Pete Dye Golf Course Review, French Lick Resort, Indiana

I had the honor of playing the Pete Dye Course at French Lick within the first month of it’s opening. It was so new that I think I used rakes in bunkers that may have never been used before. Quite an experience, to say the least.

The course is going to be famous for two things (in my opinion): The unbelievable views (some over 30 miles in each direction) and the length. Pete wasn’t shy here; it tops out at over 8,100 yards. Yeah, that’s right; when most courses are barely over 7,000 from the tips, Pete Dye upped the ante by 1,000 yards.

I played the Blue tees (middle tees) which were ONLY 6,700 yards. The course opens with a relatively straight-forward dogleg left par 4. If you don’t have a draw, you may end up in the right bunker, so be wary.

Hole #2 is a relatively short par 4, but the most important course feature here are Pete’s volcano bunkers. They are bunkers placed on top of hills. Kind of hard to explain; take a look.

And yes, I did end up in one of them. It was here that I felt I was the first one to ever use a rake on this hole (and there are PLENTY of rakes for plenty of bunkers, as you’ll see.)

The third is a true three shot par 5. The tee shot is semi-blind (as are many tee shots here), and the second shot, if you decide to go for it, is over a large chasm. I mishit the second, leaving myself an extra-long third into the green. Here’s the view:

The fourth is a reasonably easy par 3 (as long as you’re playing from the correct tees), but a hint of the unbelievable views to come start appearing on this hole. Here’s a view from the tee box:

The fifth was one of my favorite (and the shortest) par 4 on the course. You’re going directly back at the clubhouse (which, by the way, used to be someone’s home), and the view of the bunkering in addition to the “house on the hill” really made for a great picture. In addition, this was the first hole I parred on the front.

One of the things that make this course so difficult is that some fairways are only 85-90 feet wide, while most courses are 120+ (and resort courses even more). The sixth hole is one of those thin fairway holes. The tee shot is semi-blind, and the hole curves to the left, with the green looking like it drops off into nowhere. The views from this green were unbelievable; easily 20-30 mile views.

Seven is a long, strong par 5, with trouble on the left. Here’s a view from the green looking back to the tee. Note the undulation in the fairway. Most of them are like this.

The bunkers really start showing their teeth on the par 3 eighth hole. Great view of the clubhouse from this hole.

The ninth calls for a fade off the tee. Aim directly for the flag, and play a fade. If overcooked, there’s a waste bunker that runs up the entire right side.

Here’s a shot of the approach on 9; as you can see, anything not on the green is trouble, regardless of direction (especially long, as it drops off over the hill.)

The 11^th hole is another one that has the thin fairway that is barely visible from the tee. Take a look, and figure out where the fairway is on this hole:

It actually starts out on the right, and works its way down and to the left. Here’s a view from the green looking back. Tough to hit this fairway and make it stay.

The 12^th is a long par 4 which has a green that falls off (like a number of other holes). The approach is key; ensure it sticks the green, or it rolls on for quite a ways, leaving a very difficult up and down. Did get a great pic of the flag and a hawk here; hawks were everywhere on this course, because of its location. Really appreciated that.

The 14^th is a par 5 with a split fairway. For me this was easily a 3.5 shot par 5, due to it’s severe incline. Pictures don’t do it justice, but here’s a shot anyway.

The 16^th is the last par 3. It was only a seven iron from the Blue tees, but from the big boy tees, this par three comes in at 305 yards. That’s right; a 300+ yard par 3. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before in my life. There’s water up the right, but a little room on the left to play with.

The finishing hole is another semi-blind, three shot par 5. I thought I hit a perfect tee shot and ended in the junk on the right. Forecaddies are well worth it on this course, believe me. The fairway doglegs to the left. I did hear that originally it went to the right, but Pete wasn’t happy with it, so he changed it. I’m sure there was considerable expense in that. Here’s a shot from the fairway; the green is on the left side of the picture.

I’m a fan of Pete Dye. My wife and I honeymooned at Kohler, and played all four of the courses there (Pete Dye designed all of them.) The key with this course is to put your ego aside and play the correct tees. I would also suggest forecaddies to point you in the right direction for tee shots, and to help you find a “misplaced” tee shot or two.

French Lick is clearly off the beaten path. From Chicago, it was just over a 5-hour drive. Combining the French Lick Resort (and West Baden Springs Hotel) with this unbelievable Pete Dye course, in addition to their existing Donald Ross course (built in 1917) really makes it worth the trip. Although the Pete Dye course isn’t inexpensive, the overall package was well within what I’d expect to pay for this level of golf and accommodations.

I did a walk around with my little Flip camera, to try and show the impressive views from the clubhouse. Let me know what you think.