A "Doak" Trip: Seattle to Texas

[Joe Stansell]

My son and I will be driving to Waco, Texas next month (he, returning to college for his junior year) and we are hoping to get in a few rounds of golf along the way. This might wind up being an "all Doak" road trip, if our dream plan works out: Rock Creek Cattle Co. (Deer Lodge, MT); Ballyneal (Holyoke, CO) or Common Ground (Denver, CO); Rawls Course (Lubbock, TX).   

Has anyone here made the trek between Deer Lodge and Holyoke in a single day?

And how blazingly hot and miserable might it be playing the Rawls Course in August? Is that course in good enough shape right now to live through the heat or are we better off lingering somewhere to the North and adding a non-Doaker into the mix?

Thoughts anyone?

[Tom_Doak]

Joe:

It will be 90 degrees and windy in Lubbock -- or as Jim Urbina once described it, like turning a hair dryer on high and holding it in your face.  But it's all Bermudagrass, and the turf loves those conditions.

If you're looking to sub out for cooler weather, though, you could stop at Tumble Creek at the very beginning of your trip and put the others back a half day ... it is always nice and cool up in Roslyn.

[Andy Troeger]

I've played all four of those--it would be interesting certainly to see them all on one trip if you can make the first two work. I can't really help with the driving aspect though as I played them on four separate trips!

Just make sure to get an early tee time at The Rawls. I played it last year in September on a day in the 90's and walked comfortably in the morning. I think you'll find there is very little to play once you get much south of Denver so if you play a couple rounds in that general area then you might as well get that one round in to break up the driving. The greens were punched last year in September, so you might actually be better off in August.

[Craig Sweet]

you would have to be crazy to attempt deer lodge to holyoke in a day

[Bill_McBride]

you would have to be crazy to attempt deer lodge to holyoke in a day

899 miles 14 hours, average 64 mph.  No problemo.   

[Sam Morrow]

Lubbock isn't that bad in August, might be mid 90's but it will be windy and there's no humidity.

[Jud_T]

64?  Aren't the speed limits 70 out there?  That means 79 in the denominator...

[Garland Bayley]

64?  Aren't the speed limits 70 out there?  That means 79 in the denominator...

Depends on your bladder capacity.

[Steve Lang]

  Heck the speeds were 80 mph when we went to BN in 2009..

Speeds in most of TX are mere suggestions or shall we say more like guidelines??  

Have you checked out the Buddy Holly museum in Lubbuck?  Nice break... if time available after/before the Rawls Course ... bring a dust mask if the wind is blowing at all

[mike_beene]

So far even Dallas has been very pleasant this summer.I ride when the temperature hits 96 and that has not happened on a Saturday yet .Is this a trek to Baylor?I went there many years ago!

[Jim Nugent]

I think you'll find there is very little to play once you get much south of Denver

How about Black Mesa as a short side trip?

[Andy Troeger]

Jim,
Black Mesa is worth the detour. It probably would add about 4 hours of driving, but that's probably not that much worse than going out to Ballyneal then back to Denver.

[Bill_McBride]

Dismal could be another stop on that Doak Trail. 

[Jay Flemma]

I don't know anything about the drive you were inquiring about, but I loved Rawls Course.

I played it on March 9 a couple years ago in a howling 40 mph gale (so much fun!!!), when the whole course was biscuit brown.  It was excellent.  My playing partner was 6'9" and the wind nearly blew him over!  The next day it snowed.

[Adam Clayman]

Andy, you wouldn't have to go back to Denver. The 385 is a great way to go south, practically straight down to Lubbuck.

[Joe Stansell]

Joe:
If you're looking to sub out for cooler weather, though, you could stop at Tumble Creek at the very beginning of your trip and put the others back a half day ... it is always nice and cool up in Roslyn.

Tom, for such a long trip, I'd feel like our engine is barely warm before we're stopping for our first round at Tumble Creek. I've had the pleasure of playing Tumble Creek twice (it is a relatively easy day outing from Seattle) and I really enjoy playing it. But we'll have to drive right on by this time.

Still, nobody here has yet tried the Rock Creek Cattle Co. to Ballyneal trek in a single day?

~joe

[Jud_T]

Joe,

It looks theoretically doable if you want to drive from 6 AM to 10 PM including stops, meals etc.  why not take an extra day and make it manageable? 

[Joe Stansell]

Joe,

It looks theoretically doable if you want to drive from 6 AM to 10 PM including stops, meals etc.  why not take an extra day and make it manageable? 

While I'd love to have an extra day for a leisurely drive, I also need to dedicate a bit of time for a family visit in Southeastern Colorado along the way. The only way we can work in this much golf is to "rush" from one course to the next.

[Paul Carey]

Better not wear any Baylor Bear Green in Lubbock!

[Andy Troeger]

Andy, you wouldn't have to go back to Denver. The 385 is a great way to go south, practically straight down to Lubbuck.

Right...I'm not surprised there is a better way. My comment was just assuming that Ballyneal was coming before CommonGround based on the Deer Lodge to Holyoke question.

[Craig Sweet]

You are forgetting the endless road construction that inflicts Montana, Washington and Wyoming each summer...for what its's worth...Billings will be a good 5 1/2-6 hours from Deer Lodge if there is no slow down for construction...and then its a straight shot south to Colorado...possibly 8-9 hours to Denver...

[Joe Stansell]

My son and I completed our "Doak Trip" and I wanted to extend my thanks and appreciation to all who helped make it happen. As it turned out, we skipped Rock Creek Cattle Co. (maybe next year?) and instead dashed straight from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho to Mullen, Nebraska (via Mount Rushmore and the Badlands) in two marathon driving sessions.




There, we played a couple of rounds on Dismal River (Red) (and one round on the White). Our impression: Good to great golf in a totally unique and out-of-this world setting.




And by the way, does Dismal River have the world's longest (and this year, due to the wild sunflowers, most beautiful) entry drive in all of golf?



We next traveled from Mullen to Holyoke, CO and enjoyed two blissful rounds (and one very enjoyable evening) at Ballyneal. Our impression: About as good as it can get in golf. What a fantastic golf course and setting, as well as welcoming and enthusiastic members and staff.





We completed a quick detour to visit relatives and then continued to Lubbock, TX, where we played The Rawls Course in a little under two-and-half hour walking pace. The setting sun has a way of moving things along, even if it did present unique challenges during the last three (and quite challenging) finishing holes. Our impression: The Rawls Course would have been significantly better if maintained as the architect intended: for firm and fast conditions. (And shocking, since you'd think August would be as about as brown as it gets.)



All in all, we played seven rounds of golf on 4 different courses during a drive of about 2500 miles that began in Seattle, Washington and ended in Waco, Texas. With Tumble Creek on one end and The Rawls Course on the other end, there is a pretty good start to a "Doak Trail" out there.