Strawberry Ridge - The View from the Reds

Jared's still processing his thoughts, but here's my take on Strawberry Ridge Golf Course, which we played last Saturday with my dad and sister.

I shot a 91 - which is a decent score for me this early in the season - and, more importantly, had an enjoyable Saturday. It was by far the nicest day of the year thus far ... not too hot, not too cold.

The course seems to be under construction in certain areas, but that does not take away from the scenic views. The course is set amid some of the smaller ridges of the Allegheny Mountains (thus, the "ridge" of the name...however I saw no strawberries), so there are plenty of breathtaking skyline views where green, red and orange foliage meet the bright powder blue skies and pillowy clouds.

I liked that there were no bunkers on this particular course, however that does take away some of the challenge, as there are many water hazards that reflect like a mirror the aforementioned skyline views. I also found the greens to be rather simple to gauge, and absent much variety. Putting was rather easy once I adjusted to the speed - much slower than the greens we experienced at Quicksilver.

The red tees play at 4,588 - pretty short compared to most of the courses I’ve played. However, some of the holes offered quite a formidable challenge at only 200 and 300 yards from tee to green, as many blind tee shots demanded that the drive to carry over ravines and play toward the high side of sloped fairways.

For me, this was a great course to play at the beginning of the season. The lack of bunkers, short distance and relatively flat greens allowed me to focus on strengthening some of my weaknesses in my game without many course obstacles.