| backyard traveler | public courses. In 2021, GolfPass ranked
Arrowhead Pointe in Elberton 16th out
of 207 courses reviewed in Georgia.
Built on a 27,000-acre undeveloped lake,
Arrowhead oers one of the most serene
environments to play a round of golf, but
its serenity can lull golfers into a false
sense of security, only to be surprised by
a challenging round of golf with undulating,
hard-to-read greens. e course
is dicult but fair, and holes 16 and 17
oer perfect examples of the beauty, serenity,
and overall diculty of the course.
Rounding out the state park golf courses
highlighting the ner points of public
golf is Highland Walk in Elberton. As
with Arrowhead, Highland Walk oers
challenging golf with a scenic backdrop.
But while Arrowhead boasts a lake,
Highland Walk challenges golfers with
18 holes seamlessly intertwined with the
rolling hills of the upper Piedmont. Sloping
greens are countered by generous
74 LAKE OCONEE LIVING | SPRING 2022
Clockwise, from left: The layout of Northeast Georgia’s semi-private Cateechee
Golf Club just outside Hartwell allows each hole to be framed by
wooded areas or a creek. Cateechee’s environmentally conscious course
design only minimally changed the natural topography. The 18th hole of
the University of Georgia golf course. The signature hole No. 14 at The
Creek at Hard Labor Creek State Park features a waterwheel leftover from a
1930s working grain mill still churns the water along the creek bordering the
fairway.