The 2010 Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor is set to begin in nine days in South Wales, UK, and if you’re like me who can’t make to the event, you’re not completely out of luck. World Golf Tour just launched a free online golf tournament of Celtic Manor with a grand prize golf trip to Celtic Manor in South Wales, UK.

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Working closely with Celtic Manor, World Golf Tour has recreated The Twenty Ten course online in virtual reality using stunning HD photography and technology, enabling anyone to experience the new course built specifically to host this year’s Ryder Cup.

Two free online games on The Twenty Ten course

Celtic Manor Challenge – A free online tournament running through October 15th features a nine-hole closest-to-the-hole competition highlighting the most interesting shots on The Twenty Ten course. The Grand Prize winner, selected at random, will receive a trip for two people to Celtic Manor in South Wales, UK, including airfare, four-nights lodging, and three rounds of golf on The Twenty Ten, The Montgomerie and Roman Road courses. The Celtic Manor Challenge is free to enter with unlimited play and registration at www.wgt.com/celticmanor.

Drive The 15th Experience – The reachable par four 15th hole on The Twenty Ten course is one of the most discussed holes at this year’s Ryder Cup. With matches on the line, many pros from Team USA and Team Europe are likely to attempt this daring shot, which is through a gap in the trees and over a gully directly to the green. The “Drive The 15th Experience” is free with unlimited play and no registration at www.wgt.com/celticmanor.

In the past year, WGT has added Oakmont, home of the 2009 U.S. Open, and St Andrews, home of the 2010 British Open. Other award-winning courses on WGT include, Bali Hai, Bethpage Black, Edgewood, Kiawah Island Ocean, Pinehurst #8 and Wolf Creek.

What are you waiting for? Go enter to play and win a trip to Celtic Manor in South Wales, UK!

www.wgt.com/celticmanor

How do you design a 18-hole championship golf course without making it look man made? This is the main design philosophy of Robert Trent Jones Jr. applies when building any of his golf courses-by listening to the land. Bahia Beach Resort and Golf Club which opened in 2008, is the first design in Puerto Rico by Robert Trent Jones Jr., where Mother Nature provided a spectacular canvas to work on.

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Course Design
Bahia Beach Resort and Golf Club is located in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico, which is thirty minutes East of San Juan and was once the site of a coconut plantation whose stately palms still tower over the course. When Robert Trent Jones Jr., went to design the 18-hole par 72, 7000 yard golf course, he made painstaking efforts to preserve the natural beauty of former coconut plantation and destroying its natural beauty.

The course is carved from the mature tropical forest and routed with sweping views of El Yunque rainforest preserve, with open holes that traverse inland through the forest and 15 saltwater lagoons that frame the course along with a plethora of sand bunkers. If this sounds amazing, it is, and it just gets better, because the last three holes are routed along the Atlantic Ocean providing spectacular views of the sea and a dramatic end to your round of golf.

The fairways and rough at Bahia Beach Golf Club are planted with hardy Bermuda Tifway, the most common turf grass used in hot and humid climates, like Puerto Rico. While the greens run Tifdwarf grass for the greens, which offers a fine blade putting surface on the manicured greens at Bahia.

Front 9
Bahia Beach Golf Club has been designed with the the resort golfer in mind, but don’t let that fool you into thinking it is a cake walk. You’ll be very pleased to find it provides golfers of all abilities (newbie – scratch golfer) with a strategic and challenging golf experience.

The first tee is called “Crooked Palm,” which is a 468 yard par 4, named for the notable bent coconut palm in front of the green that has a heavily bunkered landing area. The hole is a great warm-up hole because it’s one of the few holes on the course that is not flanked by one of the saltwater lagoons and very straight and wide.

The “Green Monster” (not the left field wall in Fenway Park) is the 568 yard par 5 5th hole, that has a sharp dogleg left, where water runs along the entire left side of the hole. How you approach this hole is the difference between par and a bogey, because a well struck tee shot can have you end up in the right side fairway bunkers. Leaving you with a difficult second shot. If you do end up in the bunker, try and escape with a shot to wider portion of the fairway near the green tee box, that will leave you with about 157 yard approach shot. You might think your out of the woods, but your approach shot on five is no walk in the park, as the green is elevated and features a false front. The Green Monster, is challenging, and requires you to apply good course management skills. I suggest playing this hole conservatively.

