{"id":999,"date":"2013-12-04T14:02:04","date_gmt":"2013-12-04T20:02:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/?p=999"},"modified":"2013-12-04T14:02:23","modified_gmt":"2013-12-04T20:02:23","slug":"maximum-security-golf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2013\/12\/04\/maximum-security-golf\/","title":{"rendered":"MAXIMUM SECURITY GOLF"},"content":{"rendered":"

Louisiana\u2019s \u2018Prison View\u2019 Golf Course Promises Arresting Views And Captivating Play<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve dismissed the story that there\u2019s a public golf course on the grounds of Angola as an urban myth, you have some backtracking to do.<\/p>\n

Prison View Golf Course is every bit as real as Angola\u2019s guards on horseback, razor wire and world famous rodeo.<\/p>\n

Not only is the course real, but the price is right. You can play the course for $10. Add $5 for a cart fee.<\/p>\n

The experience of playing this course will differ somewhat from the typical golf course experience. And the differences extend beyond the fact that the course just has nine holes.<\/p>\n

Your Prison View Golf Course experience begins on a rise 75 yards up in Tunica Hills. This elevation gives the player \u201ca spectacular view of Louisiana\u2019s only maximum security prison,\u201d promises the marketeering copywriters at Louisiana State Penitentiary\u2019s official website.\"angola<\/a><\/p>\n

Think you might like that view? You\u2019ll have to work to see it. Prison View Golf Course requires that every player go through a background check. For practical purposes, this means you\u2019ll need to provide the appropriate personal information at least 48 hours before you want to play. Be prepared to give up your DOB, driver\u2019s license number, Social Security number and so forth.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t bring cameras to this course. They aren\u2019t allowed. And be ready to submit to a search of either your person or vehicle if you\u2019re asked to do so. That\u2019s course rules.<\/p>\n

Also, keep in mind that play can be suspended at any time, at the warden\u2019s discretion.<\/p>\n

The course is a par 72. Although nine holes are played twice to make 18 holes, Angola promises you will \u201cnever\u201d use \u201cthe same tee boxes \u2026 with the front and back nine.\u201d Of the 18 de facto holes you play, \u201cwater [comes] into play on 16.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each tee marker is made of a pair of handcuffs welded shut.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Money Shot<\/strong><\/p>\n

When the first-time player comes to the sixth hole, he\u2019s treated to the sight of long rows of razor wire, one sitting atop the other. The seventh hole is close enough to the prison that it\u2019s possible to hear prisoners talking.<\/p>\n

You can bring a group of up to 40 to play. Of course, they\u2019ll all have to pass the background check, and nobody in the group can be on an inmate\u2019s guest list.<\/p>\n

Obviously, the tone is going to be a little different on this course. But course designers have tried to make the experience as pleasant as possible.<\/p>\n

Amenities include a clubhouse, pro shop and restaurant. At the pro shop, you can buy a t-shirt with the slogan \u201cANGOLA: A GATED COMMUNITY.\u201d The restaurant serves both Louisiana favorites and popular snack bar and grill food.<\/p>\n

The course also has a driving range with a 60- by 20-yard tee box. You can enjoy 419 Bermuda grass.<\/p>\n

The course was completed in 2004. It\u2019s the only U.S. golf course located on prison grounds.<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo By Vance Jacobs<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0Easy Jokes<\/strong><\/p>\n

Prison View gets a lot of national media attention. The course is easy prey for writers and reporters who are up for easy golf or jail jokes. (See the subhead of this story.)<\/p>\n

In her report on Prison View, CNBC\u2019s news editor Cindy Perman happily chirped, \u201cAnd yes, they\u2019ll let you out\u201d when you finish playing. She also noted that the travel site Cheapflight put Prison View on its list of Top 10 most hazardous golf courses.<\/p>\n

In all fairness to Cheapflight, it\u2019s been reported that golfers at Prison View may encounter alligators, rattlesnakes and water moccasins. One would think these same creatures might be encountered at other courses on the Gulf Coast. (Also on Cheapflight\u2019s list is the Singapore Island Country Club course, where one might run into cobras, monkeys and wild boars; and South Africa\u2019s Skukuza Golf Course, where the potential threats include elephants, leopards, warthogs and hippopotamuses.)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Lots Of Work And\u00a0Lots Of Room<\/strong><\/p>\n

When the Prison View course was being constructed, some Louisiana publications questioned the value of the project. Columnists wondered whether the course might be a bureaucratic boondoggle: a misguided and wasteful attempt at inmate recreation, rehabilitation or job training.<\/p>\n

These criticisms may have developed from a na\u00efve understanding of what Angola is all about.<\/p>\n

Although it may have mellowed a bit in recent years, Angola still has and deserves its reputation for serving up some of the hardest time in the world.<\/p>\n

Angola is a working prison. Almost every inmate there works at something, whether it\u2019s doing a job or taking classes or both.<\/p>\n

