As I mentioned earlier, we live in Western Kentucky, and our home course is Mineral Mounds, the Cullan, which is a fantastic course and part of the Kentucky State Parks golf system. There are thirteen courses in the system, and there are some real gems among them.
When we first joined the Kentucky Parks Golf program, they offered a deal where you could purchase an all-parks pass. This meant we could play at any of the Kentucky State Park golf courses without having to pull out our wallets every time we showed up. It was fairly pricey up front, but it encouraged us to get out and explore the different courses. We ended up travelling around the state, playing courses we might never otherwise have visited, and discovered that Kentucky has some truly excellent public golf.
Unfortunately, over time, they gradually whittled away at the program until the all-parks pass was no longer available. We weren’t particularly happy about that. We live within easy driving distance of three courses: The Cullan at Mineral Mounds, Kentucky Dam and Boots Randolph. Mineral Mounds frequently hosts tournaments and other events, which sometimes meant we couldn’t get out and play. Under the old program, we would simply drive over to one of the other courses. It was convenient, gave us some variety, and made the membership worthwhile. Losing that option was frustrating.
That being said, one of the courses we discovered during those golfing adventures was General Burnside Island Golf Course, near Somerset, Kentucky.
We decided to pull the RV down there this weekend, when the fall colors were absolutely brilliant, and spend some time exploring the area. We managed to squeeze in two rounds of golf while we were there.
We generally try to play during the week when the courses are quieter, and this trip was no exception. We got an early start and, for much of the morning, it seemed we had the place almost to ourselves. We only saw a handful of other golfers, which made for a very relaxed couple of rounds.
General Burnside Island Golf Course is a little gem tucked away on an island in Lake Cumberland. It is an 18-hole course surrounded by water, wooded countryside and some beautiful natural scenery. There is something particularly enjoyable about playing golf in a setting like this. You get away from the traffic and development and spend a few hours surrounded by trees, wildlife and the peaceful waters of the lake.
The course itself is a par 71 and just over 6,300 yards from the back tees. It offers a good mixture of open fairways and wooded holes, with some interesting elevation changes and enough strategically placed hazards to keep you honest. The Zoysia fairways provide a nice playing surface, but it was the greens that really got my attention. They were exceptionally soft and fast at the same time. I landed several balls on the green that practically needed to be dug out because they had buried themselves so deeply. It was an interesting combination. You could stop a ball dead in its tracks, but once you got it rolling, those greens could be pretty quick.
There are a couple of holes that really stand out. The sixth is a beautiful par five with Lake Cumberland running alongside the right side of the fairway. It is one of those holes where you can enjoy the scenery while reminding yourself that the lake is not where you want your golf ball to end up.
The sixteenth is another picturesque hole, a par three requiring you to carry your shot over a pond to reach an angled green. It looks straightforward enough from the tee, but appearances can be deceiving. I managed to put only one ball in the water over the three times I played the hole, so I suppose I can call that a success. At least I was improving my odds!
The campground was also very nice. It is open, well maintained and reasonably priced, with plenty of room to enjoy the surroundings. There is one drawback, however. The full-service sites are packed fairly tightly together. Many of the nicer, more spacious sites offer only water and electricity, meaning you have to use the dump station when you leave.
In hindsight, we probably should have chosen one of those sites. We ended up squeezed in fairly closely with some other campers, which wasn’t quite what we had hoped for. Still, the campground itself is beautiful, and we certainly can’t complain about the price.
All in all, it was a great little getaway. Two rounds of golf, beautiful fall colors, a nice campground and a course that reminded us why we enjoy travelling around Kentucky and discovering new places to play. There are several other courses in the park system we still have not played, but were are going to give them a go as time permits.
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