“Tarpon’s Tale,” is the 405 yard par 4 8th hole, is fun little hole that features a lake along the left side,only one fairway bunker, and a hidden water behind the green. Playing the hole is pretty straightforward, just avoid the hazards and lay your approach shot to the green short. I decided to play approach shot right at the flag, which was placed in the top center of the green. It was a risk worth doing, because I ended up within four feet of the hole. The best part of this hole, isn’t the layout or my approach shot. It’s the spectacular view of El Yunque when you look back at the tee, which was unreal and amazing!

Back 9
The front 9 at Bahia Beach Golf Club were very fun and challenging to play, but the best holes on the course are on the back 9 at Bahia, especially 16, 17, and 18.

“Jungle Love” (not the song by the band, The Time) is a 463 yard Par 4 11th hole, has probably the most demanding tee shot, because of the slightly concave landing area of the fairway that collects your ball. If you want to play conservative go with a 3-iron off the tee, or play a risk and reward shot with your driver. I opted for driver and ended up paying the price with an uneven lie second shot. Your approach shot to the green is also very challenging because elevated and undulating green. Best bet is to aim at the middle of the large green and take your time in reading the breaks.

“Fern Valley,” is the 153 yard par 3 15th hole, has a split-tee hole (different tee boxes setup parallel to each other, but on opposite sides-two on the left and three on the right) completely guarded by a huge bunker left and a leather fern wetland to the right. The wind is in your face as you aim at the narrow green, so club up one more, than you typically would for this distance and aim straight at the pin.

The “Espiritu Santo,” is the first of three magnificent oceanfront holes. The 527 yard par 5 16th hole features the mouth of the Espiritu Santo River behind you, the sound of the ocean, and the wind at your back. If you play this hole in the late afternoon, you’ll have the sun in your eyes as you tee your shot into a very wide open and forgiving fairway. Even if you do manage to hit your tee shot to the right, it’s not a difficult second shot. The hole plays very straightforward, but it’s best feature is that view of ocean, which can make you easily forget any mishaps you may have had during your round.

My favorite hole on the course is #17 “Las Olas,” a 222 yard par3. The elevated tee allows you to see the plethora of bunkers that guard the green on the right and the water on the left. Only a few feet away from the fairway is the sandy beach front of Bahia, which just adds to the beauty of this hole. The only way to play this hole is to aim at the crescent-shaped green. I opted for 4 iron hybrid on this hole and hit my best shot of the day, landing pin high on the green.

“Bahia,” is the challenging 458 yard par 4 18th, which has a lake flanking the entire left side of the finishing hole. A well struck tee shot will place your ball in the wide fairway with a clear shot into an oversized, undulating green. A cool feature about this hole is how Robert Trent Jones Jr., created a giant fairway bunker along the right side, which feature palm trees inside the bunker. I’ve never seen anything like that before, but also speaks volumes to amount of preservation that went into building this golf course. Upon finishing this hole, you’ll feel exhilarated and in awe of natural beauty and splendor of Bahia.

Bahia Resort and Golf Club is unlike any golf course I’ve played before and a true testament to preservation and excellent golf course design. Bahia Beach Golf Club is a gem of golf course that can’t be missed and should be on the top of your list of courses to play when you visit Puerto Rico.

“The very best courses are those where nature has provided the canvas and my job is to discover her secrets and reveal them. I try to design golf courses that will fascinate people so they’ll want to play them many times and learn the depths and meanings of the courses’ stories, their subtext, their poetry.” Robert Trent Jones Jr.

