Fees »  $69; Virginia residents $52 (weekday), $62 (weekend).

Par/Yardage/Rating/Slope

72/7017/73.9/131

Description »  Ten-year-old course, designed by Gene Bates and Fred Couples, part links, part parkland, with a wide variety of holes, 14 of which have water or wetlands, and several on the back with surprising elevation change.

Reasons to play »  Great layout on a varied piece of property; excellent conditions, and with only a few forced carries, very playable for high-handicappers. This is a high-level course with a mid-range price tag.

Signature hole » No. 12 » Par 4 » 253 Yards
One of the shortest par-four holes you’ll find on a quality course. Scenic, tree-lined, dogleg right is made to order for those — like designer Fred Couples — with a power fade and a gambler’s heart.

Best hole »  No. 9 »  Par 5 »  554 Yards

The yardage makes No. 9 sound like a three-shot hole, but all four of Heron Ridge’s par-fives have significant bend, including this double dogleg, daring players to take the direct route over trouble and go for the elevated green in two. Great risk/reward opportunity.

Trend setter »  When Heron Ridge was completed in 1999, it satisfied a glaring need in the Hampton Roads area, as the first new course opened in 10 years. Roughly a dozen courses have come online since, but Heron Ridge remains as good or better and less pricey than most.

Deja vu »  Bates and Couples’ distinctive design touches — wide fairways, drivable par-four holes, large, gently sloped greens — are evident especially to those who have played Westfields in Centreville. Both courses, Couples’ first two efforts, were completed in the same year.

Beginnings »  Course was built on former soy and corn fields. Area known as Pungo Ridge offers elevation change, atypical of Hampton Roads, on the back nine, but much earth had to be moved in constructing this course. “The land was a flat canvas,” said Bates of what he and Couples initially discovered.

Only downside »  Each year, there seems to be more homes on the periphery of Heron Ridge. Some of the big ones are offset from the course and nice to look at, but others are too close, especially at No. 16 and No. 17, where backyard swimming pools can be noisy and distracting.

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