College Golf: Where to Play the Best Pac-10 Golf

by Abbey Mastracco

Rah Rah Ree, Kick ’em in the Tee

Hip-Hip Hooray for Where the West’s Top College Players Play

College football, especially in the West, holds one big advantage for fans who also happen to play golf. Every major school also fields a golf team, with some splitting their mens’ and womens’ seasons into fall and spring sessions. And every team has to have a course at which to practice and host their home tournaments. Some, like Stanford, Arizona State and Oregon State, enjoy access to their own on-or-near-campus tracks, most of which are also open to the public. Other schools, like UCLA and the University of Oregon, split their home turf time among two or more courses. A college team teeing it up at Bel-Air Country Club? Absolutely — and though a round at such famous courses might not be available to every rank-and-file football fan who follows his favorite squad through its autumn wars, there’s ample opportunity to play where tomorrow’s Tigers play, if you time it right … or, better yet, are connected to the school’s team, coaches or faculty in some way. Because, let’s face it, on a fall Saturday morning, tee times are as tough to come by as 50-yard-line seats.

Every Pac-10 golf coach is also a football fan, and they know not only the best games to check out on each year’s schedule, but also where they’d take a foursome of pigskin faithful for a pre-game round or two. So, at this year’s U.S. Amateur at San Francisco’s Olympic Club, FG interviewed all 10 of them for an inside look at their home tracks, and a few other suggestions on where else to play before or after the whistle blows. We’ll also kick an “extra point” through uprights at the University of Nevada, Reno, where the Wolf Pack golf team continues to churn out PGA Tour-caliber players (such as Charlie Wi, Rich Barcelo and Kirk Triplett), and the football team has become a bowl game regular.

Stanford

Stanford Golf Course (Palo Alto, Calif.)

Key Game: Dec. 1 vs. Cal

Nestled atop the foothills above the majestic university and overlooking the San Francisco Bay and skyline is the George C. Thomas and William Bell designed Stanford Golf Course. Stanford GC serves as the home of this year’s national champions, and has been the Cardinals home since 1930.  In that time the classically designed course has become a large source of Cardinal pride.

“We have one of the last truly untouched George C. Thomas designed courses still left around,” Said Stanford men’s golf coach Conrad Ray. “It’s exciting to be able to showcase it and the fact that it’s right on campus it’s a huge part of the university.”

Ray describes the 6,778-yard par-71 course as one with fast and firm greens with several undulation changes, and challenging par-3s. The conditions vary from season to season, but the rough is always grown high and the course always plays competitive.

Stanford GC’s signature hole, hole No. 12, is a long par-4 with a large native oak in the middle of the fairway. Playing from an elevated tee, No. 12 perfectly catches the north wind coming off of the bay.

“It’s very enjoyable,” Ray said of the overall experience of playing the Stanford Golf Course. “It makes you want to come back and play it again.”

Cardinal football fans especially come back again and again to play the course.
“It’s a popular spot; it gets a lot of play,” Ray said. “One of the hardest tee times to get is on game days.”

Other courses Ray recommends:

•    Palo Alto Municipal Golf Course – Palo Alto, Calif.
•    Harding Park – San Francisco
•    Half Moon Bay Golf Links – Half Moon Bay, Calif. 

California

The Meadow Club (Fairfax, Calif.)

Key Home Game: Nov. 10 vs. USC

Golden Bear fans can get a double dose of NCAA play this fall when Cal hosts the Alister McKenzie Invitational Oct. 8-10. The tournament will be held on Cal’s championship course, The Meadow Club, the site of the 2008 Pac-10 Championships.

Although Cal practices at the Metropolitan Golf Links in Oakland, their home championship course is the pride of the Golden Bears. The 6,602-yard, par-71 Meadow Club was the first McKenzie course in the state. It’s classical design features sweeping Winter Rye fairways, several doglegs and big greens.

“The signature of the course would have to be the greens,” Desimone said. “The greens are spectacular.”
Aside from the Bent Grass greens, Desimone also raved about the club’s scenery.

“Every area has spectacular scenic shots of the mountains and the general area,” he said. “You’ve got literally maybe 100 deer running around the North Course, you’ve got wild turkeys; we call it the ‘Wild Kingdom’ up there.”

If you’re in town for the Cal vs. Oregon State game, Oct. 13, those playing the Meadow Club will be playing a course setup comparable to that of a major championship.

“We’re going to grow the rough, we’ll narrow the fairways and we will certainly firm up the greens,” Desimone said. “I suspect close to par will be a pretty good score.”  

Other courses Desimone reccomends:
•    San Francisco Golf Club – San Francisco
•    Olympic Club – San Francisco
•    Metropolitan Golf Links – Oakland, Calif.
•    The Course at Wente Vinyards – Livermore, Calif.

