The Links at Challedon

Living in Baltimore City makes it tough to find a good course. Links at Challedon provides one of the best overall experiences in the area.
I particularly like the course because of how it plays. If you are frequent golfer it challenges you and forces you to challenge your strategic acumen. If you are a novice golfer, it is forgiving enough to allow you to last 18. The course is always in good condition and well kept.
The best part is the people; the starter is always extremely friendly and makes sure you get out on time. Every staff member I’ve come across has given top notch customer service.
I will say Challedon is my preferred course to take fellow golfers, and I am certain they would echo my sentiments.

After not coming out to Challedon for a few years (5 or so), a buddy of mine suggested we try it out again. Wow, was I surprised. This place is like a little hidden gem. The greens were in awesome shape (a few ball marks from disrespectful golfers), the fairways were lush, and the tee boxes were great. Granted we’ve had a hot summer, so there were a couple burn out spots, but that’s to be expected. I had a burger at the end of our round and it was very good. Oh, and the guy in the golf shop gave me one of those old school yardage books. It actually came in handy, especially when my laser battery ran out. Anyways, all in all, this place was great. I’ll definitely be back before the end of the season.

Unless you have all day and I mean all day. Avoid. Avoid. Avoid. No Marshall and no etiquette. Hackers who have no consideration for other golfers. It’s been fun but I won’t be back. Unless it’s for an outing this is not worth the drive or the money. Much better choices.

I love the course. Challenging, open, good condition. I went on Memorial Day. I had a 2 something time. The twilight rate I was told was $ 40… When I got there it was $ 30… So far so awesome. I’ve been playing golf on a weekly basis for 25+ years so I know how things usually work. I also worked at a course in the pro shop for 14+ years. We were sent to the t box on time but we’re told to head to the box before the group in front had even teed off. We pull up and wait. Then a group pulls up behind us while we wait. Every starter knows you should never stack up groups on any t let alone the first T. This was weird. It took 3 hours and 10 min to play the front 9. It was hot out and everyone was dying of thirst and hunger. We never saw the cart girl. On a holiday weekend with the course packed and many high paying drinkers on the course… no beverage cart. I called the shop at 3pm and asked where the cart girl was. I hear the guy on the phone yell to the girl… «Hey, are you done for the day? «She obviously said yes. This makes no sense!!! Doesn’t the course want to make money? Don’t they know the course is filled to capacity with customers who will be out there for 6 hours!!! Don’t ask if she’s done! Tell her when she’s done. It is a business right. Well this pissed everyone off. At the turn there’s a sign to call for food so you don’t have to wait. I dial the number and ask for 4 jack and cokes, 4 shots and club sandwich. The lady who answered said «this is the proshop, you can’t call here for food, I’ll transfer you» uh… This is the only number on the large sign you have at the tbox! When I get to the turn none are made. I sit there for 15+ min while all the groups behind me pass. I ask, so I guess the cart girl only works in the early morning (when nobody drinks, all money is made with drinks in the afternoon) she says she will work until it’s not busy anymore… HA! I spent just myself… $ 60 in drinks and food. There were 100 people who would have come close to that maybe. This poor decision making by the staff made for a frustrating and unnecessary time. Course is good, management is out of it and lazy.

I’m not sure where to start with this one, but I’m probably somewhere in the middle of the reviews by Edward and Vitaliy. I recently played in two scrambles at Challedon, and both events were both good and bad, but mostly disappointing. I’ve never been a fan of the course itself, which has always been in marginal condition, regardless of whichever management group happens to own them on any given week. The layout is somewhat interesting and challenging on a few holes, but the course conditions are always lacking, in my humble opinion. The greens had just been aerated (which seems much later than usual, and much too close to a scramble), and they didn’t seem to roll well at all, aeration holes or not. The fairways were actually in pretty good shape. Much of the rough was really rough, so to speak, which will get worse by mid-​summer. The tee boxes were dreadful, and nearly impossible to get solid footing because it appears that they haven’t moved the tee markers on each tee box in years. And the bunkers are beyond dreadful. Most of them weren’t raked because they have no actual sand. Just eroded hardpan and rocks. Lots of rocks. Maybe even worse than some of the bunkers at the ‘Timbers at Troy’ course. It’s a shame, because sand is relatively cheap to buy by the truckload. It’s also a shame that the entire course was marginal, because they clearly put some effort into the organization of both of these charity events, but the course conditions and the attitudes of some of the employees (and perhaps a few other factors) left me feeling pretty disappointed. The Hungy Bungy event was put on by an employee who clearly put her passion into the cause (and it’s a great cause for Veterans). The event included full breakfast and full lunch. The breakfast was a tray of scrambled eggs and a tray of biscuits and gravy. The tray of eggs was empty in minutes, and it was never replaced. A single tray of eggs for 130 golfers? Really? Lunch, on the other hand, was very good. The prizes were kind of odd, but somewhat thoughtful, I suppose. Several small baskets of wine and cheap trinkets may not be quite as impressive to golfers as actual golf stuff, but as I said, they clearly put some effort into the event, and it was for a great cause. The second event had lunch and dinner, both of which were quite good. But again, the prizes weren’t much. In fact, the closest to the pin winners received much better prizes than the overall winners of the entire event. And third place overall received $ 15. Really? $ 15? A few of the employees, including the Hungy Bungy organizer and some others, were very pleasant and seemed to understand why they were there and the importance of providing friendly service. A few others, on the other hand, were at various places on the friendliness and professionalism scale between unfriendly and rude. All in all, both experiences were a mixed bag for me, but I probably won’t be back anytime soon.

