Hey Golfers! The time to tee off in Truckee is co= ming soon! Did you know that some of the finest golfing in the Sierra Nevad= a is only 1.5 hours away from Sacramento! Even with the price of gasoline, that’s close! Here is a quickie overview of some of the golf act= ion in Truckee and a couple of courses outside Truckee but close enough to make= a comfortable 18 hole day trip. Oh, and in case I forget to mention it, = we rent our cabin which is gorgeous and located nearby all these great venues!=
I’ll start by describing the two golf courses th= at are within a Tiger Woods drive of the cabin. The Tahoe Donner Golf Course = is a lush championship course where the greens keepers do a superior job of preparing the greens to give you a world-class golf experience. The rolling course is 7,002 yards from the White tees and 5,588 yards from the = Red tees. The course meanders up and down through the piney forest and acr= oss creeks providing a scenic round of golf. 18 holes for a guest of a Tah= oe Donner member (You are a "guest" when you rent our cabin!) costs $80. The public rate is $150 which includes a cart. Walking is allowed on this course. After golf you might want to enjoy a cocktail = and hors de oeuvres or even a gourmet dinner at The Lodge just upstairs from the Pro Shop. You can enjoy the view off the deck behind the bar and watch people tee off at #1.
Tahoe Donner isn’t the only golf course that is virtually right outside the front door of the cabin. Coyote Moon Golf Course is also located along Northwoods Drive on the right as you come up t= he hill from Donner Pass Road. Now for truth in advertising, I haven̵= 7;t played this one yet but it calls to me every time I drive past it; kind of = like that Porsche dealership along Highway 80 in Rocklin. Anyway, Coyote Mo= on has distances of 6211 from the White and 5,022 from the Gold (women’s) tees. The course was designed to fit into the environment and the desi= gn is spectacular. 18 holes will cost you $160 with a twilight rate of $100. I would think that sitting on top of the hill and the more sparse forest around this course would make Twilight a good bet. Coyote Moon = also has a Bar and Grill for before, during and after round consumption.
Sadly, I have to report that the 9 hole Ponderosa Golf Course along Reynolds Way will not open in 2008. The course telephone does = not give any other details about the future of the course. There are championship courses at Squaw Valley and Northstar at Tahoe which are both a short drive from Truckee. I’ll review these two later this year.=
Now I also want to describe Whitehawk Ranch Golf Club = and Dayton Valley Golf and Country Club. These are a couple of courses I h= ave played in the area but which require a bit of driving from Truckee. Whiteha= wk provides some of the most spectacular scenery you’ll ever find on a g= olf course. Sometimes if I took my eyes off the beautiful fairways and gre= ens it was easy to get hypnotized by the spectacular backdrop of mountains; this was especially true on the front nine. I found the back nine scenery t= o be very reminiscent of the Tahoe Donner course. Whitehawk is situated abo= ut a 38 mile drive from the Truckee down Highway 89 toward Quincy before you get= to the town of Blairsden. The entrance is on your left off the highway. The course is 6,983 yards from the Men’s tees and 6,474 from the Women’s tees although there are shorter options as well.&nbs= p;18 holes at Whitehawk will set you back only $95 (play until you drop for this rate!) until May 22, then $140 for the summer, fall rates drop to $115.&nbs= p;I found Whitehawk to be a great golf experience all the way around. The course was in tip-top shape and the layout was challenging enough but not frustrating for me, a professional duffer who would have been appropriately named Gimmey A. Mulligan.
Dayton Valley Golf and Country Club was designed by Ar= nold Palmer and has hosted an annual PGA qualifying tournament since 1995. = Fees are reasonable at $85 during the week in summer and $105 on the weekend. The course distances are 6,637 from the Championship tees and 5,897 from the Regular tees. The course features a fair amount of water and steep grassy bumps and berms, plus a lot of sand on some holes. The day I played there it was windy, and I mean winnn-deee. This was the k= ind of day when you could actually see your ball stop in the air if the flight = was too high. Take a warm jacket that breaks the wind and remember that you’re in the high desert where conditions can change quickly. T= he course provides a challenging and enjoyable golf experience and in my opini= on it is well worth the effort. The course is in Dayton Valley, Nevada wh= ich is located on Highway 50 outside of Carson City. I would combine this = golf trip with a night out in Reno on the way home. It’s about 75 mil= es and will take about an hour and a half to drive to Dayton Valley from Truck= ee.
I’ll return with another article about the golf = at some point in the future but for now I’m over par on this article so I’ll quit while I’m behind. Besides, the weather looks good outside and perhaps there’s a three-some looking for a fourth they can feel superior to. Visit the Summer Sports page for contact information= at the courses described in this article. Drive ‘em long and straig= ht until next time!
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