University of Southern California

North Ranch Country Club (Westlake Village, Calif.)

Oct. 6 vs. Stanford 

Just north of Los Angeles, somewhat removed from the busy downtown city life that is USC is North Ranch Country Club. And while the Trojans call a multitude of exclusive LA area country clubs such as Wilshire and Riviera home, it’s North Ranch that plays host USC’s Ashworth Invitational, and once played host to head coach Chris Zambri as well.
“I grew up on North Ranch so I know it really well,” Zambri said. “It’s an interesting course.”

The par-72 Oaks course designed by Ted Robinson is listed as 6,881 yards, but Zambri warns that number can be deceiving. The course sometimes plays much longer when you’re forced to lay-up and leave your driver in the bag.
“It’s super tight, it forces you to hit it straight,” Zambri said. “Yardage wise you think it’s going to be easier than ever. But there’s so many lay-up holes that you end up hitting the same irons.”

The conditions of the Bluegrass greens play firm and fast, Zambri said and drivers aren’t always as useful as good ball striking skills.

“Premiums are on getting the ball in play,” Zambri said. “But not so much driving the ball, you don’t hit your driver very much.”

North Ranch also has a 9-hole course that Zambri describes as more modern, and much longer.

Courses Zambri recommends:
•    Trump National Golf Course – Palos Verdes, Calif.
    “Trump is awesome. It’s the toughest course in LA if you ask me. It’s mean, bring some balls when you play there because you’re going to lose a few.”

UCLA

Bel-Air Country Club (Los Angeles)

Key Home Game: Nov. 10 vs. Arizona State

In Los Angeles, Westwood is the center of all that is Hollywood, and the ultra-exclusive Bel-Air Country Club perfectly fits that category. The 80-year-old course designed by George C. Thomas and William Bell provides the ultimate golf test.

“You have to be very precise,” said Bruins’ head coach Derek Freeman. “You have to be very precise with your irons, you have to be very precise with your approach shots.”

As many of Thomas and Bell’s courses are, Bel-Air CC is far from easy. The green speed and the traditional layout are extremely challenging.

“It’s unbelievable,” Freeman said. “The greens are so fast and undulating it’s very difficult. It definitely challenges you in every aspect of the game – from the tee, to the fairway to the green.”

Freeman said playing this course may be somewhat frustrating, but the experience of the playing at the club is a worthwhile one. Bel-Air Country Club provides the ultimate LA experience.

“On the first tee you’ve got an unbelievable view of UCLA and all of Westwood and onto Century City. It’s just an amazing view,” Freeman said. “You’ve got tall trees, you’ve got beautiful flowers; it’s just beautiful from the moment you step on until the moment you step off.”

Other courses Freeman recommends:
•    TPC Valencia – Valencia, Calif.
•    Los Angeles Country Club – Los Angeles
•    Riviera Country Club – Pacific Palisades, Calif.
•    Lakeside Golf Club – Burbank, Calif.
•    Robinson Ranch Golf Club – Santa Clarita, Calif.

University of Arizona

Arizona National Golf Club (Tucson)

Key Home Game: Nov. 3 vs. UCLA

If you want to play on the home of one of the NCAA’s biggest golf powerhouses you had better love cacti. Arizona National Golf Club in Tucson, home to the Wildcats, is littered with Arizona’s native plants.

“It’s a traditional course set in the desert,” is how Wildcat head coach Rick La Rose describes his team’s home course. “You have to hit good tee shots to keep it out of the desert and get it onto the fairways.”

Aside from the desert obstacles, La Rose said the 6,785 yard, par-71 course is not one of extreme difficulty, but is more of a target course.

“It’s very score-able because there’s a couple short par-5s,” La Rose said. “With good tee shots you’re going to have irons into them.”

The Robert Trent Jones, Jr. designed course has his signature big greens, as well as heavy bunkering. The desert mountains and year-round blue skies serve as an accompanying backdrop.

“The setting is terrific,” La Rose said. “It’s right along the mountains in Tucson so it overlooks the entire valley. If I had to pick a favorite hole it would be the 18th hole. It’s a par-5 going down the hill, you tee off overlooking the entire valley of Tucson. You see that for 60 miles.”

Be sure to make a tee time now, Arizona National is packed on game days. “Everybody wants to play on the home of the Wildcats,” La Rose said. But during a bye weekend don’t be surprised to see head coach Mike Stoops playing a round.

“I play with Mike Stoops all the time,” La Rose said. “He’s an exceptionally good player.”

