BECKLEY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – For everything that Beckley and Raleigh County has, they do not have an overabundance of golf courses open to the public. I grew up here in the 80’s and 90’s just outside of Beckley city limits. I began playing golf at the age of 9 and got my first set of clubs when I turned 10. That doesn’t mean I am an excellent golfer, just that I have been practicing for a long time.
My Dad took me to the old Coolridge Golf Course to learn how to play. I believe its actual name was “The Lakeview Country Club” but most residents simply called it Coolridge. It was a 9-hole course with no carts. The course was perfect for a beginner. It was relatively flat for Southern West Virginia and was rather wide open. From there we played Beaver Creek Golf and Country Club, which was situated on the back side of Little Beaver State Park. In contrast, Beaver Creek featured many hills and doglegs. Finally, we played Saddlebred when it opened in the early 1990’s just off Old Eccles Road. I could literally walk down the hill to the course. As a child, my friends and I would sleigh ride in the winter down the hill in their back yard onto what would become Hole #16 of Saddlebred, and later #7 when it changed to Briar Patch. Sadly, every course I just described to you is no longer in existence.
Those were the public courses of Raleigh County in my youth. Black Knight was a private, “members only” country club. The only time I ever got to enjoy Black Knight was when I tagged along with one of my childhood friends. It was, at one time, one of the most exclusive clubs in Southern West Virginia
Black Knight opened its doors in 1919 as one of the most elite establishments in Southern West Virginia. It held this title until Glade Springs Resort in Daniels grew beyond its original phase 1 development. As more of Beckley’s affluent sought the solitude of Glade, opting for homes on the golf course rather than Woodlawn Avenue, the membership of Black Knight dwindled to the point of necessitating its closure a little less than ten years ago. Personally, I don’t think it was the result of anything other than a shift of taste and desire mixed with a suffering coal-driven economy at the sunset of the Obama administration.
The City of Beckley purchased the golf course in what many would describe, including me, to be an effort to save an institution. Like many, I was critical of the multi-million-dollar expenditure. One could think of a great many things on which to spend that kind of money, especially public money. I have since changed my mind about the purchase by the city of Beckley. The reason I have changed my mind is I have absolutely been smitten by the ancient course since I started playing there regularly a couple of years ago, and more regularly this year. To have facilities like these available to the public offers opportunities other communities simply do not have. For children to be able to grow up in a place where they can learn golf, go the pool in the summer, and learn the game of tennisbroadens their horizons and enriches their culture. Having a public asset like Black Knight, as I have come to understand it, creates opportunities for our residents that they simply wouldn’t have otherwise. As well, this is the kind of asset that when properly promoted can pay for itself, if not even be profitable.
In 2018, after it was purchased by the city of Beckley, Black Knight opened its doors to the public for the first time in its 100-year history. Black Knight is a 9-hole, 3,175 yard Par 36 course with a course rating of 34.6 and slope of 120. Black Knight historically did not allow for golf carts but has allowed for them under management by the city. The course is rather unique in that it does not feature a single water hazard. While the layout is compact, it is designed in a way to ensure you are not hitting into the fairway of other holes. From start to finish, while the course is challenging, it is not unkind. For many years, Black Knight was touted to have “the best greens in West Virginia.” Even at over 100 years old, the greens still live up to their reputation.
The first hole sets the tone for the rest of the round. A relaxing par 4 with a tee box flanked on the left by beautiful rose bushes that projects above a straight, slightly downhill fairway. The 355 yards to the green combined with a wider than average fairway begs you to pull your driver from the bag and swing away. You will want to be careful upon your approach though, as overshooting the green by even 10 yards will result in a penalty for out of bounds.
What follows is a course of beautiful scenes of rolling hills, ancient trees, wide fairways, and greens that would fit right in at the Greenbrier. Growing up in Beckley, I often visited my grandparent’s home on Clyde Street, which is not far from Black Knight. I spent many a weekend there, thinking that I was a valued guest, as I always felt I was. What I now realize as a parent is my Grandma was likely giving my parents a much-needed respite. I remember playing in their yard as a child in the middle of Beckley. The homes, many constructed in the 1950’s, had an older feel to them. One thing that I remember distinctly is the grass. My home, as a child, was constructed in the 1970’s. In the 1980’s it was relatively new. The grass around my home was rather new as well. I remember the grass around my grandmother’s home on Clyde Street as being older. There was a certain quality to the dirt and grass. It was just different. There was clover, moss, and a softness to it that newer planted grass simply didn’t possess. You could tell that the grass was old, and that it had aged well.
