Tahoe Golf.....

[Bob_Huntley]

I had a brief trip to Tahoe at the begining of the week having arranged to play Edgewood G.C. The reservation was screwed up, so returned to the north shore and played The Resort at Squaw Creek. They are awfully proud of their Audubon Society accolade. As with Spanish Bay,  I am immediately put on alert when I hear the words " environmentally sensitive areas." The marsh grasses that can be found on either side of most fairways are basically out of bounds. It would seem as though the staff know that they have the greatest annuity in golf ball sales. The wooden slatted pathways over the wetlands for golf carts, make such a racket that one thinks of driving over the 'pave' in France. All in all I would rather have gone to the dentist.

As luck would have it I was directed to the Coyote Moon G.C. in nearby Truckee. At 6.30am I called the shop to see if I could get an early time, by a stroke of luck I was told to be out there at 8.30am. There had been a slight frost delay, so teed off a few minutes later.

I found a stunningly beautiful course whose original routing by Homer Flint was through an old logging tract. The final touches were initated by Brad Bell of Saramento. The course has seventeen holes that require thought an good shot-making, the eighteenth however is a short par 4, an elevated green and a bit of an anti-climax. Forget Squaw Creek and Edgewood, play Coyote Moon.

There is one caveat I should make, especially to my old friend Dan King,  I'm not sure I would want to walk it in hot weather and over six thousand feet elevation.

[Dan Grossman]

Bob -

I thought the golf course was OK, not great.  Don't you find it offensive that they charge $125, though?  It isn't THAT good.

I still think Whitehawk Ranch in Clio is the best course to play if you are going to be in North Tahoe.

[Bob_Huntley]

Dan:

Thanks for the tip on Whitehorse Ranch.

I don't know , I found it to be a delight. It was my wife's birthday and as I was within inches of an ace at the 206yd par three thirteenth I could find no fault with anything. As for the price, it is a whole lot better than Edgewood.

As you seem to know the area, is Lahontan the best up there?

Bob

[Goose1002 (Guest)]

I too enjoyed Coyote Moon, but was disappointed with the final two holes...

My favorite in the area was The Dragon at Gold Mountain, not for its architectural integrity, but for its shear beauty, exceptional conditioning and 1st class service.  Without a doubt, it is brutally difficult and somtimes unfair, but for a Texan who is used to playing on flat ground it was an eye opening experience...Cetrainly enough enjoyment and wow factor to make me want to go back...

Also played Incline Village, not that impressed...

[Dan Grossman]

Bob -

I have played most of the public stuff in the area, but not any private.  However, I hear Lohontan is good, as well as Montreux.

[Bill_McBride]

Is the old Glenbrook course still there?  This was a very sporty nine hole course on the Nevada side closer to the southern state line.  I worked there in 1959 as "the kid in the shop."   The course was part of the Glenbrook Hotel property, a summer getaway for well to do Northern Californians.  Very sporty indeed, with fairways virtually chain sawed out of pine forests.  The 2nd hole a 480 yd par 5 where you had to hit a slightly drawn 5 iron off the tee, then busted a 3-wood down into an open meadow where the green shared a huge double green with #9.  The third was an 85 yd pitch over a huge bunker with Lake Tahoe as the backdrop!  The 4th a 225 yd long iron.  5-6,8-9 were all tight par 4's with difficult tee shots.  #7 a short par 3 uphill.  All in all a very tough par 34 considering the short yardage at high altitude.  Anybody remember this course or played it lately?

[Bill_McBride]

Is the old Glenbrook course still there?  This was a very sporty nine hole course on the Nevada side closer to the southern state line.  I worked there in 1959 as "the kid in the shop."   The course was part of the Glenbrook Hotel property, a summer getaway for well to do Northern Californians.  Very sporty indeed, with fairways virtually chain sawed out of pine forests.  The 2nd hole a 480 yd par 5 where you had to hit a slightly drawn 5 iron off the tee, then busted a 3-wood down into an open meadow where the green shared a huge double green with #9.  The third was an 85 yd pitch over a huge bunker with Lake Tahoe as the backdrop!  The 4th a 225 yd long iron.  5-6,8-9 were all tight par 4's with difficult tee shots.  #7 a short par 3 uphill.  All in all a very tough par 34 considering the short yardage at high altitude.  Anybody remember this course or played it lately?  Does it still exist?

[THuckaby2]

Bill - oh yeah, Glenbrook's still there.  I last played it about 15 years ago so had to check to make sure but it's a full member of the NCGA... though it seems to be private now (don't know when that happened).  I remember it just like you... course sawed out of the pines... very fun, great greens.

TH

[Dave_Miller]

Bob:

Couldn't agree with you more.  The Resort at Squaw Creek course is even less desirable than Spanish Bay.  At least Spanish Bay is a golf course with some decent holes and can be fun to play.

Squaw Creek is a marsh with a few greens, fairways and tees thrown in to call it a golf course.

This is one of the worst examples of golf course architecture I have ever witnessed (And I still haven't met a course I don't like).

They shouldn't have bothered with this one.

My youngest son played a tournament there a couple of years back and after a practice round where he couldn't stay out of the Marshes played the tournament with a six iron off the tees and shot 70.  

This is golf???

Don't think so.

Cheers,
Dave

[Kevin_Reilly]

Glenbrook:  private, played by the homeowners assn there.

Resort at Squaw Creek:  good place to stay when you're going skiing.  That's it.

[Joel_Stewart]

All in all - Tahoe Golf is OK not great.  I'm trying to get Brad Bell (architect of Coyote Moon, Turkey Creek, etc) interested in this site because he has some interesting thoughts.  He's a former tour pro and UCLA golf team player.  In my mind Coyote Moon is the best course in Tahoe followed by Lahonton and Edgewood.  

There are 2 or 3 more courses in the works in the Tahoe area including a new Fazio course next to Lahonton.

[Mike Benham]

I concur that Tahoe golf is OK not great!

I have vacationed in Tahoe for the past 20 years and usually leave the clubs in the trunk.  The prices are unrealistic, even for California and the play is slow.

I usually try to leave the Bay Area early on Friday and play 18 on the way to Tahoe ... there are a slew of decent tracks on 80 ... Haggin Oaks (Mac Course), Twelve Bridges, Paradise Valley, Winchester (haven't been here yet), and one of my secret gems, Ancil Hoffman (on the American River in Carmichael with nice large oaks that require strategy, doglegs and variety of shots to be played ...) ...

[Bob_Huntley]

Mike:

I do think you should give Coyote Moon a try. $135.00 for a round of golf seems a bit much but in my opinion it was worth it. I must say I've spent as much on any number of other pursuits, with not nearly the same enjoyment.