Nature’s Golf – A truly memorable, world-class experience designed to bring golfers closer to nature.
The Mossy Oak Golf Club in West Point, MS is the result of a golf course working in harmony with its natural surroundings. Not only is this incredible layout a work that is quite beholding to the eyes, it’s a delight to all of those who accept the challenge to play it. Mossy Oak sits on what once was an old dairy farm for about 100 years; complete with two cow ponds and a number of hills, which explains the elevation changes. Those two cow ponds are now stocked with Tiger bass; something else to do if the golf thing isn’t working out for you!
Located on the Mossy Oak property is the official practice facility of the Mississippi State University men’s and women’s golf teams. The facility is separate from Mossy Oak Golf Club and includes five target greens on the range, short-game training areas with bunkers and a 16,000 square foot putting green cut in the shape of the State of Mississippi. Inside the 6,400-square foot MSU team clubhouse, you’ll find men’s and women’s locker rooms, players’ lounges, coaches’ offices, an indoor putting center complete with a SAM PuttLab training system, as well as exercise and conference rooms. There’s also 2,400-square feet of indoor hitting bays equipped with two Trackman swing and ball flight analysis systems.
The Bryan family partnered with Toxey Haas, founder and CEO of the outdoor lifestyle brand Mossy Oak to create the golf club. To design the course, the two hired Gil Hanse, the world’s leading minimalist golf course architect and mastermind behind the 2016 Olympic Course in Rio de Janeiro.
Hanse has done a phenomenal job of creating a world-class golf experience at Mossy Oak. He has created a course that showcases the local Mississippi Black Prairie surroundings and follows the natural contours of the rolling terrain, all the while preserving the local habitat. A lot of the water used in irrigating Mossy Oak is reclaimed through gravity. Native areas are outside the scope of maintenance and are not irrigated and the fertilizers used are all organic, slow-release. The club is committed to not overwatering.
Depending on your game, Mossy Oak can play anywhere between 7,212 and 5,530 yards; ladies will have an enjoyable round from the Red Tees at 5,089 yards. Choose the yardage that best fists you game, and you’re sure to enjoy yourself.
Memorable Holes
Hanse’s bunkers take center stage on the par 3, 4th hole. From the Blue Tees the hole plays 173 yards; slightly longer when you factor in the fact that it’s uphill. The green is large and features a lot of slope and undulation. The front left bunker sits about 8 ft. below the putting surface making up and down that much tougher. As you look around from the 4th tee box, you get a great panoramic few of the course.
Water is a lot more prevalent on the back nine and comes into play on no less than five holes. Two water holes immediately come to mind; the monster par 3, 11th and the demanding 18th.
From the Blue tees, Number 11 plays 224 yards, most of which is carry over a lake. However there is a bailout area short and left. There’s a lot of undulation in the green, and the three bunkers left of the green see a lot of play. Walk away with a par (or better) and consider it a success.
Last Word:
Mossy Oak is a course you will never get tired of playing. The Mossy Oak experience is best done walking the course with a caddie; forecaddies are required if you choose to take a cart. Trust me, caddies are well worth the investment at Mossy Oak.
Mossy Oak is not exactly a course that you are going to stumble across by accident. The best way to attract golfers to a destination that is off the beaten path is to offer the best golf opportunities money can buy. Old Waverly and Mossy Oak do just that, and although the golf courses are completely opposite in style and feel, they complement each other to no end. This could very well be the answer to putting West Point, MS on the map as a golf destination.
Old Waverly and Mossy Oak Golf Club are set in the tranquil Mississippi Black Prairie and are staffed with some of the nicest people you will ever meet, anywhere! For more information on Mossy Oak Golf Club and Old Waverly Golf Club, visit their websites: mossyoakgolf.com & oldwaverly.com