Hack Attack 2008 — Week 6: A Walk On the Meadows

Course: The Meadows Golf and Country Club
Date: Thursday July 17^th, 2008

Weather: Sunny 19C (Start) 27C (Finish)

Tees used: White (East-South 5976 yards) Rating 68.6 Slope 111

Green Fees: $39.00(tax included) Monday to Thursday. $42 Friday, Sat./Sun. & Holidays

Score Shot: 89

Tee time intervals: 8 minutes

Time taken: 4 hours

The Course

Well the Hacker finally was able to get out to the Meadows Golf and Country Club after starting off his spring golf season earlier this year and all I can say is you couldn’t ask for better summer conditions right now. We’ve received alot of rain in the Ottawa area lately and the course is quite lush. So staying out of the rough is a must for lower scores. The young lad in the proshop was quite helpful and informed me I would be playing the East/South combination of the course. On the South course they were redesigning 3 holes (#3, #4, #5) but only #3(Par 5 -460yds (W)) would be affected today with a large pile of dirt on the fairway (Local rule (stated on a board placed by the course) says if you hit the pile of dirt, free drop in the drop area (painted circle in the middle of the fairway) at the 100. The scoop about the work, I found out later, was that there have been some complaints from residents living near the south course about errant golf balls. The three holes will be reconfigured from #3 par 5 460 (W) to a par 4. The shorter fairway will allow for a relocated #4 tee box with a 150 yd shot to a green over water (formerly 105 yds with only a peek at the water on the right). #5 will be lengthened to make it a par 5, from the current par 4 – 410 (W). The changes should be completed later this year and all current greens will be in play.

I didn’t use the practice area that Meadows provides, but have on other occasions and it is great. Every club in the bag can be used at the range plus they have a nice little chipping and sand trap area for those finesse shots. They also have three practice putting greens so there’s no excuse to say you couldn’t warm up.

Meadows 4th Green -- South Course

Goat Track or Weekend in Paradise?

Meadows is a great little track with a variety of holes for all skill levels of golfers in mind. If your driver is off the day you’re playing you can still get away with hitting 3 wood or hybrid off the tee. With 4 distinct sets of 9s you could literally play a different combo everyday of the week with 4 sets of tee boxes as well. So keeping it fresh is no problem.

How the Rock Rolls:

Depending on where they put the pins putting can be real tricky at the Meadows. I played in the morning so the greens took awhile to dry out but once they did beware of some tricky fast putts. Try to be below the hole on most if not all greens. I didn’t hit alot of GIR the day I played but good scores can still be had with a good short game (Thank you Mr. Vokey).

Conditioning:

The conditions at the Meadows were quite lush as I said before we’ve had a lot of rain in the Ottawa area so things were nice and green. The greens crew does a great job as all the greens were in great condition just be careful they won’t be as fast in the morning with the dew. The rough was at about 2 inches and was quite lush so sometimes hacking out was your best bet. For a $39 green fee you couldn’t ask for better conditions.

Making the Cut:

Meadows is a nice course that can be walked with no problem. Yes it’s flat but with the variety of holes (short par 3s, long par 4s, short par 5s, etc.) and the addition of water and bunkers here and there can be fun for just about any level of hacker.

Hacker’s Highlights:

The 6^th hole on the East course is a fun little hole it’s not long at 325yd from the white tees but with water all down the right side it is a little intimidating so driver might not be the best option for most here. I hit my 21 degree hybrid down to about the 100 yd marker and just had a nice gap wedge into the green. Thank you very much. Par.

Another fun hole is on the South course #4 a short par 3 . Depending on the wind can be anywhere from a 8 iron to a sand wedge. Your playing with water on the right side so those holes regardless of length are always fun and you never know when a birdie might be close by.

South #9 the finishing hole is a short par 5 from the white tees that can yield a few birdies or even an eagle. It’s a pretty wide open tee shot so let it rip towards the clubhouse and hope for the best and a birdie could be yours.

Hit To Your Pocketbook:
Monday to Thursday you can play Meadows for $36 tax in walking. Friday to Sunday it’s $42. A great value for the variety Meadows offers.

Hacking Away: 130%