#32 (Public) Dancing Rabbit GC - Azaleas Course

March 10, 2014

I had an extra day after my weekend business trip in Gulfport, MS, so decided to drive the 170 miles north to check off the #32 public course in the U.S., the Azalaea Course at Dancing Rabbit Golf Club. As I didn't want to drive the three and a half hours north, play golf, and turn around and drive three and a half hours back, I reserved a room at the Dancing Rabbit Inn. The inn shares the parking lot with the clubhouse so it is a one minute walk from the lobby of the hotel to the proshop.

I try not to be negative in these blog write-ups if at all possible. However, every facet of this trip was extremely disappointing. Upon arrival at the inn around 9 p.m., I was "greeted" by a very rude staff person at the front desk. After being advised the king room I had reserved two months prior was not available and I "would have to settle for a double room", she literally tossed the key across the counter at me, mumbled my room number (which I had to double check against the scribble inside the key holder), and she sneered at me when I requested a wake up call. SIRI on my iPhone was at least accommodating with my wake up call request, and she was much more friendly. After an evening workout, I watched the newest episode of The Walking Dead and then fell asleep. The next morning, the staff was much more friendly. However, the breakfast left a lot to be desired. I was shown a pan full of Jimmy Dean microwave sausage biscuits that were available. Had I known how disappointing the place was, I would have paid the extra $20-$30 to stay at the Gold Moon Resort Hotel. I highly recommend avoiding the Dancing Rabbit Inn if you find yourself in Phladelphia, MS. There are much more welcoming accommodations 5-10 minutes away from the golf course.

After my dry sausage biscuit, I made my way to the clubhouse. Back in January, I had emailed back and forth with the club pro. He assured me I would be afforded the club's pro rate as a courtesy, and would even be joined by a staff member who would like to play with me. Neither of those panned out.  After paying the normal green fee (which I had no real problem with), headed out to the first tee of the Azalea course by myself. It appeared no one else was on the course and the fog was just clearing. At least it should be a great day of golf. It was a clear blue sky, with an early morning temperature of 63 and forecasted 70 by the end of the day.

Welcome sign to the Azaleas course.  The path to the left leads to the unrated Oaks course.

The tee box markers represent the namesake of the course.

The flags found on each of the holes at the Azaleas course.

Looking down the fairway from the First tee box.

The first fairway is fairly straight, but almost all uphill. The better play is to drive down the left side. It takes the trees on the right out of play. It does lead to a much tougher shot over the large sand trap on the front left of the green. 

A look at the 1st green from 75 yards out.

If your approach shot falls short of the green, the shot to the green is a tough one as you can not see the undulations of the green at all due to the rising slope of the fairway.

A look at the first green from the top of the hill next to the cart path.

A better look from the top side of the 1st green shows that a shot to the back side of the green is the best option as the ball should roll back down hill towards the hole.  A good many of the greens and tee boxes were in decent shape. However, there were a several tee boxes that were in rough shape, and there were several greens that had edges with dirt and holes from dead grass, and fringes that were choked with patches of weeds. It was disappointing as I expected much more from a course rated in the top 50.

A look down the fairway from the second tee box.

As with the first hole, the second fairway was fairly straight from tee to green. It did offer a slight slope from right to left, but my ball landed center of the fairway and barely rolled to the left.

A look at the second green from 100 yards out.

If you avoid the sand on the left of the green, it is a fairly easy shot. The green is also relatively flat, leading to a decent chance at birdie or par.

A look at the green from the top of the hill near the cart path.

If your approach shot does go left, you find yourself in a moderately deep sand trap. One of the positives for this course is most of the sand traps had nice, white, fluffy sand, unlike many public courses that have little to no sand.

The green side bunker at the second green

A look down the fairway from the third tee box.

Hole three presents an interesting option for your drive. There are essentially two fairways, one on top of the hill and one below the hill. There are a few sand traps on the middle of the hill, so if you drive towards the top fairway, you take a chance on your ball rolling back down into a bunker. The lower fairway is shorter to reach but makes a more difficult shot to the green, sometimes from a blind position due to the hill, and across a creek. The top fairway plays about 50-75 yard longer on the drive, but offers a better view of the green on the approach shot, as well as takes the creek completely out of play. The choices that allow the hole to play differently for each person definitely makes this one of my favorite holes on the course. I played a drive to both fairways and played the following approach shot from each to get a feel for each. The top fairway is most likely the desired shot you want to make if you can reach it.

A look back down the fairway towards the tee box from the #3 green.

The approach shot to the green from the top of the hill makes for a decent chance at par or birdie. A shot from the lower fairway leads to having to carry a creek and then the large green side bunker.

A look into the #3 green from the top fairway.

The fourth hole is a relatively short par 3 that plays down hill. Again, the green is mostly flat, making for an decent chance at par.

A look at the 4th green from the tee box.

The 5th hole is the longest on the course, playing 545 yards from the blue tee boxes. The fairway is long and straight initially, across a creek, before a hill raises the fairway 15 feet higher at 250 yards out.

A look down the fairway from the 5th tee box.

A look into the 5th green from 150 yards out.

After clearing the rise in the 5th fairway, it is a straight shot into an elevated green. If your shot drifts left, you are faced with a third shot from one of the four sizable, green side bunkers.

A closer look at the green side bunkers at #5.

It's ok to hit to the backside of the 5th green. The ball should roll back downhill towards the flag.

A look down to the green from the cart path.

The 6th hole is a short par 4 that can be tricky. The fairway turns left and then uphill towards the green after 200 yards or so.

A look down the fairway from the 6th tee box.

A look into the 6th green from 150 yards out.

The approach shot plays across a shallow ravine, up to the 6th green. The green has a series of undulations that necessitates a fairly precise shot and being able to stick the ball where it lands.