Courses recommended by La Rose:
•    Tucson National – Tucson, Ariz.
•    The Gallery Golf Club – Dove Mountain, Ariz.
•    Star Pass Golf and Country Club – Tucson, Ariz.

Arizona State University

ASU Karsten Golf Course (Tempe, Ariz.)

Key Home Game: Oct. 13 vs. Washington

If there is one school where the golf course is as much a part of the school’s identity as the football stadium it’s Arizona State. The NCAA’s only on-campus course is set in the shadows of Sun Devil Stadium, and head golf coach Randy Lein said at ASU game day often starts with golf at the ASU Karsten Golf Course.

“There’s a lot of tailgating, there’s a lot of parties that are held at the golf course prior to a football game,” Lein said.
Affordable prices for students, faculty and the Tempe community, as well as the numerous awards for service the Karsten Golf Course has garnered keep people coming back to the Pete Dye designed course. The course that was once just 156 acres of barren desert, Dye molded into a 4-star links course where likes of Phil Mickelson and Annika Sorenstam perfected their games.

“It’s a pretty typical Pete Dye design,” Lein said. “I think they’ve done a wonderful job with the land they had, building a variety of good holes.”

Dye’s signature railroad ties litter the heavily mounded course, and a lake separates the two finishing holes. It challenges all levels of golfers, providing for an enjoyable pre- football game round.

“The beginning golfer, female golfer, best college golfer or professional can find a level where it’s competitive and challenging.”
    Other courses Lein recommends:
•    Raven Golf Course – Phoenix, Ariz.  
•    Legacy Golf Resort – Phoenix, Ariz.
•    Vistal Golf Club – South Mountain, Ariz.

University of Oregon

Shadow Hills Country Club (Junction City)
Eugene Country Club (Eugene)
Emerald Valley Golf Club (Creswell)
Key Home Game: Dec. 1 vs. Oregon State

When playing the home of the Ducks, Oregon fans have three options that are sure to suit anyone’s game. All three options offer top-rated courses and excellent conditions.

Shadow Hills Country Club, which hosted this year’s women’s Duck Invitational and annually hosts the Nationwide Tour’s Oregon Classic is a well-maintained, “fun to play” 7,007-yard par-72, women’s head coach Shannon Rouillard said.

“Honestly I think Shadow Hills is quite underrated,” Rouillard said. “From what the Nationwide Tour says it’s one of the best kept golf courses that they play.”

Rouillard said Shadow Hills is a flat, “forgiving” course that puts a premium on putting.

For more of a challenge, Rouillard recommends Emerald Valley Golf Club. The public course of the Ducks’ trio of home courses is a 6,873-yard par-72. It has received numerous awards, including the Oregon Golf Association’s Golf Course of the Year award in 2004.

“Honestly the hardest course that we play is Emerald Valley by far,” Rouillard said. “A lot of the greens are like upside down saucers. And there’s some fairways that are pretty skinny that you have to hit your tee shot in the right place; I think there’s just more strategy involved at Emerald Valley.”

Rounding out the rotation of University of Oregon courses is Eugene Country Club, which is set to host the 2008 U.S. Women’s Amateur. The course was originally designed by prominent Pacific Northwest course architect Henry Chandler Egan, in 1925, and was reversed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. in 1967.

Trysting Tree Golf Club (Corvallis, Ore.)

Key Home Game: Sept. 29 vs. UCLA

Situated on the base of the Willamette River flood plains is the Beavers’ home course, Trysting Tree Golf Club. Head coach Brian Watts described the university-owned links course as a beautiful three-lined course, surrounded by the snaking river with abundant wildlife.

A fast-paced, playable course, Watts said Trysting Tree’s fast and firm greens are where the difficulty lies.
“From tee to green it’s a fairly easy golf course,” Watts said. “But once you get to the green that’s where all the excitement happens.”

Trysting Tree is consistently rated as one of Oregon’s top public courses. It’s playability, maintenance and overall pleasurable golf experience for golfers of all levels is what Watts believes makes the course one of Oregon’s best.
“It’s always in great condition. There’s a lot of room for error, so the public can come out and enjoy it and not lose a lot of golf balls.”

Trysting Tree is always packed during game days, and if other Pac-10 fans hit town they’ll invariably end up there “since it’s so close to the university and football stadium,” Watts says. “During evening games, the golf course is packed from 6 o’clock in the morning until game time. Everybody loves to play 18 holes of golf before they catch a night game. It’s helped for us to have later games, for the community, as far as revenue — it generates more than a day game.”

Still, one one person you wont see there is head football coach Mike Riley, though Watts is hoping to change that soon.
“Coach Riley has had a new set of clubs forever. I told him that was going to be the goal before he leaves or before I leave is that one of us is just going to have to break down and get each other on the golf course.”