Amenities

Golf Pro Shop, Driving Range, Practice Putting area, and six par 3 practice holes (up to 130 yards in length)

Electric Golf Carts with GPS

Opening in October 2010, St. Regis Hotels and Resorts will operate the intimate 150-suite St. Regis Resort at Bahia Beach, Puerto Rico, which will include an ultra-luxurious hotel and condominium residences.

www.bahiabeachpuertorico.com

Imagine if you will, being among the very first to walk onto a new golf course that one of the nation’s top golf magazines has already deemed “the next frontier in golfing” and taking a very deeply satisfying divot as you watch your golf ball cut through a crisp, blue sky as big and as wide as the eye can see. Well, look no further than The Prairie Club , a new, world-class, semi-private golf destination that will make its debut on May 31, 2010.

The Prairie Club

In anticipation of its May opening, The Prairie Club has begun to take reservations for the coming golf season at 888-402-1101. As The Prairie Club is a semi-private destination club, reservations for golf and lodging are now available for the first 60 days of the 2010 season. The Prairie Club was recently noted by GolfWeek magazine as “the next frontier in golfing” and by Links magazine as among the top new courses in the world for 2010.

Located near Valentine, Neb., in the heart of the Sandhills, a region about the size of Scotland that is known for its distinctive sand dunes topography, The Prairie Club will offer two, championship 18-hole golf courses and a 10-hole, par 3 golf course. The Prairie Club is situated on 1,260 acres, along the Snake River Canyon and is located within a day’s drive from Denver, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Omaha, Des Moines and Chicago.

Each day throughout the 2010 season, The Prairie Club will designate one of its 18-hole courses for avid golfers from the general public. Founding members will have priority access to all three courses, including a members-only course that will be designated each day during the season. In addition, founding members will receive priority reservations and discounts for lodging accommodations; discounted guest golf fees; and reduced membership fees in future clubs developed by the club’s parent company, Destination Golf Ventures.

The Prairie Club Lodge

The Prairie Club Lodge

The Prairie Club’s golf courses are anchored by The Prairie Club Lodge, which will offer authentic and relaxed dining and lodging accommodations. The Lodge is a 40,000-square-foot facility available to both members and avid golfers. It will feature 31 rooms, a gourmet restaurant, two bars, a library, a 20-person conference room, covered and outdoor patios, merchandise store and golf shop. In addition to the Lodge, The Prairie also will offer a four-room cabin located on the rim of the Snake River Canyon. Complementing the Lodge is an expansive practice facility, which will allow members and avid golfers to hone every aspect of their game.

The seed for the semi-private golf club was planted seven years ago when Paul Schock, an avid golfer and businessman from Sioux Falls, S.D., met Cleve Trimble, a Cherry County landowner, who had a vision of bringing world-class golf, accessible to the public, to north central Nebraska. Development began in earnest when Schock purchased land from Trimble three years later with the intent of developing a golf destination to take advantage of the breathtaking terrain of Nebraska’s Sandhills region, an area the size of Scotland, which is known for its striking sand dunes landscape and as well as the world-famous annual migration route of the sandhill crane.

The Dunes Course

The Dunes Course 7th Green-Prairie Club

The Dunes Course is an 18-hole championship golf course designed by former Ryder Cup captain and golf course architect Tom Lehman, and golf course architect Chris Brands. Its’ six sets of tees stretch from 5,842 to 8,073 yards, and its wide sweeping fairways (150 yards wide in many areas) are specifically designed to increase the playability of the course. Marked by dramatic elevation changes, endless views of the Sandhills in all directions, and immense blow-out bunkers, a player will face this wind-torn land and massive rolling seascape of prairie grass, searching for a bright, calm slick of green fairway. With a tip of the hat to natural, minimalistic links-style golf courses of Scotland and Ireland, the Dunes Course is a purely American prairie-links style experience that golfers of all stripes will find challenging.

The Pines Course

The Pines Course 10th Hole

The Pines Course, the other 18-hole championship golf course, takes advantage of the remnants of a nearby, ancient ponderosa forest situated along the banks of the Snake River Canyon. The course was designed by Graham Marsh, an internationally renowned touring golf professional, who also is recognized for his 25 years of worldwide golf course design experience. The Pines Course features five sets of tees ranging from 5,329 to 7,528 yards. The prevailing prairie winds are somewhat blocked by the western wall of the canyon and the trees, making the warming sun and the canyon views stunningly beautiful, creating a silent reverie for the golfer.

