How to play...City Club Marietta

This isn't you're typical hole-by-hole course management article, but rather a comedic review of what it FEELS like to play each hole as a mid-handicapper.

Special thanks to Courtney Morrison for creating this. Check out his architecture firm "Made Architecture and Design".

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City Club Marietta – Course Narrative

Course Introduction

City Club Marietta is an 18-hole, 5,721-yard track with a rich history. It is located a mile from the historic Marietta Square. There is a clubhouse with merch featuring the famed cannon logo and a grill with all the standard golf course fare – a good value. The practice facility is expansive and where we should all be spending more time. It features two green complexes, a chipping area, a bunker area, and a full range.

(I'll be using my guy Zach Cornells TikTok videos to provide a visual aid for the holes)

Hole 1

A par 4 aptly nicknamed "The Cannon” and once ranked as #3 on a list of best municipal opening holes by an Instagram account with more than 5k followers.

A straight tee shot down the hill is all you need and you'll be on your way to the easiest double bogey of the day. On the tee box, be sure to peek at the 9th green to get a preview of the flag location - you’ll want this later.

While on the first green, take a gander at the hedge maze in the shape of a cannon (the course logo), but don't stand around too long. Some of the more irresponsible golfers on the course will be using the first green as a landing area for their tee shot on 8. Don’t worry, they can’t see you down there and won’t be yelling fore while you’re putting.

Hole 2

An uphill par 4 with a slight dogleg right. The hole would be drivable if not for an awkwardly placed tree on the right side. Like the famous “Eisenhower’s Tree” at Augusta National, but less well known. Pull an iron and easily find the fairway.

The green complex is large and presents difficult putts from all angles. 3 putts and you're on your way!

Hole 3

A short par 3 known more for its odd split tee box configuration than any other feature is the easiest green on the course to hit in regulation and the easiest green to 3-putt on account of the slopes. The most challenging part of this hole is finding a level spot to stand in the sand traps they call tee boxes. Golfers are good and mad after these first three holes which is right where you want to be as you head down "Amen Avenue."

Amen Avenue Intro

Augusta National has Amen Corner, comprised of holes 11, 12 and 13. But City Club Marietta has Amen Avenue - it's longer than just a corner - comprised of holes 4–8.

Hole 4

The start of "Amen Avenue" and the first of three par 5s and named "The Dumping Ground" on account of what happens to rounds when you play this tricky hole. Pull a long iron or hybrid and play to the top of the hill or be a hero and pull a driver to catch the slope.

From the top of the hill, you'll have a great view of the maintenance shed in the distance where you can take your first bathroom break. Maybe that's why it's called "The Dumping Ground?" Regardless, golfers are met with another tough green complex on their sixth shot. Navigate the green with three tough putts and you'll escape with less than double par - well done.

Hole 5

A par 4 that feels like a par 27. Golfers start with a daunting uphill tee shot followed by an uphill approach. A 340-yard hole that plays about 500 yards. There is danger lurking on either side of the fairway and if you miss left double par is definitely in play. A domed green complex paired with a severe drop in grade if you're long making golfers tentative on their approach shots. There is nothing to see here except a bunch of frustrated golfers on Amen Avenue.

Hole 6

A par 4 with an awkward tee shot that begs you to draw it, but an overdrawn shot will leave the golfers two groups ahead unconscious on the 7 green and tree trouble on the approach while you wait for the ambulance. Should one find the fairway they'll be no better off as the approach plays two clubs downhill with a green that runs away from you. Golfers who pull the right club for their approach and play to the front of the green will be rewarded with a shot that rolls off the back and all the way down the 40' hill nearly to the first green. Three chips back up the hill and you’ve got 2 putts to make double par.

Hole 7

A rare uphill par 3 with a two-tiered green. Miss right and it's a tough double bogey. If you manage to land and hold the green, it's an easy 4-putt double bogey. Be sure to watch for wayward tee shots from hole 6.

Hole 8

An all risk, potential reward par 5. The hardest hole on the course. The tee shot is through a chute formed by towering pines on either side that has narrowed significantly over the years. Miss left and you'll find yourself in the forest that we toured on hole 5 – it’s a good spot to find a few Pro V1s. Miss right and you’ll be looking for a window through the pines for a lucky punch shot.

Should one eventually find the fairway, the second (or third, or fourth) shot is an easy layup down the hill short of the first (official) water hazard. The approach over the pond has proved challenging over the years. Once over the pond, the green is a large three-tiered complex. Expect to see some 8s and 10s here.

Hole 9

The walk from the 8th green to the 9th tee is mercifully short. Before you take on this uphill par 4, take a beat on the 9th tee box to admire the cannon hedge maze again across the first fairway and thank the golfing gods that you’ve made it through Amen Avenue.

Now, pull the driver, swing hard and let off some steam after 8. While there is no official water on this hole there is a drainage ravine on the right side of the fairway that's a real ball gobbler. It'll leave you with an awkward stance and the ball 8 inches below your feet on this uphill approach. A large green sloping back to front awaits, hopefully you can recall the pin location from your look on the first tee.

