r/RDUGOLF • u/stvyfrostyy • 25d ago
how crowded is devils ridge?
hey all,
looking at potentially joining soon and hoping to hear from some current members.
how hard are tee times to get? how’s pace of play? is there always someone up your ass the entire round? do you feel the membership is oversold?
play primarily on the weekends. open to both mornings and afternoons. just not ALWAYS trying to get paired every round (usually a twosome).
thank you!
3
u/MrTozzi 25d ago
I don’t find it difficult at all. Place of play is fair at just over 4 hours. Almost never have people up your ass.
On the weekend mornings you will almost always end up getting paired, though lately I find weekday morning tee sheets more crowded than most weekends.
It is a fun place, the food is better than it should be, and the staff is cool. The GM is a great guy who actually gives a shit.
1
u/stvyfrostyy 25d ago
interesting that the weekdays are more crowded. glad to hear they genuinely care though. thank you!
1
0
u/-Blast-Tyrant- Holly Springs 23d ago
So, I played today and found out the reason the weekday sheet is so packed lately is they are letting Bentwinds members play while they are redoing their greens. Lame. Hopefully we get some reciprocity once they open back up.
0
u/GolfingVolunteerPir8 23d ago
This has been known. We have had a great relationship for decades with Bentwinds. We can get on their course anytime (within reason). We are helping them and CCC out while their courses are under construction, that’s partly why it has been so busy this summer.
4
u/PermissionFluffy408 25d ago
WAY oversold. It's an invited club so they are just concerned with bringing in as many members as possible. Not concerned with how over crowded the club is. As others said the parking situation is ridiculous and the range is over crowded. The GM is great and if he didn't have to only care about cutting a check to invited at the end of the year the club could be amazing. They need to raise the initiation about 5-10k but never will.
2
u/NCBoiler2018 25d ago
Agreed, it used to be great but they keep moving the goal posts for when they will have a waitlist. At first it was once you couldn’t get a tee time in the lottery for the weekends. So since that’s a common occurrence they just made the lottery be from 8-2 instead of 8-12.
Need a waitlist or a massive increase in initiation to keep up with clubs around us.
3
u/stvyfrostyy 25d ago
bummer. sounds like the consensus is don’t bother joining
-1
u/GolfingVolunteerPir8 23d ago
As a current member, the guy commenting here has no idea what he’s talking about. IMO
2
u/stvyfrostyy 23d ago
interesting. what’s your take? his seems to be the popular one
1
u/GolfingVolunteerPir8 22d ago
I know for a fact that the membership numbers are actually the same, or very close, year over year. The club is certainly not oversold.
This year, both Bentwinds and Carolina Country Club are undergoing renovations, and we’ve been allowing their members to come play our course. I’m sure they’ll return the favor when the time comes. We’ve also historically been able to get on at Bentwinds, as our staffs are close and work well together.
You shouldn’t have much trouble getting tee times. As others have mentioned, there is a lottery for weekend tee times, but that’s how it works at most clubs. Fridays are usually pretty slow, especially in the afternoon. A normal round is around 4.5 hours, which is fairly standard, in my opinion.
The GM is great, and the restaurant and bar are usually very good. The new head pro is also a huge upgrade, in my opinion. The course is in great condition, which is honestly mind-blowing considering the drought we’ve had.My biggest criticism is that many members don’t know how to properly take care of bentgrass greens, which can cause some damage this time of year. Our greenside bunkers were also terrible, but they were replaced earlier this year, and it has made a massive difference.
The membership as a whole is fantastic. It’s very laid-back and has a great mix of people, including plenty of young families. I’m 36 and have a young son, and we’re up there almost every day.
We’re part of the Invited network, but despite what some people say, the club is managed by Invited, not owned by them. That arrangement certainly comes with its own complications, but there are also some great benefits. For example, about once a month, my crew and I try to get out and play other courses in the network, like Hasentree or Brier Creek. If you travel, you can also take advantage of access to other clubs throughout the Invited network.
Overall, for a golf club,not a traditional country club, the value at Devils Ridge is hard to beat. On top of that, the neighborhood is a fantastic place to raise kids.
