Why does Wild Horse get a pass on all the high rough...

It's possible to find your balls in there (not always), but the
fairways are quite wide.  The fairway on #14 must be 100
yards wide.

Just beautiful.  Serene.  I can just picture Brad Swanson with his wife and dog in tow having the course to themselves.  Very few lost golf balls and many fond memories.  Golf as it was meant to be for all who care for the game.  Makes me want to call Dick in WI and set up a game for tomorrow morning.  Maybe next year.

JK,

It would take away from the aesthetics without necessarily making the course harder or easier- just different.  There is plenty of fairway as is.  Hitting an ocassional shot out of the wispy stuff requires a different set of skills and it is fun.  Besides, I have nothing against framing.  Now, if the rough was fertilized, watered, and brought in closer to the lines of play, then I would go for the Carville look.

Neil, as you can imagine, I have a boatload of pictures of Wild Horse.  However, yours really are the best I've seen.  

I hope Josh Mahar, the super there, comes on and comments about the seasonal aspects of the rough.  I haven't been there since spring, but I believe they finally have broken the 2 year drought this year and the rough looks a little bit heartier than last fall.   But, after a few freezing nights, it should lay down nice, and present ideal rough conditions, IMHO.  The rough gets pretty thick in some key areas like the back -through the fairway side of the tee shot off 3 tee, and low areas off to the left of 12 and between 16 and 17 and 18, where I think irrigation and fert may drift a bit and being low, it stays dew laden.  But generally, wherever I hit errant shots into rough off of tee balls, like left or right on 6, left or right on 12, 15, 16,17,18, I can generally find the ball and advance it.  

About 5 years ago, I picked up the last remaining lot which is just beyond the picture of the 4th that Neil shows and would partially block out the view of the maintenence facility roof that you see.  The house in that background is the newest out there and would be two lots down from mine.  The other house you see in that line is owned by a fellow that is a builder-contractor who has built other homes out there.  

It is ineveitable that the long views of the prairie will slowly close in with more roof lines appearing.  But, the course will still be as good as you see that Josh has it presented.  That is a great thing.

John K., why don't you take about a 14 hour drive out there and check it out.  You will come to appreciate the narrowness of the wide fairways when the wind blows, like Neil and Scott speak of in their example of the 7th slightly off center in LZ bunker.

I still vote for fall as the best season in the Sand Hills for golf and anything else.

I'll be darned if I know what the heck I'll do with the lot.  When I saw the Bunkerhill project and found only one lot remainaing, I just wanted to be part of it in some way shape or form.  So on impulse I bought the lot.  If I could find a job-reason to move to that area, I might just make use of the lot by building a low profile least obstructive of the view house.  

It sure would be nice to walk across the road and play the course anytime I felt like it.  36 a day sounds about right!!!

Scott on his way to 76[/i]

Why does Scott have a mulligan ball in his pants....was the 76 legit.....

Barney:

Can't speak for Scott, but I always carry an extra ball in my pants pocket when I play. It's a "provisional ball," not a "mulligan ball." By putting it in my pocket before playing the first hole, it spares me the humiliation of a possible long walk back to my bag on a hole where I've left the bag some distance from the tee.

It also prevents me from undermining my own self-confidence on a narrow hole where I know the chances are good I might lose a ball. If I didn't always have an extra ball in my pocket, I'd feel like I was setting myself up for failure by selectively pocketing a backup ball before heading to the tee.

Scott,
   I wouldn't worry too much about the fashion statement. What did you see on your trip 20 golfers or less?

Scott,
While you may be correct about those comments on your picture...I have no idea.
It looks like you have a straight line between your left forearm and wrist well past impact.  Nice.

Neil,
Cool pictures.

So how much did Wild Horse cost to build anyway?  

Neil, are you using a tripod?  Those are some really zoomed in distances.  I'm glad you showed the putting practice green and short game chipping-sand bunker practice green.  A fellow can get some good work in there.

Those hills seen behind the club house are about 8-10 miles away, just for perspective for those who haven't been there.