August 2025 – Went to Lost Rail as part of a Nebraska golf trip but before I get into all that how about that drone photo above? My buddy Brian who I went on the trip with, has a portable drone he brings on the trips with him and he has some awesome shots from a bunch of great courses. I’ll share some as I get them from him.
So I’ll do a review for all three Nebraska courses we played: Lost Rail, ArborLinks, and GrayBull. We went as part of a Dormie trip with a buddy of Brian’s through Thousand Greens and the spin-off groups that have emerged on What’s App and other apps. We had 11 in our group incorporating all ages and from the Philly area, DC area, Williamsport area and Louisville. A fun group and an awesome experience. Michael is a member at Dormie and I’ll describe the experience more in the write-ups for those courses. Before our Dormie part of the trip, Brian and I flew out early and played Lost Rail through another app connection. Great course and host.
Since I’ll talk more Nebraska golf in general on the two other course reviews, before I get into Lost Rail, I’ll do my annual pre-season NFL predictions since it is the weekend before kickoff. I’ve been pretty good with the previews with some misses here and there. In my Somerset Hills review, while I whiffed badly on a Bengals vs. Saints Super Bowl, I did accurately more or less predict everything else including the Eagles taking a step back in the ’23 season before coming back and winning it all in 2024 (which of course they did).
In my Bedford Springs review in 2024 I did indeed have the Eagles winning it all but beating the Ravens in the Super Bowl not the Chiefs. I was so confident, I even put a Franklin on the Birds which got me $1,200. I was pretty good with a lot of the other predictions, too. So here we go for 2025!
Will the Eagles repeat? Well I do think they lost some depth on both offense and defense and have been lucky with injuries in the past few years. Plus, they once again have a brutal schedule and will have a bullseye on them all season. BUT! They have the most talented team and everyone keeps doubting Hurts so I think he will have a chip on his shoulder and an MVP-like season. They will break the streak of no repeat East winners as I think the Commandos will take a step back (all that age they added is risky for both injury and decline reasons). I also think Jayden will suffer a bit of a sophomore slump, they really won some lucky and close, close games last year so will revert to the mean on that and they also have a tougher schedule this year. I think they will tie the Eagles at 11-6 but the record in like games will favor the Eagles. Cowboys will suck even with a full season of Dak. And how ’bout that Micah trade?!?
They end up behind the Giants who, to my delight, will win just enough games and see just enough in Jaxson Dart that they will take themselves right out of the equation for a true franchise quarterback in the 2026 draft ensuring years and years more of suck.
Lions are still the class of the North, the Rams avoid injury and win just enough games to take a crap West division and Tampa wins the South. I am officially giving up on the Falcons who constantly burn me. Wildcards will be the Commandos, Vikings and Packers. Saints get the top pick.
Bills once again win a weak East in the AFC. Ravens are stacked in the North. Houston in the South and the Chiefs win the West. Bengals, Jags (where I think Coen will have a huge positive impact on Lawrence) and the Broncos take the final spot. Steelers (with a cooked Rodgers) compete with the Brownies for last and the Jets are as usual God awful.
I think again it will be the Chiefs and Ravens in the AFC Championship and I’m tired of wrongly predicting a KC regression (either during the season or in the playoffs) so will have them back in the Supe. I think the Eagles and Lions make it to the Championship game in Detroit where the Eagles eke out a win and repeat in Santa Clara with their youth just outlasting the Chiefs – this time much closer though.
To the course. What’s great about the wave of courses being built in Nebraska is the availability of land. While Lost Rail doesn’t have the acreage of GrayBull or other sand hills courses, it is not crammed into a neighborhood or development with homes along every – or in this case any – golf holes. What a pleasure! Lost Rail is about a 35-minute ride outside Omaha so it’s not one of the sand hills courses at all. Many holes feature an abandoned rail line (hence Lost Rail) cutting through or adjacent to the line of play. The topography is not what you would expect from Nebraska and features elevation changes and great movement throughout. The rail theme is well played and the farm/barn look is also well done. I’ll do hole-by-hole descriptions below but overall I loved this course. Definitely in my top 100 and wouldn’t be surprised if this keeps moving up from the Golf Digest Second 100 into the first.
As you see above, the routing is tight but you never feel like it is and not having any homes on the course is great. The vibe is really low key and our host Ben is a local member and was awesome, handing us Bloodies while we were still checking in. He gave us some great information throughout the round and I played as well as I have all season with an 85 that included three birdies. We had a great lunch after the round and the staff were all great.
I’m gonna try and start taking more clubhouse photos. The clubhouse here is casual and looks like a modern farmhouse. Really fits the vibe.
One is a par five that measured 525 yards from the III tees. You see the pretty severe drop offs if you venture off the fairway in either direction. Did not think I would be anything close to good as I started with a double.
