Hidden Greens - July2010

Hidden Greens in Hastings, Minnesota has long had a reputation of being one of the most beautiful, yet also most difficult, courses in all of Minnesota. For years, I had heard the same things over and over from people who had just played at Hidden Greens: “Man, that’s a hard course!” or “There are trees everywhere!” or “I lost all of my golf balls in those woods!” I was even told once that there didn’t seem to be an open shot at any of the greens – all of them had trees growing up directly in front of them! That last one seemed a little far-fetched to me. I mean, why would a golf course purposefully have trees guarding the fronts of every green? Golf course owners usually want their customers to have a good time, don’t they? And maybe even enjoy themselves so much that they come back again and again? I found it difficult to believe that the superintendent at Hidden Greens would be so maniacal as to guard each and every green with groves of trees. Still, it is called “Hidden” Greens…maybe the stories were all true. I guess I had no other option but to go down to Hastings and find out for myself.
Hastings is a fun and historical river town right on the banks of the mighty Mississippi River. It is also very near the Mississippi’s confluence with the St. Croix River, and has the lovely little Vermillion River, an up-and-coming trout stream, running right through town. Although the historic downtown area along Main Street has helped Hastings keep its small-town charm, the city is always expanding outwards, and is now home to an estimated 22,000+ people. Hidden Greens is located a few miles south of downtown Hastings, just off of Highway 61. As I made my way down to Hidden Greens for the first time, I noticed that a majority of the area along Highway 61, south of town, is made up of agricultural land, with not many trees to be seen. I wondered if all of the rumors of endless trees on the course were blatant lies. Had everyone that I had ever talked to about Hidden Greens been in on a giant plot to deceive me? I highly doubted it. When I made the turn off of the highway, I could tell that the stories about trees were at least mostly true: Hidden Greens backs up to a very wooded state game refuge, with big stately trees looming in every direction. Whether or not there were actually trees guarding every green on the course was still to be determined, though.
    Looking down the fairway of the 1st hole at Hidden Greens, there did seem to be an abnormal number of trees around. And although the fairway seemed to be quite wide in most places, down in the landing area of this dogleg-right, 390-yard hole, two great big trees seemed to have broken away from the rest of the forest, and found their way to either side of the narrow elbow where the hole turned to the right. Visually, it made it look like the fairway just stopped about 250 yards in front of me. Luckily I had been paired with three regulars at Hidden Greens, and they assured me that the hole actually did continue past the mirage of trees at the bend, and they told me that there actually is quite an opening to the green once we reached that point in the fairway. I hit a pretty big hook off the tee, and thought I would find my ball deep in the woods, if I found it at all. But, lo and behold, the trees did open up quite a bit down there, I had a decent shot at the green from the left rough, and, no, there weren’t trees guarding the front of the green. In fact, it was wide open in front of the green, and a player could even play a bump-and-run to this green if he chose to do so. I also noticed that, even though there are a lot of trees on this course, the fairways are quite wide and forgiving, the trees are a good distance from the fairways, even though they might be visually deceiving some times, and even if you do hit into the trees, the underbrush has been removed in most cases, and you should at least be able to find your ball and punch back out into the fairway most of the time.
    The 3rd hole is a beautiful par-5, playing to almost 540 yards from the tips. The landing area for the tee shot is very wide and forgiving, but from there a player must be more accurate, and should try to get their second shot to the right side of the fairway, which will give them the best angle to go at the green, which is long and skinny, and guarded by a couple of big oak trees in the front left. I guess if you find yourself in the left rough after your second shot, then these two big trees will seem to be directly in front of the green on your approach shot. But, really they aren’t, and if you position yourself anywhere in the right 2/3 of the fairway, these trees shouldn’t come into play at all.
    After a couple of par-4s and another par-5, you will come to the lovely par-3 7th hole. Teeing off from a well-manicured, elevated tee box, players are forced to hit their tee shot downhill to a green that is situated inside the bend of a meandering creek, meaning that the creek must be carried on the tee shot, but it also grabs errant shots that are hit over the green. You must select your club carefully on this hole, which also has two bunkers in front waiting to torment you. At least this hole isn’t all that long, playing to 152 yards from the back tee box. A wonderfully devious little hole that has the ability to drive anyone crazy. Awesome!
      That same creek comes into play again on the tantalizing 8th hole, a short dogleg left par-4 that maxes out at 291 yards. Cutting across the fairway from the right, the creek makes players hit their tee shots at least 185 yards to reach the landing area in the fairway, which is heavily canted from right to left. Don’t hit your tee shot too far, though, since the tilted fairway will send your ball down in to the creek, which now has turned right, snaking its way along the left edge of the fairway, crossing directly in front of the tiny green. A short wedge shot is all that is needed, if you were fortunate enough to find the fairway with your tee shot, but make sure you take enough club to get over the water, which has gobbled up thousands of shots that weren’t hit with enough gusto. I have forever had a love-hate relationship with short par-4s, and although I truly admire the design of this short 8th hole at Hidden Greens, I left this hole with a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, since I ruined a wonderful tee shot with a hideous chip, and ended up with a double bogey. Ah, but that only gives me more reason to go back and try it again soon!
    The back nine at Hidden Greens starts with a short par-5 of less than 500 yards. The fairway angles to the left about 280 yards from the tee box, so if you’re a big hitter, be wary of driving your ball through the fairway. Even if you do, you should be able to punch out to the fairway, and leave yourself a short iron on your approach, since this hole is not very long. Try to take advantage of this hole with a birdie, and start your back nine on a high note.
    The signature hole at Hidden Greens is the 413-yard par-4 16th hole. One of the lengthier par-4s at Hidden Greens, the real trouble isn’t necessarily caused by the length, but instead by the hazards and trees that are so prevalent. From the tee box, it isn’t obvious that there is a large pond looming directly in front of you, about 280 yards away, but be forewarned: there is. The fairway heads straight at this impoundment, but then heads to the right just at the last minute, and curves back around to the green sitting on the far bank. A smart tee shot would be a slight fade for a right-hander, which should follow the fairway around the hazard. Or you could go straight at the pond, and hope that your ball doesn’t roll into the water, but if you do that, you won’t be guaranteed to avoid the grove of trees growing up by the water’s edge. Yes, this is the one hole where a nice straight tee shot might still end up blocked out by trees. But, you can’t have everything, and this 16th hole is a very picturesque hole that will be sure to elicit some deep discussions amongst your foursome.  Personally, I like this hole, but if my tee shot ends up behind the trees the next time I play it, and I don’t have a clear shot at the green because of it, my feelings may change. That’s probably the way it is with most people who play this hole.
    Hidden Greens is a beautifully conditioned course that is lined from tee to green with mature hardwood trees, but the forest is not so thick that it will cause an endless amount of lost balls. You should be able to find most any shot that strays off the fairway, and a manageable punch out should always be an option. I think you will really enjoy playing at Hidden Greens. The course is a beautiful layout, the conditions are superb, and it really is a nice challenge. Next time you’re in the Hastings area, check it out!