Aston Oaks Golf Club is a scenic Jack Nicklaus design northwest of Cincinnati, Ohio
NORTH BEND, Ohio -- The knock on Aston Oaks Golf Club has always been with course conditioning.
The Jack Nicklaus design has that wow factor golfers crave -- notably the par 5s at No. 8 and No. 16 -- but the overall conditioning hasn't always lived up to the layout's high standards.
Co-owner Drew Macke says the issues stem from shortcuts made during course construction in 1999 (the back nine opened several years later) and a lightning strike in the summer of 2011 that derailed the irrigation system for nearly two months. The course lost 40 percent of its fairways, a "major setback" that Macke says his staff is working hard to address in 2012.
The seventh and 14th fairways have been sodded with new zoysia grass. In addition, the maintenance staff remains in the midst of finishing a bunker drainage project. Making the greens the best they've ever been is another priority for Macke, who took over Aston Oaks in 2005.
"Once the zoysia comes through, this place will really shine," Macke said.
It will showcase the club's natural beauty. The 6,908-yard course sprawls out across 258 acres with tees and greens rising and falling with the land.
"It's very scenic, especially on the back nine," said Todd Hogel of Bellevue, Ky.
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(based on 2 reviews)