Playing Achasta was an incredible experience. The clubhouse was nice, the staff helpful, and the practice area was well supplied and beautiful. The course is very well maintained with smooth rolling greens and manicured fairways. The track is challenging but fair and the setting is relaxing. All told, a great golfing experience. read more

Achasta - Approach to back 9 par 5 - Golf Near Me - Dahlonega, Georgia

Achasta is a tough course for me to rate. Like many courses in Georgia (https://bit.ly/3OtHDQZ) and beyond, this is a golf course and country club that looks like it's seen better days. Achasta opened in 2000, during the American golf boom. Despite the resurgence in rounds booked thanks to COVID, many courses just aren't what they used to be. I think Achasta falls in that category. Based on what I've heard and read, I hold Achasta to a higher standard. It's semi-private, co-designed by Jack Nicklaus (marketed as a "Jack Nicklaus Signature" course), and has been the site of qualifiers for the US Open, Georgia State Amateur, Georgia State Mid-Amateur, and the PGA Tour's old AT&T and BellSouth Classic tournaments. Impressive. When we played (2022), the Friday-Sunday rate was $90, slightly above average for a daily fee course, but not high-end either. I called the golf shop to book. I believe it's the only way you can book. They don't appear to do online tee times. I was told non-members, a.k.a. the public, could book weekend tee times beginning at 12pm. Twilight rates ($74) started at 3pm. Unlike some courses, booking our tee time at Achasta was simple. All they asked for was my name and number of golfers. I don't recall them asking for my phone number and they didn't ask for a card number to hold the reservation or anything like that. As a non-member, the furthest in advance I was able to book was seven days out. I made it a point to call around 8am on a Saturday morning to get on the tee sheet for the following Saturday afternoon. It sounded like the afternoon was wide open. I put us down for 2pm and we ended up being one of the last groups to finish that day, shortly after 6pm. Great pace of play. We had a foursome too. The foursome ahead of us let us pass at the 14th tee and we let a twosome pass us after we teed off on 15. We never saw a starter nor ranger. For the booking, I spoke with Austin. He was very nice and polite. The fellow who checked me in was friendly as well. The cart girl was nice, but we only saw her once, after we finished the 3rd hole. She said it was her last round. To me, that meant there weren't enough golfers on the course in the afternoon to make it worth her being out there. Also, the clubhouse restaurant, bar and grill was closed for a wedding reception that evening. There was a sign at the bar that said: "We cannot fill coolers with ice until further notice. Our ice machine is not working. Sorry for any inconvenience." When I left the clubhouse just before 6:30pm, it was arranged for the reception. The DJ booth was set up and there were fans all over the place. I think the air conditioning was broken. Yikes. The cooler on our cart didn't have a lid. Not that a cooler without ice was much use to begin with. Our cart didn't have a GPS device either. The other twosome in our group had a lid on their cooler and a GPS device. Our foursome wasn't given any attention by the cart attendants upon our arrival at the bag drop nor cart staging area. Preference appeared to be given to the members. The members I saw were older and more elderly/retirees. They were on average older than what I typically see. The Yamaha golf carts were old and beat up. The Achasta sticker logos and front of the carts were scuffed and scratched. The golf bag covers on the back of the carts had Reunion logos on them, making me think perhaps the fleet was "handed down" from Reunion Country Club in Hoschton: https://bit.ly/3QXZAJl. Curious. Complimentary Achasta logo tees and a compressed air blower/shoe cleaner were plusses. The hole makers were mostly in good condition, but there were no ball washers (probably a holdover from COVID) and no water coolers. The flags were weathered and worn out. Men's and women's restrooms are located at 8 and 14 tees. As for the course itself, when I called the golf shop two weeks before we played, I asked when the greens were last aerated. They told me they punched their greens nine weeks ago (11 weeks by the time we played) and the greens were in "great shape." When we played, the greens definitely had holes in them and were bumpy. However, it wasn't full-on aeration and sand (topdressing). The tines were smaller. Still, a little disappointing, especially since I had asked. Overall, I thought the course conditions were good, but not great. The course has several large bunkers and they were in good shape, which I appreciated. The tee boxes were hit or miss. Some looked fine while others (e.g., 3 white, 18 blue) looked awful with lots of sand and/or weeds. The fairways were satisfactory. Aside from the aeration, 11 green had a large "gash" on the front half. I really liked the layout with scenic views of the hills and the Chestatee River. This course has several relatively big (and loud) bridges. At $90 though, our group agreed that the value wasn't there for what we experienced. It was more comparable to a $60-80 suburban metro Atlanta course experience. read more

