Bristow Manor Golf Club

Wedding review. The ceremony was perfect. The reception less than perfect. Definitely had issues with slow turn around time after ceremony to reception, photo booth an hour late (and this was Bristow Manor’s fault), cold food, long buffet lines (two hours before some of our guests even made it to the buffet), they ran out of one main food item (even though we didn’t have all of our guests show up). These are a few of the issues that we should not have had to worry about. Sorry, just cannot recommend you use them, unless you hire a wedding coordinator to stay on top of everything. Still have nightmares, as the mother of the bride, of having to take care of issues instead of enjoying the wedding.

Course got bought by wingfield properties who owns south riding, pleasant valley and so on, it plays well, the people are nice and carts are great. Greens play nice, they have opened the course up and it’s very competitive.

Good Course great shape, the staff could use some work on how they treat paying customers. I pulled my cart so two wheels were slightly on the grass to allow other carts to get by. (there was a tree blocking) A crabby marshall in a neck brase came up and berated me to keep my cart on the path. I told him:“If I did that I guess you would be stuck not being able to pass because the cart path is only big enough for one cart.” He studdered for about 2 minutes and threatened to have me kicked off. I told him to do what he had to. When he drove away he drove on the grass making my poing for me. I yelled that to him and he scowled at me and drove off.

Played here on June 24, 2014. The course is in good shape and the greens are excellent. Golf carts though are in fair to poor condition. Employees are friendly. Play was a little slow due to the fact that its a somewhat difficult course. If you are a beginner or high handicapper, you should avoid this course unless you want to have 5 hours of misery and lose a lot of golf balls.

What’s not to like about Bristow Manor! Maybe the other golfers who like the course don’t rave about it online because they want to keep it a secret. A a whole, I can’t think of a better public track in the greater DC area… in terms of a challenging course with great fairways and greens, excellent greens conditions, and green fees that are hard to beat than Bristow Manor Golf Club.
First, I would say 4.5 but I don’t have that option.
Second, I consider myself a mid-​level green fee golfer who enjoys a good challenge without much advance tee-​time notice. The course should also be under an hour drive from inside the beltway. Bristow Manor fits the bill for me.
Third, it’s just my opinions. I am a public-​golf guy and that’s what I compare it to. Also, maybe the overall good rating was influenced by a personal good round.
I’ve played there three times. The first time was over ten years ago and I was probably too wrapped up in my bad round to appreciate the course. I just played the other two rounds this month.
Booking. Great, no issues and maybe not applicable. I used
because it was last minute, the evening before. Golfnow found the course based on my search criteria and saved me some money. My tee times were in their system when I arrived. I could be wrong but their fees for weekdays and weekends are very fair compare to other courses in the area.
I paid $ 40 for Friday and $ 60 for Surnday with carts.
You can droff off your bag or park and walk up. The parking lot is right off the road and you can just park and walk up a steps to the clubhouse. Nice. The clubhouse seems relatively small but I didn’t really care because I was in to pay and out to play.
The putting green was right beyond the clubhouse and the range was nearby. I didn’t try either.
For the limited interaction, all the folks were nice. Don (?), was especially nice as he tried to get the course ready because I was out pretty early.
I just simply enjoyed my overall experience at Bristow Manor. I like relatively long courses that are challenging instead of just being flat and easy. To me, Bristow Manor is a challenging golf course in terms of distance and it has great layout with a fair share of water and other hazards. I played from the back (yellow), which is about 6,770 yards with a 139 slope. Overall, I think it’s a pretty open course though. I like courses with the typical par-​72 with two par-​5 and two par-​3 on each nine and Bristow Manor offers that. I like courses with long par-5’s, they have that.
Tees to greens, everything was great. I thought the green conditions were excellent given the crazy winter we just had. Kudos to the maintenance team. The course also has a nice feel of being out there with nature.
Pace of play was not an issue for me. I don’t remember how the old round was. Both recent times, I/​we were first out. As a two-​some, we finished under four hours on Friday morning. As a single, I finished just under three hours on Sunday morning. Remember, I/​we were FIRST ones out.
These are wish-​list items and are not really mean to be negative.
1. On a number of holes, one would likely outdrive the fairways. It happened on the front par-​5s and some other holes, including 17^th and 18^th. I should do better course-​managment next time then:) Personally, I like courses with long par-5’s and want to rip it down the middle somewhere and be rewarded with a fair shot at the green in two. On the front par-5’s, you pretty much have to carry the creek to do that. That’s not happening unless you’re Daly or Bubba. I am not complaining because I couldn’t get home in two on the back 5’s anyway.
2. Some segments of the car paths should probably be repaired. Not a big deal.
3. I don’t care much for the fairway grass type… did dislike it. Just don’t care for it. There are more of them on Florida courses. If you hit it in the fairway, your ball sits up nicely, like it’s teed up.
4. It would be nicer if they have center markers at 200, 150 (they do) and 100.
5. Would be nicer if they had battery carts with GPS:) Wishful.
6. The better finishing 18^th green or the design of the green and its surroundings could make the approach shot more interesting. It’s fair, but nothing specially. It doesn’t wow you. I wouldn’t know how to change it though.
One thought about playing the course. If you can, carry it all the way beyond the end of the pond on no. 7, do it. You’d the right of the fairway with a better look at the green for the second shot… and a shorter short. Because cutting it across the pond to the other side of the fairway to be safe leaves a fairly long second shot with some visuals that just make it an tough shot. But make sure you can carry it or maybe you can gamble a bit and worse case end up safe, on the right side, passing the 8^th green.
I recommend Bristow Manor Golf without reservations and will be coming back for more. Enjoy your round!

