The Bull At Boone’s Trace

August 2010 - Course in average shape

This was the first time I played The Bull at Boone’s Trace.  I started on the back 9 and was quite disappointed in the condition of the back 9.  The greens and fairways were not in good shape, with a lot of bare patches.  The clubhouse needs to give away free ball mark replacement tools because no one seems to repair their ball marks.  The greens on the back 9 were in rough shape, and very slow.  The layout of the back 9 is not very good, and quite different from the front.  There were several holes with relatively blind tee shots, and due to the elevation changes on most holes I think they are having trouble keep water on the fairways.

The front 9 was complely different, almost too different.  From the first hole the layout felt different and much better.  The fairways were in much better shape and I do not recall a green that was in bad condition, other than the lack of ball marks being repaired.  If I could play the front 9 twice I would consider going back, but otherwise would not.

A couple of other observations:  1) the cart paths throughout the course are in disrepair, and 2) there is lack of visible yardage markers in the fairways.  I regularly had to walk around to find a sprinkler head, only to find some of them did not have yardage markers on them.  For a course with as much undulation as this one, yardage markers are quite helpful.  0

Nice Course

The Bull is a very nice course. It’s always kept in very good shape and it’s probably in better shape now that I’ve ever seen it. Nice driving range facility, pro shop and staff. Short game practice area could be improved, but that’s nothing major. The course is fairly short at just over 6600 yards from the championship tees, but the fact that it’s always in good shape and is an interesting layout makes up for the shorter yardage.