Favorite/Best Practice Area

[Mac Plumart]

Cascata...hands down!

Oh yeah, wait a minute...The Bear's Club is pretty sweet as well...and they have a par 3 course.

But Cascata has that river.  Huh?  Tough call.

[Bill_McBride]

Valley Club' range, looking out to the Channel Islands, has the best view I've seen for a range, although SE's is pretty awesome.

That's about all that's good about the Valley Club range though.  It's very narrow and so short you have to hit Cayman balls with your driver.

And Marilyn Monroe had this little mole.......

[Tim Gavrich]

The best one I can recall is the range and chipping and putting greens at Shelter Harbor, with Greenbrier a close second.

[Bob_Huntley]

The Point Joe range of the MPCC is my favorite spot to spend time. Looking out to Hawaii and the surf rolling in on a piece of property worth many million dollars if divided up into quarter acre parcels.

Ask John Bernardt, he spends a lot of time down there just goofing off.

Bob

[Richard Phinney]

Royal Dornoch has a hilariously bad warm up area for visitors...one net, between the parking lot and some kind of nursury or something, with a hole in the net that every other ball goes through, and with a net overhead that is so low that if you use a driver you get tangled up in it. The course is OK, however.

[Tom Yost]

That range photo from Ran's Clear Creek course review looks unbeatable

The photo does not do justice.  This is a truly superb practice area!

- A portion of the teeing area features wrinkles so one can practice uneven lies.
- In addition to the standard putting green and chipping greens with several bunkers... a separate pitching green with teeing area and balls for practicing 60-80 yard shots.
- Nice wooden deck chairs!

[Tom Yost]

Red Mountain Ranch in Mesa AZ originally featured a large Himalayas style practice green with very bold contours.  My neighbor and I spent many hours there trading quarters in putting competitions.   It is sadly NLE.

[Ron Csigo]

Dear Ted,

     Not the game, but we're talking about practice, man. I mean, how silly is that? ...
And we talking about practice. I know I supposed to be there. I know I'm supposed to lead by example... I know that... And i'm not.. I'm not shoving it aside, you know, like it don't mean anything. I know it's important, I do. I honestly do...

Sincerely,
Allen Iverson
----------------------

Joe - Brilliant.  I wonder if AI can express those thoughts in Turkish, nowadays.

I'll agree that the practice facility is great at WW's but I have to agree with Kyle that the practice area at Friar's Head is off the hook.  Great, undulating putting green, two superb wedge play greens and a perfectly manicured range.

[Mark Chaplin]

Deal and Muirfield provide perfect warm up facilities:- hot buttered toast, coffee, then port and brandy. The ideal pre-round routine!

[John Foley]

Berkley Hall near Hilton Head is pretty sweet.

[Jim Franklin]

The Alotian. They have different kinds of balls depending on what you play as well as different grasses if you are going to be traveling somewhere to play. As a member, that would be a pretty cool addition to my range.

[Bill_McBride]

Deal and Muirfield provide perfect warm up facilities:- hot buttered toast, coffee, then port and brandy. The ideal pre-round routine!

What, no kummel?  I am shocked, sir, shocked I say.  Harrumph!

[Mark McKeever]

Rivercrest in Collegeville, PA actually has a very nice practice facility.  Not extremely popular, but I could spend hours out there.  And Ill second the Pine Valley range as well.  Very cool with a lot of options!

Mark

[Matt_Ward]

Clear Creek is quite good but it's a bit smaller than the pic indicates.

Although there are plenty of targets and greens to use.

[Scott Szabo]

Mr. Iverson's response is perfect!

I'm a big fan of the "practice field" at Sand Hills. For those of you who've seen it, you know what I mean.

I'll second that regarding the practice area at Sand Hills.

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

Monterey Penn Cc has one of the better combo practice areas around. The Pt Joe Range on the Pacific Ocean is spectacular. The only thing missing is a short iron area like bandon has.

[Chris Roselle]

I am not a practice range guy, but I could have stood and beat balls at Pine Valley's range all day.


PV's is awesome....great call.

I think the best part about the practice facility at Pine Valley is that when your done hitting balls, it's off to the 1st tee and the best 18 holes in the world.

Bear's Best in Atlanta would have to be my second favorite practice facility.

[Brad Tufts]

Bandon...can be turned into a par 3 course!

Old Sandwich will have some of the most comprehensive facilities I have seen when finished.

1.  Large range
2.  Multiple putting greens near the clubhouse
3.  Multiple putting greens near the first tee
4.  100 yard Short game area near the large range with bunkers/greens
5.  100+ yard short game area with multiple greens between holes 1 and 4, currently being constructed.
6.  Practice building for winter practice with nets, launch monitors, and barn-style doors that can be opened for full winter shots if the weather is calm!
7.  Bye Hole with two full sets of tees at 90-degree different directions.
8.  The ability to throw a mat down on the clubhouse patio and hit over the lake to the putting green behind the first tee!

[JNC Lyon]

Garden City!  First, I love the practice green that is shared with the 18th green.  Nothing gets you more nervous and excited for the round than practice putting on that green.  Second, I love the range that is only 150 yards long.  It ensures that players will only hit balls to warm up, and they will not end up beating golf balls for three hours.  After all, with a course like the one at GCGC, who would not want to spend most of their time playing rather than practicing.

CC of Rochester is another great one, albeit a slightly unorthodox one.  The driving range is barely long enough for drivers, but it is flat enough to allow visibility of all shots.  There is a chipping area where golfers can practice any type of short game shots.  There are two practice putting greens: one next to the first tee, and one shared with the 18th green.  Finally, and most importantly, CC of Rochester has three practice holes, two of which are Donald Ross originals that have since been rotated out of the 18-hole course. 

As an aside, CCR has what is arguably the best bagroom staff in the country managing the practice area.

[Terry Lavin]

Bandon's practice area is just great.

Locally, here in Chicago, Conway Farms has a terrific practice area.  Knollwood's practice area is great, especially for an old club.  The same is true for Edgewood Valley, a 100 year-old club that has two separate tee ground areas and a nice setup with a couple greens and bunkers that allow for up to a 90 yard shot.

Worst practice area for a legendary place:  Pebble Beach.

[Matt_Ward]

Terry:

Baltusrol is not that far behind Pebble -- always enjoy hitting up into a major uphill area.

[JC Jones]

The Dunes Club

Also, Kingsley Club.  I love the vibe with the music playing out of the rocks as you warm up.  I could practice on that range all day.  They also have a great short game practice area.

[Terry Lavin]

Terry:

Baltusrol is not that far behind Pebble -- always enjoy hitting up into a major uphill area.

Nothing like preparing for a round of Spion Kop holes!

[Jed Peters]

MPCC.

Between their "shag range" and the upper area, I can't think of one I like better.

Of course, there may be BETTER (see also, Bandon) but come on.

Oh yeah, tiger's back yard looks pretty cool too.

[Dan_Callahan]

The PGA Village at Port St. Lucie is by far the best practice facility I've ever seen.