On Saturday afternoon I headed over to the Golf Club at Champions Circle to check it out. This was one of the many good-looking public options in the Metroplex that I haven’t played yet! The afternoon turned out to be pretty memorable, as I ended up playing the front nine with an interesting mix of golfers.

For the second time this year I golfed with someone on staff at a club! In August, I played with a director of golf and on Saturday I golfed with the head professional at Champions Circle. We rode over to the first tee and actually ended up joining up with one of the collegiate players from the University of Oklahoma and Steve Johnson, who works with Hank Haney!

My handicap has ballooned the last few months (I’m looking at you bermuda grass and Texas wind) so I just tried to stay out of their way! They all possessed a long game that I can only hope for one day. Anyway, it was lots of fun to watch people play the game at a high level.

Much like the group I joined, the history of the Golf Club at Champions Circle is very unique. The course opened in 2000, but it has been through immense change. Originally, the course was called The Creeks at Beechwood. That didn’t last long and the course was re-named to Doral Tesoro Golf Club before it became the Golf Club at Champions Circle.

If you dig a little deeper you’ll find that Greg Norman designed the original course and there is an interesting rumor involved. The rumor goes like this – Norman didn’t like how difficult the course was and wanted to take his name off it. True? Who knows, but there appears to be some drama surrounding the original design. And, the course was re-designed in 2002 by Jay Morrish.

New management took over recently and after more changes (two new holes), things are starting to come together! The 11th and 15th holes – both par 3’s – were added to make way for a BigShots golf site, which is being built.

The course itself isn’t the longest around, as it maxes out at 6,487 yards (par-71). However, it still has plenty of “bite” since it plays as a par-71 with a rating of 71.9 and a slope of 135 from those tees. Bonus points if you got my reference to Greg Norman when I mentioned “bite”!

Champions Circle is routed around Elizabeth Creek and is heavily wooded on many holes. All the trees, smaller greens and some long par-4’s are going to be the course’s main defenses. Visually, it was an intimidating course to play for the first time. There are chutes to play through and while some holes open up when you get to the fairway, others don’t. Make sure to bring the straight shot when playing here!

The front nine was my favorite, as it has more of a secluded feel to it. Also, the front features the course’s signature hole – the 199 yard par-3 6th. The 6th plays downhill about a club to a green with an elevated back tier. A large bunker guards the left side while the right side feeds into a hazard.

The par-3 10th was another par-3 that I enjoyed. The 10th also plays downhill, just maybe half a club. The green sits in a small depression and is surrounded by mature trees. I think the 10th has the most charm of any hole at Champions Circle!

The conditions were very nice, although my pictures probably won’t convey that as much as I’d hope. The tees were recently scalped to prepare for the winter, rye grass overseed. The fairways provided great lies and the greens were smooth, rolling at a medium pace.

If you are in the Fort Worth area then Champions Circle is worth checking out. I enjoyed my afternoon here and always love a course with a story. The course is super convenient to the Texas Motor Speedway (across the street). So, if you are in town for a race, the course’s location will allow you the most time at the track if you also want to golf.

Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):