Warren Golf Course (Blues)
6744 yards – 71.5 Rating – 128 Slope – 82 Score
Day 36; May 26th, 2017
Something to get out of the way quickly. The course at Warren is not currently “complete.” As it set up for me the course played to a 70 (usually a 71) because the par 4 18th was actually a par 3 due to prolonged flooding. The flood damage was extensive enough to require re-sodding of the bulk of the fairway; this process is currently underway. To be clear, this did not ruin a very nice round on a lovely course.
Beyond that I really enjoyed my morning at Warren. The front nine start things off in a fairly straight forward manner; although the fairway bunkering and narrow landing area for any shot under 200 yards on the first hole give you something to think about right out of the gate.
I found the fairways pretty open and hittable off the tee’s (which is not the exact same thing I saying I personally hit them all), there is also not a lot of danger off the tee for slightly wayward shots (this I did have a bit more experience with). Warren gets tougher as you approach the greens though with fairly small and well protected targets on almost every hole.
While it takes a good shot to get on; however, the course will not over penalize you for being close. The bunkers and greenside rough are very playable and I was able to get up and down from around the green multiple times. The biggest investment is in lateral protection as most greens have either a bunker of other form of natural hazard on both sides of the green, straight shots that are a little short tend to have a decent chance of rolling onto the green safely. It’s also worth noting that despite the fairly generous landing areas off the tee, because the greens are small and well protected, if you want to score well you will need to position your drive in such a way to give yourself a good angle into the green.
All in all, the course design is quite solid; built to allow mid to high handicappers to enjoy their round while still providing a solid challenge for anyone wanting to make a run at par. All in all Warren shouldn’t ruin anyone’s day; but it won’t make your week unless you shoot well the whole way, tee to green.
As I mentioned above, the front nine is pretty straight forward. The back nine has a little more stuff to it with a few meaningful encounters with water carries (especially when 18 gets back to full strength) and just a little more to think about as you go. Number 16 was probably my favorite as, while a bit short at 345 from the back, there was plenty to make your way through on the hole. A creek runs diagonally across the fairway (getting longer the further right you go), while the landing area on the left is littered with bunkers. There is also a small (but very findable, just ask me) pot bunker right in front of the green making this hole one of the few that puts up much resistance to a straight forward approach.
Pace of play was great for me, although I was just the second to go. The group in front of me was three strong and they managed to keep a good pace to the point that, playing as a single, I didn’t have to wait for them on any holes (I did, of course, have the disadvantage of having to capture pictures for the book along the way). The groups behind us came in promptly as well, so it appears that pace of play was fine through the first several groups at any rate.
The staff at Warren was fantastic, I can’t say enough about the starter. He walked me through almost every noteworthy turn on the course before I began and also quizzed me on my round after, wanting to make sure my experience was everything I expected.
I’d be delighted to get back to South Bend and play this course again, and I’d recommend the same for anyone else who gets the chance.