A very intimidating drive on two. 384 yards, par 4. Just the number 7 handicap. Obviously the objective is to get it over the hill and get some roll. I wasn’t bad off the tee just didn’t make it all the way over. Then I had to lay up because what you don’t see is another ravine on your approach. Over in three and putted it well from the apron but a bogey.
Three is another 380 yard par four. Love the windmill. Again had a good drive but topped a hybrid just shy of the sand and had no angle in. Just off in three, decent chip but missed the putt for another double on a nasty green. Five over after three! Ugh!
Here’s four from my approach to show off the movement in the fairways that you need to play left or have your ball roll off the fairway. This is 413 yards and by this time I was wondering how this course is only 6,100 or so yards. Another double and I was thinking about a round near 100. Below is the approach.
So at this point in the round I am already seven over. There’s a great halfway house at five and loaded up the cooler. Here’s the 160-yard 5th. Probably one of my favorite par threes (rail line remnant is in the ravine). Would hit my shot of the day and roll down to five feet and drain the birdie! Two’s really help the scorecard.
You go back over the ravine on six. Another 400-yard par four and the number one handicap hole. I did not get on in regulation but had a decent chip on though couldn’t drop the par putt.
Seven features two greens and this railroad-y looking thing tells you which green you’re playing. We were the right one. I would hit a very modest drive and had a completely blind 200 yard shot in over a creek that protects the front of the green. Just left of the green over the creek and should’ve putted from there but tried to flip a wedge onto a tiny green and skulled it across and took a six.
Almost forgot to take a photo of the 182-yard par-three 8th. To the left you can see the rail line they either added for visual-sake or it was there. I would putt from the apron and earn myself a gimme par.
On the path between eight and nine. Perfect spot for a pee!
Nine is a driveable par four measuring just 259 from the III’s. If you’re not trying to drive the green then it’s an iron off the tee (a hybrid in my case) and then a little flip wedge in. Would get my second birdie of the day here to salvage a 43 on the front despite the numerous doubles. Just one par five on the front.
Ten is another driveable par four. The play is to start at the center bunker and hit a draw which will funnel to the green. I hit a good not great drive but left it just outside the bunker which I would splash a ball right into. On the apron in three and a two putt bogey on the easiest hole on the course. Grr.
Eleven is a short par five measuring just 443 yards from the III’s. Hell that’s just a hair more than some of the fours on the front. So did I take advantage? Nope a bogey. Good drive. Probably about the best three wood I could hit, but this was one hole that it would have been really good to play again as anything to the left of the sand out there rolls down into fescue and a creek. Assumed I played into the hazard and took a drop. On in four and missed the par putt but happy with how I hit it.
This is kind of what I expected of Nebraska but 12 is still a blind drive you have to split the bunkers. It’s 423 yards so almost as long as 11 and I think this was my first three putt of the day for bogey after a great GIR.
From my drive on 12 but hit another spectacular three wood to get just on the green.
Thirteen comes back and is a dogleg right – too far right on your drive and you’re blocked. I did fade it a bit too much and ended up right but as the hole was only 325 yards I had a very manageable nine iron shot and the pin was left on a creek. Dangerous shot but I pulled it off and got my third birdie of the round. I think it’s a record for me on a regular course.
This is from the fairway (where I was not) on 13. The pin was way left in the back corner of the green behind the traps. It was obvious from the pin positions when we played that the greenskeeper had not been laid in a while.
Fourteen. Love this photo and golf hole. Uphill, 170 yards+ par three. The building in the background is the cart barn which was designed to look like a barn and nice aesthetic for the backdrop. Parred.
Fifteen is a manageable par four, 348 yards. Dogleg right and a hair uphill. Despite the yardage, it’s still the sixth handicap. Bogey.
My approach on 15.
Sixteen is on the other side of the clubhouse. Shortest par three on the course at 133 yards but I yanked my nine iron left and left an impossible chip that I put within five feet! But alas would miss the frickin’ putt.
Seventeen is a man’s par four – 436 yards! What you can’t see is that a drive to the right will collect in a low area beyond those trees leaving an uphill long approach. Our host hit it pretty far right but was on the 18th fairway and had a clean shot in that he put on. I hit a decent shot but didn’t have the length to get there. Would chip on and two putt for bogey but happy with how I played the number two handicap hole.
From my drive on 17.
And eighteen. Short but uphill par par five at 456 yards. You see the carts on 17 in the collection area of whence I spoke. I would put my drive in that little gulley but would kill my hybrid and on in regulation. Would I par and hit one of my best rounds I can remember me having? Nope a bogey after three putting but happy with the way I played. I really love Lost Rail and if you can get on, I highly recommend you make the effort to do so.
Golf Scrapbook 