The Horse Course

The Horse Course 4th Hole

Uniquely set apart from the two championship 18 hole golf courses is the wickedly fun Horse Course. This 10 hole par 3 course takes the game of basketball’s “h-o-r-s-e” to a new level. With no tee boxes, the player with the honors calls the spot from which you tee up your next shot. Set right on the rim of the Snake River Canyon, this golf course plays from 485 to 1,125 yards, depending upon where a player decides to call the tee shot, as the traditional game of “h-o-r-s-e” dictates. Designed by renowned golf course architect Gil Hanse, along with his partners Geoff Shackelford and Jim Wagner, the Horse Course is the perfect complement to the putting green complex named The Himalayas.

It’s hard to believe this is Nebraska. If I ever have a reason to drive out that way, I’ll need to check out these amazing looking golf courses.

For more information or book a tee time www.theprairieclub.com

Fairway & Greene-the high-end green-grass apparel market’s unparalleled leader in product quality, customer service and sales support-has partnered with Pebble Beach Company to create the Fairway & Greene Pebble Beach Pro Member Invitational, March 21-24, at three Pebble Beach Resorts (Calif.) golf courses.

The Fairway & Greene Pebble Beach Pro Member Invitational is a celebration of the apparel company’s appreciation for its green-grass customer base. The field will include foursomes consisting of the nation’s finest golf professionals and three of their members. The golf professionals will compete for a total purse of $40,000 with $7,000 paid to the winner. The members will enjoy three days of golf, first class accommodations and a tee prize package certain to make their experience on the Pebble Beach golf courses even more enjoyable.

“We are very excited to expand our relationship with Pebble Beach Company and deliver a world class event at the world’s most recognized golf resort”, says Andy Bell, President of Fairway & Greene. “It’s an honor for us to be able to invite our loyal golf professionals and their members to this magical part of the world for three wonderful days of competition and, more importantly, camaraderie.”

Pebble Beach at Sunset-Flickr (FURSA)

Competitors will arrive at Pebble Beach Resorts on Sunday, March 21, to register and attend an evening reception at The Lodge at Pebble Beach, their home for four nights. The tournament’s first round will be played on Monday at The Links at Spanish Bay, followed by a late-afternoon Spyglass Hill Shootout. The world-famous Pebble Beach Golf Links will host Tuesday’s second round, followed that evening by cocktails and dinner at The Beach & Tennis Club at Pebble Beach. Spyglass Hill Golf Course will host Wednesday’s final round. A post-round awards reception, cocktails and hors d’oeuvres will be held at The Lodge at Pebble Beach.

“As the former Head Golf Professional at Spyglass Hill, I have long admired the quality of the Fairway & Greene brand,” said Pebble Beach Resorts Director of Tournaments, Bill Sendell. “They are the perfect fit as the title sponsor for this tournament and I look forward to working alongside them to create an event that cannot be missed.”

For more information visit http://www.pebblebeach.com/index.asp

The Glen Club which is located in the Chicago suburb of Glenview, is a Tom Fazio designed golf course tucked away in the mix use residential and retail community called The Glen. The Glen Club which opened in 2001, was built on the former airfield of the Glenview Naval Air Station featuring a prairie-style 7,149 yard par 72 layout with its rolling terrain, dramatic elevation changes, tranquil lakes, meandering streams and stunning vistas, including the Chicago skyline in the distance.

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The minute you arrive at the Glen Club you’ll notice the 48,000 square foot clubhouse which features the golf pro shop, 21 room hotel, and restaurant. After you drop off your bag at the bag drop off, the attendant gives you a few tokens to be used at the all grass driving range, which can accommodate 25 golfers.  The driving range and short game area are not located in the same area, so to practice putting you need to head over to the first hole behind the bag drop off.

