Tannenhauf Golf Club in Alliance Ohio is a family owned public course opened in 1959. The Championship tees are par 72 and measure 6694 yards.
Date played: July 4, 2014
Independence Day this year brought with it sunny skies and 74 degrees with a gentle breeze. It was fantastic weather to visit another one of our favorite golf courses here at the 3 Jack Almanac.
Tannenhauf is easily accessed a couple miles off Route 62. The mailing address says Alliance, but the track sits north of the highway so you will avoid a slow trek down State St. and any congestion on the city’s main drag.
Johnny and I had a 12:37 p.m. tee time. Before I even had a chance to take my clubs out of my trunk, we received an unsolicited warning in the parking lot. “Boy, those greens are slow today,” said the older man as he flipped the latches of his convertible to put the top down, “and they aren’t holding very well either”. I was surprised to hear this. We exchanged similar opinions about how much we liked the course and how it’s usually always in good shape.
In our circle of golfing buddies, this is the worst combination that can exist, slow greens that don’t hold. Some of our most frustrating rounds have been played under these conditions.
As it turns out, this guy either normally putts on glass or enjoys making strangers he meets in the parking lot blow their first putt 6 feet by the cup, because I found his assessment wholly inaccurate (the hard way). I should have known better too. The putting green wasn’t slow. The greens didn’t look like they should be slow, nor do I ever remember them being slow. In fact, as we played our round I found the greens to be typical for Tannenhauf: sufficiently quick with a good roll.
One thing our parking lot prophet was correct about, the greens were difficult to hold. The course can be hard, especially during the peak summer months. We both had some bounces in the fairways and on the greens that appeared to be 10 feet high. Personally, I have no problem when courses are firm. I rather enjoy the extra roll on my full shots. It makes the decision easier when I’m in-between clubs.
Dry, hard conditions are not an issue exclusive to Tannenhauf either. It’s the middle of the summer in the Midwest. This is what we will experience 90% of the time over the next 2 months plus. This is the period of the golf season we have been talking about through the wet spring as our tee balls plugged in fairways and those perfect-contact April drives that somehow still left us 190 yards for our approach. “If this was July, you’d have 175 in.” It’s time to cash those checks now.
You’ll have a much more comfortable round if you draw the ball. There are several shots throughout the grounds that require a right-to-left flight to achieve the ideal angle. My wish was granted this day to get rid of my two-way miss. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the right adjustment to stop my driver from fading all day long and it cost me. I’m becoming extremely proficient with the low punch this year.
There are scoring opportunities especially on the front nine’s short par 4’s. From the tips, none of the par 4’s on the front are over 400 yards. Most of the distance seems to be on their par 5’s and par 3’s. Challenging yet fair, I always look forward to playing Tannenhauf.
The setup is very efficient all the way around. They offer a driving range and 2 separate putting greens. The Pro Shop has a modest amount of both gear and attire for sale. Several tables are available for your after-round activities connected to the Snack Bar offering your typical items at average prices. A hot dog was listed at $3 and my turkey & cheese on wheat ran me $3.15.
Kudos to management for not charging the weekend rate on the Friday holiday. 18 holes and a cart cost me $21 after taking $10 off using the Tee Time Pass discount.
4 stars out of 5
Tannenhauf Golf Club 11411 McCallum AvenueAlliance, OH 44601 800-533-5140
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