I played Vista River Golf and Social Club/fka (briefly) Tegavah/fka Vista Verde yesterday. I’ve played this Ken Kavanaugh-designed course from time to time since shortly after it opened 11 years ago. I’ve always enjoyed playing it—fair but challenging, with some really good greensites and greens and use of the washes that run through the property. I was looking forward to seeing what Tom Lehman did to the course. In short, I was underwhelmed with the major changes that were made (the new 1st and 18th holes and, they say, the 14th (formerly 15th ) though I didn’t really see anything significant) and surprised at the lack of real “improvements” to the course.
The straightaway opening hole (somewhat on the corridor of the former 9th hole) is now a downhill par 4 that is nearly driveable for the longer hitters. The left to right slope of the fairway will leave most players a 75-100 yard blind approach from a valley over a yawning bunker; perhaps there is a small window to find on the left side of the fairway where it isn’t blind or one can lay back to about 150 yards before the valley but who wants to hit a 5 iron off the first tee? I just found it to be a strange, compromised first hole that, like most of the major changes, was done to fit the course to the new large clubhouse on the hill that is under construction.
As Matthew says in his post, the new 18th hole is really boring—a very wide bunkerless fairway leaves a mid to short iron to a green nicely positioned beneath the new clubhouse; the old 10th along the same corridor was really challenging and I thought the sloped green was very good too. The new green has some slope but the hole just has nothing compelling about it.
As for the rest of the course, since I liked what was there, I guess “less is more”. The washes were cleaned up, which should make them more playable if you end up there*. Quite a bit of turf was added (e.g. around the par three 3rd (former 2nd)) and 10th (former 11th), and the drivable 8th (former 7th) has more turf and less desert to deal with. Aside from the addition of glaring white sand seemingly imported from Augusta National, I didn’t think the bunkering changed very much. That’s OK with me as I liked the existing bunkering. Overall, I think Lehman did just what the owner wanted: Getting the course situated around the new clubhouse with some softening and clean-up. The really good holes out there, which for me are (current hole #s) 3, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11 and 16, are pretty much untouched.
The whole thing smelled like an owner trying to pry nicer views (which I did notice, especially from the practice area!) and home sales from the property. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. FYI there’s massive home and infrastructure construction ongoing there so the golf is not currently a serene communion with nature. I don’t know if it’s spec homes or if they have buyers but they’re clearly in “sell” mode. Also, most of the once-pristine back nine now has homes or construction, and the middle of the back nine has been turned from native desert vegetation to dirt waiting for homes. So relative to a few years back, they’ve paved paradise and put up a parking lot… good luck Shea Homes!
Bottom line: Vista River remains on my list of courses to visit when I’m in the area, but it didn’t move up the list.
*For those who played there before the changes, was there a drainage ditch/wash 50 years in front of the par 5 6th (now 7th) green? I didn’t remember it being there and it seems very odd, as does the cart path running across the fairway next to it….