I've played Pheasant Run a number of years ago, and happened to get some GroupGolfer coupons to try…read moreit again.
The layout on the North/South is very good, and while cut through a sub division, the housing is far enough away from everything that you don't really take notice.
However, this time we played the West/North, which was a first for me. I'm a straight hitter, but just don't like the look of housing this close to the course. The main issue with this layout, however, is the fairway position relative to the OB. On several holes, the play is to aim in the rough, which is essentially the "center line" between the right and left OB stakes. I'm thinking specifically of holes 20-22, but there were a couple of others as well.
The other goofy hole is #24, with the giant tree in the middle of the fairway. I know designers think they are being "clever" when doing this, but it offers zero value to the course. The hole is decent enough without the tree: A short 4 with a relatively difficult approach shot to an uphill shallowish green.
The other oddity of the West course is the tee box length compared to the North and South. We ended up mixing it up, playing the White on the West (which was a bit short), and black on the North. The white on the west is only 3022, but the next tees back are 3377. Seems strange when the North Black is 3181.
The other disappointing aspect were the greens, but I'm going to mostly give a pass on this visit because we just had a monsoon in the prior week. It's pretty clear this course floods out, as many low lying areas had evidence of flooding, and actually smelled pretty bad.
Also little disappointing that the grille wasn't open past 5pm on a Saturday! Our group was ready to drop another $100-150 on dinner, so we went to Applebee's about 3 miles away instead.
I read issues about pace of play, but our round was 4:15, which was just fine considering the amount of travel between holes (especially on the West). We had a 6-some in front of us, but they were playing a 2-team 3-man bachelor party scramble. They actually moved along quite well, and kept up with the foursome in front of them, so no worries there.
On a side note, the cart paths need some TLC, they are kidney busters, and the carts are in really bad shape. We had one with a torn seat, worn brakes (had to crunch down on the pedal!) and the motor sounded like it was about to blow on any hole.
Our GroupGolfer coupon was only $32, which certainly is a good deal on a weekend. I don't think I would pay over $50 for this course, however, unless their greens improve. I would also stay away from the West course and play north/south if I get back here.