Every now and then you revisit a golf course and wonder why you ever stopped playing it in the first place. That was our experience last week at The Preserve at Jordan Lake. At a little over 40 miles from my driveway in Raleigh, it's not exactly around the corner. By the time we arrived, I was beginning to think I should have packed a lunch. As it turned out, the drive was a small price to pay for one of the more enjoyable rounds we've had this season. The clubhouse makes a great first impression, with plenty of parking, an attractive grill and restaurant and a nicely appointed pro-shop. I can't tell you whether the food is any good because, despite my lunch comments, I never made it inside long enough to find out. I should add thst the staff were efficient, professional and friendly. The practice facilities are solid, although I'd happily trade a few extra range balls for a larger short-game area. One piece of free advice: if you're hitting balls on a sunny morning, bring sunglasses. Unless my internal compass has completely failed me, the range points straight into the sunrise, making it remarkably easy to lose sight of a perfectly struck shot—and equally easy to assume it was perfectly struck. Then there are the golf carts. They're gas-powered, don't have GPS, and announce your arrival with all the subtlety of a riding lawn mower. On the bright side, the seats are wonderfully comfortable, and the carts never skipped a beat all day. Sometimes old technology simply refuses to retire. The golf course itself is classic Davis Love—target golf at its finest. The blue tees stretch to 6,600 yards with a 72.1 course rating and a healthy 138 slope, which is the course's polite way of saying, "Think before you swing." Thankfully, golfers looking for a friendlier experience can move up to the white tees, where the numbers become noticeably more forgiving without sacrificing the character of the layout. Perhaps the biggest surprise was the conditioning. Despite the drought that has punished much of central North Carolina, The Preserve looked remarkably healthy. Fairways were very good, the course was beautifully presented, and the greens were true, if just a touch slower than expected. Naturally, I attribute my 34 putts entirely to their speed. Of course, our foursome did what golfers have done since the invention of the game: we blamed sidehill lies, awkward bounces, and strategically placed hazards for shots that almost certainly had nothing to do with any of those things. Note: Given enough time, my group would find fault with a miniature golf course. When the we finished however, there was unanimous agreement: we all wondered why it had been so long since our last visit. The Preserve is challenging without being punishing, scenic without being gimmicky, and in very good condition. Sometimes the best compliment you can pay a golf course is the simplest one of all. We'll be back—and hopefully next time I'll remember to pack lunch...or at least make time to try the grill.

Spent five hours on the course today. It’s nestled in a stunningly beautiful community, but don't let the scenery distract you—this course is a beast. The fairways are relatively narrow with significant elevation changes, and most holes are doglegs that require strategic placement. The greens are particularly tricky and very fast; if you’re not careful with a downhill putt, you’ll easily find your ball rolling right off the green. Due to the recent dry spell, some fairways were a bit sparse with occasional bare dirt patches. There was also some maintenance machinery operating on a few holes, which was quite noisy and disruptive to the pace of play. Overall, it’s a highly challenging and fun course. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and the test it provided.

Beautiful course, played the front 9, greens were perfect, pro shop staff friendly, great course overall, will be back for sure! Driving range was closed at the time for maintenance but looked in good shape overall!

Probably played my last round at the Preserve yesterday. Every time I've played here the tee times are slid to squeeze in more groups and the pace of play is miserably slow, and it's not because of slow golfers. We quit early and drove passed 10+ groups all experiencing the same thing. I get it's a pretty day in the winter and you want to make money, but this isn't the way to do it. It's so overbooked it never has a chance to open up after the first couple holes. Two stars only because the course is nice and in good condition given the time of year.

Terrible!!! Aside from the squeezed in tee times I called in specifically to ask if there were any afternoon tournaments. I was told there were not by a pro-shop worker named Jeff. He flat out lied to me as when we got here we were stuck behind a tournament with about 10 groups of children golfers. It was the slowest round ever and I paid $40 to play about seven terrible holes. I will be disputing the transaction, I also will never play here and highly recommend you go elsewhere; so many better courses in the area. Out of 5 Course management: 1 Condition:2 Staff:1