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Golf course was beautiful. Jack Nicklaus did a great job and is very challenging. The river and lakes with well placed bunkers will challenge you and your game. read more

The course itself is very aesthetically pleasing. It's also fairly difficult as well yet will still appeal to even below average golfers. I would consider the overall quality of the greens and fairways to be above average and well maintained. Seeing that this is the only golf course in town it's reasonable to assume that prices will be slightly higher and believe me it was. For 83$ a person you would think the course would be nicer than it is. I had a good time though and if I come back to this town I certainly will look forward to playing it again(although my wallet won't). read more

We scheduled a rehearsal dinner for a wedding and it was canceled 6 days prior to the Wedding. No really good reason. They had an event and couldn't accommodate us. The kids had already been to a food tasting and the deposit was paid. If you schedule a rehearsal dinner here. You might want to have a back up plan. read more

Excellent course, reasonable greens fees, manicured greens well managed and well maintained. Plays short enough to get around before lunch and long enough to still be challenging. Remarkably flat for being in the mountains. Resort amenities and country club feel to the place. Luxury homes surround the area but do not intrude. Pro shop has it all. It's a good golf course the duffer or the low handicapper will enjoy playing. read more

If you want to find a good golf course: find out where PGA events hold Monday Qualifying. Those courses will be solid. They try to weed out people with the great stuff, like this place, before the Event. And those courses will be better than what most people think is "great". And if you want to get that course in great shape, play it on a Tuesday right after the Monday Q when they still have the grass still pro short and the cups still painted white (the upper lips why you can see it on TV.) This is the best golf course in Georgia. Better than Augusta National, East Lake, and go on down the line, etc; but when you reach that last par 5. That second shot requires a Bruce Dern smile. read more

I played golf yesterday morning, course was very scenic and challenging (Jack Nicklaus designed course). You cross the river multiple times and water in play on many holes. Houses on the course are interesting built into the hills. The reason for the one star is the condition of the course. It was awful and impacted play on many holes. My golf partner slipped on the mud in the "fairway" on 18. There was zero grass and multiple holes had similar issues. Course was cart path only on EVERY HOLE! I got it once you see how bad and wet it was out there. Even the gusty wind on the last three holes couldn't dry up the mud. Fee was $88 to play, not worth the money. The pro shop should have told us the condition or discounted the greens fee. However, we were not informed and feel betrayed. After the round my buddies went in to talk about how bad it was and golf pro said it rained a lot here last night. That was his excuse for the shape of the course. He was combative and rude, finally gave us his card and said to email him next time we come up and he'll see what he can do. We didn't believe the mud was from one night, confirmed by one of the gentlemen cleaning clubs. He confirmed its been bad for awhile. How a course this nice didn't build drainage with all the hills running down onto the course is beyond me. I'll never make the hour plus ride from Atlanta again and will tell everyone the same thing. If you dare play in the next month, bring your towel in your pocket, expect to get mud everywhere and watch your step. Bad customer service, hope they read this so it helps a few other golfers. read more

Only allows for guest to play after 3pm. Also you can not make a make a tee time until 7days in advance...... Not a good look Achasta.

Played here for the first time on Saturday, May 1, 2021. Had heard good things over the years and based on the cost to play here assumed it would be top notch. The course layout is fine with the exception of two par 5s that offer no yardages to 40+ yd wide river chasms protecting greens but the course was not in good shape. Some of the tee boxes were awful, more sand than grass. The fairways were hard as concrete and there were many rough areas that hadn't been mown in weeks. I know there had been ample recent rainfall so I'm not sure why the course was in this shape. The practice area was great but it obviously had been meticulously maintained and one wonders why this same attention to detail wasn't given to the course itself. When I have to pay $85 to play golf, I expect to get great value for my $ and this experience fell short. read more

Spent 2 days here as a guest. Absolutely beautiful and the staff was awesome.

