Headed to NE in two weeks. Where to play?

[Ryan Heiman]

I am headed to NE to stay with friend of mine.  We have 2 days to golf.  Plan is to play Wild Horse.  

Where else?  

He lives just off I-80 west of Lincoln. We don't mind driving but where are the best courses.  Might head to Lincoln, where should we play there?

Anything else near Wild Horse so we can get 2 rounds in that day?

[Adam Clayman]

Not really. There is Bayside near Lake McConaghy, but it's 1 1/2 hr+ drive from Wild Horse. You do gain an hour entering MST. This time of year it would be pushing it. Otherwise there is nothing too close for two rounds. My advice would be to stay at Wild Horse. I don't know your preferences, but even if you come from  a private CC, playing Wild Horse repeatedly will not be a bad thing.

Where are you coming from?

[ed_getka]

Ryan,
   Wild Horse is fantastic and you won't regret going around there mulitple times. The price is right and Josh keeps the place in unbelievable condition.
   If you do want to see something else I can highly recommend the front nine at Bayside (same guys who did Wild Horse). The back nine has a few holes worth seeing, but I would just drive a cart around to look at them. The land was just a little too severe I think to come up with a much better result. I think #12 is a dogleg left that is really cool the way the ground comes into the green. There is a hole with a punchbowl green, and the green has a shelf in the back which is a cool added twist. #17 is a cool par 3 green with a bunker in the middle. The contouring is such that some really cool putts can be attempted.
   Have a great trip and tell us what you think.

[Scott Szabo]

Ryan,

We just got back from a wonderful four days of golf in Nebraska.  We played four different courses over four days.  I agree with the others in that trying to play Wild Horse and another course in the same day might not be possible this late in the year.  There was a frost delay at Wild Horse last week that kept the course closed until after 9:00.

If you have the opportunity, I would suggest Heritage Hills in McCook.  I believe this is about an hour and a half or so away from Wild Horse.  IMO it is a much better course than Bayside, and is always in great condition.  If you were looking at two courses in one day, there is another course in Cambridge called Cross Creek that is about a half hour away from McCook.    

You can check out a variety of courses in the area at playthewest.com.  They have package deals for five courses in the area and have links to all websites.  We have done this the past four years and enjoy each and every course.

Scott

[Alan Gard]

I'd agree with the gallery that your first day would best be spent playing as many holes as you can at Wild Horse...you'll appreciate it even more the second time around.

As for your second day, if you're looking to stay a little closer to home, your best bet (in my opinion) is the Highlands in Lincoln (Jeff Brauer design).  Quarry Oaks in Ashland and Woodland Hills in Eagle are also pretty good.  Or you could try one of the smaller town courses such as the York Country Club (profiled on this site's My Home Course section).

Enjoy the heartland!