Shoreline - Carter Lake, Iowa

Can’t hit your drive straight? Then buy some extra golf balls – and not the expensive ones – before your round at Shoreline. As customary with many area courses, you won’t need long drives.

But what separates Shoreline (located in Carter Lake, Iowa despite its location west of the Missouri River) from other courses near the Metro are the unforgiving tree lines that guard nearly every fairway like an army around a castle.

In some of the tightest cases, the trees sit less than five steps from the fairway. On other holes, the rough is open pasture. In either case, the fairways are tight.

There are some rough spots at Shoreline, mostly due to lots of rain and mud, but the course has seen some improvements over recent years to improve its appearance.

While the course won’t win any beauty pageants, its narrow playing area could make you fall in love with your fairway wood or long iron off the tee.

Shoreline also takes advantage of its lake in creating two Pebble-Beach-No.-18 like holes, where the drive must carry water towards a fairway than sits at an angle to the tee box. Again, there’s no need for the big drive, but you’ll need plenty of accuracy to measure your approach to the landing area.

Shoreline also features a rarity in a double-hole green, where the par 4 sixth hole and par 3 12th utilize one big two-tiered green. It’s not impossible to land on the wrong tier, but it’s not very likely either.

When you’re done at Shoreline, you'll look back and wonder where that surprisingly tough golf course disappeared to behind the trees.

A closer look
While holes No. 1 and 18 are fairly open at Shoreline, they are a far cry from an actual representation of the rest of the course.
No. 1 is a dogleg left with some extra breathing room in the landing area.

There are trees, but plenty of escape room exists to allow for first-tee jitters.

The par 5, No. 2 requires a carry over water, then another long shot near the lake and thick shrubbery can keep you on edge. The really narrow stuff starts at No. 3 and continues on nearly every hole thereafter.

The first, second and third holes are three of the toughest five on the course.

As you escape to the last holes on the way out, the trees lessen the pressure.

No. 10 is a short par 5 (490 yards from the tip) and a great way for a golfer to start off the back nine with a par or better.

The confidence will come in handy. No. 11 is a tight dogleg left with little room for error off the tee.

No. 13 requires carry over a lot of water if you want an easier approach to the green. From the tee box, trees hide the green, meaning you’ll want to stay to the right half of the fairway to give you a clean look at the pin for your second shot.

No. 14 plays a slight dogleg left, but the hole runs downhill near the landing area into a tight spot near trees and a culvert. Thick trees also await straight and long. It’s another example at Shoreline where straight is safer than long.

Shoreline opens with three tough holes, and closes with the other two toughest, 17 and 18, the fourth and second toughest holes. And these are some of the holes where the rough is less constricted.

They serve great purpose, making Shoreline a surprisingly narrow contest.

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