Man O War

Getting To Know: GlenRiddle Golf Club

An Insightful Interview With Scot Dailey, Director of Golf

By Brian Weis

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Scot Dailey who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
The club features two 18-hole championship courses: the daily fee course "Man O' War" and the semi-private course "War Admiral Members Course." The Man O' War Course occupies the westerly portion of GlenRiddle. The course features pure, windswept links golf. The golfer faces challenges often found in the British Isles including large greens, double fairways, pot bunkers, sand dunes, and the ever-present eastern shore winds. The historic racetrack used to train champion thoroughbreds is utilized as a strategic cross hazard on three holes. Man O' War's sister course, War Admiral, is routed through mature forest and offers a completely different golf experience. The course is sheltered from the wind, but provides a demanding test from the tees. The site's beautiful tidal marsh comes into play on five dramatic holes, offering amazing views. Rugged, breathtaking bunkers reminiscent of golf's great past is the signature of the War Admiral Course.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
There are vast differences between the styles of our two golf courses. Both are always in impeccable condition. Man O' War is a difficult links style course at the mercy of the wind. War Admiral is a more traditional tree-lined parkland style course. Both offer many difficulties to all different skill level of golfers but are fair to reward good shots. Apart from our two pristine championship courses, the GlenRiddle property has a lot of rich history to offer as well. The clubhouse building that houses the golf and restaurant operation was formerly the main stable building for the famous Riddle Farm which produced such famous racehorses as Man O' War, War Admiral and Seabiscuit.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
Man O' War - Don't go after every flag stick. Sometimes the best play can be getting anywhere on the putting surface. There are over 100 sand traps on the course, some are okay to hit out of but some of the small pot bunkers you really want to avoid. From experience, you are better off laying up than going for a shot you may only pull off one out of four times.

War Admiral - The rough is pretty thick, hitting your tee shots into the fairway is a big must. The Kentucky Blue Grass/Tall Fescue rough makes it easy to catch fliers which makes judging distance difficult. The greens have a lot of undulation, playing the course a few times helps make it easier to play, aim at the middle of the green and take your two putts and move on.

We have GPS on all our carts, I would recommend looking at it on each hole to give you an idea of what trouble lies ahead. Both courses are challenging in their own way. Each course can be challenging but fair.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
The Golf Channel Am Tour is returning to GlenRiddle in 2016, for their 3rd Annual War on the Shore. The Championship will be contested over 36-holes. All participants are scheduled to play one round at the Man O' War course and one round at the War Admiral course. Tour Players from all over the country will converge on Ocean City, MD competing for double Order of Merit Points, exemptions into the 2016 National Championship, and the coveted title of "War on the Shore Champion".

GlenRiddle is also the host site for the Triple Crown Invitational hosted by Bobby Vermillion, with Endless Golf. This invitational brings players from all over the country to compete in this pristine and competitive Invitational.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
#13 is our signature hole on the Man O' War course. #13 is a 197 yard par 3 over water with tough pot bunkers behind the green and long native grasses to catch errant tee shots. Over this past winter, we did major renovations to #13. We reshaped the bunkers behind the green and added railroad tines to give it a unique look and we are very happy with how it turned out.

#16 is our signature hole on the War Admiral course. #16 is a 539 yard par 5 with water from tee to green on the right side, and out of bounds up the entire left side. Sand traps throughout the hole can affect your strategy to get to the green. Longer hitters have a chance of reaching the green in two but there are lots of risk for the reward. There are beautiful views of Ocean City and surrounding marshland.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
#3 War Admiral is my favorite. In my opinion it is the easiest of the par 5's between both courses. The opening two holes are fairly difficult and the third hole offers a momentum shift in the positive direction. It demands a well placed tee sheet, if I find myself in the fairway, a long iron can put me on the green or very close, setting up an easy birdie opportunity which can jump start my round.

#7 Man O' War is my favorite. It is a very challenging and demanding Par 5. Measures 592 from the back tees and a water hazard protects the entire left side and wraps around the back and to the right of the green. Native grasses protect the right side. Bunkers are placed everywhere from tee to green which makes each shot a little more demanding. #7 can derail a good round or really put an exclamation point on my round.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
Too many to choose from in our Ruth's Chris Restaurant. Everything is always delicious!

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
Jim Furyk shot a 66 on War Admiral when we opened the course.

Back Tee Stats
Par: Both are 72
Yardage: Man O' War 7163 & War Admiral 6945
Slope: Man O' War 135 & War Admiral 145
Rating: Man O' War 74.3 & War Admiral 73.4

More Information
GlenRiddle Golf Club
11501 Maid at Arms Ln
Berlin, Maryland, 21811
410-213-2325
www.glenriddlegolf.com

Revised: 01/31/2016 - Article Viewed 40,975 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.