trouble with distances the entire week. I guess I’m not used to seeing all green, or I’m too used to playing the same four or five courses where I know where I am.

I can say that I’m very happy I got to play while I was in the Valley. I’d highly recommend either of these courses if you are ever in the Valley.

Enjoy!

[Slingblade61]

Nice review!

Thanks for the pics! Who knew Texas was actually nice.

[zaphod]

Man You are bring back memories for me. Great pics. Played South Padre Island course 5 times over 7 day vacation. Great course. Has a hole which doglegs right over the ocean. Par 4. From the back tee you can play it safe for a 8i or 9i in or go for green with an all carry over saltwater shot. Hard clay based fairways so my driver was "pumped up". Bermuda greens had me believing the laws of physics were dysfunctional in Texas. I swear balls broke uphill.

[Eracer]

Great review! So, at River Bend, do you get a do-over if your shot ricochets off an illegal trying to swim the gap?

[shank]

Originally Posted by Eracer

Great review! So, at River Bend, do you get a do-over if your shot ricochets off an illegal trying to swim the gap?

Funny you should ask! Border Patrol was launching their boat from the resort as we were leaving the course on Friday.

I actually went to High School about 20 miles away so I'm used to folks coming across. I didn't play golf back then, I was worried about the girls for some reason. Now, I've learned my lesson and golf comes first. (just don't tell my wife I said that)

[Augster]

Originally Posted by zaphod

Has a hole which doglegs right over the ocean. Par 4. From the back tee you can play it safe for a 8i or 9i in or go for green with an all carry over saltwater shot.

Not to be a nit, but it is over the Laguna Madre which is quite big itself.

If you play in the morning, the tide is out, so you can easily find your ball on the sand and play it from the "hazard" to the green.

The ONLY thing I didn't like about River Bend was the hole layout. Sometimes you just have to guess where the next hole is. You are walking across streets, walking through the resort folks' "back yards", sometimes just guessing.

They really "tucked" the course in around the resort folks. It really is a cool course with LOTS of hazards.

And of course, SPI is a must play if you ever hit up the RGV. Get the "Stay and Play" package with a hotel on the island AND do the afternoon replay rate for $20. 36 holes with a night's stay on the beach, with a continental breakfast, usually runs me around $110.

Lots of really great golf values in the RGV area.