River Valley Golf Course
Adel, Iowa · 18 holes · par 72 · Public. Designed by Lowell Erdman, opened 1995.
A caddie's yardage book for every hole: plays-like distance from USGS lidar elevation, reach and carry numbers for every bunker and water hazard, green front, middle and back, which way each green falls, and the lay-up zone on par 5s. Distances are from the back tees along the mapped hole; for a shorter tee, take off the scorecard difference.
Course profile
- At about 940 ft the ball carries about 1% farther than at sea level, so a 150-yard shot plays like about 148. Golfers visiting from low elevation should expect to club down.
- Biggest climb: hole 18, where the green sits 56 ft above the tee and plays about 19 yards longer.
- Biggest drop: hole 13, where the green sits 38 ft below the tee and plays about 13 yards shorter.
- 16 greens tilt 2% or more. Each hole below says which side of the hole leaves an uphill putt.
Maps: tee at the bottom, green at the top. The dashed line is the mapped hole; the gold band is the lay-up zone; the arrow on the green points downhill.
Scorecard
| Hole | Par | Hcp | Gold | Black | White |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 5 | 390 | 375 | 315 |
| 2 | 5 | 17 | 505 | 490 | 405 |
| 3 | 3 | 13 | 180 | 155 | 125 |
| 4 | 4 | 3 | 400 | 385 | 320 |
| 5 | 5 | 1 | 540 | 510 | 405 |
| 6 | 4 | 9 | 380 | 355 | 300 |
| 7 | 4 | 15 | 360 | 335 | 265 |
| 8 | 4 | 11 | 390 | 355 | 305 |
| 9 | 3 | 7 | 165 | 140 | 115 |
| 10 | 4 | 14 | 355 | 340 | 285 |
| 11 | 5 | 18 | 500 | 475 | 405 |
| 12 | 3 | 12 | 155 | 135 | 110 |
| 13 | 4 | 4 | 410 | 375 | 340 |
| 14 | 4 | 10 | 375 | 355 | 295 |
| 15 | 4 | 16 | 425 | 370 | 330 |
| 16 | 3 | 6 | 195 | 180 | 150 |
| 17 | 5 | 8 | 540 | 515 | 415 |
| 18 | 4 | 2 | 355 | 325 | 280 |
Tees
| Tee | Yards | Rating | Slope | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | Male | 6684 | 72 | 124 |
| Black | Male | 6275 | 69.9 | 123 |
| Black | Female | 6275 | 76.5 | 129 |
| White | Male | 5452 | 66 | 110 |
| White | Female | 5452 | 71.6 | 119 |
Hole 1 · Par 4
- Plays like
- 386-13 ft
- Green · Gold tee
- 368 · 390 · 413front · middle · back
- Green size
- 46 × 22yards deep × wide
- Fairway
- 29 ydswide at 246
- Green slope
- 2.5%falls to the front
In play
- No bunkers or water mapped on this hole
Playing notes
- Plays about 4 yards shorter: the green sits 13 ft below the tee.
- No hazards mapped in the driving zone (180 to 300 yards).
- The fairway is about 29 yards wide at 246.
- No hazards mapped around the green.
- The green falls from back to front, about 2.5%. Finish on the front side of the hole for an uphill putt.
- The green is 46 yards deep: a back pin can play about 3 clubs more than a front pin.
Hole 2 · Par 5
- Plays like
- 517+37 ft
- Green · Gold tee
- 491 · 505 · 519front · middle · back
- Green size
- 29 × 28yards deep × wide
- Fairway
- 27 ydswide at 247
- Green slope
- 3%falls to the front
In play
- Bunker right: 207 to reach, 249 to carry
- Bunker front-right of the green
Playing notes
- Plays about 12 yards longer: the green sits 37 ft above the tee.
- Dogleg right at about 238 yards.
- Fairway bunkers on the right: 207 to reach, 249 to carry. Drives that finish short of 207 stay clear; otherwise the left side is the safer line off the tee.
- The fairway is about 27 yards wide at 247.
- Best lay-up: 70 to 170 yards from the green, where the fairway is about 29 yards wide with no bunkers or water within 16 yards.
- The green is guarded on the right by bunkers; miss left.
- The green falls from back to front, about 3%. Finish on the front side of the hole for an uphill putt.
Hole 3 · Par 3
- Plays like
- 185+16 ft
- Green · Gold tee
- 163 · 180 · 196front · middle · back
- Green size
- 33 × 30yards deep × wide
- Green slope
- 2%falls to the front
In play
- Bunker front of the green
- Bunker front-right of the green
Playing notes
- Plays about 5 yards longer: the green sits 16 ft above the tee.
- The green is guarded on the right by bunkers; miss left.
- Bunkers short of the green; take enough club to carry it.
- The green falls from back to front, about 2%. Finish on the front side of the hole for an uphill putt.
Holes 4 to 18
4 · Par 45 · Par 56 · Par 47 · Par 48 · Par 49 · Par 310 · Par 411 · Par 512 · Par 313 · Par 414 · Par 415 · Par 416 · Par 317 · Par 518 · Par 4
The rest of this guide has the same caddie detail for every hole:
- 15 plays-like yardages
- 23 hazards with reach and carry
- 15 green slope reads
- 3 par-5 lay-up zones
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Hole maps, hazards and playing notes come from mapped course data and USGS 3DEP elevation (public domain), not a visit. Plays-like numbers use the Skitty caddie's rule of one yard per 3 ft of rise, from the longest tee; altitude uses 1.16% of carry per 1,000 ft. Tees, hazards and conditions change; check with the course before you play. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0) via OpenGolfAPI. Scorecard yardages and ratings as published. See a mistake? Email [email protected].