The grass at Black Knight reminds me of this in a very subtle way. The ground itself has a hardness to it that would make you think the club head of your 8 iron would bounce off the fairway like a hammer hitting a 2 x 4. However, as you swing through the ball, the ground presents just soft enough that you peel a perfect divot nearly every time. This quality is something that only comes with age. Like most of Beckley, the grass and dirt at Black Knight seems to have a soul of its own, something acquired by the passage of time.
As I mentioned before, the greens at Black Knight are among the best in the state. The city has done an excellent job maintaining the greens in a manner consistent with their reputation. Too often in golf, one is robbed of a good putt due to irregularities in the putting surface brought on by poor maintenance. That is simply not the case at Black Knight. If you miss your putt, it is because you missed it. Very often this year I have had the good fortune of making several putts from beyond 20 feet at Black Knight. It is infrequent to more than 2-putt any hole at Black Knight. Even the most novice golfer can quickly get a feel for the speed of the green and can never blame a missed putt on an irregularity in the putting surface. Not only the condition, but the size of the greens are superior as well. If you are like me, and your chipping can be erratic, it is nice to have approximately 10 yards to play with around the compass-rose of your aiming point. Nothing can ruin a hole quicker than chipping from the fringe only to land the ball on… the opposite fringe. A chip shot that comes in 15 feet short or long is not terrible given the excellent condition in which the greens are maintained.
Of note is the stunning view of the clubhouse from the 7thfairway. The 568-yard par 5 begs you to bring your driver to the tee box. The fairway is nearly as wide as the length of a football field and a half from the tee box and closes only to about 70 yards at its most narrow point. The high quality of the fairway allows for your second shot to be taken with a fairway wood. I often use my 3 wood from the fairway on #7, as well as #4, the only other par 5 on the course. The wide-open fairway and forgiving nature of the grounds allow for error in the use of a fairway wood. A well struck ball often results in a sub-30 yardchip shot to the green.
As fun as #7 is for a long-ball hitter, #8 invites you to swing for the fences as well. A 332-yard par 4, #8 drops approximately 80feet from the tee box to the green as the fairway feeds into a 35-yard-wide alley between two hills that feed directly back into the fairway and green. Aside from the 2 sand traps protecting the entrance to the green on the right and left, the 20-yard-widestretch of fairway between the traps teases you from the tee box. You cannot help but hit the ball as hard as you can from the tee to roll the ball onto the green to set yourself up for an eagle. The narrowing fairway reduces your chances, but it is still too inviting to not try. A well placed tee shot from an average drive results in a beautiful sub-30 yard chip shot to a large green.
In all, for $21.40 with tax (cart included), a quick 9 holes at Black Knight is the perfect exercise on a summer morning, or cap to your workday. Black Knight is also one of two public courses left in Raleigh County, and the closest one to most ofthe population of the county. Sadly, if it wasn’t for the city managing the course and its cost, the only public course would be in Grandview. With tourism growing in Raleigh County and West Virginia as a whole, it is even more important to have a quality public course in a convenient location in our community.
I’m often amazed that I can go to the course at 8am on nearly any day of the week, even a Saturday, and usually play through relatively unimpeded by other golfers. Its as though the golfing public doesn’t realize this gem is sitting right down the street waiting to be discovered. I often can finish 9 holes in less than 90 minutes, with today completing 9 holes in 1 hour and 19 minutes. As well, by switching to the black tees from the white for a complete 18 hole game, the course changes more than you would think, offering different challenges for the back 9.
As I have played the course and become won over by it, I hope more people will utilize the facilities the city has made available at Black Knight. There is a tremendous potential if revenues increase for improvements to the old tennis courts and pickleball courts. There clearly needs to be a lot of work on the tennis courts, but the city would be hard pressed to invest in them if the traffic doesn’t justify the expense. The pool, which is open everyday but Monday, is open to the public and well maintained. As well, Chilson’s Grill features a daily lunch menu at some of the best rates in town.
In closing, if you haven’t visited Black Knight and enjoyed the facilities, you are truly missing out. For nearly 100 years, it was necessary to have an elite membership to enjoy what is now open to the public at a bargain when compared to other leisure activities in the area. Golfers hailing from Beckley and the surrounding area that haven’t taken advantage of Black Knight are definitely missing out.