The Bottom Line
- Designed by Jack Nicklaus
- Set among some of East Tennessee's most beautiful country
- Tough, but fair
- Hospitable and welcoming
- Very busy on weekends
Description
- One of Tennessee's most beautiful golf courses.
- Quite on weekdays - if you like solitude, you'll find it here.
- A rare challenge and a real test of golf.
Guide Review - The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay, Tennessee
The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay, just a few miles down the road from where I live, is one of my all-time favorites.
On a quiet weekday morning in early fall, there's nothing quite like the clean, crisp air, the smell of fresh cut grass and the sense of anticipation as one stands confidently on the first tee.
Unfortunately, for many, that sense of anticipation rarely lasts beyond the fourth green.
The first four holes set the stage for what's to come. Score less than well in the early stages of the round and there's little chance ever catching up.
The short fourth is considered Jack's signature hole at Harrison Bay. The approach is guarded by a wide, deep bunker to the front, and a strong iron shot from the tee is just as likely to find the Tennessee river to the right as it is the green.
From the fourth onward the temptation, just as it is in poker, is to chase your losses. And that, my friends, is probably the biggest mistake you can make on a course like this.
The rough is long, tough and and often soggy. The fairways are bounded by trees and shrubs of every shape and size; some of the bunkers are veritable oceans of sand.
The 14th is a special challenge. From Tee to green it's less than 180 yards off the back tees, but it's water all the way. Cruel and unusual? Perhaps.
Ok, that's the tough side of Harrison Bay. But there's another side to Jack's masterpiece. The scenery is spectacular, the wildlife abundant and, if you visit on a weekday the chances are you'll have the course to yourself, and that's an experience that's worth any amount of driving.
Finally, when the carts have been put away, the clubs packed in the trunk, there's always the 19th hole where you can round off the experience with a beer and a hamburger that might just have been made in heaven.
Be sure to check out the four other Bear Trace Courses before you leave Tennessee.