The Hamptons Golf Course (Hampton, VA on 08/19/17)

Well, I was back at it again on Saturday! I’ve played a bunch of golf in August (still working on reviews), in quite a few directions from Charlottesville. My friends were visiting Williamsburg and my friend and I rode out to The Hamptons Golf Course to check it out. Full disclaimer, if you are in Williamsburg and looking to play there are plenty of courses to play locally without having to leave town! But, since I’ve played most of the public courses in Williamsburg we ventured towards Virginia Beach to find a new course. Basically, there is some good public golf in Williamsburg and Virginia Beach, but the golf between those two cities is more average.

An average course has never stopped me before when trying to find a new place to play, so I booked us a round at The Hamptons Golf Course! The course’s name may lead you to believe that it is found in the ultra ritzy area of New York state, but the course is in Hampton, VA. So, my Long Island golf trip is on hold for now. Hint, hint, wink, wink to anyone who stumbles on my blog! At least I feel wealthy when I say “The Hamptons”, so that may be worth something.

The Hamptons has 27 holes, all with different characteristics. The nines are the Woods, the Links, and the Lakes and we played the Woods and Links combination. I played the blue tees which are 67.4/115/5940. These nines play as a par 70 and are the ranked as the easiest combination. I hit it poorly, so like any course you still have to hit the shots if you want to score well.

I know I’m guilty of saying tree lined courses aren’t my favorite, but I really enjoyed the The Woods nine! The designer is Michael Hurdzan and I think he did a nice job. The 1st hole on the Woods is a mid length par 4 that plays into the trees, and foreshadows what is to come. As the name indicates, keeping it out of the trees is going to be the biggest challenge here, but they add plenty of charm. The trees are mature and it helps to be able to shape the ball around them.

The Woods nine is a par 35 (one par 5) and most of the holes are shorter par 4’s where you can challenge the holes with driver or lay back off the tee. If you hit a crooked one then you’ll likely be able to find the ball and get it back in play. Besides the 1st hole, the 4th and 5th are good holes. The 4th is a pretty, short iron par 3 with trees that can catch shots going at the left side of the green. The 5th is a short, dogleg left par 4 and one that you need to hit the tee shot out to the right for a clear shot at the green. My only gripe about this nine is that some power lines cut through it.

The Links nine is also true to its name, with open holes and an inland links look without any trees in play. The most common design feature used on this nine is mounding. It is also a par 35 with just one par 5 and has just as many short par 4’s! To me, the Links nine was a bit boring to play and just blended together in my mind. The standout hole here is the 3rd which is a 166 yard par 3. It plays every so slightly downhill to a green with trees behind it. The 3rd was my favorite hole that we played at The Hamptons. There are nice views of the Lakes nine from this part of the course!

The Hamptons is a municipal course so I was expecting very average maintenance, especially during the height of summer. The tees and fairways exceeded my expectations as they were full and cut short. Unfortunately, we got buckets of rain the previous night and many areas were swamp like! I definitely wouldn’t have minded playing the course when it was drier. The greens were soft and slower, typical for this time of year. There were some dirt patches around the greens and different grasses, but nothing unexpected for a muni. I think I got my money’s worth for the $31 green fee (riding).

Overall, I’d play The Hamptons a few times a year if I lived in the area. Just not after it rained! Oddly, it was a quiet morning and we trailed a foursome around the course playing in about 4 hours. Besides their group, I didn’t see many other golfers out. The nines we played are friendly to the average golfer and easy to walk. All too often I hear about how expensive golf is, and The Hamptons is proof that the game doesn’t have to be!

Woods #1 (390 yard par 4):