Bristow Manor Golf Club (Bristow, VA on 05/26/18)

One of the things I’ve wanted to do this year is to play more courses in Virginia. So, on Saturday I headed up to Northern Virginia to check out Bristow Manor and then a nine hole course after that.

I booked a 12:57pm tee time on Golfnow for about $40, which is as good of a deal as I’ve seen here. The normal weekend rate is $65, but it drops to $49 if you waited until after 1pm. Those rates aren’t all that bad for Northern Virginia, especially when you consider the condition that Bristow Manor was in! Nonetheless, May tends to be one of the best months to golf in Virginia when it comes to conditions. More on that in a few paragraphs though.

I stretched, hit some chips and rolled a few putts since I was about a half hour early. The proshop was clear that because I had the discounted time, I wouldn’t be able to go out early – even though I never asked or hinted about that! I waited until it was time, then found my group near the first tee and we began the round at Bristow Manor. We played the gold tees which are 72.5/139/6760. It turned out to be a very quiet holiday weekend and it felt like we had the course to ourselves! We played at a comfortable four hour pace.

The night before I reviewed the satellite image of the course and could tell that the main topographical feature was a creek that cut through one of the nines. As it turns out, that nine is the front nine! The back nine has its share of forced carries but isn’t as much target golf, at least when it comes to distances. Overall, Bristow Manor has a wetlands look to it with hazard after hazard in play and very few trees. When I think back through the round there are probably a dozen shots with forced carries, so it isn’t a place for beginners! The design is a little peculiar and one that I can see being frustrating to play. But, somehow I ended up enjoying the design quite a bit!

Bristow Manor opens with one of the easiest holes on the course, a short par-4 where you can get loose. That is something I wish more designers would do, start it off with a wide open par-4 where you can have a short iron approach! Then, you start getting into forced carries over hazards on the remainder of the front nine. The 3rd is a 162 yard par-3 over water that is pretty as can be! It is the best par-3 on the course and a fun hole.

The creek crosses the 4th through the 9th, but if you can get the ball in the air the main worry will be driving it through the fairways. You’ll likely have to lay up from the tee on both par 5’s (the 4th and 6th) and possibly the 7th and 9th, depending on how far you drive it. It was a little frustrating but considering the land that the designer had, I think he made good use of it.

Besides the 3rd, the 7th is the other notable hole on the front nine. At 455 yards, it is the longest par-4 on the course. It doglegs right around a hazard with dense vegetation lurking on the left. The way the fairway angles you can easily hit it through the fairway or not clear the water, depending on the line you pick. It is the #1 handicap for good reason, although I think it is a bit much. If you ask me, that portion of the course would have made for a great, driveable par-4.

The back nine still has fairways that run out, but most of those fairways run out into rough rather than water. The only holes you need to be careful hitting it too far on are the par-5 16th and par-4 18th. If you can carve a drive into the fairway on the 16th then you could get home in two. But if you miss it left then you’ll have to negotiate a small creek on the layup. Besides the 7th, the 18th is the other bizarre hole at Bristow Manor. It is 419 yards but the fairway runs out around 230 yards. I hit my hybrid just through the fairway and had a tough angle to a green that is guarded by water on the left.

Ken Killian is the course’s designer and this is the first that I’ve heard his name. Most of his work appears to be in the Midwest, and I wouldn’t mind playing some of his courses where the land was more suitable to golf, as he did a lot to make Bristow Manor playable. While there are forced layups and forced carries, there is a lot of room from side to side at Bristow Manor. It is only “target golf” in the sense that you have to hit it certain distances. Even though I wasn’t always hitting driver, the holes fit my eye as I wasn’t trying to guide the ball. In a state with so many trees, Bristow Manor offers a nice, open look.

The conditions were very nice, and a bargain for the green fee in Northern Virginia. The greens are bentgrass and rolled well. They were full, just slower than they looked. Our group made very few putts over five feet as putts seemed to fall one way or the other in a subtle way. The fairways are unique in that they are zoysia, so the ball always sat up. Some sections look to have had a tough winter but nothing that couldn’t be overlooked for the price. The extra long and thick rough was my only complaint! I couldn’t get more than 7 iron on the ball from the rough and greenside, I was baffled as to how to get the right distance on my chips.

Bristow Manor turned out to be one of those courses that I didn’t think I’d like. But, at least generally speaking, I enjoyed it. Like most modern courses, it is borderline too difficult for most amateur golfers but in the world of Virginia golf, the course is different. And, I think being different made me like it.

#1 (347 yard par 4):