High point: You can see most of the layout, community and Blue Ridge Mountains from the highest elevations of the Reems Creek golf course.

    Reems Creek does not provide the sleek, sophisticated country club experience of other communities in the Asheville, NC area.  Its links-style golf course is semi-private, permitting daily fee play, although members receive preferential starting times.  Houses are fairly close to the golf course perimeter, somewhat encroaching visually on the golfing experience, but the designers made sure to bury some of the routing below the house line.  That causes the layout, designed by the English firm Hawtree & Son, to feature some unnervingly blind shots and some bizarre lay-ups, such as a five-iron tee shot on a par four.  Water comes into play only on two holes. 

    At less than 6,500 yards from the tips, the layout is not long, but it is tricky enough to warrant a rating of 71.9 and slope of 133.  From the white tees, at just 6,100 yards, the course will present little challenge to those with less than low-teens handicaps.  The golf course was in fine shape when we played it a little over a year ago, although the fairway grass was a little thin, and it offered enough high-risk, high-reward shots to be worthy of a return trip someday.
    Greens fees are a bargain at $49 on the weekends (just $44 during the week).  Fees are even less if you hold an "area's resident" card.  Non-equity membership initiation is just $5,000, which includes pool, tennis courts and driving range that aims straight up a hill toward a pair of houses we estimated were about a John Daly drive away.  Dues are quite low at $170 per month, and we found it charming that members are not billed for their dues; "It is the member's responsibility to pay," says the membership information sheet.     

    Reems Creek is located in Weaverville, about a 20-minute drive north of Asheville.  The course and surrounding real estate is owned by the developers of Kenmure, a more upscale community about a half-hour south of Asheville.  What Reems Creek may lack in panache, it more than makes up for in real estate prices considerably lower than other area golfing communities. It is still possible to purchase a Reems Creek lot with mountain and/or golf course views for less than $100,000 and, if you don't need the golf view, for around $50,000 for a half-acre.  New homes start at around $300,000.  Exterior house styles in the community are eclectic; we saw the entire range, with some brick, some wood, some plantation style and some that appeared almost New England colonial.    

    The town of Weaverville supplies all services to Reems Creek, including public water and sewer.  Utilities are underground, preserving the nice views from most spots in the development.   The homeowners association is "voluntary" and, therefore, owners are not assessed any fees.  Supermarkets, houses of worship and fast-food restaurants are within just 10 minutes, with a hospital, university, cultural and entertainment options and fine dining an additional 10 minutes away.  Asheville Airport is a good 30 minutes.
    Not as high in elevation and price points as other communities in the Asheville area, Reems Creek is not lowdown by any means.  From the high point at the middle of the golf course, you can see just about the entire community and the rest of the course.  Views of mountain ridges from local homes are good, and views from them of the golf course are excellent.  The popular city of Asheville is a convenient 20 minutes away.  Housing is about 20% less than in other golf course communities within an hour, and Reems Creek golf fees are tens of thousands of dollars less than local private clubs.
    We have more information on Asheville and its golf course communities.  Send us a note, and we will be happy to fill you in.  If you are interested in exploring the Asheville area's golfing communities, let us know and we will provide you with the name and contact information of an agent who can take you through those communities that best suit your interests.  We do this at no cost or obligation to you.

Five-iron is all you need or want at the 348-yard par 4 5th hole at Reems Creek. 

    This post is a little late today.  The Simsbury, CT, Westminster School's golf team is coming to dinner tonight, what they call succinctly a "team feed."  I've been out all morning trying to do the impossible; i.e. figure out just how much a group of 14 teenagers will eat for dinner.  Quality of the food is rarely the issue with teenage boys, although we're going to grill some nice marinated chicken and pork.  The issue is always the quantity.  To hedge our bets, we bought enough to feed a small nation.
     The team's season is off to a great start.  With three seniors, a junior and two freshmen on the starting six, they have won 10 of 11 matches and avenged an early loss to Avon Old Farms School with a big win last week.  The group of seniors, which includes my son Tim, is headed to Davidson College, the University of Virginia, and Washington & Lee College (Tim's choice).  It has been fun to follow their progress over the last four years and to see how their games have grown along with their bodies. 

    Most gratifying has been their recognition that they don't get points for hitting the ball as far as possible.  At yesterday's match, I saw as many 3-woods and 5-woods off the tees on tight par 5s as I saw driver.  Slowly, they are learning to use some management techniques on the course.  Double bogies or worse are becoming rare.
    Two huge matches loom for Westminster before the season ends on May 23, including the nine-team league championship and the Kingswood-Oxford Invitational, which includes a strong 25-team field.  In Tim's sophomore year, Westminster won both tournaments and finished with the best record in school history, 45-3.  The team will be trying to run the table and pass that record as a sendoff for the seniors.  The five scores of the six that count toward the team totals will need to be in the 70s for Westminster to have a chance.  We'll chart their progress here as they go for the glory.