Course 153: Woodland GC

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Woodland Golf Club exceeded my expectations. This course sometimes lives in the shadow of nearby courses like Brae Burn, Charles River, and The Country Club. However, Woodland is an old-school charmer.

The rhythm of the round made it a course I could play everyday. The slow build through the opening 5 holes, followed by the turning of the screws over the next nine holes, and culminating in a slow descent, made for a lovely walk.

The course is split between two sides of the Green Line, holes 1-3 and 15-18 on one side, and 4-14 on the other side.

The course is playable for various skill levels, even as a championship-level course. There are not a lot of places to lose balls. There's a nice mix of greens - some receive balls along the ground, and others make players fly a bunker or other hazard.

The standout holes were the 6th, 8th, and 14th.

The 6th feels like the start of the test, the warm-up is done - it's time to hit some shots. It climbs slowly to a green protected by a bunker that wraps around the right side of the green to keep balls from tumbling down a steep slope. A false front rejects shots that come up just short.

The 8th is a brute. An accurate tee shot to avoid the left trees is vital, and the green is super. It's not a punchbowl, but a ridge runs along the edge of the green to catch shots from the fairway as most players are hitting mid or long irons uphill to the green for their approach.

The 14th tee shot makes you think. A newly shaped fairway bunker creeps in from the right. Challenging it can bring in quite a bit of trouble, and playing away from it can bring in a berm that meanders through the middle of the property.

The par 3s are a good set. There are only 3 of them, an interesting quirk. The 4th is a short iron, the 13th is a mid-iron, and the 15th is a long iron. The 15th is the crescendo of the round. A tough green has a yawning front so players can roll long shots onto the green, but the green is tough to putt.

The final three holes slowly release the pressure of the tough middle stretch. They finish in the shadow of a regal clubhouse. WGC is a must play.

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