Lonnie Poole Golf Course At NC State University, Raleigh, NC

I am a big fan of natural looking golf courses where it doesn't seem to appear like they moved much dirt to create it. This is not one of those golf courses. The thing looks like a links course sitting in the middle of the Carolina Pine, Elm, Ceder trees. You only see bunkers and native grass (knee high fescue) around except on the edges of the property then you get Carolina trees.

The course has very sloping fairways, greens are large and multiple tiers. Really when I played it I found it to be a 100% tee shot golf course, if you got into play in the fairway the approach shots were right there in front of you, the only hard approach is 18th that's a real b****.

Two suggestions, first buy a yardage book from the club house for $5 and use it if you know your distances on each club it helps a TON. Secondly, if you are just out there to enjoy the day move up a tee box, it takes 2 or 3 rounds of golf to really get a handle on where to aim and hit the ball / miss in good spots. I'm a 4 handicap and played from the black tee a few times now, don't play back there unless you got length and accuracy.

This is a great golf course that was in excellent condition. The greens can be somewhat difficult to read and the "natural areas" and bunkers a challenge. Nevertheless, it's worth the greens fees. Unless you really have an "A" game don't even think about playing this course from the tips. The white tees(6,502 yards)or even the Wolfpack tees(6,028)are enough of a challenge !
The staff was friendly and the beverage cart, with cute co-eds, made the rounds frequently.
It may take a couple of rounds to get used to the layout but Lonnie Poole will become a "must play" course in central NC.

Great course, but be sure to ask about tee time spacing when booking your tee time. Had a 1:00pm tee time on 11/14/2011 and it took 3 hours to play 9 holes. Our group waited between every shot. I've never seen a course so overbooked! They need to do a much better job managing their tee times. I heard they way oversold Groupon coupons and this is the cause of much of the congestion. Staff was unwilling to offer a rain check for the nine holes we could not play due to exceptionally slow conditions and impending darkness. Come on guys, you can do better than this.

awesome golf course. very difficult, especially if played from the tips. if it's windy this course will play even harder. greens were superb. rolling around 11.5.... a must play if you're in the raleigh area.

This is one grown up golf course. I love playing it but in reality it is a beast. My advice is have your game up to par or you will likely not enjoy this beautiful but tough golf course. It is almost brand new and will only get better. I look forward to "trying" it again.

This is my home course, i get a NCSU student discount of $35 to play 18, and this course is in immaculate shape. The green slopes are very challenging and the greens themselves are in superb condition. Bunkers are placed strategically in difficult areas and you hit them on a regular basis. The champions tees are very difficult to play from leaving HUGE distances on par 4's. Id advise obviously if youre not the best golfer to shoot from the mens tees or the pros tees on this course, because one teebox back makes a 2-5 stroke difference on your scorecard. LOVE this course

I really like this golf course, but can't afford to play it regularly. I've played there twice, one from the amateur tees, and then once from the tees behind that. I've yet to play from the champions tees, and probly never will. The the difference amount of difficulty between the two tees that I played is huge. From those back tees, the bunkers were placed everywhere I wanted to hit the ball. It's probly the hardest course I have played in a while. The course still needs to grow in, but for a new course it's actually in pretty good shape. The greens are still pretty hard, but with State's turf management program right around the corner, I'm sure this course will be in top-notch shape in a few years.