This course has really gone downhill over the years, and certainly has since Vitaliy’s experience last year. I’m not sure who they are a part of these days. They were part of the Casper Golf management, then they were a part of the Raspberry Golf Trail, now I don’t know. In any case, the conditions of the course have definitely dropped over the past few years.
I’m not even sure what is the front 9 and what is the back 9 because they changed nines a few years ago, but they will still send you out on #10 or is #1 or is it old #1. Whatever. Just be prepared to see every single tee box covered in crabgrass, weeds and sandy dirt. Not a speck of actual grass to be found. The rough is exceptionally thick, so thick that you can lose your ball in the rough because your ball can and will disappear in the length of the rough. The fairways are in decent shape, but the greens are all chewed up. People refuse to fix their ball marks, leaving gaping sandy holes on the greens. The bunkers… wow. More like clay rock pits. I guess it is my fault for landing in them, huh?
In terms of the layout, it is an interesting course. Most of the holes have a nice feel to them, especially the ones on the front 9 (I think). The back 9 is the one that starts with a par 5 that zig-​zags along its way to the green. The back 9 is much duller than the front.
Given the conditions that the course is in this year, I cannot see how they are charging $ 49 on weekdays, $ 55 on Friday, $ 69 on weekends. There is no way they can be charging the same fees as the Woodlands! Luckily, I had a coupon for $ 39 on a Tuesday, but even with that, I felt like I was being ripped off.
I don’t mind paying more for a good course in good condition. Challedon isn’t it. I won’t be going back any time soon.

I came to the course with a
tee time and pulled up to the bag drop and starter. As I came out of the car, I was approached by the starter as if I needed a reservation to stop. «Tee time, sir?» I calmly gave him my confirmation and continued about my business. After looking at my name, he said he doesn’t have me down with the group at my tee time. I told him I purchased it online and that I was a single. He agreed and said my time was now confirmed. I parked my car and entered the clubhouse. The lady at the register was nice. So far, this place was 50 – 50.
I got my cart and went out to the range. I love places that have free range balls. They were scattered on the practice green, around the chipping green, and near the bunker. I spent about 20 minutes hitting bunker shots and decided that since there were about 30 mins left until my tee time, I would work on irons and driver. There were large buckets of balls ready to be hit and the range was flat and true. Two swings in, I hear the starter on the loudspeaker say my last name. «No way, I thought. I know it’s hard to pronounce but I still have 15 minutes.» Nope. As I hit my third iron shot and watch it sail off into the range, I hear a voice behind me. «Okay that’s enough of that, let’s go!»
I got back into my cart and followed him to the first tee area. «I thought I’d get you out early,» he goes. Thanks for nothing. When I am in the mindset of golfing, I work on a schedule. He already threw me off.
Ah, the course. What can I say? The course was the best part of the day (and I haven’t even told you the worst). The tee boxes were flat, the fairways were gorgeously mowed, the greens were soft and had true roll. THe hardest thing about these greens were that they moved. A lot. Boy, you really had to hit a 3-​foot put to avoid the ball lipping out on some of them. Made for a lot of 2 and 3-​putts that day. The course was in great shape, the pace of play was good. The man I was paired up with had a lot to talk about and I enjoyed my time out.
Halfway through, I stopped at the clubhouse because I was starving. I was trying to piece together an inexpensive meal and my eyes gravitated towards the lunch box special. ham or turkey sub, chips, cookie, and a drink for $ 7. I’m in. The sub was turkey meat and american singles on a white roll that was saran-​wrapped up and well refrigerated. After undoing the wrapping, I went to the condiments and dressed it in ketchup, mayo, relish, and onions. By hole 14 I had finished eating. By 16 I had a headache. By the time I was driving home, it was a massive headache. By the time I got to my couch, I had food poisoning. I wasn’t the same the rest of the day and a lot of what I ate came up (sorry for the image). This was the first time I had food poisoning in over 5 years and I eat out a lot. I was very disappointed and this tainted the image of the course for me.
Sometimes it’s not all about the ball, grass, and the hole. The course was nice, the experience (as a first time player) was devastating. +1 star for me enjoying the course. Will I be coming back? Can’t say I’m banking on it.