Marsh Hawk at Fords Colony Country Club

Marsh Hawk at Fords Colony Country Club in Williamsburg, Virginia, is a Dan Maples design that opened in the mid-1980s as part of a residential golf community situated between the historic colonial capital and the James River. Maples, known for his work throughout the Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic, routed the course through the rolling, wooded terrain characteristic of the Virginia Tidewater region, incorporating natural wetlands and marshland that give the course its name. The layout takes advantage of elevation changes uncommon in coastal Virginia, with several holes playing across ravines and through corridors of mature hardwoods and pines.

The course features water hazards on multiple holes, with marshland areas coming into play both visually and strategically. Maples designed the routing to present variety in hole length and direction, using the property's natural topography to create interest without excessive earthmoving. The fairways typically offer reasonable width off the tee, though approach shots often require precision to elevated or protected greens. The bunkering follows Maples's characteristic style of the era, with white sand providing contrast against the surrounding vegetation.

Fords Colony operates as a private club serving a residential community that includes multiple golf courses. The Marsh Hawk course shares the property with other amenities typical of planned communities in the Williamsburg area, which has developed as a retirement and second-home destination given its proximity to Colonial Williamsburg and the broader Hampton Roads region. The course remains a fixture of golf in the historic triangle area of southeastern Virginia.