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Linville Falls Mountain Club & Preserve Open to the Public – For now!

Linville Falls Mountain Club & Preserve Open to the Public – For now!

“The club is on the most gorgeous piece of property I have ever seen. I believe everyone, not just pros, should be able to enjoy the course.”

That quote was said by none other than golfing great Lee Trevino, when he was orginally commissioned to design the course in 1995. Formerly named The Blue Ridge Country Club, it gained popularity and was seemingly on its way to huge fame and fortune with numerous, upscale homes dotting the landscape.

Then in 2004 Hurricanes Ivan and Jeanne had other ideas. The powerful remnants of both hurricanes hit back-to-back within 10 days. Ivan dumped more than 8″ of rain and Jeanne came in right behind that and dropped another 6” and the streams running through the golf course simply couldn’t hold the roaring torrents of water back.

More than half of the golf course was destroyed as large pockets of rock and boulders were deposited streamside onto the fairways. Greens were buried under earth that had been
re-formed by the rains and roaring rapids.

A couple of years passed and locals (and those who passed by on their way to North Carolina’s High Country area) began to notice some signs of restoration. The two-plus year restoration process was started and the surrounding mountain range was acquired to create a private mountain golf course community. …or at least that was the plan. Their own website reads “The course is ready to reopen this fall (2008) as a private showpiece for members and residents only.”

However, we all are aware of how bad the real estate market has been in the recent economy. Linville Falls Mountain Club & Preserve is marketed by Coastal Ventures Group II, LLC and they recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. For that and other reasons, they have made the decision
to allow for public play. Their financial loss is the public’s gain.

If you played the old Blue Ridge Country Club course, you’ll certainly recognize a lot of the terrain. However, they have restored the course with new fairways, new greens and tee boxes, redesigned tree-line and rough, new bridges and cart paths, and redesigned sand traps. They have a new practice area and over one mile of beautifully restored headwaters.

The headwaters of the Catawba River flow directly through the property and the new “green” development takes advantage of the sights and sounds of Class-A trout water. Surrounded by
mountains and rolling landscapes, the course provides elevated tee boxes and open fairways without steep mountain-golf grades.

Our foursome played the course on Friday, May 23rd and found it to be in VERY nice shape. Let’s get the very few negatives out of the way: The course lacks some much needed signage to get golfers going to the right place to begin play. If you played the old course, they have flipped the course – the back nine is now the front and they have yet to make that change on their scorecard. The lack of signage leaves you wondering where to go next at a couple of spots on the course.

Other than those very minor critiques we highly recommend that you consider Linville Falls Mountain Club as a MUST PLAY on your trips to the area.

The fairways are superb and although the greens had been recently aerated they were in great shape. The course plays at around 6900 yards from the championship tees and 6421 yards +/-
from the blue tees that we played.

The course plays pretty easy overall with two nice shots getting you to most of the greens. They reward good tee shots and much like some of the better known courses played by the pros, they punish you for errant shots. The first cut of rough on this particular day was thick and just past that you’re met with tall grass that you’ll have a tough time finding your ball – much less hitting
out of it.

Hole No. 15 is ranked as the toughest hole on the course but No. 9 has to be a very close second. An otherwise good scoring round was blown apart by a “NINE” on the par 4, ninth hole. Your tee shot is most crucial on this hole as you have to land it to a spot that allows for a second shot over a huge ravine. If you hit your tee shot well but to the right side of the initial landing area, you’re still left with a very difficult second shot over it. Any sub par tee shot will make it such that you’ll have to layup and hit a third shot over the ravine.

Once over, the rest of the hole plays straight up.

Play it while you can…

The word is that once Linville Falls Mountain Club & Preserve begins selling property again – they will go private once more. So NOW is the time to go enjoy it. The course is far less crowded than its neighbors Mountain Glen Golf Club in Newland or Boone Golf Club in Boone. We’ve spoken with numerous people, including avid High Country golfers and golf shops that didn’t even know that the course was open and open to the public. It is easy to recognize that the club is on a tight budget right now, but they are doing a wonderful job of maintaining the course. It is a shame that more people are not being made aware that this jewel in the mountains is available to all golfers.


Location, Location, Location

Whether you’re looking for the perfect second home location, a vacation getaway or an alternative to the busier golf clubs nearby – Linville Falls Mountain Club is a GREAT choice. They are located
within 10 minutes of Linville Caverns, the Blue Ridge Parkway and Linville Gorge – so you can come and enjoy those great attractions and get in a round of golf that is second to none.

Linville Falls Mountain Club is just 40 minutes from Asheville and a gorgeous drive from all locations north and south of it.

While our objective is to promote the golf side of things (and we HIGHLY recommend it) they are first and foremost a private real estate community. They have mountain estates available, ranging from one-half acre lots to two acres. Golf estate range from .3 acres to 1.1 acres. They also have what they call “Legacy Homesites” that range from 2-10 acres.

Those marketing the community can offer signature architects and builders as well as some preferred lenders to assist you in building and buying your perfect mountain home.

Now is a great time to purchase with loan rates lower than they’ve ever been before and any property purchased within Linville Falls Mountain Club & Preserve will pay dividends for years to come.

They are located at:
17677 US 221 North
North Cove, NC 28752
www.linvillefallsmountainclub.com
828.756.4653

Mike Nedrow is the General Manager.

The Dress code is collared shirts and no denim. Green fees (including carts) are $20-$29 weekdays and $35 weekends.

Tell them that you read this story on GolfNorthCarolina.com (they’ll appreciate it!)

Send your comments to: mike@golfnorthcarolina.com

 

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