A look at the 6th green from 75 yards out.

A look back down the fairway from behind the 6th green.

The 7th hole is an average length par 3, playing 158 yards from the blue tee boxes. The creek shouldn't come into play, but the green does slope back towards the hill and green side bunkers. If the ball has a decent spin and starts rolling back, you could be looking at a difficult second shot.

A look at the 7th green from the tee box.

A look down onto the 7th green from the cart path at the top of the hill.

The 8th hole is a modest length par 4, measuring 440 yards from the blue tee boxes. The tee shot starts in a slightly narrow path, widening in the middle of the fairway, before leading to a very narrow approach shot to the green.

A look down the fairway from the 8th tee box.

A look into the 8th tee box from 100 yards out.

A precise shot to the green is required as there is trouble to be found all around the green. To the left is sand, to the front is a downhill slope, and to the back and right are trees and pine straw.

A look back down the fairway from behind the 8th green.

The 9th hole presents several hazards and was one of my favorite on the courses. Directly in front, approximately 120-150 yards from the blue tee box is a creek. On the right side of the fairway is a sandtrap, and further right is a lake. Further down the fairway, on the left at approximately 275 yards is another creek that follows the left side of the fairway all the way past the green.

A look down the fairway from the 9th tee box.

A look to the 9th green from 120 yards out.

Care should be taken on the shot to the green as the creek runs down the left side and wraps behind the green. A slight slope of the green to the left can lead a ball right into the creek.

A look down the fairway from behind the 9th green.

The back nine starts with a 486 yard, par 5. The fairway travels towards the right and uphill for about 300 yards, before straightening for the final 180 yards to the green.

A look down the fairway from the 10th tee box.

A look towards the 10th green from 75 yards out.

A look back down the 10th fairway from the left side of the green.

Both sides of the 10th fairway offer sand on both sides. The left side bunkers are moderately deep and can lead to a high number on the 10th if not careful with the approach shot.

A look into the green from the left side fairway bunkers.

The 11th hole is a fairly short par 4 at 347 yards. You can make up a shot with a straight drive and approach shot. Care should be taken to avoid the right side bunkers next to the green.

A look down the fairway from the 11th tee box.

A look into the 11th green from 100 yards out.

A look at the green from the right side next to the cart path.

The 12th is another fairly short par 4 measuring 405 yards from the blue tees. It plays down hill and to the left, with a creek splitting the middle of the fairway. The sand trap on the left shouldn't come into play.

A look down the fairway from the 12th tee box.

If you hit your drive to the right side of the fairway, the ball will roll downhill and back to the center. If you hit to the center, there is a chance your ball could roll off the left side of the fairway into the trees. The creek is only going to come into play for the longest of hitters as it sits 300 yards or so from the blue tee box.

A look into the 12th green from 150 yards out.

The 13th is an average length par 3 and plays downhill. There is a creek the runs across the bottom of the hill, and with the green that slopes back towards the creek, could cost a player several strokes if they aren't careful. There are also bunkers to the right that are at a fairly steep angle and can prove a difficult second shot if the balls ends up down there.

A look into the 13th green from the tee box.

A look at the 13th green from the back right side.

The 14th hole is another fantastic opportunity to make up a stroke with a short, 350 yard par 4. It also plays slightly downhill from the tee box, allowing for a longer than normal drive. It does slope down to the left so make sure to hit your drive to the right center of the fairway.

A look down the fairway from the 14th tee box.

A look back down the 14th fairway from behind the green.

The 15th is an even shorter par 4, playing 310 yards from the blue tee boxes. It allows for an additional stroke to be picked up, and possibly two if you are a long hitter.

A look down the fairway from the 15th tee box.

It is a slight dogleg so a corner has to be cut, and the green slopes down and to the left so a drive could shoot wildly off the green and into the woods if not cautious. There are also large sand traps to the left front of the green that could cause problems for someone trying to drive the green.

A look at the 15th green from 100 yards out.

If two short par 4s weren't enough to make a late push at a good score, the 16th is a 149 yard par 3. It also plays slightly downhill, playing about a club shorter.

A look into the 16th green from the tee box.

The 17th is the last par 5 on the course, playing 517 yards from the blue tees. A creek runs along the right side of the fairway, eventually running across the fairway at about 180 yards out from the green. There is also a large sand trap to the left at approximately 240 yards out.

A look down the fairway from the 17th tee box.

A look towards the green from 180-200 yards out.

Once you cross the creek, the fairway slopes downhill and into the green, with a large and moderately steep sand trap to the left.

A look into the 17th green from 60 yards out.

The 18th tee shot is uphill and is a blind shot towards the green. The play is to the center or just left side of center, as the hill slopes down and to the right after clearing the rise.

A look down the fairway from the 18th tee box.

Once over the rise, it is a straight downhill look into the green. The slope at the top of the hill does have a slight right downhill bend, but straightens after 20-30 yards.  There is a lake to the right of the green to take note of.

A look into the 18th green from 175 yards out.

Overall, the Azaleas Course at Dancing Rabbit was a fairly fun course to play. However, due to the conditions of some of the tee boxes, the rough patches around most greens and fringes, and the lack of overseeding, the course is rated too highly on the top 100 public courses in my opinion. For a course rated six spots behind Fallen Oaks GC, a course that hosts a Champions Tour event and also located in Mississippi, I expected much more from Dancing Rabbit. Longaberger GC in Ohio, rated at #55 on the same list, was a much nicer, and better maintained course than Dancing Rabbit.

My advice is, if you find yourself in or around Philadelphia, MS, and have time for a round, then schedule a tee time. However, I would not recommend going out of your way, driving more than 100 miles to play this course as you may for some of the other courses on the list.