October 6, 2008

KEEZLETOWN, VA — In the heart of the Shenandoah Valley sits one of America's most spectacular golf courses. Packsaddle Ridge Golf Club in Keezletown, Virginia, is a stunning 18-hole championship golf course featuring incredible views of the valley below.

The Captains Club announced today that Packsaddle Ridge Golf Course has been whacked from the 2009 venue list.

"Our visit to Packsaddle was fun and educational," said Captains Club member Kevin Long, Jr. "The course was very tight with a few unfair greens on the back nine. The view of the mountain range at the 13th hole was something special. However, Riverfront in Suffolk and nearby Poplar Grove are much stronger venue options."

This breathtaking Packsaddle Ridge was built on more than 500 acres of rolling countryside. Wonderfully inexpensive and artfully designed Packsaddle Ridge is built on an enormous, rolling 566 acre plot of land. Holes tumble up, down and around the base of Massanutten Mountain. Nevertheless, fairways are spandex-tight slivers and approaches are played to narrow greens featuring devilish collection areas and a variety of penal hazards.

Designed by renowned golf architect Russell Breeden along with Jeff Forbes, this 4-year project required an incredible one million tons of rock and 750,000 tons of top soil to be moved. The result is a layout that will challenge all types of golfers and overload your senses with natural beauty.

Packsaddle Ridge was recently decorated with 4 1/2 stars by Readers of Golf Digest. The ranking places the course in the Top 200 courses in America with Mountain Valley, Neuse, Grande, and Rock Hollow.

"The rates, open tee sheet, and entertainment value had placed the venue as the front runner a couple of weeks ago," says Greg Long, Chairman of the Captains Club. "However, the course difficulty would have resulted in tremendous rage by our moderate and extreme hackers."

Tons of rock was moved literarily carving the base of a mountain to accommodate the fairways, tees and greens; many of the rocks still accent the course at various locations.

"Using some unpaved roads to get there will make you wonder whether you made the right decision to play Packsaddle," says Greg Long, Chairman of the Captains Club. "You enter the property lined on both sides of the road with white fences. Then move through the dense forest where statues greet you. Then a huge clubhouse that resembles a tourist information center."

The greens are multi-tiered including the 12th hole, which is triple-tiered. The course includes a very large clubhouse with deck facing overlooking the finishing hole.

Greg Long, Kevin Long, and Greg Garrett played the back nine twice. The front nine was being aerated.

The golf course is located 10 minutes northeast of Harrisonburg, VA and James Madison University. "The lodging and entertainment were considered to be the strongest ever," says Greg Long.

The 2009 Carl Spackler Open Championship is scheduled for June 10-13 at Riverfront Golf Club in Suffolk, VA or Poplar Grove in Amherst, VA. The venue selection is expected to be announced Thursday.