This review is for the manor house, and not the golf club.
We got married here 15 years ago, when the reception area was still a tent and not the permanent structure they now have. It was a fantastic wedding with wonderful employees working there. They were attentive to detail and the food they served was delicious.
This year, we went back to it just to see it again, and they have made improvements and changes since we got married there. They changed the ugly maroon carpet on the stairs to be more in line with the colours of the Manor. They added ‘magical’ lighting on the stairway where the bride descends to the ceremony in the main room. The temporary tent outside of the manor has now been made permanent and has romantic netting an twinkle lighting on the ceiling. Very romantic! And nice that they don’t have to use the portable blower heaters like they did for our wedding in November! *lol* Also, the floor has been concreted, no more walking in high heels on a slate stone floor, and there are doors that open up to a patio area for those who wish to step out for air. All of these improvements are great! It made me want to come back and do it all over again.
If you’re looking for a charming manor home with space for a wedding ceremony AND a reception (which they cater, so you don’t have to deal with yet another party for the tables, chairs, linens and food) — In other words, if you want an all-​included, romantic, historical sight for your wedding with wonderful views as you are in the country next to a golf course, then by all means, check out the Bristow Manor for your venue!

Played this afternoon, the front 9 took 3 hours and 15 minutes to play. I play a lot of golf and I’ve never seen a course managed more poorly than this. We decided to leave after waiting at the 10^th tee for 15 minutes.
Conditions are not great either, 90 degree rule was in place and it was 85 and sunny. Dry as the Sahara. There are a bunch of holes that are roped off, no carts allowed on these holes. Forget hitting out of the sand, you’ll have just as much luck hitting off the parking lot. I’d love to know what they are doing with all of the money they’re making by packing thousands of people on the course at all times because they’re certainly not maintaining it.
Will never come back. Just an opinion, feel free to give it a try.

Played for the first time, was visiting area from Ohio. Course was in good condition, pace of play was ok, considering it was a Saturday morning. Layout was fair and challenging for the most part. The design of a couple of the par-5’s took your driver out of play. Not a fan of par 5’s that employ that type of design. From what I understand for the quality of course the fee’s were reasonable.

All 18 greens and 14 fairways are well maintained. I wouldn’t expect anything less from the American Golf Corporation.

Slow play, slow play, slow play. I have played this course numerous times, and while the course itself, for the most part, is good, the slow play just ruins it. You will be lucky to get in a round in less than 5 hours. We quit playing last Sunday after 14, and we’d already been there 4:45. The problems are that they try to squeeze too many people onto the course and lack sufficient marshals to make it move.
Another complain on this most recent trip is that we were not notified that the greens had recently been aerated. I think that is something they should tell you either when you book the time or when you are paying for your round.
The front 9 and back 9 are totally different, which is actually pleasant, as it means two different styles to play. The front is more traditional, with several holes right next to each other (keep your head on a swivel) while the back is more open, more links style to some degree.
The staff, at least in the bar area, are fantastic, and it’s a good place to have a drink after your round.