The Old North State Club is five stars. I still have dreams about playing this course. I grew up…read moreplaying golf here in my middle and high school years. Old North State was about a one-hour drive from our house in High Point, so a round of golf here was an all-day affair. My dad would often treat his friends to rounds here and even my mom came out and played. We'd also take relatives from out of town here, whether it be for a meal at the clubhouse or a round of golf. This place was awesome.
To date, Old North State remains one of the best-conditioned golf courses I've played on. The course conditions were better here than at a premiere bucket-list course like Pebble Beach (granted, Pebble sees way more volume). Old North State is situated on Badin Lake. It's known for having North Carolina's best finishing holes. Nos. 16-18 all border the lake. I have a framed and captioned picture of them, from the pro shop, on the wall in my office. The property itself is embedded in Uwharrie National Forest. It's really scenic and beautiful. We'd occasionally see deer on the course. I vividly recall seeing some crossing the fairway on No. 4 and seeing one moving around in the trees around 17 green and 18 tee. I also remember seeing a skunk, I think in the same area.
Old North State was designed by Tom Fazio, one of the world's greatest golf course architects. From the tips, the course is pro-length at 7,102 yards with a 75.1/143 rating/slope. My dad and I would routinely play from the whites, the distance and rating/slope of which have varied over the years. Generally, from the whites, the course measures about 6,200-6,300 yards. At 6,219 yards, the rating/slope was 70.9/132. I consider it a challenging, but fun track. If you play from the appropriate tees, this course is playable for all skill levels.
Aside from the finishing holes, several other holes have views of the lake including Nos. 2, 4, 7, 9, and 14. The greens on those holes either sit next to or are nearby the lake. The toughest hole is No. 9, a long par-4 (452 from the tips, 389 from the whites) that really tests your accuracy. My favorite holes were always the finishing holes. 16 is a difficult downhill par-4 that takes you down to the lake (amazing view). 17 is a par-3 over the lake. 18 is a curvy par-5 that runs alongside the lake; a great risk-reward hole. You can either try to take a shortcut and hit your ball over the lake or play it safe and lay-up on the fairway. My dad would often grab some old balls from his bag and we'd hit a couple off the 18th tee out into the lake just for fun.
I always looked forward to the turn and grabbing a delicious hot dog from the halfway house. I'd typically get Gatorade from the beverage cart. I once accidentally broke an iron at the driving range. Along with the range, practice facilities include a practice putting green and a practice chipping and bunker shot area. The practice bunker is big. The range has Titleist range balls laid out in pyramids for all golfers to use.
I played in a club tournament one time. I believe it was a July 4th tournament because each of us had to carry around a small American flag. Based on our handicap, we got extra strokes. I forget how the game was played exactly, but I remember I had nine strokes remaining after I finished 18 holes. That meant I could keep playing until my nine strokes were gone, so we went back to hole number one. I ended up parring the 1st (par 5) and 2nd (par 4) holes and sticking my flag in the cup on No. 2 to signify how far I'd gotten. In this particular tournament, the players who traveled the farthest won. I ended up winning. I can't remember if I finished 1st or what, but it was a lot of fun and one of the prouder moments I've had in golf.
I recall several of the employees (mainly cart attendants) attended nearby Pfeiffer University in Misenheimer.
At the time of writing this review, Old North State has hosted the Atlantic Coast Conference men's golf championship 22 out of the last 24 years, including this year (2019), and will host again next year (2020). My parents' alma mater, Wake Forest, has won 18 ACC titles and 22 individual championships. My alma mater, Georgia Tech, has won 18 ACC titles, including this year, and 15 individual championships. Wake and Tech are the two most successful schools in ACC men's golf. Go Deacs and Jackets!