After I was done warming up, I headed over to the starter and checked in for my tee time, where the starter informed me that its cart path only today and the pin location was number three. I thought cart path only was due to the rain from the previous evening, but it turns out that the Glen Club likes to encourage its golfers to walk as much as possible. You don’t find a lot of golf courses encouraging walking in the Chicago area, which is not only good for the golf course, but for your health.

The Course
The first tee is a 559 yard par 5, one of the longest holes on the golf course with a wide open fairway, that can easily be reached in two by long hitters. The beauty of this hole is that its a great hole to warm up on, but what I liked the most is the elevated green, which is severely uphill if you decide to go for the green in three by laying it up like I did. This makes for a fun, yet challenging opening hole for any golfer.

The fourth of hole of the Glen Club is a deceivingly short 156 yard par 3, with its elevated tee, your tee shot is downhill to an undulating and well guarded green surrounded by native prairie grass and two green side bunkers. Don’t let this hole fool you, it’s not an easy 2 or 3 by any stretch of the imagination if its windy. On the day I played the wind was a big factor, but needless to say it was a great par 3.

The 375 yard par 4 eighth hole is very dramatic and requires precision to play because you have creek and lake that run up the entire left side and trees and fescue grass on the right. The wide fairway becomes very narrow the closer you get to the hole and its heavily guarded by a cluster of four bunkers. You don’t have a lot of room for error on this hole, and you should choose your approach shot wisely as you go for the small bowl shaped green.

My favorite hole of the Glen Club has to be the 218 yard par 3 eleventh hole, which also happens to be the most difficult to play because of the prevailing wind your playing into. To have a chance at scoring par you need to play this hole conservatively by aiming for the right side of the green, but that won’t guarantee you par, if you leave it short like I did. I had to content with a pin location on the tiered green that slopes towards the water and deep green side bunkers. You really have no room for error if your attempting an up and down, but I loved every minute of playing this hole, even if it meant only getting a bogey.

The 451 yard par 4 sixteenth hole can be very challenging if your playing towards the end of the day because it faces west, making it incredibly difficult to see where your tee shot went with the sun right in your eyes. What also makes this hole challenging is your playing into the wind which forces you to aim for at the turn to the left of the fairway bunker. Or if you really want to play aggressive you can attempt to hammer your tee shot over the tree and fairway bunker. I tried to blast my tee shot over the tree and fairway bunker and payed the price of losing my ball in some of the nastiest prairie grass and rough all along the right side of the hole. I recommend you play it conservative on windy days and aim for the slight dogleg instead. As you approach the elevated sloping green you want be careful you don’t hit into the three green side bunkers or leave your shot short or your ball will roll into a collection area, leaving you with a tricky lie.

The eighteenth hole is quite a dramatic long 589 yard par 5 hole as you have not one but two water hazards. Your elevated tee shot plays into a nice wide fairway where you can catch the downslope if you hit past the right fairway bunker. While its possible to go for the green in two, you’ll have to contend with hitting your shot over the pond on the right and green side bunker on the right to a very shallow green. I decided to play this hole conservatively, and chose to layup my shot. This is no cake walk, by any stretch of the imagination, because you still have to contend with pond, the bunkers,  and narrow fairway. This was quite picturesque way to close out an amazing 18 holes of golf.

While some people may think that the $177-$165 green fees are a little pricey, I found it to be worth every penny. I still find it hard to believe that this was the former site of the Glenview Naval Air Station. Tom Fazio did a remarkable job with developing a gem in the North Shore of Chicago, that offer golfers of varying skill a challenging yet enjoyable experience.

Fazio emphasizes the premise that “golf courses should reflect the natural beauty of their environments” and he clearly achieved this in designing the Glen Club and capturing the true essence of a prairie-style golf course.

There’s a reason the Glen Club is consistently rated as one of the top public golf courses in Illinois and you should definitely put it on your list of courses to play.

Amenities

Golf Pro Shop, Driving Range, Practice Putting area

Electric Golf Carts with ProLink GPS

The Grill by Chef Clay Rasley offers American fare at reasonable prices with the outdoor terrace that overlooks the picturesque 18th hole.

