Golf Course Review: Belle Terre Country Club (Nov 2025)

It has been long overdue since I was able to do a golf course review at Belle Terre Country Club. I have attempted to get out there several times over the past month, but things kept getting in the way, or tee times were not available when I was.

You may recall Belle Terre did a greens renovation last year and reopened around Sept 2024. I have only been to the golf course once, maybe twice, since then. During that visit, things were not that positive. They were not negative, but I mentioned that Belle Terre reopened too soon to have golfers on the new greens. That was the main thing I wanted to see this time around. Did reopening too soon affect how the grass was able to grow?

Before I get into the golf course conditions, I have to talk about something with the clubhouse. First off, the staff in the golf shop is very welcoming. I want to bring up why the rest of the clubhouse looks closed. Every light was off except for the golf shop, and not a single person could be seen anywhere else. If it wasn't for the pro telling me the grill was open to grab a drink, I would have never known. On top of that, someone else told me the grill closes at 2 pm.

Is the club broke? Are they purposely trying to have golfers go play other golf courses?

From a golfer's standpoint, I do not want to play a golf course where, when you are there, you can't tell if the club is even open. I don't want to play a golf course that, if I tee off at noon, I will not be able to get a drink or a snack when making the turn. Could you imagine walking into a grocery store and seeing every light off at 1:30 pm and finding out they close at 2 pm? That is what being in the Belle Terre Clubhouse feels like. Forget grabbing a cold one with your buds after your round and relaxing a bit before heading home. Forget playing early on a Sunday morning, then watching the football games after.

From a customer service side of golf, I find this all to be unacceptable. If you want golfers to come, there are 3 key things you need. A decent golf course at a decent price, food and beverages, and a welcoming atmosphere. Belle Terre only has one of those, and that is the golf course. Which is a shame since the clubhouse has the potential to be so much more. There is a bar area of to the side where golfers can enjoy sports, etc.. and a large dining area that could be a full-service restaurant. Not only for golfers but for the local community. They have a kitchen so why not use it properly? This is a huge missed opportunity. Especially being only 30 minutes from the airport. You could cater to golfers who have a late flight and want to play, grab lunch, shower, and then go catch their flight. However, I did hear the locker rooms were removed, so I guess the shower part is out, too.

If it weren't for some of the improvements to the golf course, I would think whoever owns Belle Terre is trying to run the property down to sell it off to be homes or condos. Although even with things on the golf course, I feel like the owners are broke. Or maybe they just don't know how to operate a golf course and what it takes for the golf course to thrive. Even the conditions of the golf course tell me there is a very low budget, and they are probably understaffed. The average maintenance budget in the area, not including private courses, is $800k annually. As I get into the conditions, I think Belle Terre is operating on way less than half of what the average is. They don't have to have the budget TPC has, but as the only other Pete Dye-designed golf course in the entire state of Louisiana, they are sadly missing out. If I had the money, I would buy the property because it is sad to see how things are currently being handled on one of the best layouts around.

Now for the conditions of the golf course. It is much improved from my last visit, but they are still lacking in so many things. Things I believe are due to a lack of budget. I know the superintendent, and he is one of the best in the business. The improvements and decent conditions are due to his talents, but I can still see that something is missing. Manpower is definitely one of them. The bunkers were unkept, unraked, and very inconsistent around the entire property. When that happens, it is usually due to not enough staff to handle those when cutting greens, fairways, and tees are more important. Maintenance is still doing a good job, considering that I am guessing they are working with almost nothing. Probably, no money for fertilizers, sand, and maybe even equipment. There were some crew out there on a few holes, so I know they are trying.

When I first got to the practice area, I was super impressed with the range and how good everything looked. The driving range grass looked healthy, was cut good, and had very few divots anywhere. It was probably the best I have ever seen the driving range at Belle Terre in 20 years.

Overall Conditions: 2.5 out of 5

Tee Boxes: 3

For the most part, the teeing areas were really good. Most were level and had a decent amount of grass on them. Not too many divots on the par 3 holes either, which means the markers are being moved around properly.

Fairways: 2.5 out of 5

The majority of the fairways were pretty good. If your ball was in the center or in the approach areas to the greens, you got a really good lie. The issues I had were more along the sides of the fairways. I hit a few balls about 3 to 5 yards from the rough line, and many of those areas you would get a weird lie. I had two balls that were sitting on cut crab grass, and some of the areas looked like the mower missed some grass. Only one or two shots from the fairway did I feel the ball might jump. There were also some areas on a few fairways where the grass looked thin. Not so thin it was just dirt, but thin enough you could see dirt through the grass.

Greens: 2.5 out of 5

The greens looked fantastic, including the practice greens. However, once you stood on them, you could see some areas thinning. The greens were consistent; however, the practice greens felt they were a little faster. From hole to hole, though, it was all the same. Again, walking up to the greens, they looked full, healthy, and very quick. Once on them, however, you could see the turf was not full and almost looked dormant. This is something you usually see in January or February at a golf course that doesn't overseed. Surprising for early November, especially since we haven't had any truly cold, below 60°, weather. Overall, the speed was decent, even though you may catch a few bumps here and there, but they were on the slower side. The best thing was how consistent they were from hole to hole. Even if they are not perfect, you know what to expect when every green plays the same. Also, the greens were somewhat firm. Every time we looked for a ball mark, we could not find any. They were still receptive to short irons and wedge shots, but even with a wedge shot, it was difficult to find a ball mark.

I will be back, as I do enjoy the golf course. The layout is fun and challenging, and the price is decent. Even if it is slightly overpriced on the weekends, the weekday rate of around $40 is pretty good right now for the conditions.

I really hope the ownership figures out their financing or starts running Belle Terre properly. With so much potential with a great golf course layout and a large clubhouse that could be so much more, it would be nice for Belle Terre to look lively again. I look forward to a day when I pull up to the clubhouse and it looks open and inviting. I want to see golfers around the practice greens and in the bar, laughing, enjoying a bite, and watching sports. Maybe one day that will happen, but until then, I will always feel like Belle Terre is broke or doesn't care about golfers' enjoyment and customer satisfaction.

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