Let me start by saying that I love the course. Always in great shape. Greens are always fair and roll true. I make the hour + drive from atlanta 4-6 times a year just to play and have never had a bad experience. This last time I was there was different. First , I am a member of the GCSAA. for those who don't know what that is , it is the golf course superintendent association of America. I am a member because the company I own does work on golf courses. I have never played at a course where they have not taken care of their own. Achasta has always taken care of me when I play there. Members usually pay a discounted rate. This last time unfortunately they said they are no longer members of the GCSAA and do not recognize my membership. Paid full price for the round and really , that is not a big deal. Just the tip of the iceberg. My beef is really with the club and how it is being run. For the nearly $100 green fee you would expect some decent customer service. I have never showed up and not hade someone handle my bag for me. Pull it out of the truck , load the cart , etc. I'm not lazy but it is the little things that set courses apart. Well , I guess they are cutting costs here because there is nobody to help with this. Kind of weird considering there were 7 servers/ bartenders in the restaurant and only one family eating. My other issue was the turn. We wrap up 9 and come to the turn to gab a bite and keep moving. I ask the bartender for a hot dog. She said they don't have hot dogs. They used to. Not sure where the hot dog machine went but no big deal. I'll take a sandwich. Nope nothing like that. I said , how about something quick to get in my stomach. She says , I can get you a salad. A salad? Really? I grabbed some peanut m&ms and moved on. It is a golf course. People will be there for roughly 4-5 hours. I'm not there for a sit down meal, I'm here to play golf. If you can not accommodate your guests then you will loose business. Again , the course is in great shape. If you are in the area it is a great course but bring a snack and don't expect any real customer service. I heard they have new management / ownership. I will give it one more try but if things don't change I might forego the hour + drive for somewhere else. read more

My family spent the day golfing on this amazing course and had a wonderful time! The staff was great, the fairways were green and lush and well kept. My husband shot his PB with his father. Thanks for a great day! read more

The National Collegiate Club Golf Association hosted our 2014 Spring Regional Tournament here on March 1st and 2nd. The course was impeccable. The greens had great speed and the course was very fair. The staff accommodated all our college students with carts, food, drinks, and the coordinator running the event. All the players this past weekend loved the course. Everyone would definitely go back. The NCCGA is a great organization which hosts competitive club golf tournaments for college students around the country. read more

We just moved from Virginia Beach and I was a member at a Palmer Signature Course there. I've played a lot of premier courses in the states (Torrey, Pebble, Sawgrass, etc... and I have never payed $25.00 to hit range balls IN MY LIFE, until today. We are renting here while we decide where we are going to live and I heard this was a nice course, so I played it a couple times and am playing other various courses over the next nine months to see which course we will become members at. The course is nice but it does retain water, which isn't good, but I wonder if the course will be able to sustain itself. It just got taken out of receivership and the new owners may not be able to comprehend there need to be changes to make the course MORE amenable to more players, not less. It's hard to put down roots where the course may not be in business in a couple years. $25.00 to hit balls is IDIOTIC. I don't care if you can hit balls all day (who does that anyway?) read more

My husband and I are close to retiring and had considered Achasta for purchasing a house in a golfing community. We visited last year when Birch Realty was housed at the front gate. It appears they are no longer there. It appears they have been replaced by another realty company, Peach Realty (?). The golf course was at one time meticulously cared for. But it appears that has also changed for the worse given online comments I have read from other golfers. I have been looking at homes for sale in Achasta and the associated property taxes. The prices seem particularly high given the number of foreclosures, those selling for "below appraised value" and the terribly high property taxes assessed. I am so disappointed in what I have been seeing and reading. Pictures of houses on the new realty web site are sometimes what you would call "spec" houses since they have not been built. With the economy doing so well, what exactly could be happening with the housing market and golfing at Achasta ? If we were to buy a house in Achasta would we be paying too much and doomed to lose money upon reselling ... read more

Played a couple weeks ago and was impressed with the course conditions, especially considering the weather and small staff they appear to have. Many of the curbs were edged, along with clean cart paths and freshly blown short grass. As a class A superintendent for over a decade, I know what it takes to keep a course appealing to the eye and also fun and challenging to play. The guys here are doing a good job! The reason for the low score comes from my time in the dining room eating lunch. We sat near two employees, one I believe was some kind of mechanic and the other I believe was a previous employee. I normally don't listen to others conversations, but these two were totally bad mouthing the entire operation. It wouldn't have been so bad, however neither one had a clue about what they were speaking about. If either one of the gentleman I over heard have anything to do with the agronomy side of this club, it is Doomed. Teamwork and cohesion between all levels of your staff is what makes courses great. It appears Achasta has a cancer growing in their maintenance department. Get rid of those cancers and I feel it will benefit the entire course. I know I could never work around coworkers like these two. On the other hand, the wait staff and food was excellent. Our waitress was witty and prompt, not to mention easy on the eyes. I will definitely play here again this summer if not just to see how this place looks during the growing season. R.C. read more