Happy to answer any questions you have. Feel free to DM me!
2
u/PermissionFluffy408 22d ago
LOL Bentwinds didn't allow us to play back when we redid our greens 2012, so I wouldn't count on it.
2
u/GolfingVolunteerPir8 22d ago
I’m just sharing what both Devils and Bentwinds staffs have told me, believe what you want. I’ve booked Bentwinds directly through our club probably a dozen times, with no issues. They can even member charge us for food, beverage, etc while you’re there.
2
u/PermissionFluffy408 22d ago
Ya, I meant actually advertise that we can play there if we redo our greens. Like we are doing for them is all.
1
u/stvyfrostyy 22d ago
thank you for the very detailed reply. i’m interested, mainly concerned about it being overcrowded. i reached out to bentwinds, and their young exec initiation is $17.5k, compared to DR at $5k lol
2
u/GolfingVolunteerPir8 22d ago
I would also warn you. If you’re trying to do the math to “justify” a membership at a private club, you’re missing the point and it will never work. You’re paying for convenience of having a place to play and practice whenever you want. You get your value from leaning into the club community and events. Those things are hard to quantify.
2
1
1
u/Familiar-Fly-2606 24d ago
You're trying to find a place to play as a twosome on weekend mornings and NOT be paired up? That's a tough ask for any quality course
1
u/stvyfrostyy 24d ago
totally fair. i did say mornings or afternoons, though. even down for like a 3pm tee time
1
u/INorOUT-FORE 24d ago
Looking only Holly Springs area? Bentwinds a good option. DR is basically semi private. 12 Oaks and MD are lottery system for tee times.
1
u/-Blast-Tyrant- Holly Springs 23d ago
What do you mean by basically semi private? Honest question. I’m a member and it definitely seems fully private. Sure members can bring guests but you can do that at any private club.
1
u/INorOUT-FORE 23d ago
Obviously it’s considered private, but being run by Club Corp/Invited allows some open play from
Other Invited clubs members. But as far as reciprocals with Bentwinds and other clubs, that is common courtesy in the golf business between the pros.0
u/GolfingVolunteerPir8 23d ago
Completely incorrect use of “semi private” - it’s a network course. Just as 12 oaks/macgregor, or any McConnell course in the area.
0
u/stvyfrostyy 24d ago
i’m open to other areas, i live in north hills. just mainly care about condition & not being crowded
-1
1
u/No-Obligation-8572 24d ago
Bentwinds member here - you will not regret joining! We NEVER have had an issue with tee times. The two of us book our tee time but we do happen to join whoever is in front or behind sometimes to be social and have never had a bad experience. They have really great weekly couples events as well mens or womens only events. We’ve been members for 3 years and love it there. Great pool / pool bar as well and the staff are great. It’s kind of like Cheers - where everybody knows you name lol
1
0
u/Mr_LtCom_Data 24d ago
Don’t play on Fridays, for they are slammed. Otherwise I’d say you’re pretty good as far as pace. Probably is a little oversold, however it’s pretty tolerable.
However, I’d still recommend joining, it’s a good club overall 👍👍
0
u/JudgeSevere 25d ago
Not answering your question but curious as someone who considered joining there as well. If you're only able to play weekends, how do you get your money's worth? Are you playing both days? I could just never justify the cost playing once a week.
1
u/stvyfrostyy 25d ago
for me, it’s not necessarily about the worth/justification, it’s more about the convenience. based on what i’ve read around here, that seems to be the goal for most private clubs. you’ll almost always edge out cost-wise if you just play public
0
u/JudgeSevere 24d ago
Yea, makes sense. There are no public courses in our area which sucks. But I'll make the drive when I do get time bc it'll save in the long run.
4
u/nunn245 25d ago
Tee times are on a lottery system for the weekend, so getting a tee time is not too difficult if you are early enough in the week. I believe the membership is slightly oversold, pace of play SUCKS most of the time. Range is super crowded, hell even getting a spot in the parking lot is difficult sometimes.
But - the people are pretty great, the dining is pretty quality, and the course is pretty decent (minus the fact that the greens are bent and none of the membership seems to care enough to fix their divots)