I thought I would have a computer at the motel, but didn't. So I didn't see your replies until after my drive home from KC.
Pretty much stuck to the plan. Played Shawnee Mission on Monday morning. Not a bad course; better than I expected. The holes made pretty good use of the sparse trees out there. Loved hole 7. I think the tee recently moved on this one making it shorter, so I never played the longer version, which was probably a legit par 3.5 or 4. What I liked about this hole was how the low hanging trees on the right side of the green blocked all but the perfectly executed low skip shots. You had to go around to the left. The fairway on the high side, which was harder to hit, was the sweet spot of the fairway and rewarded the player with a much easier 2nd shot. Also liked 9 & 12 & a few others. I don't think all the shots are the same out there, but there are many types of holes that weren't used. No dog legs, no par 4's (9 was close, at least par 3.5), not many high route shots. Perhaps more rough in play and pins closer to the trees/ rough areas would have given the course less of the open feel. Overall pretty enjoyable; loved the rolling hills and scenic feel to the park. The worst thing about the course was easily the tees. Muddy on a slope: every single ones of these was a big safety hazard. You couldn't throw on them without seriously risking a fall. Concrete would be very nice, but even some gravel would help tons.
Got a couple of rounds in at the WW. Love hole #1! #12's new placement to the left is pretty crazy. I don't remember the straight route being that open. The lefty shot, and less so, the righty shot through the straight gap make this one easier. But it isn't too easy! I sailed one straight past the pin and couldn't get back up the hill for the par. The OB street is lurking on the left...
Today, after endless hours at the Neb Furny-Mart, I headed up to Leavenworth to try to play before the sun set. I missed the turn for the campus, even with carefully written instructions printed. I didn't have time to turn back and hit Atchison so I kept going.
Ended up getting all 27 in at Atchison in less than 90 minutes. Not a flat hole on either course! The wind was howling out of the North this afternoon at 20+mph pretty steady. The view from the top of the 9 holer was killer. The Missouri River is just huge and the wind blowing up this cliff and through the trees was making some incredible noise.
I couldn't remember if the park road (and across) was OB or not. It comes into play on a good number of holes and would change up the hole strategy if it is OB. Like SMP, this course had dangerous tees. Not quite as muddy, but more sloped. Concrete tees will be really nice. On the 18 holer, the course starts out with 7 short holes. The downhill headwind shots were perfect for the pro pig. If the road is OB, you need some serious brakes. Holes 1 & 4, you can't see the basket and you may throw to the wrong one if you don't run up and look. Hole 8 was AWESOME! Downhill 520' shot down the park road with trees on both sides. With a big drive, this is 2-able, but leave the fairway (difficult not to) and kiss a 3 goodbye. Very cool feel to this beauty of a hole. Hole 10 & 11 played along the side of a hill and were pretty tough. The baskets for 12 & 16 were a little too close together for tourney play. Hole 15 & 18 were simple throw over the gulley shots, though 18 was a little too long. Hole 17 was a tough left turning hole with woods and downhill to the left the whole way. If the road to the right is OB, this would be crazy-tough for lefty. Both courses seem to be pretty righty favored. If any hole did favor lefty, righty had decent options.
The 9 holer didn't have a distinctly different flavor, perhaps a little longer on average and it's on a hill that's higher and even more steep. North wind was crazy today and I'm sure the course usually plays much differently with the South wind. Again, with the surrounding road OB, this one is going to play noticeable tougher. The elevation changes were a ton of fun. Some holes were too open, but the wind made it plenty interesting. Signs were good: accurate distances and easy to see from a distance, though I was often trying for a double eagle on 340' marked par "5's". Great park and worth playing!
By the way, I never found TJ!
