The City of Carrollton, located in the heart of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, consistently scores high marks for its diversity, cost of living, excellent school systems and beautiful neighborhoods.
The quality of life in Carrollton is greatly enhanced by the city’s Parks & Recreation Department, recent winner of the Texas Recreation & Park Society’s 2021 Gold Medal Award for Excellence, which provides a wide range of recreation and sporting facilities, events, programs and leisure opportunities for an active community.
One of the department’s most popular recreational destinations is the Indian Creek Golf Club, a 36-hole complex located near the junction of I-35 and Sam Rayburn Tollway (Highway 121). Tucked away in a secluded oasis away from all the nearby hustle and bustle, Indian Creek is popular with locals and tourists alike not only because it offers 36 holes of great golf, but also because it’s one of the friendliest places around.
“It’s very important to us that everyone who walks through the door feels welcome and at home,” said Julie Roberts, Director of Golf at Indian Creek. “People play golf for all sorts of different reasons, whether it’s competition, spending time with friends and family or just to get outdoors for some physical exercise. We try to create an atmosphere that is comfortable and accommodating so that everyone can have fun playing golf no matter the motivation.”
Indian Creek’s two 18-hole courses, Creek and Lakes, were both designed by Dick Phelps. The Creek Course was the first to open in 1983, followed by the Lakes Course in 1987.
The Creek Course is a visual delight, with a routing that takes golfers on a scenic journey through thousands of trees, lush meadows, around and over natural water hazards and along the Trinity River.
With wide, gently sloping fairways, there is plenty of room off the tee. But it’s crucial to find the correct side of the short grass to have the best approach angle into the well-guarded greens, which are large and have plenty of contours. With five sets of tees to choose from ranging in length from 5,038 to 7,235 yards, golfers can play from anywhere they feel comfortable.
The Lakes Course reopened in early 2020 after an extensive renovation. The $4 million dollar project included reshaping and re-grassing all greens, tees and fairways, new cart paths and state-of-the-art drainage and irrigation systems to improve playing conditions. While it has a new look and feel, the course still has all the strategic design elements of a true parkland-style layout with an excellent mix of long and short holes and left and right doglegs. Considered the more player-friendly of the two, the Lakes Course also has five set of tees ranging in length from 5,271 to 7,000 yards.
Playing a round on either the Creek or Lakes Course is an enjoyable experience no matter what, but if you really want to elevate the fun factor, be sure to rent a Finn Scooter for the day. It’s a single rider electric golf cart (think battery-powered cross-country bike) with turf-friendly tires and built-in GPS rangefinder.
“They are epic fun, like you just reverse aged 20 years fun,” Roberts said.
In addition to championship golf, Indian Creek has plenty of other amenities to offer, including premier teaching and practice facilities, full-service pro shop, great food and drinks at the Arrowhead Grill and a large, covered pavilion for outdoor entertaining.
For those new to the game or are looking to make some new golf friends, Indian Creek also has leagues, individual and group lessons, special events and other fun activities for all ages and skill levels. This year Indian Creek is also hosting the TGA Foundation’s Golf 101, a golf introductory program designed specifically for women wanting to learn the game for the very first time or for women who haven’t played in a while and want to get back into the swing of things.
“At the end of the day, growing the game is about providing a sanctum where people can discover what golf brings to their life,” Roberts said. “Giving people a greater sense of well-being through golf is part of what makes Indian Creek’s golf community thrive.”
For more information about Indian Creek Golf Club in Carrollton, click here.
