TPC Louisiana — Attraction in Louisiana

I visited TPC Louisiana with a bachelor party. Booking tee times was exceptionally easy, as the people I worked with were friendly and made everything work for us, including handling a reduction in the number of attendees late in the game. Upon arrival, we were greeted kindly and it was smooth getting from bag drop to the first tee.

From there, we had a terrible experience with the course marshall - my group included two experienced but novice players, one relatively inexperienced player and one beginner. We had a difficult time with the first hole (I'll talk about the course later... it is beautiful and challenging!), and the marshall approached us to tell us that we needed to pick up our pace. We understood his concerns and adjusted our play accordingly. However, it didn't end with that. Although we were playing at a moderate pace, the group behind us was playing very quickly; by the sixth hole, the marshall decided to let them play through us - a move we all welcomed, as it presumably would take pressure off of our group. However, matters got much worse from here.

After the group played through us, we found ourselves waiting for them on each hole, which was not a concern to us since we were enjoying ourselves. Typically, they would be on the fairway taking their second shots, but there were just close enough (~200 yards from the tees) that we were hesitant to tee off (I occasionally get that perfect 250 yard drive). Even so, the course marshall followed us from hole to hole, watching our every move. At one point, I hit a ball into a long, wide bunker that had no rakes nearby. Out of respect for the course, I ran around to the other side, grabbed a rake and proceeded to take my shot. When I went back to rake the bunker, the marshall rudely told me to "Forget it and move on." His comments became ruder as we played on - "I'm surprised the whole group even made it; most of these bachelor parties half the people are too hung over to get here," "I'm sure you all will be glad to get back to the [French] Quarter after this," to give a sense. By the back nine, his presence was incredibly distracting, and we couldn't even really track our play since any time we hit a bad ball, we were instructed to simply drop on the green, even if it was something as simple as hitting a tee shot into a water hazard. I felt like I had a reasonable round, but I have no idea what my score was since we were discouraged from playing out a full hole. I felt that after paying more than $100 per person, we had paid for the privilege to play a full round, which we did not have the chance to do. For reference, the other group we played with felt similarly "watched" by the marshall, but he did not make comments; our best guess is that he was tolerant since they shot well, between 80 and 99.

Although the overzealous, rude marshall basically ruined my experience, I can say that the course itself is beautiful. For a casual golfer, it poses a lot of challenges, but it is also forgiving. Fairways are wide, and bunkers are mostly shallow. In some cases, bunkers provide excellent protection from water hazards. Greens are gorgeous and play very fast, but there are few double breaks and no unreasonable grades.

The clubhouse was phenomenal - after speaking to the pro shop about our bad experience, we were offered a round of drinks, which I thought was a great gesture. The staff in the clubhouse was warm and welcoming, and the facilities were incredible.

Overall, I would love to play this course again, but I would hesitate to do so if I couldn't break 100 on a regular basis, and I would highly discourage beginners from playing this course, especially if you are from out of state - the pressure put on by the course marshall only intensified the already great challenge the course posed. For those who shoot in the 70s or 80s regularly, this course would be a fantastic challenge, and I highly...

Disappointed. The owner, the PGA TOUR, says the TPC Network is “premier,” known for its “outstanding conditioning and amenities.” Well, TPC Louisiana is just another “upscale” course. We expected someone to drive a cart to our car upon parking. They didn’t even offer to carry our bags once we arrived at the cart area. The carts didn’t have electronic screens. Out-of-state residents pay fully double the rate for in-state residents. The driving range didn’t offer yardages. A worker put down new balls at my station in the middle of my backswing. The starter insulted our playing partner upon hearing he was from California by denigrating liberals. The course itself was conditioned better than most every publicly-available one in New Orleans. The greens were in great shape, speedy, and difficult. I’m glad I found their online yardage book ahead of time and printed it out so it saved me a few strokes. Although one would think they would try to sell you books in the pro shop when you check in so you feel they want to help you and they make more money. The overall design is fine – obviously good enough for a PGA TOUR tournament each year – but I wouldn’t say it’s outstanding. I’ve played TPC Sugarloaf and it’s definitely superior. TPC Louisiana isn’t one which we feel we want to play again. Also, after ordering lunch while on the 8th tee as they suggested (the beverage cart didn’t offer hot dogs or sandwiches), our hamburger and sandwich weren’t ready when we arrived at the clubhouse. And they should offer smaller, on-course portions from their regular gargantuan ones so players aren’t weighted down if they so choose. Also, they told us if we stopped for lunch in the dining room, we couldn’t go to the 10th tee between back-to-back groups. We wondered what would have happened to us if the tee...

While the course was very nice and well maintained, we were thoroughly disappointed with the lack of customer service and attention upon arrival.

I understand the tee sheet wasn’t full and we weren’t considered VIPs, but that shouldn’t negate the upscale experience you should receive coming to a top of the line course such as TPC Louisiana.

Sadly our experience was sub par at best. Initially, we walked up and set our bags down to be assigned a golf cart while we went inside to the pro shop to check in. After we came out, our bags were still in the same spot we left them in and as we walked up there was a group of at least 5 employees standing around talking. No greetings and no direction as to where to go to get started. After we situated our bags on the cart, my husband approached the group and asked about the starter and was told they didn’t have a starter for the day, and was told to, “just go ahead”. Again, assuming we’ve been there before and know where exactly to “go”.

Well we went ahead and ended up waiting 30 minutes behind a 4-some, and a 2-some to get started. Fast forward through our round, we ended up having to skip the 4-some, (the 2-some also left early) as the course didn’t have a marshall either and no one was keeping the round on pace.

Definitely not the type of service and experience you’d expect at a TPC that costs over $200 per person, per round. I’d rather head back over to Joseph M. Bartholomew Municipal Golf Course that we played at the day before for better customer service from the very beginning of your...