Hidden Oaks Golf Course

Public

Golf Course Site:http://www.hiddenoaksgolf.com/
City: St. Louis
County: Gratiot

Yardages:
Blue - 6555
White - 6135
Red - 4970

Course Rating: 72.6
Slope: 129

Difficulty from the Tee: 9
Difficulty of the Bunkers and Water: 8
Course Condition, fairways, greens, etc:  8
Staff Customer Service:  8
Overall Value: 8
Overall: 8.2

Fees and Costs: *all fees and costs are accurate at time of review*
Weekday
9 holes walking: $14 With cart: $20
18 holes walking: $23 With cart: $38
18 holes with cart $38

Weekend
9 holes walking: $19 With cart: $25
18 holes walking: $30 With cart: $43

Prices change based on time of year, check this link for current rates

Pros:
This course has many strong tee positions, especially from the blues. From perfectly positioned ponds, to cattail filled swamps, to narrow tree lined landing areas, nearly every hole requires a well executed tee shot.

Half of the par three's are over 200 yards making for some demanding long iron / fairway wood shots.

The front nine is comprised of rolling hills and valleys, while the back nine is geared up with swamp land. Knowing your distances helps tremendously to place your drives between the jutting cattails and swampy ponds on the back nine. Being that driving is the best part of my game, I enjoyed these fun features the most.

Cons:
Miss-hits are penalized a great deal. I ended up losing half of a dozen balls in the rough, not because the grass was so tall but because the mosquitoes were so abundant. I learned the hard way that looking for a ball in all of the cottonwood debris turned me into a mosquito magnet. Even with 40% deet Deep Woods Off, I managed to net four bug bites looking for my first two miss hit balls. After that, I donated the next four balls that ended up anywhere near the swamps or cottonwood littered roughs.

Hole #12's green was unplayable during my visit due to a flock of geese taking guard and nesting near the pond which lines the left side of the fairway and green. I even tried scaring them off by driving my cart within 20 feet of the backside of the green, but to no avail. They still lowered their heads and charged at me when I tried to get to my ball on the green.

There is farmland next to a handfull of holes on the back nine and the smell can be a bit obtrusive on hot days.

Would you play it again, and why?
I plan on returning in the fall when the bugs won't be as bad and the geese have left for the winter. It was a fun course off the tee.

19th Hole / Drink Cart?
The club house has a few tables, soda cooler, and miscellaneous golf essentials. I did not see a drink cart on my visit.

Final Thoughts / Side Notes on the Course:
The course is extremely hard to find for a first time visitor without GPS. Even with my trusty GPS guiding me, I nearly missed the drive way. When I did find it, I became skeptical when it led me down a dirt road and past any sign of civilization, but after a half mile of trees and dirt I came to a clearing and the spacious parking lot.

Course Reviewer's Golf History:
 Playing for a couple of years, shoot in the 90's.


Author:  Dustin (No Fairway Staff)
Sumitted: 05-27-09
Date Played: 05-15-09