Tumwater Valley Golf Club — Restaurant in Tumwater

My husband and I have been playing Tumwater Valley for about 30 years and years and I am not a good golfer but I enjoy the game. My husband passed away in 2022, and can no longer book a single, even if they have open tee time, they just refuse to fill them. I live out of town and they tell me to drive in and see if they can accommodate me! Are you kidding? Last week, I golfed again this year with my granddaughter and required a handicap flag due to a severely broken femur making walking extremely difficult for me especially on uneven ground. If you have any type of mobility problem, Tumwater valley is NOT ADA ACCESSIBLE with a cart. They purchased these carts and software that beep and then the cart comes to a complete stop if you get to close to where they think you should not be. No signs that indicate “NO CARTS BEYOND THIS POINT “ like normal golf courses, which would give you some idea that your cart would quit. Then you have to reverse to get out of it and the direction to go is not always obvious. Very frustrating. I hit my ball on a par 3 and it only went about 50 yards on a 160 yard par 3. My ball landed on the opposite side of the cart path near the woods and I thought I could drive across the fairway to my ball since I was no way close to the green……No way, my cart was programmed not to go across any par 3s. It was extremely difficult for me to walk to my ball. For a City owned course not to be accessible, is I believe against the law. I called the office a couple times because my cart got stopped and was told that it was programmed for the easiest access, but still nowhere enough for a mobility disability. I have been golfing a very long time and I know not to drive on the green, but now, I sometimes I have to get to the back side of a green and the hilly part was very difficult. These carts explain the large number of walkers I saw on the course….more than I have ever seen in my life time of golfing at this course. It appears golfers would rather walk than deal with the annoyance of these carts. I will never play Tumwater valley again. They tried to bring me a different cart, but since there is apparently no way to turn the program off if you have a disability, you just cannot get reasonably close to your ball in some instances. I would not encourage going to Tumwater Valley. Find a different course. Their no singles policy is also ridiculous. They can always book a twosome of threesome with a single like...

Probably one of the best kept public courses I’ve seen. Tee boxes are well taken care of and greens are clean and well groomed. Most of the fairways are clear and green, though it does seem like they’re mowing/grooming/plugging/aerating during prime golf times a lot. That might be subjective given I golf there twice a week, but it also makes for a great course.

Memberships are more than reasonable, and the entire course is easily walkable (the 5th has an incline about 100 yards off the tee, but it’s more than manageable). Staff are very helpful and personable, and summertime beverage cart services are great. The attached restaurant is also great, with pleasant and knowledgeable staff, and the practice facilities are fantastic.

Gripe #1 is play enforcement. A lot of players want that 2.5 hour round and get pissy when you’re trying to enjoy a slower pace. Course rules are 4-4.5 hour pace, but even at 3.5 hours we’ve had a few jerks, and not much enforcement of civility on the course.

Gripe #2 is tee time selection. 10 minute windows that open up online 7 days in advance. However, there’s no guarantee for members, meaning non members will often go online in the wee hours and book the day into the afternoon (the window opens at 12:01 am). I think it would mean a lot if they allowed members to book an extra day or two in advance.

Overall, highly recommend. Or maybe I shouldn’t, so it isn’t...

Great bang for your buck. Not a ton of slope, and not super finely manicured. Well maintained overall and very playable. Greens had been recently aerated, but you can tell they are nice when grown in. Typical N.W. poa greens. subtle, but still enough slope to make you earn it. Really a fun course. Mature trees, some water. Nice practice facilities as well. Grass tees on the driving range. Huge putting green, pitching bowl with big bunker make it a great place to work on whatever may be keeping you from that next level. Aka everything for me. Lol. The rates are super reasonable. I recently paid twenty bucks for a twilight round walking w/ a sleeve of balls. Of course that varies throughout the year. And I'm sure the logo ball thing was just a promotion. But you're be hard pressed to find a better value anywhere in Western wa. I haven't looked to see what primetime July weekend morning rates are, but I'll bet they are very competitive as well. Will definitely be...