Backspin Volume 3, Issue 7 | Page 22

Worth the short drive: TimberCreek by Shayne Narro The summer season is now upon us, and people along the Gulf Coast are dealing with the dreadful heat and humidity by escaping to a lawn chair on the beach. It’s time to sink toes in the sand. But there is a stop along the way to consider. Rob Bradley, PGA, owner and golf professional at TimberCreek, believes his golf course is a prime spot to play in Alabama ... or even on the track to Florida during the vacation season. No argument here. TimberCreek has the credentials of a nationally recognized course: a 4-star Golf Digest facility, Lagniappe magazine Reader’s Choice Award for favorite place to play golf in Baldwin and Mobile counties, the golf shop owner is a PGA of America Merchandiser of the Year, and the golf shop was picked the best public golf shop in Alabama and on the Pan Handle of Florida. TimberCreek is a golf course unlike most massive elevation changes and scenery to go in Louisiana and Mississippi because of the along with the beautiful layout of the course. The course features three completely different 9-hole courses to test players of all skill levels. These 27 holes will challenge every club in the bag. Hitting fairways on this course is essential due to the thick tree line down both sides of the fairway on nearly every hole. The course plays fairly long with the yardages of 18 holes varying from 7,049-7,225 yards depending on the two courses and playing from the tips. The elevation of the golf course is undeniable. On the longest hole of the course, number four on the Magnolia track, the elevation drops 60 feet and then rises back up to the hole for an elevated approach shot. The course has doglegs, strategically placed bunkers and hazards that make golfers think about hitting driver twice. Bradley hired a new superintendent, Toby Thornton, who is sure to put the zip back into the greens during the summertime. Bradley said, “From tee to green, we are in the top 100 [golf courses in the nation], but our greens need work, and that’s why I hired him.” Thornton graduated from Mississippi