Cherokee Run Golf Club near Atlanta: High standards return to once-comatose course
CONYERS, Ga. -- Cherokee Run Golf Club is making a comeback.
(based on 1 reviews) The course, located about 30 miles east of Atlanta in Conyers, is one of the best designed by the team of Arnold Palmer and Ed Seay. It opened with great acclaim in 1995 and is adjacent to the Georgia International Horse Park, which hosted the equestrian and mountain bike events for the 1996 Olympic Games.
From the time the golf course opened -- a festive event that included Palmer playing in a group with members of the country music band Alabama -- there has been a buzz surrounding Cherokee Run. It was expected to bring golfers to the area and give metro players a high-quality alternative.
Things began to go sideways at Cherokee Run in 2006 when the management company that had leased the course since its inception requested permission to sublease the course. The city of Conyers objected but eventually signed off on the deal. That decision almost killed the course.
The party who subleased the course never had enough working capital. It ran the facility on a shoestring budget and failed to make adequate repairs or fund a sufficient maintenance budget. The course fell into disrepair and wound up in federal bankruptcy court; it took two years for the city to regain control of the facility, by which time it was on life support.
The comeback of Cherokee Run
When the city took the course over again in 2010, it found things in dreadful shape. The greens were either dead or on their last legs. The tee boxes were without grass, and most of the traps had been washed out. The course was closed for three months, and crews worked hard to restore the course to a condition that made it worthy of The King.
"The city has made a commitment to keep it at Arnold Palmer quality," said PGA Professional Tommy Moon, Cherokee Run's director of golf.
The city recently made a decision on the greens and will convert them from bentgrass to Ultradwarf Bermuda in the summer of 2012. They've already removed about 500 trees to improve the sunlight and air flow around the greens.
"It's starting to look like it used to look," said William Adams, of nearby Covington. "It's going to be even better when they do the green conversion."
It would be difficult to find a course that has better finishing holes on each nine. To finish either side with a par is enough to evoke good feelings for golfers of any level.
No. 9 is a risk-reward par 5 that plays 553 yards from the back tees. A good drive is required to a fairway that looks claustrophobic from the tee. Most players will be willing to play their second shot into the fairway of the dogleg right hole and then take their chances with a short-iron approach to a green that has a pond in the front and two bunkers in the back. An aggressive player has the option to bend their second shot around the trees and carry the water. Either option isn't easy to carry out.
No. 18 is a 463-yard par 4 that requires a player to carry a creek that bisects the fairway near the front of the green. The creek will catch anything short or any shot that begins to leak to the right. This is a difficult hole for golfers of any ability.
The first hole is one of the best. The 448-yard par 4 plays uphill to a wide, elevated green that's well bunkered. "Not many pars are made on No. 1," Moon said with a laugh.
The par 3s on the course are exceptional, with the best being No. 3, a 196-yard beauty that plays from an elevated tee. It requires a precise shot to a wide green that drops sharply in the front to a gaping sand trap and is protected in the back by a pair of traps. Find the sand here, and you're almost certain to be looking at a bogey.
Cherokee Run Golf Club: The verdict
Cherokee Run Golf Club reopened in December 2010 and has battled its way back to contention. The course is trying to entice new businesses, reaching out to the community by hosting some local tournaments and to others with some discount green fees.
The course is closing in on regaining its former glory. The greens are good, the tees have grass and the fairways have fewer bare spots. Hard to believe this place was almost dead just a couple years ago.
If the local municipality will live up to its commitment to revive the facility against some occasionally heated opposition, it will again have one of the best golf courses in metro Atlanta.
November 10, 2011
Stan Awtrey, Contributor
Stan Awtrey spent 25 years as a sports writer with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He is editor of Golf Georgia, the official magazine of the Georgia State Golf Association, and writes a weekly column for PGATOUR.com. His work has appeared in dozens of newspapers, magazines and Web sites.
Jon McRae wrote on: Aug 24, 2017
Have played twice and really like the course and the staff who make it comfortable. Exceptional hamburgers! The tee boxes, fairways, and greens are also exceptional. We live in Atlanta and play lots of courses within an hours drive - Cherokee Run might be the best!
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