Review: Tobacco Road Golf Club – Sanford, NC

To say the opening tee shot is a bit intimidating is a massive understatement.  I’d seen the photos and while they definitely gave a glimpse of the difficulty that would await, seeing it live for the first time was enough to send cold chills down the spine of even the most confident player.  “Trust the yardage book” was repeated to me by at least three people before I could even step on the tee box.  Easier said than done!

The play is a smooth driver between two gargantuan mounds that protect the first fairway.  Little did I know there was plenty short green grass just on the other side of them.  Visually you see this tiny sliver of fairway running between them and it is hard to trust the darn yardage book.

After safely navigating my mulligan through what seemed like Mt. Everest on the right and Mt. Rainier on the left, I was off and running.  Once I got to my ball, the light bulb went off and it hit me that the yardage book would quickly become my best friend.  A safe par on this incredible starting hole took me to a more relaxing hole number two.  It was if Mike Strantz said, I realize I got your adrenaline pumping a bit too much so I am now going to settle you down with relaxing second hole to get you into the flow of the course.  Well, it worked.  Lots of room to drive the ball with much less fan fare left an easy wedge into a big target.  Steady and calming par.

Settling into my round, it was hard not to get lulled into the shear beauty of the golf course.  I caught myself many times wondering just how in the world Strantz could envision something so breath-taking.  Perhaps the greatest testament to Strantz’s creation at Tobacco Road is the fact that it looks so doggone natural.  Many architectural works look like man-made fabrications.  Not Tobacco Road.  Yeah, maybe a green complex here or there but the golf course just fits the natural terrain as good as any I have ever seen.

The front nine is loaded with interesting tee shots and thought-provoking approach shots.  Trust the yardage book.  Strantz gives you plenty of room to drive the ball, even though it may not appear that way.  The greens are large and provide an easy target, even for the less skilled.  Not saying some spots on the greens are the best to hit at, but you’d rather take your chance at long, curling putts over some of the recovery shots from deep waste areas.  There’s a reason Golf World labeled Tobacco Road as “Pine Valley on Steroids”.

If you are traveling to the Pinehurst area, or even remotely close, Tobacco Road Golf Club is a must play!  The team at Tobacco Road makes it easy with their own golf travel company (Tobacco Road Golf & Travel).  They can book your tee time, as well as plan an entire golf package to the historic Pinehurst area.