Speidel at Oglebay (Palmer) - West Virginia - USA

Credit West Virginia for a superb park complex at Oglebay. The terrain is very appealing and there's plenty of golf provided. Sad to say, only the Robert Trent Jones, Sr. layout, which opened in 1969, is truly worthwhile.

The Arnold Palmer course that opened in 2000 is not especially long -- under 6,800 yards from the tips. The layout is located on rolling terrain and there's enough hole diversity to keep things interesting for the person who wants to enjoy oneself in the great outdoors the experience will clearly do just that.

But, for those who value a rich diversity of holes and having interesting features that really propel the interest to a fever pitch you'll likely be disappointed.

The main deficiency is that the design is simply unimaginative -- been done countless times previously from the Palmer team. Having played a wide array of Palmer courses it is disappointing that a man who prided himself in being a bold player his design career is centered around producing far too many vanilla designs.

The stretch of holes from the 7th thru the 13th is quite entertaining and has a series of key shots one must execute to score well. Suffice to say, a golf experience of note must have more than just a handful of holes that really cause the pulse to speed up.

As a side note -- be sure to stop by and see the old-time driving range and par-3 course. Both are fine stops when coming to Oglebay.

M. James Ward