Black Brook @ Izaty's-Feb2010

Izaty’s has long been known as one of the premier resort getaways in all of Minnesota. The resort is set on the beautiful south shore of Lake Mille Lacs, which is one of the most popular fishing hotspots in a state that has hundreds of fishing hotspots. Izaty’s has always catered to people who come for the fishing and other water sports, but in the 80s & 90s the resort grew and began to cater to families, couples, and other groups as well. The resort really became a popular destination when two championship-caliber golf courses were built in the late 90s. The Sanctuary was the first course built on the Izaty’s property, and in 1996, Black Brook became the second course on the premises. For reasons that we won’t get in to here, this popular resort fell in to financial crisis some time after the year 2000, and bankruptcy forced the entire resort to be closed in 2007 & 2008. The early months of 2009 brought new owners to Izaty’s, and by early spring of 2009, Black Brook was ready to be reopened to the golfing public. I was eager to see what kind of shape the course would be in after not being open for a couple of years, so my friend Mike and I made the two hour trip up to Izaty’s from the Twin Cities on a beautiful early July morning.
    Our first impression of Izaty’s as we drove in on that Tuesday morning was that it looked like the resort’s best days might have passed it by. Some of the buildings looked like they could use a new coat of paint, the grounds were a little haggard, and there didn’t seem to be anybody around. There was a slight feeling that we were driving in to a ghost town. There were a few cars parked in one of the parking lots, so we joined them and tried to find the pro shop. It took us a little while to figure out where that pro shop might be, but we soon found it, and in no time we were standing on the first tee ready to learn more about Black Brook. The tee box on the 1st hole is right next to the Links Lodge, which is the on-site hotel housing double and king rooms, as well as king suites, some of which overlook the golf course. This first hole is a medium length par-4 that plays to 389 yards from the back tees. There is a small creek and some swampy area in front of the tee box that must be carried, but compared to most of the holes at Black Brook, this hole is relatively dry. At about 150 yards from the green, the fairway turns to the left around a grove of trees. At the green there are a couple of small pot bunkers waiting to snatch errant shots, but the sand is soft and well-kept, so there was no problem for this writer to get up and down for a par.
    Black Brook has some of the best, and toughest, par-3 holes in the state of Minnesota. The first of these tough par-3s is the short third hole. This beautiful little hole only plays to a length of 123 yards from the tips, and the day we played it only measured about 105 yards. What makes this hole interesting is the fact that a pond guards the front and the left of the green, so your ball has to reach the green in the air, or it will find a new watery home. A tee shot pulled left will also be wet, as this writer can attest. I pulled my tee shot with my pitching wedge just a little left of the green, but it found one of the rocks that line the bank of the pond, and careened straight left in to the water. Even if your tee shot does find the putting surface on your first try, the double-tiered green can make it very difficult to two-putt, making this very short hole a real challenge.
    The short par-4 fourth hole continues the challenge, as golfers are forced to carry a marshy area off the tee, but tee shots should not go too far, since a creek runs up the right side of the fairway, angles diagonally across the fairway, and then turns back to the right around the very shallow green.  A 200 yard drive should play perfectly for this 333 yard hole, and the short approach shot should help golfers avoid the water on three sides of the green, and the four bunkers that surround the putting surface. This is another short hole that can wreak havoc on your score.
    Holes 5, 6, and 7 bring some length to the front nine at Black Brook, with each playing over 400 yards from the tips. The 5th is the longest of the three, at 464 yards, and the length makes it the number 1 handicap hole on the course. Although this hole is quite long, there is a very generous landing area that most people should be able to hit with their drive, and the hole plays downhill almost the entire way, so it doesn’t play as long as the yardage would seem. Holes 6 & 7 are relatively straight par-4s that are fairly wide open as far as trees go, and the only hazards are in the form of sand traps.
    Hole 8 is the second dangerous par-3 at Black Brook, however this one isn’t nice and short like hole number 3. This one also forces the golfer to carry water on their tee shot, but the water on this hole starts directly in front of the tee box, and continues about 155 yards to the front of the green. The designer of this hole did make some nice bailout room for right-handers who have a slice, which is the majority of golfers everywhere. Aside from the water that seems to be everywhere on this hole, there are also 3 bunkers surrounding the green, making it very difficult to hit the green in regulation. This is a very beautiful, but also very tough, par-3 hole that is bound to give a lot of golfers fits.
    Black Brook is different from most courses in the U.S. in the fact that the front nine does not loop back to the clubhouse. In fact, the end of the front nine and the beginning of the back nine are located far from the clubhouse out in the middle of the forest. I was ready for a snack as we were finishing up our front nine, so it was a welcome sight to see the snack cart being driven towards us as we were making our way to the 10th tee. The young lady driving it couldn’t have had better timing.
    Standing on the 10th tee brought a strange sight to us: a view that didn’t have a drop of water anywhere. Mike and I had gotten very accustomed to seeing vast amounts of liquid-style hazards, but Hole 10 didn’t have a single one. It does have a very long sand bunker paralleling the fairway in the lefthand rough. And this hole is plenty long enough to pose a problem, since it measures just under 430 yards from the tips. Thick forest to the left, and sporadic trees on the right also bring some difficulty to this hole.
    Water, and quite a bit of it, comes back in to play on the 11th hole, a 538-yard par-5. A large pond guards the left side of the fairway, but is far enough away from the tee that it shouldn’t come in to play until your second shot. There is a rather wide landing area on the far side of the pond, but don’t hit your second shot too far because another pond sneaks in to the fairway from the right side of the hole. If you can land your second shot in the landing area, the second pond and three bunkers must be traversed on your approach shot to a very narrow and undulating green.
    More water abounds on the next two holes, a 400-yard par-4 and a 500-yard par-5, but the biggest water hazard on the entire course is nestled along the 140-yard par-3 14th hole. You see, the 14th is perched right on the south shore of Lake Mille Lacs, which provides one of the most beautiful vistas you’ll find on any golf course in the Upper Midwest. Of the four par-3s at Black Brook, I would probably rate the 14th as the easiest, since the lake shouldn’t pose much of a problem unless someone hits a great big slice off the tee. The course designer even built a nice big sand trap along the shoreline to help keep errant shots from reaching the water. But it would be easy to get intimidated while standing on the tee, especially if water hazards give you a case of the screaming willies. This little hole is a truly gorgeous place to tee up a golf ball.
    Hole 16 is a much more difficult par-3 that forces everyone to hit over the water, at least for part of the tee shot. Sixteen plays to 220-yards from the back tees, and the entire shot requires a carry over water. This time there is no bailout area for those right-handers who hit a slice. Slice your tee shot here and your ball will find a watery grave. I can never remember playing a course with four more intimidating, yet beautiful, par-3 holes.
    Black Brook Golf Course at Izaty’s Resort is already in really good shape, especially when you take in to account the fact that it hadn’t been open for two years. From the looks of things, the rest of the resort is getting back in to good shape, as well, so if you are looking for a nice place to play an excellent golf course, take a look at Izaty’s. I have a feeling you’ll be glad you did.