The University Club at Arlington in Richmond is set to host the finest female junior golfers in Kentucky on June 3-4 for the Kentucky Girls Junior PGA Championship. Spots in the prestigious Girls Junior PGA Championship are on the line, an event which will take place on July 9-12 in Hartford, Connecticut. To get there, the ladies will have to negotiate one of the trickiest and fun layouts in Kentucky when they visit the Richmond venue.

In 1967, Arlington Golf Center officially opened for play. Before there was ever a golf course on site, the land was a working family farm before the original owners, the Hanger family, sold the property to Eastern Kentucky University. Over time, EKU’s role with the facility has gradually evolved and led to it being renamed The University Club at Arlington in 2015. The price EKU originally paid to obtain the property was reportedly quite steep, even by today’s standards. Going back to the days the grounds were operated as farmland, the biggest change that has taken place is the elimination of a railroad that used to run through the property, according to the club. The powerlines that currently exist on the grounds are where those train tracks used to run through the property. Other than that, the biggest physical change to take place on the property is tree removal, which has continued to take place into the last two years, with the removal of trees left of the third green and on the lake dividing the thirteenth and seventeenth holes.

_{The par 4 3rd is one of the holes that has recently experienced tree removal.}

“The goal for us with the tree removal is provide multiple angles for shots to come in from, while at the same time preserving the shapes of the holes here,” Teddy Lausier, PGA Head Golf Professional exclaimed. The golf course’s trees are one of three integral facets of the golf course that serve as defense to low scores to go along with a lack of flat lies and greens that are fast and slope severely. Lausier believes those reasons actually lead to the facility being advantageous for female players.

_{The view from behind the par 5 12th green reflects some of the extreme sloping players will come across.}

“More precise players tend to find success here. These are smaller-than-average greens with even smaller targets once the hole location is established. This is not an overly long course though, so players tend to find that everything is right in front of them. There’s nothing hidden. Just keep the ball in play, and since we have zoysia fairways which play softer than most grasses, that makes it even easier to keep it on the short grass here.”

Holes at The University Club at Arlington that stick out to golfers begins with the ninth. This par 5 that plays downhill off the tee and uphill to the green will measure at a max of 452 yards, making it reachable in two for a lot of players. Most shots that go right, however, tend to be in jail due to the plethora of trees guarding that side of the hole. Lausier and the club’s members feel as though this is a swing hole that can create or break a lot of momentum before going to the back side. An eagle or birdie to spring into the back nine can kick-start a round, while a bogey or worse can be particularly deflating going into the second nine.

Then there’s holes sixteen and seventeen, both of which serve as a gut-check for contending players hitting the final stretch. 16 is a long par 3 guarded by a lake on the left with a large bunker protecting the right side of the green. Players can err short to be conservative but will have a tricky chip shot in doing so. There is no reprieve on 17, where golfers face the longest par 4 on the golf course with perhaps the most severe green on property. Lausier believes the green’s front-left hole location is the most difficult of any hole placement on the golf course, but no putt on the penultimate green will be a piece of cake when the championship reaches its final stages and the most challenging green must be negotiated. Holes 16 and 17 were actually a driving force in reversing the nines at the club so that those holes would be faced at the end of a round rather than the halfway mark. That change was made in the spring of 2015.

The Kentucky Girls Junior PGA Championship is hard-pressed to find a better location than Arlington, and Lausier’s enthusiasm for the event is palpable.

“We’re so excited to welcome everyone here. This venue is so conducive to junior golfers and we feel particularly honored to be hosting the state’s Junior PGA Championship for these ladies. It’s going to be a great event and we’re thrilled to be apart of it.”

For complete coverage of the Kentucky Girls Junior PGA Championship, click here.