Moraine Country Club (Kettering, Ohio)

[saevel25]

On August 29th, 2023, I had the privilege of playing Moraine CC in Kettering, Ohio. 

The original design was done by Alec "Nipper" Campbell and opened in 1930. It hosted the PGA championship in 1945 where Byron Nelson won his 9th tournament out of 11 consecutive tournaments. The name of the country club and the nearby city (which incorporated in 1965) comes from the geological formations left by the glacial till during the prehistoric Wisconsin glacier.

Moraine CC heads north and south, rolling over the natural hills and valleys. In this orientation, the golfer should see a predominant a cross wind from the west but could switch to from out of the north or south. A wind from the east would be unusual for this region. The original design was one of Scottish roots being that Alec Campbell immigrated to the United States. The image below shows an old aerial image. The land on the west side of the course is now all residential area where in the image is farmland.  

*Image from Moraine CC Website (History & Traditions - Moraine Country Club)

Over the years, like many courses in the US, thousands of trees were planted. 

 

*Aerial Image from 2000

In 2016, Moraine CC decided to return to their Scottish roots when they had architect Keith Foster restore the course. Over 3000 trees were taken out, bunkers were moved and redone. The bunkers were hand crafted flat bottom bunkers to give them a more natural feel instead of looking mechanically shaped. They also did massive irrigation where they have nearly zero water drain directly into the bunkers. About 90% of the course had to be reseeded. They called the existing turf Heinz 57 for all the different grass types that was out there. They planted two different types of bent grass, one for the greens and one for tees, fairways, and approaches.

*Aerial Image from 2022

This is the best image I've seen of the entire course post renovation. Again, per Moraine CC website (History & Traditions - Moraine Country Club)

 

The Fried Egg had a good review of the course. 

The Course Next Door: Moraine

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A detailed look at the architecture behind Moraine Country Club in Dayton, Ohio. This Alex "Nipper" Campbell design flies under the radar but is spectacular.

My take on the course. 

I like courses that ease you into what to expect from the course. Being that the land is hilly, you get some glimpses of the course but not the entire property from the first tee box. The first hole at Moraine CC is a microcosm of the course. A good length par 4, where you have room off the tee between fescue on the left and the right. A well-placed bunker off the tee, and an undulating fairway. The green, like many on the course has good contour to them and is slightly elevated. The front of the green is open for those who have a lower trajectory and can run it up. Two deep bunkers protect the front left and front right. 

Hole #4 is where the course says hello. A par 5, with a massive incline. If you are playing the correct tee box, you should be able to crest the hill. If not, then you will be left with a challenging layup as it will be a blind shot up a pretty significant slope. Once you get to the top of the slope, the hole starts to head back downhill slightly to a green protected by two bunkers up front, but you still have room to run the ball up the front. 

*Image from The Fried Egg (Moraine Country Club Golf Course Review - The Fried Egg)

 

Hole 5 is a short par 3 protected on all sides by bunkers. The bunkers sit about 4-5 ft below the surface of the green. This is great downhill short par 3 in that you feel confident you can hit that short iron close to the pin, but any mistake will leave you with a difficult bunker shot. A really well-done short par 3. 

Hole 7 is the downhill drivable par 4. It has four well placed bunkers, one about 60 yards out from the green on the left. Three by the green, and another about 30 yards out on the right. Like many of the greens on the course, the green is elevated about 4-5 feet above the bunker level. On this day, all three of us in our group decided NOT to hit driver. 

Tempted by Nipper: The 7th at Moraine

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A look at the short-par-4 7th at Moraine Country Club, a classic risk/reward hole on which architect Alex "Nipper" Campbell forces a decision

Probably the weakest holes on the course are holes 10 and 11, but I will say that they are not terrible golf holes, they are good golf holes. They do sit in the flattest part of the course and might seem a bit out of place compared to the rest of the course. 

Hole 13, you have another fantastic par 5. Where a good tee shot will leave you with a go at the green in two. The green is one of the smaller greens on the course, which makes the task of hitting the green in two much more challenging. Making it more challenging is that it is a blind shot to the green due to the undulation in the fairway. 

Hole 16 is another picturesque golf hole with an elevated tee box with the entire hole before you. A difficult tee shot with one of the narrower fairways, and three bunkers protecting the landing area. The green is protected by 4 deep bunkers. This is the style of green on the course. Slightly elevated plateaus, with deep bunkers and room up front to run the ball up. I was in the rough left, with a downhill lie. I tried to chip an 8 iron. Off the face, I thought I hit the shot I wanted. I saw it was hit slightly right and it ended up hitting the right bank of the green, ending up in the bunker. 

 

Overall, I would rate this as one of my favorite courses I've played. If you have a chance to play this course, I recommend taking it. It is ranked the 7th best course in Ohio (Golf Digest), and 5th best by Golf.com. I am glad to see it is getting the recognition it deserves. While I was living in Dayton. Everyone talked more about NCR than Moraine CC. Maybe because people could get on NCR easily than Moraine? NCR was a huge company in Dayton (making ATM's). It was a course for the employees of the company to play. I haven't played NCR, but I would be hard pressed to find it better than Moraine CC.

This gets like a 9/10 for me. I might move it closer to like a 9.5/10. It is definitely the best course I've played in Ohio. I love the property. Each hole felt unique. The views were fantastic. It felt like a course that challenged you but didn't beat you up. It was immaculately maintained. The greens were interesting, challenging and fair. I love the option on every hole to either fly it on the green or run it up the front if you had a good angle. I am a fan of having fescue on the course. They gave you free water. It is hilly, but still walkable. Not much to complain about. 

[GolfLug]

I so love this style of courses., i.e. hitting it tad bit off line is not instant jail. Instead it 'forces' the designer to be a bit more creative with bunkering, green shape, contours, etc to provide the challenge. all the way till a ball is holed out. Plenty hard, but for the right reasons. Keeps the interest alive all the way home.

Lawsonia Links had that aspect about it and I loved it.