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From our Directory of the most recommended golf courses
Oxmoor Valley
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Located in Birmingham, the course was built on a reclaimed mining pit, and is a secluded setting. Two great RTJ Trail 18 hole courses, the Valley at 7,292 yards, 135 slope, and The Ridge, at 7,055 and 140 slope from the tips, plus a short course. Both courses are cut through the trees, hills and valleys of the land here. Some fairways are open and plenty of room for the landing areas, while others are tree lined corridors, that seem somewhat constricting. The Ridge Course, with its rolling fairways, heavy tree cover and a big 150-foot elevation change, is a great layout, and challenging with water in the form of creeks and lakes. The greens are heavily guarded with bunkers, tend to be raised, and of average size. The Valley Course is routed through the lower valley of the land along a few lakes, with tree lined and bordered fairways, and less rolling than the Ridge. You'll appreciate the challenge of the 18th, a 441 hole named "the Assassin" uphill to the green overlooked by the clubhouse. A great heroic par here is a good finish.
Posted by: igolfanywhere
Jan 28th, 2012
Awesome layout, with the same tremendous elevation changes, but more forgiving on shots not hit straight; though the par 3's all have teeth and any mishit will be punished. A resort course, so fairways are fairly generous, rough is not terrible. They make up for it on par 3's with tough carries, hardly playable second shots if you miss the green and enormous greens that are quite hittable, but easily 3 puttable (as I did on 3 of the 4...). The most pricey of all the RTJ Trail courses, at $125.
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Posted by: Pwrfade
Jan 14th, 2012
Rolling hills, meandering tree lines, green fairways, and precise layouts make shotmaking in critical demand for a good score. The visual obstructions often make tee shots intimidating experiences, seeing how many places one can miss the fairway. Still, little matches the natural beauty of a well-planned golf course, and RTJ has plenty of that. Yet another indicator of the beauty of this course is seen at the par 5 3rd hole. A brave driver can place his ball in the fairway between the water. Even if you manage to hit a career drive, RTJ leaves very little payoff. The uphill second shot to a pedestal green is an unlikely reach, even for the longest and most precise hitter.What might be the signature hole of this course, the par 3 8th, is downhill and all carry over water. A nicely hit 7 or 8 iron (depending on pin location) will put you in a good spot for a birdie. AAs my memory serves, I don’t recall thinking this course was very long. Yet, at over 7,000 yards from the tips, no one can call it a short course. I suppose I was too focused on other features of the course to worry about the length. Although I haven’t seemed to play well, I can’t blame the course at all for that. The drawbacks–it’s hard to say. The courses are not really walkable not only because of undulation but also because there is a lot of distance between greens and tees. They are typically out in the middle of nowhere, but Birmingham wasn’t bad at all. Not to mention, when you’re golfing, you typically don’t want to be in an urban center. The service is great. The cost is reasonable ($52/18 holes with cart). One thing, you may want to check and ensure that maintenance is not being done during your trip. LG and I had planned to play one RTJ course during our 3-day visit that we skipped because it was being aerated during our visit. Thankfully, we checked when we called ahead–not sure they would’ve told us if we hadn’t asked. All in all, though, it’s a great place to play golf. Visit The Power Fade Blog!
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