Hickory Valley Golf Club, Gilbertsville, PA

First, this is a public course and should be judged as such. The maintenance is very impressive for a course that is not private equity. Second, it is somewhat schizophrenic in nature with the front 9 being a tough McCourse and the second 9 being a fairly tough traditional course. For me it is a relief to get away from the gimmicks of the front 9 and settle down to a second 9 that relies more on ball-striking, thought, and accuracy rather than on dueling with holes that are just too clever for words.

The front nine opens with a traditional and easy hole. Number 2 has a broad fairway but a narrow approach to a bunkered green (this is a fair hole which rewards good ball-striking). 3 is a sensibly long traditional hole--a pleasure to play. On 4 the gimmicks begin. The first time I played it i hit a long drive down the center--and then could not find the rest of the fairway. That is because the green is tucked between trees on a sharp dog-left left with high marsh grass in front. It is not a natural part of the landscape--all the elements of this hole are pre-fab. 5 and 7 are easy par 3s. 6 is a terrible hole. It is a very sharp dogleg par 5 right with bunkers scattered hither and yon. It must have looked great on paper. But it is dogleg right with a fairway sloping left and into unplayable rough. Play it like this. Hit short of the dogleg. Then take a medium iron or hybrid over the short trees on your right and you will be right on the fairway for a short-iron or wedge in. Compare this to 13 up at Perry to see the difference between a McHole and one that is actually part of the landscape. 8 increases the silliiness quotient. Sharp dogleg right and then--hold it, halfway down the second leg of the dogleg is tall marsh grass--shazaam--since the dogleg is far enough downrange that only the boomers can get there, even good golfers should lay up and take the bogey. Not even remotely a fair hole. 9 is my personal nomination for most artificial hole in Montgomery County. Right where most good players will hit their drives there is a string of bunkers COMPLETELY across the fairway (the map on the card is wrong--there is no fairway opening on the left). If you hit over the bunkers you will hit a landing area which slopes downward into--of course--marsh grass. Most golfers should lay up short of the bunkers and then hit a wedge into the landing area and then go for your bogey. Again not even remotely fair as a hole. When you get to 10, you return to real golf. It is longish, you have subtle undulations in the fairway and a perfectly fair--and challenging-set of traps. 11 is an easy par 3. 12--pretty shot down through the trees and then in to an elevated and relatively narrow green. 13--long par 4 dogleg--errant shots are penalized by trees and bad lies. Accurate shots are rewarded--probably my favorite hole. 14 is very much like 12--although you will have to hit a long and accurate fairway shot to be have a good shot at another narrow, but fair green. 15--very easy par 3. 16--somewhat narrow fairway. Certainly a hard, but fair, second shot. 17--do not bang away on your drive and go into the hazard. Hit it short of the hazard. Then a long second shot on this dog-leg. Then a fair wedge or short-iron. This hole penalizes gamblers while the safe shots increase the length of the hole--a thinking person's hole. 18. Short hole but the water hazard penalizes those who try to take the short way home on the right. You will end up having to hit a much longer second shot since the right is subtly closed off by trees. Go left and then overclub a little for you second shot. A great second nine--a first nine too much bothered with gimmicks.

Nice course, but if you miss fairways your in trouble. Not much better than the Ambassador given the higher price.