To cap off as good a golfing weekend as I've had, I played the Old White the day after playing the Cascades. The folks at both resorts have always been really accommodating to our team, and we're really fortunate to get to play such great courses every year.
I know this is going to shock and annoy some people, but I preferred the Old White to the Cascades by a little bit. Don't get me wrong--the Cascades is really good--but I put the Old White firmly in the "fantastic" category. I thought it was much better off the tee, with wider corridors that encouraged assertive play but properly punish reckless driving. The Cascades was a little too narrow; I often felt defensive. Also, while the Cascades' greens are certainly interesting and challenging, the drama to be found at the Old White gripped me even more.
Without further ado, pictures:
1--Stern beginning to the round; a par will make you feel like you've gotten off on the right foot, but even if you start with a bogey, you know there's plenty of time to recover.
2--Neat hogback fairway and dramatic green with a Valley of Sin of sorts on the left side.
3--The Biarritz.
4--Straightaway par 4; beautiful mountain backdrop.
5--Interesting short 4, delicate approach over stream; first look at "dragon's teeth" (as Mr. George calls them) in fourth picture.
6--Stout par 4 where you want to skirt the fairway bunkers in order to leave yourself a sensible approach.
7--Medium par 4 with a fantastic green.
8--The Redan; more dragon's teeth and drama...really cool-looking, I think.
9--Solid 4 to finish the nine; negotiate the well-placed fairway bunkers.
10--A beautiful schnoz.
11--Sweeping-left par 4
12--First par 5; perfect pair of Spectacles.
13--The Alps-Punchbowl; I forgot to take a picture from the tee, but calls for a confident left-to-righter.
14--Sahara; deceptive look off the tee...makes you want to aim too far left and too close to the bunker.
15--Eden.
16--Cape; first pic looks back at tee boxes from landing area...classic risk-reward opportunity.
17--Short par 5 with a Cape-ish tee shot; forgot to take picture of approach to green flanked by bunkers
18--The Short, complete with excellent horseshoe contouring. Good little finishing hole that I found satisfying even though it's a par 3.
I absolutely love this golf course. Yale is my favorite golf course, and I love that look (same with Pete Dye as well--I can't wait to play more of his courses), so I guess that's what gives it the edge over Flynn's Cascades.
Cheers.
--Tim Gavrich