I had played Indian Ridge a handful of times before launching my quest. I was glad to return and play with Paul and Colin.
Indian Ridge is an interesting course in that it has some challenging holes and shots scattered throughout the round, it offers par 5s on the 9th and 18th holes which can add to the drama of any club match or friendly wager.
Some of the shots that stand out:
The opening tee shot to a visually winding fairway framed by trees.
The approach into the third hole which can require some serious shot shaping if a player doesn't hit their tee shot in the right spot.
The second shot into the par 4 6th green which is probably the best green on the course. The green is wide and narrow, requiring a well judged wedge or short iron.
The approach into the 11th hole, a down hill shot over water to a green that slopes hard back to front. 11 is probably the best hole on the course.
The tee shot on the par 5 12th hole.
The long approach into the beastly 14th.
The short par 3 16th forces players to pick the proper short iron trajectory if the wind is up.
The greens at Indian Ridge are rather benign, we saw some tough pins on the afternoon we played, which were made tougher by high winds. There's not much wild break and they aren't too small or too large. The par 5s probably have the most challenging slopes to them.
I'd say the best stretch of golf on the course is holes 11-14. The 11th tee shot is a little wonky, but 11 is a tough hole, 12 is a solid par 5, the par 3 13th requires a solid mid-iron, and the 14th is a massive par 4.
If you can drive the ball straight and inside the tree lines, good scores are very possible. You’ll also hit nearly every club in your bag. I pulled every club at least once during my round. Which I think is a positive for any course.
I also thoroughly enjoyed the preround banter I heard on the practice green, the membership was so happy to be back and the grill room vibe after the round was also excellent.