Getting To Know: Finkbine Golf Course By Brian Weis

Getting To Know: Finkbine Golf Course

An Insightful Interview With Jeff Moore, 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 Jeff Moore 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
Finkbine Golf Course is the University of Iowa Department of Athletics championship golf course and is home to the Men's and Women's Collegiate Teams. Named for W.O. Finkbine, who donated the land to The University of Iowa, this scenic golf course, from the championship tee, stretches over 7,200 yards of rolling Iowa terrain, and plays to a par 72 with a USGA course rating of 74.6 and slope rating of 134. Finkbine has been the home to numerous NCAA tournaments plus the Amana VIP Classic, and 1991 Hogan Tour, and 1992 and 1993 Nike Tour Hawkeye Classic tournaments. More recently, the course has hosted the 2010 Iowa State Women's Amateur, 2013 Iowa Match Play and 2014 Iowa State Men's Amateur.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
Finkbine offers the best conditioned course in town. Our lush fairways and smooth, quick greens make the course a challenge for all golfers. The park-like setting with undulating fairways and trees make this a great setting for golf.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
Be below the hole on most greens because they slope moderately to severely back to front.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
Ranked top 25 college courses in 2011 and 2012 by Golfweek magazine.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
Hole 13 is a downhill par 3 with water in front and behind. What makes the hole unique is we have two greens to use for play. When people think of our course they think of 13.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
Favorite hole is number 14 because of the view from the tee to a downhill fairway that slopes back up the hill. Take an extra club or two for your second shot because it plays severely uphill.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
On select days we will grill burgers and enjoy one of our seasonal beers like Summer Shandy or Amber Bock on tap.

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
Current Iowa golf Steve Ihm shot 11-under 61 during practice with the team in 2013.

Back Tee Stats
Par: 72
Yardage: 7239
Slope: 134
Rating: 74.6

More Information
Finkbine Golf Course
1380 Melrose Ave
Iowa City, IA, 52246
319-335-9556
www.finkbine.com

Revised: 05/05/2014 - Article Viewed 33,922 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.