One of my friends has a place at The Woods Resort and has invited me up the last few years to play some golf in the area. I think I’ve played Stony Lick a half dozen times now and wanted to update my review and add some fresh pictures. It feels a little weird posting a review after playing a course so many times, ha!

There are two courses at The Woods, one is a regulation course (Mountain View) and the other is a mid-length, par-62 course (Stony Lick). While Mountain View is the place to check out your first time here, Stony Lick shouldn’t be overlooked on future trips. I have found Stony Lick to be a lot of fun – especially the par-3’s!

Stony Lick only plays 3700 yards with a rating of 59.9 and slope of 97 from the white tees, where we normally play. It can play as short as 3018 yards from the gold tees. The course is made up of ten par-3’s and eight par-4’s. The par-3’s range from 113 to 176 yards while the par-4’s play between 222 and 330 yards. The collection of par-3’s are my favorite here and make Stony Lick worth playing, at least in my opinion!

The 1st, 6th and 16th are fun-to-play par-3’s. The 1st drops at least a club downhill and is my favorite hole on Stony Lick. It is tough to club so I rarely hit the green so early in the round! It has the “The Woods” spelled out behind the green which adds a nice touch.

The 6th is super narrow and forces you to hit a short iron between a hillside and a creek, where the green is located. Somehow, I’ve ended up bouncing a couple shots off the hillside and onto the green! The 16th is only 113 yards but it is also downhill and the green is tiny (think temporary size)! The green has a lower back portion that can catch misses long and even chips and putts can end up down there.

I’ll admit the par-4’s here aren’t my favorites because position seems to be rewarded more than power. For multiple reasons (the location of trees and water) the shorter par-4’s cannot be easily driven, except for maybe the 9th. The 9th offers some risk/reward for those who can carry the ball just over 200 yards! A pond is short of the green and can catch a second shot, or a drive, if you try for the eagle putt.

I won’t say Stony Lick is easy, because it isn’t. In fact, I probably end up shooting above my handicap more often than below it here. There is quite a bit of trouble if you start spraying it as much of the course plays through a small valley and next to a creek. And, not hitting greens on Stony Lick can be common because the greens are smaller.

The conditions on Stony Lick are usually above average. The greens are normally the best part of the maintenance as they always roll well. Depending on the season the fairways and tees can get that summer look, but the turf is maintained well. I’ve paid between $30 and $40 to play here (riding) and I think that is a fair price.

My course preference goes in cycles here at The Woods. Some trips I want to take it slower and try to hit some good irons. If that is the case then Stony Lick is my choice. Other times I want to hit driver so I’ll lean towards Mountain View. Either way I enjoy getting out to golf with my friend here at The Woods!

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