Gunpowder Golf Course

My experience here was terrible. The staff was rude and the golfers did not have any courtesy for the game. I played 9 holes and out of the 9, 4 holes i had to dodge a bullet. None of the golfers behind me or playing the whole from the side knew how to call «fore» or wait until it was safe to hit the ball. Luckily no one hit me. Also the staff was very stuck up and generally did not like the job they have. At least show some courtesy to the golfers who had high hopes for this place. I will say, if you are walking the course it is good exercise because there are a lot of hills.

This course is cheap, so you get what you pay for in this case. If you play on a weekday early its a good deal. Staff is friendly and the food & beer in the pro shop is reasonably priced. You can also practice on their 9 hole 50 yard practice greens for $ 5. This is not a good golf course and I would not recommend unless your cheap like me and you can play early on a weekday. Most fairways are short & tight and the greens are not well kept. The conditions are about what you’d expect at other par 3 courses in the area, such as Paint Branch in College Park.

Great course for the money. ($ 15 after 5:00 with cart). The only reason it’s not quite 5 stars is because some of the cart paths are not paved and can be a little rough. Golf carts are newer and pretty nice. Wasn’t a lot of traffic on the course. Clubhouse was really nice.

If you are looking for a solid course that won’t kill your wallet, Gunpowder is the course for you. $ 12 to play on weekday afternoons, and $ 5 if you play 1.5 hours before sunset. My rounds as a single generally take 2.5−3 hours, and I’ll occasionally pass a larger group in front. Why would you go to the driving range with prices like this?
The back tees are really the only choice here, unless you are a beginner. It’s a nice looking course with trees guarding almost every hole, so you’ll be penalized for straying drives. There aren’t a lot of signs telling you where to go but they provide a map and hole descriptions so it’s not too hard to figure out. The posted distances on par 3’s seem off, so that will take a couple of rounds to get used to.
If you aren’t a golf snob and enjoy playing at a good price, this is worth a try.

Compared to other public courses, it is not that good. But you get what you pay for. The ground is so hard to hit off of. It’s so hard that it actually broke my clubhead off my seven iron. I left after second hole

Please ignore the negative reviews and go play yourself a good round at a cheap course that is interesting, beautiful, and in pretty good shape. I’m glad I did and will be back.
I just played here and really liked the course. It is very hilly so take a cart or you’ll be getting a lot of exercise. The conditions were good. The course is beautiful and I really enjoyed the variety of terrain. It ranks as the most interesting course I’ve played on in the area.
The starter was a very helpful old man — he even went looking for my first tee shot for me. They do not have tee times, which is a bit lame, but I got on right after I got there at 9:30 midweek. Pace of play was rather slow probably due to this (4.5 hours and I waited at virtually every hole, on the back 9 especially). I was a single paired with some guy. Later he split. Two singles after me caught up at the 10^th hole and joined me.
There is virtually no signage at all on the course, whether telling you distances, which hole you are on, or the shape of the hole. I use a golf app so it wasn’t an issue, but still, I was glad to be playing with someone who knew which way to go to the next hole. They have no water on the course and no one drives by in a refreshment cart. There’s a single port-​a-​potty at hole 9. With the variety of terrain, taking a whizz in a bush is a breeze.
I paid $ 31 for 18 with cart in the morning (that’s $ 17 plus a whopping $ 14 for the cart). $ 2.50 for a decent hot dog (rather big) for lunch.
On the phone they said they don’t have a range. First thing I see when I pull up is a range. I didn’t use it but it looked like all hitting off the grass.
I must disagree with most of the negative reviews, some of which are years ago. The girls in the shop are not pretty. The course is not rocky at all except for the paths, but what do you expect? Fairways are a bit narrow at times, so it could be a challenge. I happened to play the best golf of my life so it didn’t phase me.

Obviously the greens fees have gone way up. I was here on a weekday at 3PM and I was told it would be $ 24 to play. For some stupid reason, twilight doesnt start until 5:45. Only nice thing about this golf course is they hire nice, pretty girls to work in the pro shop. Most of the fairways and tee boxes are in horrible condition. Anybody who pays more than $ 15 to play this course at any time is overpaying.

I agree with most of the pros and cons others mention but I still like this place. It’s generally a little run-​down, but that’s part of the charm.
It is definitely nestled in the natural terrain (very hilly and rocky) but it’s also very pretty in places.
The value is outstanding and the course is fun! I am far from experienced in either number of games or number of courses played, but I give GpG a strong recommend.

I played this course this past week, ⁷⁄₂₀₁₁. The price is appealing, $ 25 for walkers. However, that is the only appealing aspect to this course.
Gunpowder tries to replicate a Scottish style course with many hills and turns. The greens are extremely technical with sloping edges. This is a great concept for a course except that Scotland receives ample rain and has grass on their courses. With little to no irrigation, the greens and fairways are barren. A 200 yard drive becomes 250 as the ball bounces of the fairway, as if it’s the beltway, and continues out of bounds never to be seen again. The sloping greens become so fast a great chip shot becomes another chip and another chip due to the ball rolling off the green every time. On two holes we gave up due the the fact that not one of the foursome could keep our ball on the green. This course turns great shots into frustrating failures. Even at $ 25 a round, the course conditions make this a rip off.

The course really is a good bargain. It rates well against some regional courses like Needwood. My only serious gripe is a desperate lack of yardage markers. You’ll find yourself doing a lot of hunting for those.
The pro is a super nice guy. My buddy asked about testing some used Ping G15’s sometime and the pro let him take the clubs out on our very first round of the season.
The course is VERY hilly. Be prepared to do some climbing if you’re a walker. You’ll be doing a lot of it.

Okay this basic course deserves a basic review. I’ll run down a list of pros and cons so the fellow golfer can make an educated decision on dropping money @ Gunpowder or not.
I am an experienced golfer who has played a wide variety of courses in the DC area and beyond.
PROS:
— Cheap, at 20 bucks for 18 holes on weekends.
— Fairly well maintained greens
CONS:
— Starter is a jerk who demeans first time visitors and tries desperately to slang overpriced golf carts.
— Course was ravaged by storms and has evolved into a horrifically topographic nightmare to navigate.
— Majority of holes have extremely elevated fairways and greens.
— Woods and tee boxes are not maintained.
— Back 9 looks and plays like a construction site in the Sahara Desert.
— Random, broken-​down farm machinery riddles the land.
— Paths between holes are dangerous to navigate.
— Club house is a wreck, like something out of a Rob Zombie movie.
— Course signage is rusted, not present, or sharpie on an old street sign (??)
— Overall, Gunpowder clearly shows that the owners will let the place dilapidate into a once-​was.
_​_​_​_​_​
My friends and I will not be returning to this run-​down course.

Dear God this is a magnificent golf course and at $ 15 to walk the best value in the DMV.
It is extremely hilly so I would recommend riding — the holes really hug the landscape and it is truly like an Irish or Scottish parkland course.
Because of the wet spring the course is in absolutely tremendous condition, the greens are all perfect — one or two tee boxes are a bit scruffy. I knew I would love this as soon as I had a birdie put on #1 — I even had a pin high five iron for an eagle chip in from 22 feet, which was a first for me.
It’s gonna get pretty beaten up over the summer so get there quickly !