Starr Hollow - Texas - USA

Last summer over the July 4th holiday week, I got the chance to play Starr Hollow thanks to a family friend of my brother's family from Ft Worth. We were staying down at Lake Granbury so the drive wasn't even too far. Starr Hollow is located on a ranch outside of Tolar, TX. After reading about this property, I was so excited to play it. The member we played with said that there are only about 200 current members and not that many of them play the course frequently. The day we played there was one other twosome on the course. The course itself is nine holes and was designed by Joe Finger for Marvin Leonard who was also that brains behind Colonial and Shady Oaks. There are two pins on each green, one being the state of Texas flag and the other being the US flag. This is so you can play a whole round of 18 to different pin locations and the tee boxes from the front and the back are setup differently as well.

The conditioning of the course was perfect. There is so little play that there aren't divots in the fairways or ball marks on the greens. The design honestly felt similar to a lot of the holes at Colonial, tree lined and you can get in trouble from the tee if you are either to aggressive or you are hitting it sideways. After the round, we had burgers in the clubhouse which is very small and modest while truly making you feel like you are on a ranch in Texas. The burger were made from the actual Black Angus cows that are raised on the property and they were so good.

Throughout the small clubhouse are pictures of Hogan, Crenshaw, Geroge W, and other celebrities who have played the course. They also have a large lake on the property that is famous for its large bass, however, you have to be a member to be lucky enough to take your chance at a trophy bass.

I will never forget the experience I had at Starr Hollow and the serenity and the remoteness of this golf course make it special. It was so quiet, you could hear yourself breathing. If you ever have the chance to play it, take advantage of it. They do occasionally have charity scrambles and other things of that nature so it would be worth the trip.