Stone Mountain Golf Course

Printable Playing Tips

Please fix ball marks on our beautiful greens, replace divots, and rake traps. Please take water with you to avoid dehydration.  Be smart about lightning.  Thank you once again for choosing Stone Mountain Golf Club, where the first rule is to relax and enjoy yourself.

Hole 1. The distance is marked on the tee box. You may want to think right, but the green will hold a ball hit directly at the pin. The green is below the tee, so it plays short for the yardage. The green breaks left down the mountain.

Hole 2.  Falls off the earth on the right side into a hazard. I suggest playing a long low iron into the base of the hill, and you will have an easy wedge into the green. Please stay on cart path on this hole. Great view from green.

Hole 3. Great view from #2 to # 3. #3 falls off into a hazard. Think left, as the ball usually feeds down onto the green. Remember it’s uphill, so you may want an extra club or two, especially to a blue flag. Use the cart path yardage.

Hole 4.  You can pull out the driver on # 4. If the pin is on the back tier, a low running shot is easier than trying to fly it into a small space. The hill behind the green will stop the ball unless you hit it too hot. Again, an uphill shot to the green may take an extra club. If the pin is on the bottom tier, the putt from the upper tier is a killer, so stay short.

Hole 5. Remember to measure your shot by the cart path stripe. The green is basically on a level with the tee, so use a normal distance club. Long is obviously much safer than short. There is an optional drop zone and senior ladies tee (SLT) on the dam causeway. All SLT (Senior Ladies Tees) are marked by a pink dot on the cart path.

Hole 6. The landing areas on the left and right of the fairway are now safe, so hit away, but avoid the cypresses, they eat balls. This green is very elevated, and you may need to use two extra clubs. The green breaks toward the front.

Hole 7. No matter how far you drive, it usually settles into the same area, so hit whatever you hit the straightest, and it should be a wedge, although probably an extra club. This uphill green breaks severely toward the front. SLT.

Hole 8. Careful! When you line up on this tee box, place your club in alignment with your feet, back off, and look down where your club is facing. You were lined up to the right, weren’t you? I just saved you an out of bounds shot. Unless you can reach the green in two, the smart play is to hit a controlled drive, then a controlled iron to the bottom of the hill. Then a soft chip results in a birdie putt. If you do hit a long iron into the green, it may be two extra clubs. The safest second shot is to the left side of the green. Hit it over the green on the right = very difficult chip to a pin on the right side of the green (tough birdie), and a very interesting chip to a pin on the left

Hole 9. The best shot is directly into the green, and it will hold. Use the cart path yardage. If you don’t trust yourself, bail out into the hill on the right and it usually will roll down to the green, unless it’s wet. However, make sure you play it far enough up the hill, because the slope right next to the right side of the green is severe, and makes the ball kick hard to the left. If you do go left and down, for a safe shot use the upper bank by overshooting the pin and letting it roll back onto the green. The green breaks down the mountain, though it doesn’t look like it. SLT where road splits from cart path.

Hole 10. Unless you can play a draw around the corner, it is better to play a long iron or hybrid so you don’t run through the fairway, try to roll it over the hill. You will still have a chance to hit the green in two. Also, this downhill green usually takes one club less. It will hold a regular shot that lands on the green. Right or left or long is death, so punch safely. In fact if you underclub it will usually roll to the swale in front of the green, where you can get down in two.

Hole 11. Hit something you can hit straight. It will still be a wedge (extra club?) into the green. There is a nice bank behind the green to help, so think a little long on your approach. Short, and the ball may roll back past you.

Hole 12. Same as #11, but it may be a longer shot into the green. The way to ruin this hole is to pull out the big stick and hit a drive left or right into the trees. Hit a low, straight stinger, perhaps a 3 iron or hybrid. Yell Fore! if you hook it toward the 16th green. SLT by tree top of hill. The view from the green is Grandfather Mountain in the distance

Hole 13. Be careful, you can drive it over this green, and it is a difficult chip back onto the green. The OB stakes are very close to the right side (anything on top of the big hill by the houses). To the left of the green is a swale, for an easier chip.

Hole 14. This beautiful hole is fairly obvious. The green is lower than the tee, so you may use one less club.

Hole 15. Hit a long iron right down the middle, and a short iron into the green. Left or right off the tee will kill you. Remember that 3 iron stinger? The fairway tilts left, so don’t pull your approach. This green has very little break.

Hole 16. Beautiful hole, pay attention to the cart path yardage. Local Rule- hit this trap, pick up ball and rake, and then replace. The deer play all day in the trap, and we can’t keep it raked all day. Yell Fore! if you hit left onto #12 tee.

Hole 17. Hit a short iron and keep it on the level, or a long iron if you want to hit a blind flop shot. Keep the wood in the bag, right is woods, left is OB, although we've opened up the left side quite a bit. If you’re tempted to go for the green from the tee, you better be long and perfect. You may want to use the bank behind the green for a safer approach. This green breaks hard toward the front

Hole 18. Pull the driver back out, and if you catch one you have a good chance to hit the green in two. SLT. However, you need to fly it onto the green, or it may roll back into the pond. If you hit it long, you still have a good chance to recover for a birdie. Not much break on this green. Thanks for playing and please come back!