The City of Birmingham has two community courses that may be nine holes each but offer the opportunity to swing all of the clubs in your bag.
The first course I played was Lincoln Hills GC across the street from Birmingham Seaholm High School. Lincoln Hills is a 3023 yard layout from the blues and for men I suggest playing those tees as the whites are only 2847 yards and you get the same look at the course from either box.
The staff is friendly at the course but you will only see the cashier as there is no beer carts or on this day a starter. Hole number one is a 487 yard par five. This is the number two handicapped hole on this nine. It sits on top a steep hill and overlooks a pond that will only come into play if you dub it into the drink. There are trees on the left side of the course and the rolling fairway will affect your second shot as depending on your drive you will have a uphill or downhill lie for your second shot. A bell is on the left side of the fairway for you to notify those on the tee box that you are out of range. I love those. I believe White Lake Oaks has one and it is a smart idea to keep play moving. Lincoln Hills greens are true. If you like bombing the ball and who doesn’t, you can let it fly at this course. The greens roll true and you should not be afraid to make a run at a birdie or eagle if you can.
The second hole is a 160 yard par three and the green is ripe for the taking. Errant shots will be swallowed by a pair of sand bunkers that are deep and will surely make you hit a solid sand shot and depending on the pin position, you may actually be trying to save bogey instead of par.
The number one handicapped hole on LHGC awaits you on the 402 yard par four fourth. You need to be on your game for this hole as a dubbed drive will surely give you a second metal wood or long iron into a green that sits about 30 feet above a sloped fairway sitting below. The green is undulated so making par or birdie will take a solid effort. The fairway to the left is also pretty fairly sloped and there are woods to consider before hitting your tee shot. Making a good score here is certainly a plus.
As you are heading down the stretch on this nine, number six has some character and teeth. You really need to hit a solid tee shot. I went right up a hill that gave me a terrible second shot. The hole is only 355 yards from the blue tees and I had to shoot through some trees and of course I clipped some branches but the ball did go onto the fairway for my third shot. A pitch and a two-putt gave me a six when simply hitting a solid tee shot would have set me up for a good score here. Two sand bunkers are ready to capture any short tee shots so be careful.
The eighth hole is a 480 yard par five and you will hit your drive past a water pumping station (it should not come into play). My suggestion is do not go left as the hole does run along the fence on Cranbrook Road and the ground does get soggy and there are some hills that will give you a poor look at the green. The right side of the rough does slope downhill so hitting the ball over there is not your best bet either. Playing a couple of solid shots will get you to the green in two or leave you with a nine iron or wedge.
My favorite hole on this course is the par three ninth. This 176 yard par three is hit to a green that sits about thirty feet over the tee box and a tee shot that misses left or right of the green will leave you with a tricky chip to this devilish green. I went left and chipped to a slope that picked up steam and even though I was careful, the ball rested several feet from the pin and I two putt from there as I just missed my par.
I think Lincoln Hills is a well-maintained community course. Golfers that want to shake off the rust, play a quick round or have an enjoyable round with their family or friends will love this course. The ladies or forward tees are only 2336 yards and other than the first hole (406) yards, any golfer that plays them will have a short ride for this nine.
Now for Springdale
Springdale is a short drive just four miles from Lincoln Hills and it sits in the back of a neighborhood off of Woodward Avenue. You will turn onto Strathmore and the course sits along railroad tracks and a small kids part also is there for the neighborhood kids.
Just like its sister course, the clubhouse is fine and the staff is friendly. There was no starter that day and after all of the rains, there was not a course full of people wanting to play. Springdale is a course that is only a 2732 yard par 34 course from the tips for nine holes so playing it from the whites (2429 yards)is a good distance for beginning golfers or those wanting to shake the rust from their game.
Hole number one is a good starting hole. It is 369 yards and you do have to negotiate a creek in front of the green. The creek runs along several holes and the landing area for your tee shot could find its way into a fairway bunker to the right side. Since water runs along the left side of the hole the natural assumption is to take it out of play. It is a good idea here as the fairway is always your first option and other than the bunker, you should be all right here. The green is fairly straight so you should be fine to go right at the hole.
The second fairway is wide and you have some wiggle room to fire away. The hole is only 296 yards and two large bunkers are ready to hit any tee shots short of the green. A cluster of trees could make you pitch your second shot on the fairway but you will have to really hit a bender here to go into them. The green could subtly break but you should par this hole at worse and I’m sure that there could be a birdie at least every other foresome.
The third hole is a 486 yard load of fun. The drive is one where you can bang away. Be careful as while the fairway is wide, you want to have a chance to bite as much off as possible so you can chip your third shot over the creek and up a steep hill where the green sits. Could you go for the green in two? Sure but it is not the appropriate play. If you go short, the grass could trip you up. A steep hill will give a difficult shot with a sideways stance. Some trees will block you if you shank it so the hole is deserving of a number two handicap for this nine and is a challenge. I did par this hole and played it outstanding hitting the fairway, laying up and using a wedge to hit the green. I did not make my birdie putt and ended up with a par.
The fourth hole is a par three 210 yard hole with the same creek running through it. Both sand and grass bunkers surround the green and this hole is a good par with a chip or a two- putt giving you a solid par or even a birdie.
Skipping to the seventh hole. This hole was funny and frustrating. This is a easy 123 yard par three from the blues. It plays only 87 yards from the ladies tee. I am taking lessons and my usually reliable irons are an adventure. I actually hit it short of the green with a nine iron. Jeez, usually a decent pitching wedge would be solidly on the green. I chipped over a sand bunker and the nice size green helped me to a two-putt and I had a four on a pretty easy hole.
The eighth hole has birdie written all over it from the scorecard. I was not initially sure where to hit the ball initially as the green is hidden from the tee box. It only plays 279 from the blues but you need to play the course once or twice to know where to hit the ball. The green is quite a trip. It slopes from back to front and the very front of the green severely slopes and missing it above the hole will roll faster than the trains that frequently run adjacent to the hole. I hit my drive right and short of the green and hit it where I had to chip on the fairway. Talk about not taking advantage of an easy hole, well I’m your guy. I chipped my third shot to the green above the hole. I hit a decent putt but it had steam running out of it and even though I putted just enough to hit the extreme slope, it rolled off the fairway and I two-putt for a six. How embarrassing. A good drive and I am putting for an eagle and a likely par or birdie should be the order. I had better get out and practice.
The final hole is like coming out of air conditioning into the steamy heat on a summer’s day. The reason for this observation is that the course plays pretty short as I said from the onset. This hole is really a dynamic one and you hit downhill to a wide open fairway over a pond. The pond or stream is the same one that runs throughout the course and shouldn’t come into play for anyone as it sits in front of the tee box. Sand does guard this 443 yard par four. I did hit a solid drive about 270 yards. The ball is not rolling but plugging for most golfers so I was pretty happy with the result. My second shot though came up short of the green and landed in the sand trap. The trap had standing water in it so I did have to place my ball as it was situated in the middle of it. My sand shot was a little heavy and I only hit it a few feet onto the green. A solid putt just missed for par and my two footer gave me a five.
I really liked this course and of the two I probably liked this one just a tad better than its sister course. Saying that, Birmingham has a couple of really nice community courses and is very friendly to junior golfers as they have clinics coming up.
You can make tee times and find out about the junior clinics by contacting them below.
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