The Front Nine
The 321-yard, par-4 opening hole is a gentle warm-up for what lies ahead. Teeing from a chute of pine trees, the well-struck drive will deliver you into the meadowlands, where you will remain for the first few holes.
The 546-yard, par-5 second is framed by wetlands with panoramic views of the valley and the mountains distracting you from all three of your carefully-placed shots. If your third strike finds the small putting surface, consider your putt with deliberation—you may not have another birdie opportunity as good as this for a while.
Warm-up comes to an abrupt conclusion on the 410-yard, par-4 third, MeadowCreek's most challenging test. Uphill, playing into the prevailing wind along a right-to-left sloping fairway, this link will eventually deliver you back into the pine trees. Hot Springs Road on your left is out-of-bounds, and the small bunkered green is no easy target without a sizeable drive.
We climb to the fourth tee to reach the shortest hole on the course, a 127-yard test that features a green perched on a knoll and surrounded by pine trees. At 370 yards from the middle markers, the fifth offers more challenge than the yardage would indicate. A grassy knoll frames the drive zone to the left, otherwise pine trees are your companions on this tough par four.
Together with the 349-yard, par-4 sixth, this is the most elevated part of the property though shortly the course will return to the meadows. The graceful pine trees embrace and encase this bunkerless fairway; a green thankfully larger than the others waits at the conclusion.
Number seven falls down to the meadow from an elevated teeing ground with the last pine tree cluster of the front nine off to the right. Enjoy the stunning views after you hit your drive—another of MeadowCreek's small, elevated signature greens is your destination on this 390-yard attraction.
Make a par from all the way back on the 231-yard, par-3 eighth and you'll still have bragging rights at the turn, maybe even at the conclusion of the day. This incredible one-shotter has all the challenge most golfers require, with a pond on the right, a creek traveling through the fairway and bunkers on the left and behind the putting surface. A memorable hole and one that will nag the low handicappers until they conquer it—if they ever do.
A boomerang-shaped 507-yard, par-5 in the meadow brings you back to the clubhouse. The majestic and towering pine trees prevent corner-cutting on the ninth, but a long ball hitter who targets the far side of the fairway and turns two strokes over from right to left may be able to achieve the green with a putt for eagle. The majority of players will be content to position two carefully struck shots on the right side of the fairway, permitting a view into the green. There is reward for the risk of going for it all on number nine, but pine tree jail lurks left and right from there, two over is more likely than two under.
Grab a snack at the Osprey Poolside Snack Bar at the turn—another roller coaster ride of meadow and woods will host you on the backside.