Dogwood Valley Golf Course is a 9-hole public course opened in 1969. It was designed by Donald Ross and is…wait, what? Donald Ross? He died in 1948, so did someone find a long-lost design that was hidden for decades in an old trunk in the attic? This information is not part of the official course website (there isn’t one) so since it’s on a random site on the internet, do we believe it is true? After doing research regarding Donald Ross courses, this track was not listed among his North Carolina designs. We’ll play detective and dig a little deeper to see how much of this information is correct.
At first glance the opening hole looks as if it has a generous fairway. Dense trees line the left and a road parallels the landing area to the right. If you slice the ball I would proceed carefully. Playing from the blue tees, this par 4 measures 335 yards. Adding to the intrigue of this hole, there are telephone poles scattered down the right side, and my drive ended up between the road and the poles. I had an unobstructed view of the green, but of course my second shot glanced off one of the poles; however, this helped redirect my wayward hit toward the green. The green is small, crowned, and undulating, very similar to a Donald Ross design – hmmm.
Hole #2 is a downhill par 3 of 174 yards. If you miss this small green, you will slide down the mounds that surround this putting surface. Nothing level about this green and the surrounding area! A stone marker next to the tee box states the course was built in 1962, not 1969. One misrepresentation corrected! Hole #3 is a bit of a rollercoaster ride with a fairway that goes up, then down, then up again, and down to the green on this par 5. Most of the time the flag is hidden from view.
Hole #4 is a cool hole. Once again you have a blind tee shot, but the fairway is generous up there. When you reach the plateau of this hole, the small (Ross?) green is positioned downhill to the left and is guarded by a large tree. An approach from the right side of the fairway is highly recommended. A nicely designed hole! The par 4 fifth hole has a large grass depression in front of the green which I’m sure once contained sand. My guess is that the sand on the course was removed due to maintenance and money concerns, which is always an issue for small-town, independently owned courses. In my opinion, this is the easiest hole on the course, unless you are on the wrong level of this two-tiered green!
Hole #6 is a long 222 yard par 3. There are trees down the left side and dropoffs all around this small green (Donald Ross?). Hole #7 is a par 5 and once again you have to clear a rise in the fairway to get a view of the green. The putting surface finally comes into view as the fairway winds to the left. The green is large and is protected by the woods close to the left, and steep slopes on either side. The eighth hole is a dogleg to the right, all uphill, and a small turtle-back green. Hole #9 is a 386 yard par 4 and the number one handicap. It’s straight-away and open. Hmm, number one handicap?
Rating – Birdie (47 out of 60): This course has some character to it. The rolling fairways, the crowned greens, and mature trees added to the aesthetics of the course and made it a very enjoyable round. It was a nice find on our way from Charlotte to Asheville! A Donald Ross design? We spoke with Jeff Walker, who is the owner of the business at Dogwood Valley, and he shared the history of the course. In the early 1960’s, 25 men (none named Donald Ross) from the community decided to build a course for the local schools so they could compete in golf. Every Tuesday they would work on the course, play a few holes, then continue to build until the 9-holes were completed. There was also money that local businesses donated to make this course a reality for everyone in the community. I love these stories and enjoy playing the courses that townspeople built. It is always a great way to support small business. If you are looking for a quick 9 (Karen and I were the only people on the course), stop by and spend some time with Jeff and Moonshine!
328 Dogwood Valley Rd., Forest City, NC 28043; 828-657-6214
