I'm a fan of Bentwater Golf Club. My coworkers and I played several rounds at this course (mostly tournament rounds) before it went private. Yes, it used to be public until it became part of Canongate. ClubCorp later acquired Bentwater in a large multi-course acquisition in 2014. ClubCorp packaged Bentwater, which is located in Acworth, with Eagle Watch Golf Club, which is located in Woodstock. The two courses are about 35 minutes apart (with no traffic), but you can play both under one membership. That way, ClubCorp can market Bentwater and Eagle Watch together as 36 holes.
Bentwater is a good 35-45 minutes north of Atlanta, up I-75 (take exit 278). It's worth the drive. The course is challenging, but fun. I have several memories here. The course was always in good condition the times we played it. The fairways and rough were lush and the greens (bentgrass) rolled true. The course opened in 2000 and was designed by Georgia Tech grad Mike Dasher. To date, it's the only Dasher design I've played.
This is the only course I've played where the red tees are the tips. From the tips, the course measures 6,869 yards with a 73.5/143 rating/slope. Par 72. We played from the blues and whites. The blues measure 6,517 yards (71.8/137) and the whites measure 5,991 yards (69.2/132). It's not PGA Tour long, but it's long for weekend hackers like me. I consider this course above average in difficulty and I enjoyed the challenge. I had some pretty solid rounds here (by my low standards).
The course is built within a subdivision. It's hilly. Most of the fairways are lined with trees, but there are several holes with houses on them. Aside from creeks, there's no water to contend with except on holes 9 and 18, each of which features its own scenic pond. The 9th hole is a medium-length par-5 where the pond comes into play on your 2nd shot. The 18th is a par-4 that plays downhill off the tee and slightly back uphill to an elevated green guarded on its front and left sides. You can miss short and right there and still be OK.
The most memorable hole for me is No. 10. It's a long par-5 with a dramatic elevation change off the tee. From tee to green, it's a 90+foot drop. You can gain some serious distance off the tee thanks to that downhill shot. It's the No. 1 handicap hole (toughest on the course). They like to start you off on some long holes as holes 1 and 10 are both par-5s and the two longest holes on the course. The 1st hole is fun as well.
They are strict about pace of play, at least the times we played. The marshals got on to our groups more than once. Granted, we were playing tournament rounds and thus were probably taking more time than we would a casual round. One time, we were comped rounds after having to deal with pace of play issues.
Along with the 18-hole course, Bentwater has a driving range, medium-size practice putting green, and practice short game area with two small bunkers. The clubhouse is fine. This is an adequate mid-tier private club. If you're familiar with metro Atlanta golf courses, Governors Towne Club, designed by Curtis Strange, is right next door. Governors is nicer, but more expensive and exclusive. read more