Oakland Country Club

Oakland Country Club

I wanted to write and post about this course fresh after the state Senior Match play which Oakland hosted. I was a member here for 4 years and love to play the course.  I would still belong if it wasn’t for the 55 minute drive from northwest Omaha.

This course 25 miles north of Fremont is a gem and well within reach for Omaha golfers. First, they usually have some of the smoothest-truest greens of “any” course in the area. It is very accessible unless there is an event. Many times I have called the day before and get the tee time I want, even on weekends. My wife and I have gone up on weekdays, walk the course in under 3 hours and the extra driving time is well worth it.

They do not have a large membership, but the members, especially the locals take great pride in the course and take care of it.  You see hardly any ball marks on the greens.  The superintendent, Jeff Parcells lives on the course and is a single digit handicap.  He understands what golfers want in a golf course and this has been his baby for a long time.

The course is a standard par 72, but not terribly long.  The par 4s are all under 400 yards from the ash brown tees, but the par 3s are tougher than most courses. You don’t need to be a long hitter to score on the course. If you can put it out there 230 on the drive and manage around the hazards, trees and OB, you can attack the greens. Like a lot of Nebraska golf courses, it was built in phases. It is obvious that several greens are the small, old style domes.  The first thing I would do if I owned the course is rebuild greens one, nine and ten. Other greens like seven and eleven are huge, but not easy to navigate. Regarding number 9, this is one of the hardest greens to hit and stay on. It’s effective size is about half of what you see.  Green 4 is less than 300 yards from the tee, but has one of the most sever slopes of any green around. If the greens are running fast, this green is unfair.  I heard on a windy day during a high school invite, they took this hole out of play because no one could keep a putt on the green. Stay below the hole!

Everyone hates hole 14 which is a 500 yard goofy par 5  between hazards, around the trees, and OB left.  They took some trees out a couple years ago which makes the first two shots a little more manageable. I believe they are going to start some work to straighten the hole and take away the OB left which eats a lot of balls.

A downside is the driving range which is a journey from the first tee. A walker would have to take a cart to the range.  It only has room for about 10 players at a time and you are likely hitting old dirty balls. If you hit it over 250, you can put it into the eighth fairway. The practice green is also very small, but will give you a good feel for the greens.

The clubhouse is ancient and could really use some serious updating. All the changes I suggest take significant financial resources, so probably not feasible without a large financial donation. The sprinklers don’t hit the rough so it is usually burnt out in August and this makes the course a little easier. The course sits along a creek and has been flooded a couple times in the last 10 years, but always recovered well.

With the price of golf going up and tee times harder to get, those in eastern Nebraska should always look at this course as an option for a great round of golf.