Hey Cards:

I'm writing tailgate/visitor guides for all eight BE teams. Louisville is the latest one to make the web. It is about 90% complete. I have to fix about 6-7 corrupted links.

I need some help from y'all. I need some suggestions for golf courses. I'd like a few public courses within about 30-45 mins of the campus. They can be of all price ranges. Probably looking for a couple high end public courses and a few courses suitable for hackers. If you see any errors or suggestions either PM me or respond to this thread.

Also, link me to the two best distillary tours near Louisville.

I have 5 of 8 posted so far you can view other teams below.




P.S. I'll be writing a guide to NYC and the BE tourney this fall!!!
<a href='http://syracuse.scout.com/3/BETailgateGuide.html' target='_blank'>BE Tailgate Guides</a>

For golf, I think I can be the man to help. I have played almost every public golf course in the area and a couple of private ones as well. I believe that the city of Louisville has the most affordable public golf in the entire country, with greens fees on the city parks tracks topping out at $13. Carts will be extra, of course, but the round still won't exceed $30. I worked at Valhalla last summer, so that is one I can confidently say go play if you are able to get on. As far as public courses go, here's my suggetions:

Right in the heart of Louisville, your best courses are Seneca, Charlie Vettiner, Indian Springs, and Quail Chase.

<a href='http://www.loukymetro.org/Department/MetroParks/golf.asp' target='_blank'>Seneca</a> is an old track that is very challenging. It's a municipal course owned by the city and once held PGA tournaments. Hole #1 is considered by many to be one of the toughest in the area. It certainly makes for a unique start to your round of golf. This is also the most-played course in Louisville, so get your tee times early.

Vettiner (see Seneca link) is another muni, more challenging due to the fact that there are some wild holes on the course and a LOT of elevation changes but lacking in the history department. The tee shot on #9 (??) is probably the toughest in the city. OB on the right and junk on the left. Trees line both side of a very narrow fairway for what is an uphill tee shot. Hole #10 may actually be tougher than 9.

<a href='http://www.isgolfclub.com/' target='_blank'>Indian Springs</a> is probably a controversial choice and one that other Louisville golfers would disagree with me about. It and Quail Chase are neither one city owned, but people complain about the residential developments overhanging the golf course at Indian Springs. I agree that the houses impede if you are wild off the tee, but really they are nothing more than a bad backdrop for an otherwise GREAT golf course. The par 3's there are among the best collection of any Louisville public (#6 & #11 are the best) and there is plenty to challenge you throughout the round.

<a href='http://www.quailchase.com/' target='_blank'>Quail Chase</a> is also a public course in town, but not connected with the city parks. There are 3 9-hole courses at the facility, which is well-kept if nothing else. I am not personally a big fan of the place because it is much more expensive than Seneca or Vettiner and really doesn't offer anything those courses can't. The par-5 8th hole (East course) is a tricky one, where a lake guards the right side for the last half of the hole.

I'll post the non-Louisville courses next.

Outside of Louisville, I think there are more options and ones that honestly are better if you'd like to avoid the muni scene and get a little more for those extra dollars you will drop on non-city owned courses. Old Capital (Corydon, IN), Covered Bridge (Sellersburg, IN), Chariot Run (Laconia, IN), Nevel Meade (Prospect, KY), My Old Kentucky Home (Bardstown, KY), and Weissinger Hills (Shelbyville, KY) are all very good to great tracks with a variety of challenges to them.

<a href='http://www.oldcapitalgolf.com/' target='_blank'>Old Capital</a> is a former private club in Corydon, right at 30-45 minutes from downtown Louisville in Corydon, IN. IMO the best-kept secret among Kentuckiana courses, this club was opened to the public and has been going through massive changes in the past 2-3 years. The finishing hole, a short par 4, is uphill most of the way with a green fronted by a man-made waterfall. Very neat way to come in from your round. Water comes into play a lot here and conditions are usually fantastic.

<a href='http://www.coveredbridge.com/' target='_blank'>Covered Bridge</a> is arguably the most well-known public course in the area, designed by US Open and Masters winner Fuzzy Zoeller. The unique aspect to this course is a shared green for 9 & 18, giving the course a bit of British feel to it. When the wind blows there, it certainly convinces you you're not in the states anymore. A lot of nice holes, but nothing that just overwhelms you in its beauty.

