Langdon Farms Golf Club

Golf Course Description

The land for this links-style course was formally the farm of the Langdon family, so the terrain was void of trees and fairly level. The designers, however, have moved a lot of dirt, providing mounds on the sides of each fairway, which not only throw all stray balls towards the center but also hide the adjoining fairways from each other.Most of the greens are elevated on at least one or two sides, resulting in large collection areas at the base of the greens. These areas provide for a substantial challenge in chipping the ball up to the green and stopping it near the pin.Another unique feature of the course, adding to the difficulty around the greens, is an apron in front of the greens. This is an area similar to the collection areas, except they are level with the fairway, with the grass, again, cut very short. When you see these areas from back in the fairway, it appears that they are part of the green, giving you the impression that the green is much larger than it really is. The greens are undulating, mostly large and tough to read. Several greens are tiered and some have a ridge in the center, with the back of the green sloping downhill away from you. A good example of this is hole #4. The scorecard has a diagram of each hole plus a detailed description of the hole and how to play it.Sand bunkers make up a very important part of the design and they come in multiple shapes and depths. There are bunkers with multiple fingers, like on hole #11, some that are built into the mounds on the fairways, like on hole #16, and other deep, grave-like bunkers, such as hole #14. The signature hole is hole #8, a 464-yard, par 4, which is also the number one handicap hole. The charm of this hole is the original barn of the Langdon Farms, circa 1918. The barn is considered part of the hole design so you need to stay to the right side of the fairway in order to avoid it.Water hazards (two ponds and a creek) come into play on four holes. The restaurant and pro shop are housed in a newly-built red barn. One of the outstanding features of the facility is a nine-hole putting green, complete with sand bunkers. The club has done a great job of keeping the farm theme throughout the club. For example, the snack bar is the feed store, the cart barn is the cart coral, the covered driving range is the stables, and a street you cross to get to some of the holes is a farmers’ crossing. The practice range includes twenty-eight covered and lighted teaching stalls.