I hadn't seen a recent review on any of the cat's courses and the last one I read made it sound like there had been some improvement. Panther's Run was scheduled for a senior tournament so I thought I would give it a try.
It started out bad while practice putting I noticed that not only did the balls bounce but became coated in mud because there was so little grass. On the first green we all noticed that the green had numerous patches and many more places that needed patches since it was nothing but dirt. It appeared that every green had patches to try to cover up the dirt. None of our group had a putt throughout the day that did not bounce on its way to the hole.
The tee boxes were also terrible. Some looked like they had not been mowed in a week.
Fairways were ok. Bunkers had been worked that morning but had little sand in them.
Rough had not been cut in a while and the ball would drop straight down making errant shots hard to find and then even harder to hit when you did find them.
The bridges were so rough you had to be sure to take magnetic rangefinders off the cart so that they did not bounce off.
It is such a shame that these courses are so neglected because they are great layouts. I have learned my lesson and will not be going back until there is new ownership that cares about the product they are putting out.
Not a surprise. Recent reports on the Cats were not too good. It is a long story. I agree, it is a shame.
''It's just golf, let's have fun''
Sounds like you should warn the tournament organizers.
Reviews of LC + TE seem fairly decent, at least at Passport
rates. JW11 has a recent report on TE.
PR + LP have had the worst reports, not that there are many,
since many are staying away from Big Cats.
Thanks!
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Thanks for reporting @hogan13!
That's another proof that the Big Cats are still a long way from being back to respectability...
Denis Gilbert
Quebec City, Canada
@artmbgolf I don't think they're even worth playing at Passport rates -- just because there are so many other places you could go that are cheaper or the same price (the Pearl, Arrowhead, Arcadian Shores, Crow Creek, e.g.) or are only a little more expensive (Glen Dornoch, Legends, Carolina National, Thistle, Long Bay, PineHills, Rivers Edge, e.g.).
I really wish they'd get them back into consistently good shape.
I wouldn't be surprised if LP and PR are turned into housing.
We had been regulars to the Big Cat courses for many years until the problems with maintenance started to show up, Leopards Chase has been in trouble for many years although new reports make it sound like improvements are being done, Tigers Eye was a total mess 2 years ago, JW's report on playing it recently will give many hope. As for Lions Paw and Panthers Run fingers are crossed they begin to improve, Hogan's report is what we found about 3 years ago and Passport rate was only 29 bucks for either course, no $$ coming in may mean a longer road to recovery for these 2.
That's a shame. Thanks for the report, though!
When I first started going to MB in the early 2000's. I thought the 3 cats courses at that time were a great deal. Then Leopard Chase came in the picture I was sure Ocean Ridge Plantation was going to be like the Legends and Barefoot but that has not been the case. I would hate to have been a home owner to see how this has turned out.
Brownwood Bandit
