[Golf Review] Best Valley - My first 5 AM tee time with high school friends

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I pushed myself too hard this week.
9/1 (Tue) Blue Heron (Suspended due to rain after the front nine)
9/2 (Wed) The Crosby
9/4 (Fri) Rexfield
9/5 (Sat) Best Valley
When I debuted in 2023, I loved stepping onto the grass so much
that I once played 5 days in a row from Monday to Friday,
but since then, I've tried to stick to twice a week if possible.
Somehow, it turned out like this.
Returning to twice a week starting next week.

This round has a lot of history.
Originally, I planned to go for a standard 18-hole round with 4 people,
but it seems everyone was free, so they all signed up.
Planning for two teams made it tough to find 8 people.
Fortunately, I managed to get 7, and while we were one short,
a friend I reconnected with after 20 years joined us.
Normally, if I set my mind to it, making 8 people is easy.
However, because the tee-off time was in the 5 AM slot,
many friends were hesitant.
"Are you guys crazy?"
I even heard things like that.
The golf course's pricing policy was also a factor:
05:00 slot: 140,000 KRW
06:00 slot: 170,000 KRW
07:00 slot: 190,000 KRW


Arrived in 43 minutes at dawn.
Getting home at that time is also quite impressive.
The traffic around Paju is decent;
it doesn't get insanely congested even on weekends.



A welcoming entrance.
Green speed: 2.5.
It used to be 2.8 or higher,
but it seems to have dropped quite a bit during the summer.










Front 9-hole course.
What is the advantage of a 9-hole course?
You just need to take photos of the 9 tee boxes and you're done.
As I mentioned in my review back in April,
aside from the downside of it being only 9 holes,
it excels in everything: course length, turf management, difficulty, layout, and operations.
My friends were also very satisfied.
Though they did complain about how difficult the 9 holes are...













Fairways by hole.
Checking my ball flight at Best Valley.
Front 9 holes:
Hole 1 (Par 5): 1 o'clock, Draw, middle of fairway
Hole 2 (Par 4): 11 o'clock, Hook, left forest hazard
Hole 3 (Par 4): 1 o'clock, Draw, middle of fairway
Hole 4 (Par 4): 12 o'clock, Fade, right rough
Hole 5 (Par 3): 12 o'clock, Straight, on green
Hole 6 (Par 4): 12 o'clock, Draw, left edge of fairway
Hole 7 (Par 5): 12 o'clock, Fade, middle of fairway (Birdie)
Hole 8 (Par 4): 12 o'clock, Draw, left rough
Hole 9 (Par 3): 12 o'clock, Draw, left apron of green
Back 9 holes:
Hole 1 (Par 5): 1 o'clock, Draw, middle of fairway
Hole 2 (Par 4): 12 o'clock, Straight, left bunker (would have been in front of green if it passed)
Hole 3 (Par 4): 12 o'clock, Fade, right rough
Hole 4 (Par 4): 12 o'clock, Straight, left edge of fairway
Hole 5 (Par 3): 12 o'clock, Straight, on green
Hole 6 (Par 4): 1 o'clock, Draw, middle of fairway (Birdie)
Hole 7 (Par 5): 12 o'clock, Fade, middle of fairway (20m approach shot went long)
Hole 8 (Par 4): 1 o'clock, Draw, middle of fairway
Hole 9 (Par 3): 12 o'clock, Straight, on green
Fairway hit rate: 9/14, 64.3%

• Front 4/7
• Back 5/7
  Green accuracy: Decent. Most regular ons were successful.
  The key today was also Driver ball flight and survival rate.
  Since I've been to Best Valley once before, I played comfortably.
  My grip is quite problematic.
• Old Hook Grip
  : No actual wounds, but the joint touches the shaft, causing pain.
• Current Neutral Grip
  : No pain, but the skin on my right ring and pinky fingers peels off.
  That peeled skin was preventing me from swinging properly.
  It felt much better after applying taping today.
  I wonder what is so wrong with my grip
  that it causes trouble no matter what I do.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Greens by hole.
  The clubhouse advised a speed of 2.5,
  but unlike the front nine which was wet with morning dew,
  it got quite fast during the back nine after the sun came up.
  It felt like 2.8?
  One birdie each in the front and back nine.
  
  Playing with 8 people after a long time.
  Just yesterday at Rexfield,
  I felt my golf condition was serious.
  Thanks to relieving the pain in my right fingers with taping
  and playing at a familiar course with comfortable friends,
  I achieved my usual results.
  A few people said they won't play with me anymore.
  They said the gap is too big and they feel discouraged, etc...
  
  
  Rounding with friends
  always requires receipt verification.
  Considering it's a Saturday,
  the green fee of 140,000 KRW is reasonable, right?
  Only one of them paid 135,000 KRW alone,
  and I don't know why.
  
  
  Best Valley
  Course Rating 72.8 / Slope Rating 137
  An incredibly high rating for a 9-hole course.
  But due to the nature of a 9-hole course where you play the same course twice,
  the perceived difficulty probably isn't quite that high.
  For reference, Glen Ross, known as the #1 9-hole course in Korea,
  is 70.8 / 126.