Fields Ferry Golf Club: A Chimney, Pot Bunkers, and a Real Test

The Course at a Glance

Fields Ferry sits a few miles east of I-75 in Calhoun, halfway between Atlanta and Chattanooga. Arthur Davis routed the course in 1992 across rolling Gordon County terrain, and after more than three decades it still holds up as one of the most interesting public layouts in northwest Georgia. Par is 72 across 6,586 yards from the Blue tees, with a course rating of 71.8 and a slope of 130. The greens are bent and the fairways are Bermuda, a combination that rewards a player who can spin a wedge and keeps approach shots honest in summer.

The Front Nine Sets the Tone

Davis does not waste time letting you know what kind of round you signed up for. Hole 2 is a par 5 where the landing area is guarded by seven pot bunkers, a minefield that turns a routine reach-in-two opportunity into a position-first decision off the tee. Pick your line and commit, because bailing out either side leaves a long second from sand or rough. Hole 3 follows with a forced carry par 3 over water to a well-bunkered green, the kind of swing-on-target shot you do not get to ease into.

From there the front winds through wider corridors, but water keeps showing up at landing zones and around greens. The bent surfaces are usually firm enough to hold a struck iron without stopping a thinned one, which is the right setting for a course at this rating.

The Closing Stretch Is the Reason People Drive Here

The back nine is where Fields Ferry earns its reputation. The signature run is 16 through 18, three holes that bracket the round's biggest decisions.

Hole 16 is a par 5 reachable for the longer player, and it sets up the most photographed moment on the property: an approach where water threatens any pull or ambitious second. Lay up to your favorite wedge yardage if the wind is anywhere near in your face. The reward for hitting the green in two is real, but so is the cost of missing.

Then comes 17, the hole everyone talks about. It is a par 3 over water with a green guarded by sand short, and rising from the front bunker is a brick chimney, the last piece of a building that came down long before Davis showed up with his shaping crew. He built the hole around it instead of removing it. Land on the green and the chimney is just background. Come up short and you might end up playing your next shot from behind a piece of local history.

Eighteen sends you home with another par 5 that weaves around an inlet and a row of bunkers. After the tension of 17, this one rewards distance control more than nerve, but a tired swing can still find trouble.

Picking the Right Tees

Five sets cover a wide range of player. The Blue tees at 6,586 yards (71.8/130) are a real test for a single-digit handicap. The White at 6,192 (69.7/127) is the right move for most mid-handicaps, especially with the forced carries on 3 and 17 already getting your attention. The Yellow at 5,745 (68.1/122) turns those carries into reasonable shots without softening the routing, and the Green at 5,328 (65.3/118) and Red at 5,228 let newer players and shorter hitters keep pace on a layout that does not punish them for being there.

Conditions, Pace, and Practicalities

Fields Ferry is walkable, has a pro shop, and runs an online tee-time booking system through the club website. The bent greens are the single biggest reason locals keep coming back, since most public courses in this part of Georgia have moved to ultradwarf Bermuda. They roll true year round and putt firmer in cooler months. Water comes into play at enough holes that an extra sleeve in the bag is a sensible call.

Calhoun is an easy stop on a drive between Atlanta and Chattanooga, about an hour and fifteen minutes from either, and the green fees here have always been a strong value relative to the design. If you are heading north or south on I-75 and want a course with actual character instead of another flat suburban layout, this is the exit worth taking.

Plan Your Round

Want every yardage, slope, and rating in one place before you tee off? View the full Fields Ferry Golf Club scorecard on Stymie for hole-by-hole pars, all five tee sets, and ratings for both men and women.