On the green, take a look at the grand hotel overlooking the course and notice that beautiful veranda. You may be better off sitting there with a cocktail instead of playing the back nine.

Hole 10

Similar to the first hole, this downhill par 4 is a relatively benign start to the back nine. Pull a long iron or hybrid and have a great look from the fairway only to realize the green complex is impossibly small and difficult to land from 100–120 yards out. So, smash a driver with that gentle slice you call a fade, and end up with a great look from the 18th fairway.

Don’t let the size of the green fool you, there is plenty of break in putts from all angles, but any more than a bogey here and you’re giving up strokes.

Hole 11

A par 4 with a tee shot over water. Don’t think about it for too long and let the water get in your head. Pull a driver and aim to the pine trees on the left between the 8th and 11th fairways and you’ll be fine if you pull it. You’ll also be fine if you hit that “fade” again. You won’t be fine if you hit that slice though. The look from 13 is daunting.

Once on the green, it is one of the simpler greens on the course. Similar to the tee shot, don’t overthink it. You’re going to need those nerves on the next hole.

Hole 12

Back at the maintenance shed you’ll find your last restroom opportunity. Your buddies are mature and will definitely never hit balls at the bathroom door from 10 feet away, so relax and don’t worry about that because there is plenty to worry about on the tee box.

On the tee box you’re greeted with a beautiful vista down to the green beyond the small pond and surrounded by azaleas. All this beauty is there to lure you into a false sense of relaxation. The hole can play 180+ yards from the back tees and a club length downhill. Can’t risk being shot with an iron? Pull the trusty hybrid and make sure you avoid that water hazard.

The green complex is large with some subtle breaks, so don’t over read it. Three putts and you’re safe.

Hole 13

One of the most challenging aspects of this hole, and the course overall, has nothing to do with golf. The tee box backs up to a private residence which features a small dog with big barrier aggression. Just try not to make eye contact. If the dog isn’t there when you pull up, be sure to rush up to hit and then give an emphatic whistle before your competitors step up. They may throw you down the hill, but it’ll be worth it.

For the tee shot on this par 4, you’ll want to play your draw if you’ve got one, but if you’re a big hitter you’ll need to be cautious, because the fairway runs down to the left of the green and into a drainage ravine and into the lake. So, it is better to lay off a bit and find the fairway.

The area in front of the green takes a lot of water and can really facilitate the chunky chips, so don’t get cute with it.

The green is a peninsula and slopes severely from the right to left. If possible, play to the middle of the green and stay below the hole.

The Cannonball

Comprised of holes 14, 15 and 16 – the stretch of holes where “good” rounds are sunk.

Hole 14

A par 5 to start the Cannonball. Standing on the tee box golfers are presented with many options. Pull a driver and play the “fade” into the 15th fairway to avoid the water altogether? Pull an iron to give the best opportunity at finding the fairway and leaving a good layup distance short of the water? Be a hero and try to blast one up the left side only to snap hook one into the lake on the left?

Regardless of how you start, you’ll have some tough decisions to make, like if you want to risk blading your layup shot down the hill and into the water. Once past the water hazards, you’ll find a green guarded on all sides by wet terrain and a large front bunker. The green is domed and tough to hold. Another par 5 where you’re likely to see some 8s and 10s.

Hole 15

To call this downhill par 4 a dogleg left would be an understatement. The fairway comes to a 90-degree apex 180 yards from the tee. Hit it left? Dead. Hit it right? Fine, you can chip it down the hill. Hit it through the fairway? Dead. Hit it in the fairway? Fine, but no guarantee of a good score.

The approach plays a club downhill and the small green breaks from right to left. The green has some shade and tends to hold balls better than most of the greens on the course. Two putts and you’ve got one hole left to survive the Cannonball.

Hole 16

A short par 4 that changed drastically a couple of years ago due to some select tree trimming on the right side of the fairway. The temptation on the tee is to pull the driver and sling one around the trees. This is a sure-fire way to make the Cannonball live up to its name and take out a golfer on the 14th tee. The second shot always plays longer than its yardage and the green seems to break in all directions. A bogey here and you’ve survived the Cannonball.

Hole 17

The last par 3 of the round does not disappoint. Standing on the tee box the hole plays at least half, if not a full club longer than the yardage on the marker. A short miss is fine, a right miss is fine. Hit it left and you’ll be taking a drop. It doesn’t look like it to the untrained eye of an amateur golfer, but this green breaks right.

Hole 18

This par 4 is a brutal closing hole. Aside from hitting it to the house on the left 50 yards from the tee box (notice the extra protection on the windows) there isn’t really a bad tee shot here. If you manage to hit it up the right side it’ll run back to the middle of the fairway. The approach plays at least a club uphill to a long narrow green that breaks severely from right to left. If you hit your approach shot left you’re dead, so the temptation will be to bail right and land on the hill. If you do this you’ll be left with the most difficult chip on the course from there. Once you’re on the green, take your three putts and go have a seat on the veranda and think about the choices you’ve made.