The Clubs of Kingwood – Island Course Review

Posted On February 23, 2019

Introduction

The Clubs of Kingwood Island Course in Kingwood, Texas, just north of Houston, is not only host to several tournaments each year, the par 5 18th hole is considered one of the toughest finishing holes in the state. Golf Digest even proclaimed it as one of golf’e toughest finishing holes.

Designed by Joe Finger of Finger Dye Span, Inc (Most notably their redesign of Augusta National Golf Club in 1979, 5 years after designing the Island Course), it is not for the faint of heart. A lot of trees and holes that snake through them makes this course challenging. Keeping it in the fairway is a must here.

Playing 7,253 yards from the tips, it is long, and even longer when you consider how narrow and tree lined the course is. There are not too many errant shots that you can get away with. It is rated accordingly at 75.1 with a slope of 143.

Course Conditions at The Clubs of Kingwood Island Course

While I wasn’t overly impressed with the course conditions at The Clubs Of Kingwood Island Course, they were still better than most public golf courses in the Houston area. In comparison to other private clubs, I would say it was a little underwhelming. That being said, the greens were excellent. The fairways were in decent shape, and maybe alright being that is was in the dead middle of winter. You can tell this course sees a good amount of play, similarly to that of a public course.

The Pro Shop

The Clubs of Kingwood clubhouse and pro shop was flooded from Hurricane Harvey in the fall of 2017. They are still reconstructing from this, and the $40 million dollar project was supposed to by finished by the end of 2018, but wasn’t when I played in early January 2019. They were still using a portable building as the pro shop. It did however have all the basic golf items you would need if you had forgotten anything.

Range and Practice Area

While the range is large, there are three courses at The Clubs of Kingwood so it can get really busy at times. Make sure you give yourself enough time to warm up in case it is busy. They have a small chipping green with a bunker. They also have a pretty large putting green. Overall, not impressive when you think about the amount of players that would be using this area at peak times.

The Front 9 at The Clubs of Kingwood Island Course

Hole 1 is the shortest and easiest par 5 on the course. A good drive, just turning the corner on the right will set you up for getting to the green in 2. Longer hitters may be able to drive it into the tress straight ahead on the left. If you have to lay up, there’s not much to worry about. You will need to hit a good shot into this green. There is water left and 2 bunkers that will come into to play on the right. Just in front or on the right between the bunkers are your best misses.

Hole 2 is a par 4 that bends slightly to the right. Avoid the fairway bunker on the left. Do not stray too far right here as there are a couple trees that will cause problems. On your approach, just avoid the bunker on the front left. The front would be the best miss but anywhere other than the bunker is fine.

Hole 3 is a nice little par 3. Avoid the two bunker in the front. Don’t be too long as you might find yourself bouncing into the trees.

Hole 4 is another par 4 that bends back to the left. Make sure you stay left or just short of the fairway bunker. This is one of the tougher approach shots on the course. There are 4 bunkers that surround this skinny, elongated green. Your only miss is back left, but be careful to not hit it into the water that may come into play.

Hole 5 is a short par 5 with water running all the way up the left side. Aim just right of the tree by the water, towards the fairway bunker, making sure you come up short. If you want to be really aggressive, you can go to the left of the tree, but the fairway will be tougher to hit and you may also end up with less than a full wedge. It is important to hit this elevated green. There are bunkers short and back right. And there isn’t really a good miss here.

Hole 6 is a different par 5 than you have played. If you want to go for it in 2, you need to position yourself down the left, short of the water, giving yourself a line between the tress. If you mess this up, you will likely be hitting it 3 more times before you get to the green. The likely plan of action is to hit it at the far tree ahead on the right trying to let it slide right a bit. On the lay up, make sure you get to the right hand side of the fairway to have a clean look at the hole. Back right is the only miss into this green.

Hole 7 is a longer par 4 that bends to the left slightly. Should be one of the easier fairways to hit. On your approach, make sure you clear the two bunkers on the front. Any miss than the bunkers is fine.

Hole 8 is a beautiful par 3 over water. With water on the left and three bunker surrounding the rest of the green, you will need to hit the green here. You might be able to get away with missing it back right.

Hole 9 is the longest par 4 on the front. With trees on the left blocking the view of the hole, make sure you drive it past them. I think this hole plays tougher than any other on the front. The green has water to the left and behind. And with 5 bunkers on the front and right, there isn’t any room for error here.

The Back 9 at The Clubs of Kingwood Island Course

Hole 10 is a long and tough par 4 to start the back. You can either challenge the bunker on the left, possibly flying it to leave yourself a lot less to the hole. A fairway wood may be needed to steer clear of the two fairway bunkers. This will leave you with a long approach. There are 3 bunkers surrounding this green, with the best miss being a bit short of the green, between the bunkers.

Hole 11 is a par 5 that snakes its way through the trees. While there is a fairway bunker on the right, it isn’t too penal. This is not a hole you can get to in 2. On your lay up, much like hole 6, you will need to be down the right side of the fairway to get a clean look at the hole. Your approach will need to be a good one here. With water on the left, and three bunkers surrounding the green, the only miss here is short.

Hole 12 is a par 3, playing 186 yards. You will need to be accurate on this skinny, elongated green. Short or long would be the two best misses, avoiding the bunkers on the left and the solo bunker on the right.

Hole 13 is a par 4 that dog legs to the left. A fairway wood may only be necessary here to avoid going long into the trees. Another skinny, elongated green awaits your approach With bunkers only being on the front right and left of the green, you will have a little less stress into this green. So anything deep right or long will be fine.

Hole 14 is a par 4 very similar to hole 2. Make sure you know the yardages your hitting, as anything to straight in long will end up in the trees. A left to right ball flight will be helpful here. The green is wide open except for the lone bunker in the back, so take dead aim!

Hole 15 is a long par 4, the toughest par 4 on the course in my opinion. Any long bomber will need to dial it down, as 280 is about the max you want to hit if you want to stay out of the creek. This will leave you about 190 into the green. This will be from any tee, because of the creek. Anything too long here may end up in the water behind the green. There are also two bunker in the front you will won’t to steer clear of. Left or right will be fine as long as it is not too long.

Hole 16 is a nice par 4. The fairway will narrow the longer you hit it. Avoid the penal bunker on the right side of the fairway. Anything left on the hole will be in the water. Same with the approach, keep it out of the water left, and the bunkers right. Just short of the green is the best miss.

Hole 17 is a devilish par 3. With water again on the left, the green will slope back towards its. You will have to challenge the bunker on the right if you want to keep it on the green from 224 yards!. Short is fine here.

Hole 18 is why you play this course. The par 5 finishing hole is one of the toughest in the country. The route to get there in 2 is through the narrow strip on the left. This is a long carry with a narrow landing area. If you do make it, you will likely be left with a 220-ish yard shot to the island green. To those that try to make it in two, and do, my hat is off to you. For us mortals, you will need to go down the right side, taking the long, but safe way. Lay up short of the far bunker, likely having to go over the water. This will giver you 100-120 into the island green. You will also have to deal with the bunker that will be in front of you. The front of the green will be the safest play.

Conclusion

The Island course at The Clubs of Kingwood is a tough course, no doubt about it. I would have liked to have better playing conditions, but they still are getting back from all the damage from Hurricane Harvey caused. The par 5’s that snaked through the trees were not my favorite. The main reason for me playing this course was to play the 18th hole and it did not disappoint! If you were wondering, I did par it, narrowly missing the birdie putt. All and all, it was a fun round.

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