If you're a gambler, <a href='http://www.caesars.com/Caesars/Indiana/Hotel/Amenities/ChariotRunTheGolfCourseatCaesars.htm' target='_blank'>Chariot Run</a> may be the place for you to get in your 18 holes. It pushes the 45 minutes a little bit in that the course, owned by Caesars Indiana, is WAY past the casino itself. This is another course that I was not a huge fan of when I played it, but mostly because the greens were too hard and didn't receive shots well. It's a great layout, though, and would perhaps be right up there on my list with another chance at better conditions.

Nevel Meade is another one that I would rank in my personal Top 3, right behind Old Capital and maybe Covered Bridge, Chariot Run, or My Old KY Home. This is a links-style layout with awesome views and many elevation changes throughout the round. Hole #6 is a great little hole, with a small waterfall guardig the left side of the fairway and green. You could probably drive it if you're a big hitter, but you risk playing pinball on the rocky falls if you miss left.

My Old Kentucky Home is <a href='http://parks.ky.gov/golf/18hole/mk/index.htm' target='_blank'>My Old Kentucky Home</a> is the best local state parks course, also about a 45-minute drive from Louisville, but actually not even in the Top 5 of all state parks courses. The other great thing about Kentucky golf is what the state does with its parks. Trying to encourage people to get away from the big cities and put money into the smaller KY communities, the government has built and remodeled several parks courses into championship-quality layouts. My Old KY Home is not one of the Signature Series (the REALLY nice ones), but it's still a fun course that is well-kept and reasonably priced. Hole #16 might be the most difficult par 3 in the entire area.

Finally, Weissinger Hills in Shelbyville. This is another course that not many people know about since it is away from the city and not high on the day trip list for most people. Situated on an old horse farm, the course winds through several patches of trees, old fields, and a bit of water during the round. There isn't anything particularly spectacular about the course, but 10 might impress you and the conditions are good.

For more information, you can always click the links for the courses that have websites or check out <a href='http://www.golfkentuckylinks.com/index.html' target='_blank'>Golf Kentucky Links</a> for their reviews. This is a nice site devoted to looking at ALL the KY courses as well as some of the more recognizable tracks just across the river. Hope this all helped.

The Chamber of Commerce website should give you some more suggestions on things to do, places to eat, etc.
<a href='http://www.greaterlouisville.com/' target='_blank'>http://www.greaterlouisville.com/</a>

Don't forget that Churchill Downs is open during the month of November for any horse racing fans. Keeneland in Lexington is open during October and is only an hour away.

Thanks you have done a great job. Check your PM box.

Whether you use any of this or not, I'd recommend these to anyone in KY for a game against the Cards.

I don't have the time to give you excellent descriptions of the distilleries like CE did for the courses, but I can give short details. I found this site, which should help with addresses, etc if you want them.

<a href='http://www.atasteofkentucky.com/derby/distillerytour.asp?id=' target='_blank'>Distillery Tour of KY</a>

As for the ones listed, here are some approx. drive times if starting at KY Fairgrounds in Louisville (where we play). These are based just off driving by them fairly often, they should be pretty accurate.

Jim Beam Distillery: 30 minutes heading south of Lou. on I-65. They are listed on the site, but they don't give actual visitor tours of the distillery buildings.

Labrot & Graham Distillery- 1 hour, heading east towards Lexington. I recommend this one if you have the time, maybe on the Friday before the game if in town and interested in a tour. You get the added bonus of beautiful horse country around Versailles, trust me on that one! This really is probably your best choice.

Maker's Mark: Around 75-80 minutes likely. This is a nice one, only thing is its more secondary roads than the others and you pretty much go by several other distilleries to get here.

Wild Turkey: Maybe 50 minutes, heading east towards Lex., and then south on U.S. 127. Haven't been here but its easy to get to and I here its a good tour.

Heaven Hill Distillery: 50 minutes or so, in Bardstown. Very nice tour, although no bourbon is actually distilled here anymore following a horrible 1996 fire that destroyed nearly the entire facility. The tour takes you through Bardstown as well, which is a wonderful town, but call me partial since I used to live there! If anyone's a super fan, you could go here and to the Whiskey Museum in Bardstown together. I'd say this is my choice #2. As a side note, I've heard this fire in '96 was one of the hottest fires ever recorded in human history.