Birdsfoot Golf Club, Freeport, PA

It's a shame what this course has turned into. I live 10 minutes from Birdsfoot, and when it first opened about 10 years ago, it had a lot of potential with a tough layout and great scenery. Now? It's run by money-hungry thieves that pack the course with as many people as they can cram onto it with no regards to pace of play or the condition of the course. Also, they market themselves heavily to corporate outings and bar-league scrambles, many times having at least 5-10 of these events weekly. The result of this is often greens with an unbelievable amount of un-fixed ball marks and stunningly chewed-up tee-boxes. But don't expect anyone at the course to tell you the true condition of the course or how busy it is when you call for a tee-time; they'll lie to your face and laugh when they take your money. Here's a perfect example: I just played there Sunday, and we had a 4:00 PM tee-time. Apparently, they had had a severe storm come through the area the day before, and there were many large trees down and the course was littered with leaves and twigs (which was never disclosed to us prior to the round) They gladly took our $$$, and the starter told us that the course was wide open. At 9:10 PM, we finally walked off the course after having only completed 14 holes! Yet, we did not once see a ranger dictating the pace of play to the 6 four-somes they had apparently let out right before us. Also, the greens were cratered like the moon, apparently from the 200 man scramble they had let out that morning.

In summary, if you like 6 hour rounds on an overpriced course with barnyard conditions, this is the place for you! Otherwise, don't even waste your time. There are much better choices in the Pittsburgh area in this price range.

I love the layout and the conditions, especially in the Fall. The last time I played it, I noticed that the cart paths seemed to have improved. I think many of them had the pot holes filled in and were recently "tarred 'n chipped".

The course has a nice driving range and short game practice area very close to the clubhouse and it has a large putting green with lots of variation nearby to the first tee. Many of the greens have multiple levels which makes for a variety of pin placements. It is in Western PA so there are plenty of hills, which adds to the character of the holes.

Two negatives would be the sand bunkers, they don't live up to the rest of the course, and the pace of play. I think it is sometimes difficult for beginners/ high handicappers to find their ball and it really backs up, especially on the back nine.

This is an excellent North American Links style track. The fairways and greens are in great condition this time of year. The greens are especailly fast and you must stay below the hole. Bring plenty of golf balls if it gets windy!!!