Other courses Watts recommends:
•    Diamond Woods Golf Course – Monroe, Ore.
•    Mallard Creek Golf and RV Resort – Lebanon, Ore.
•    Spring Hill Country Club – Albany, Ore.        
    “They have a very tree-lined course that is always in great condition.”

University of Washington

Washington National Golf Club (Auburn, Wash.)

Key Home Game: Sept. 15 vs. Ohio State

When one thinks of Seattle they probably think of coffee, rain, music and maybe more rain – anything but the desert. Oddly enough, the Huskies’ head coach Matt Thurmond said Washington National Golf Club in Auburn, Wash., is reminiscent of a desert course.

“Around the edges of the property there is a lot of big trees,” Thurmond said. “There’s some trees that come into play on the course but very few. It’s more of a desert-like course.”

Thurmond said dramatic bunkering, similar to bunkers at Riviera Country Club, and several waste areas with desert vegetation such as Yucca plants between holes make it feel like playing in Palm Springs instead of suburban Seattle.
“It’s different than what you normally play up here,” Thurmond said. “It gives us a nice variety.”

The course designed by John Fought and Orrin Vincent heavily emphasized ball striking. From the farthest tee, the par-72 plays at 7,305 yards, one of the longest of all the Pac-10 courses.

The Ted Robinson designed course has hosted several NCAA events, including a women’s championship, but Thurmond, a huge Husky football fan and friend of head football coach Tyronne Willingham, said his favorite tournament is the fundraiser played the day before the Washington vs. USC game.

“People can come into town or stay in town and play Washington National the day before [the game] with the golf team,” Thurmond said. “And then go to the USC football game and watch us beat the USC Trojans.”

Other courses recommended by Thurmond:
• Trophy Lake Golf and Casting – Port Orchard, Wash.
• Gold Mountain Golf Club – Bremerton, Wash.
“They’re both around the water, so you can either drive around or take a ferry to add to the experience.”

Washington State University

Clarkston Golf and Country Club (Clarkston, Wash.)

Key Home Game: Oct. 27 vs. UCLA

If you’re going to play Washington State’s home course, you had better know how to shape some shots. Head coach Walt Williams said the Snake River Valley course is one that requires strategic shots through the tree-lined fairways.
“If you’re going to hit it long you really need to be able to hit it to the right and to the left,” Williams said. “You need to be able to draw and you need to be able to cut it.”

Having control of the ball is a must at Clarkston. Williams said doglegs will be missed, and balls will be swimming in one of the many water hazards if one lacks in shot control. As for the greens, the Poa Annua, a fixture on West Coast golf courses, play extremely fast and are very undulating, Williams said.

But if the course sounds too difficult for your game, the beautiful Eastern Washington countryside makes up for it. Williams said the can’t miss course right on the border of Washington and Idaho boasts stunning views.

“[You see] the Snake River running right beside it, you look up and you see big canyon walls to the sides,” Williams said. “It’s really beautiful scenery.”

Other courses Williams recommends:
•    University of Idaho Golf Course – Nez Perce, Idaho

Extra Point

University of Nevada, Reno

Wolf Run Golf Club, Reno

Key Home Game: Oct. 6 vs. Fresno State

Head Coach Chris Ault’s Wolf Pack keeps raising the bar higher for what used to be a Div. II and I-AA school — bowl appearances the past two seasons have garnered Nevada national notice that’s spilled over to other programs, including the stellar men’s basketball team, which is a perennial Big Dance denizen. But the golf team deserves kudos, too, for fielding strong teams in a tough, spread-out Western Athletic Conference. Both the men’s and women’s teams host their tournaments at Wolf Run Golf Club, a tricky and fast high desert delight in South Reno that, for its first few years of existence, was actually owned by the university. Then former men’s golf coach Tom Duncan stepped in and purchased the nearly decade-old property, and today remains very involved as general manager, as well as a stalwart Wolf Pack supporter.

“The kids love playing here, and let me tell you, when visiting teams come into town we get slammed with requests to play the course,” Duncan says. “Those weekends are always very busy, at least as long as the weather holds.”

Wolf Run offers wide open fairways on most holes, though a creek running through several holes is expertly placed on a couple of par 4s, making the tee shot a risk-reward proposition. Holes 4 and 6, for instance, will yield just as many birdies with a 3-iron off their elevated tees as they will reward the big stick swinger. The par 3s are all great, especially No. 14, which plays over native vegetation and a creek to an amphitheater green, usually into a crisp Sierra breeze. It’s made FG’s Signature Series list of best par 3s in the West several times.

Other recommended courses: Red Hawk Lakes, Sparks

Additional reporting by Vic Williams