I just got back from a 5-day golf trip to Houston — 8 guys, 1 van, a VRBO, and way too much beer.
It was an unreal trip. Tons of laughs, some good golf, some bad golf, and a few absolutely terrible holes. I don’t think I’ve played 5 straight days of golf since I was a teenager, and honestly, I’m shocked my body held up.
Day 1 – Tour 18 Houston
Weather was solid (+24, overcast, low wind). The course was in decent shape — dormant rough and a few greens that had seen better days — but it was pretty cool playing replica holes like Amen Corner and 17 at Sawgrass.
I had an absolute blow-up round: 105 (6 lost balls
), my worst in years. But I striped my tee shot on 17 Sawgrass to 9 feet and buried the downhill birdie putt. That made the day worth it. Definitely worth checking out if you’re in the area.
Day 2 – Golf Club of Houston (Tournament Course)
Started at +22 and overcast, but the wind kept building all day. This course is no joke. Fast, fast greens and trouble everywhere if you’re not smart off the tee — which I wasn’t a few times.
By 18, the wind was howling (40 km/h). A 480-yard par 4 straight into the fan with water running the entire left side. Absolute beast of a finishing hole. Shot 96 and donated another 6 balls to Texas.
Day 3 – Cypresswood (Cypress Course)
+13, sunny, and windy as hell. Fun layout with some challenging holes, but the course needs some serious TLC. The greens were rough — bumpy, dead spots, even wedge divots. Our cart sounded like it was on life support.
Still managed a 92 (only 1 lost ball), which felt like a win in those conditions. Easily the weakest course of the trip.
Day 4 – Memorial Park Golf Course
The crown jewel of the trip. They’re prepping for the Houston Open and it showed. +16, sunny, low wind — perfect day.
Fairways were like carpet. Rough was thick but fair. Fresh pine straw under the trees. And the greens… unreal. Pure. Fast. If you didn’t land it soft, it was rolling off. Cost me 7–8 shots easily.
Only one blow-up hole (plugged in a bunker wall on 11), but still shot 89 (1 lost ball) — and I was thrilled with that on this track.
Bonus moment: while putting on 9 we saw Good Good’s Brad and Sean teeing off on 1. We grabbed a beer after our round, met them when they finished, and snagged a photo. Brad shot 64. Casual.
I will 100% be going back to play Memorial Park again.
Day 5 – Atascocita Golf Club
This wasn’t in the plan, but WestJet pushed our flight from 2:00 PM to 6:30 PM, so we squeezed in one more. Five minutes from the VRBO.
+17, calm, sunny. Solid community course. Narrow in spots — a few windows might’ve been nervous. Greens were decent (though Memorial Park has officially ruined me).
By this point we were running on fumes, so we played a 4-man best ball scramble. Perfect way to wrap the trip.
All in, it was an incredible week. I didn’t play as well as I’d hoped, but I had an absolute blast. Houston is massive and there are tons more courses I’d love to try — but Memorial Park is locked in for the next trip.
Now I’m just counting down to golf season!
