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Rock Creek

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Course Data
Year Built 1993
Driving Range Yes
Golf Season Year Round
Metal Spikes No
Price Range $35 to $75
Tee Par Rating Yards Slope
Gold 72.2 6920 129
Blue 69.5 6350 124
White 67.3 5900 119
Red 68.4 5150 117
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Rock Creek

Fairhope, Alabama, located just minutes off the eastern shore of Mobile Bay, is home to one of the Gulf Coast’s finest semi-private golf clubs, Rock Creek.  Rock Creek offers 18 impressive championship holes with a layout that is enjoyable, forgiving, and definitely captivating.  After one round you’ll see why it is a favorite golf venue for locals and visitors alike.  Designed by local Mobile, AL legend Earl Stone, the course is a short drive from the city, but the terrain changes dramatically, from low wetlands to some very out of the ordinary hills and massive elevation changes.

Rock Creek opened its doors in 1993 and was designed by the now octogenarian and always old school golf course designer, Earl Stone.  Stone is no stranger to golf course design, having placed his moniker on more than 40 courses, but his heart always finds its way to his home state of Alabama where 15 courses bear his mark.  Stone is known as a ‘the players designer,’ and provides designs for golfers of all abilities, but he builds every course with the mid to high handicapper in mind.

Stone's legend in Alabama is strong; he has a trio of Golf Digest four-star designs on the Alabama Gulf Coast, including Timber Creek in Daphne, AL Rock Creek in Fairhope, AL and Peninsula Golf in Gulf Shores, AL.  Rock Creek however, may be his Mona Lisa and is his only course to receive 4 ½ stars by Golf Digest. "That was a fabulous piece of property," said Stone. "I had to deal with wetlands and that limits what you can do." Stone's trademark design shows up on number 13 at Rock Creek, a 495-yard par-5 where subtle ridges funnel stray shots back into the fairway. "Golfers will hit a tee shot going right or left, and they yell out 'Help Earl!'" Stone said.  "Better golfers fuss about it, cause they hit one down the middle, and the guy who hit up on the bank will watch it roll down right next to the one in the middle."

Rock Creek's 6,920-yard layout has a fun, forgiving side to please the bad swing in all of us, yet the flair to challenge anybody on their best day. There are also four or five intimidating shots over wetlands that make most bogey golfers cringe. The first tee shot is amusing, a downhill high-wire act to a 525-yard dog-leg left, but Rock Creek's signature hole - number 2 is definitely unforgettable.  This 434-yard par 4 gives you two choices - power it long and left, leaving a down-hill lie for an approach shot to an elevated green, or lay back to the 170-yard mark, setting up a long carry over the deep gorge of wetland that guards the green. You’ll find this golf hole visually stimulating yet a true test of golf where strategy and accuracy define the difference between a bogey and birdie. 

The 161-yard third has out-of-bounds all around it, and the 391-yard fourth demands a 200-yard carry over a hazard to reach the fairway.  Number 11 (a 518-yard par-5) and Number 12 (a 181-yard par-4) are carries over hazards with Stone's soft-sided par-5 to follow. But beware this added generosity only sticks around for a short stint, so take full advantage, as the finishing stretch gets tougher. The 16th plummets 187 yards downhill, while the 427-yard 17th climbs to a green with a hidden wetland on the left.

Rock Creek has something the Florida courses don't---a rolling topography that provides spectacular views of the surrounding hardwood forests and Rock Creek basin.   The greens offer a variety of shapes as well as many two-tiered putting surfaces that will challenge every golfer.

The benefits, however, extend far beyond this spectacular Alabama golf course. Fairhope's Rock Creek offers a newly remodeled clubhouse featuring indoor and outdoor seating, a first-rate golf practice facility, and fully stocked golf shop. The practice area includes a driving range with target greens and a 10,000-square foot putting green.  Honours Golf manages Rock Creek and provides their signature customer service as well as the chilled apples on the 1st and 10th tee boxes they are known for.

 

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