Angola\u2019s inmates produce 4 million pounds of vegetables each year. They tend 2,000 head of cattle. They run a mattress factory, print shop, silkscreen shop and the country\u2019s only inmate-run radio station. If they like, they can obtain a bachelor\u2019s in theology within the prison walls. Long before there was a golf course, inmates were taking courses in golf course maintenance.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s probably just as well that inmates at Angola stay busy. Angola is the largest maximum security prison in the U.S. It has more than 5,000 of the toughest inmates in the country. It might be just as well not to let them sit around too much. Warden Burl Cain is on record as stating (to The Guardian) that \u201cyou\u2019ve got to keep the inmates working all day so they\u2019re tired at night.\u201d<\/p>\n

And Angola has lots of room to work with. The prison comprises 18,000 acres. That\u2019s an area the size of Manhattan.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Low-Cost\u00a0Construction<\/strong><\/p>\n

The golf course sits on what was once a pasture for bulls that performed in the rodeo. It wraps around the building where inmates take their horticulture classes.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the only U.S. golf course in the last half-century that was built primarily by hand. Because inmates did most of the construction work for the course, the cost of building it was a very moderate $80,000. That funding came from the prison rodeo by way of the employees\u2019 recreation fund. No taxpayer money was used.<\/p>\n

Inmates are never allowed to play on the course, and only prisoners with a long record of good behavior can work on it. These inmates all belong to the group designated as \u201cClass A trustee prisoners\u201d \u2014 the highest tier of Angola inmates. In addition to having a good record, inmates are required to take horticulture classes before they begin any work on the course.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Definitely Open\u00a0On Weekends<\/strong><\/p>\n

While a common-sense interpretation might dictate that Prison View was built to provide inmates with job skills, the original intention was quite different. The concept behind Prison View was that the course would entice employees to come to the prison on the weekends.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy goal is to keep employees here on the weekend because that\u2019s the reserve force in case we have an emergency,\u201d Cain told the San-Diego Union Tribune last year. \u201cSome of them love golf.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cain believes the presence of the golf course reflects a jail culture that has become less violent than it was in the past. \u201cWhen I came here [in 1995], this place was still rockin\u2019 and rollin\u2019, and I don\u2019t think we would have had this golf course.\u201d<\/p>\n

He doesn\u2019t seem to think the main purpose of the course is to teach prisoners job skills. Rather, he feels the course raises prisoners\u2019 spirits and creates an environment where they can thrive.<\/p>\n

However, the job-training aspects of the course are still a part of his thinking. He\u2019s told Golf magazine that \u201cif we train inmates in landscape architecture and maintenance of greens, they would be employable in that field.\u201d<\/p>\n

In reality, there isn\u2019t a great likelihood that many of those working on the golf course will be able to use their skills on the outside. Very few in Angola will ever be on the outside again. Of Angola\u2019s inmate population, more than three quarters are lifers or on death row. Among the remaining prisoners, the average sentence totals more than 90 years.\"angola<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Alphabet\u2019s Take<\/strong><\/p>\n

Telecommunications expert John Begley wrote a report on his time on the course for the sports news site Deadspin. Begley says a team of 33 prisoners built the course. He says when he played, one of the 33 told him the greens might be a bit fast on the day he was playing, explaining, \u201cWe just cut the greens yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n

This inmate, Alphabet, is serving a life sentence for murder. Alphabet points out that there are still places in Angola where prisoners pick cotton for 4 cents an hour. At the golf course, Alphabet does work he likes for 20 cents an hour. \u201cI\u2019d rather be out here than the alternative \u2014 trust me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Right now, says Begley, 10 inmates comprise the greens maintenance crew at Prison View. Since they all have life sentences, they may not get a chance to carry their skills and experience to a job outside the prison walls.<\/p>\n

Cain maintains that 10 percent of Angola\u2019s population eventually leaves the prison. He says that whatever job opportunities the golf course offers, it will offer to this 10 percent.<\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t able to track down any stories of inmates who have successfully transferred their Prison View skills to the workaday world. But it\u2019s a little early on to find such stories.<\/p>\n

I was able to talk with the manager of the course\u2019s restaurant, who told me that inmates do prepare the po-boys and hamburgers and do most of the maintenance on the course. Any person who knows how to prepare a tasty catfish po-boy should have fairly good job prospects in Louisiana. And Begley attests that the po-boys at Prison View are indeed tasty.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Louisiana\u2019s \u2018Prison View\u2019 Golf Course Promises Arresting Views And Captivating Play   If you\u2019ve dismissed the story that there\u2019s a public golf course on the grounds of Angola as an urban myth, you have some backtracking to do. Prison View Golf Course is every bit as real as Angola\u2019s guards on horseback, razor wire and [&hellip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1005,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[100,38,4,102,101],"yoast_head":"\nMAXIMUM SECURITY GOLF - BestOfSwla<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2013\/12\/04\/maximum-security-golf\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"MAXIMUM SECURITY GOLF - BestOfSwla\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Louisiana\u2019s \u2018Prison View\u2019 Golf Course Promises Arresting Views And Captivating Play   If you\u2019ve dismissed the story that there\u2019s a public golf course on the grounds of Angola as an urban myth, you have some backtracking to do. 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