21 Room Hotel offer well appointed rooms and stay and play packages, with rates starting at $175 – $250. The rooms are named after famous golf clubs in the Chicago area like, Cog Hill, Kemper Lakes, Olympia Fields, Butler National, etc.

Green Fees: $177 -$165 (does not include cart $22)

For more information and to book your tee time http://www.theglenclub.com

I want to urge all my readers to participate and support Patriot Golf Day August 29- September 1, 2008 by bidding in a silent auction for the new TaylorMade Patriot Day r7 Limited Driver.

Patriot Golf Day TaylorMade r7 Limited Driver

The specially-designed r7 Limited driver for Patriot Golf Day features the Patriot Golf Day logo on the toe, the image of an F-16 jet etched onto the sole, and a specially-designed headcover in red, white and blue. Each driver will be packaged in a commemorative Patriot Golf Day box and displayed at participating Patriot Golf Day courses where consumers can bid on them beginning this week.

Patriot Golf Day Commemorative Box

Net proceeds from the silent auction will go to the Folds of Honor Foundation which provides educational scholarships to families of those who have become disabled or lost their lives in the line of duty in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The Patriotic Driver is Customized Version of the New r7 Limited Line: Latest Generation of r7 Driver Combines a New Head Shape with Movable Weight Technology to Promote 35 Yards of Side-to-Side Trajectory Change.

This year, Patriot Golf Day will span all four days of Labor Day weekend (Friday, August 29 through Monday, September 1). Visit www.patriotgolfday.com to find participating courses in your area where you can bid on a driver.

About a month ago I had the opportunity to play one of the most serene and amazing golf courses in the Southwest, at the Boulders Golf Club North Course. The Boulders is a 2008 Golf Magazine Platinum Medal Award winning resort, featuring two stunning and challenging golf courses. Both golf courses are nestled in the tranquil beauty of the high Sonoran desert and the 12-million year old granite boulder formations that dot the landscape.

On my visit I was able to play the North Course, a 6,811-yard, par 72 Jay Morrish designed championship golf course. The North Course is the older of the two courses and features bent grass with spectacular views of Black Mountain as the course meanders through the Boulders community.  Both courses are built right into the desert foothills and offer breathtaking panoramas – including stunning boulder formations, striking Sonoran Desert sunsets and natural desert terrain.

The North Course

One of the first things I noticed at this course was the beauty of my surroundings, the background of the mountains and rock formations make this course unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. Living in Chicago, I don’t get to play in such beautiful and natural surroundings like these. The terrain varies from hole-to-hole, the first hole is a challenging 513 yard Par 5, featuring some of the nastiest desert brush and cactus directly in front of the tee box. Not only do you have to clear that type of hazard once, you have to clear a similar hazard a second time, 181 yards from the pin. Even the par 3 holes are very challenging, the 142 yard par 3 6th hole  is a heavily guarded pin that is surrounded by bunkers directly in front, to the left, and behind the green. The 18th hole is a 424 yard par 4 that has pretty wide open fairway which doglegs right and features a water hazard on the left side of the upper part of the fairway. What I loved about playing at Boulders is how each hole was challenging, yet fun at the same time. My only advice to anyone playing the Boulders North or South Course is bring plenty of extra golf balls. It’s so easy to lose your ball when you hit it into the surrounding desert brush that is found on every hole.

Amenities

Boulders Golf Club offers a wide array of amenities that make this a premiere golf destination.

Full range facilities including an all-grass driving range, chipping greens, practice bunkers and putting greens.

Golf Academy with lessons from Donald Crawley, ranked by Golf Magazine as one of the Top 100 Teachers in America. He is also recognized by Golf Digest as one of the Best Teachers in Arizona.

Full Service Pro Shop; locker rooms, and access to the golf club swimming pool.

At the end of your round enjoy a message at The Golden Door Spa.

The staff at Boulders were top notch.  From the starter to the cart girls, everyone was extremely friendly and helpful.

The next time your in Scottsdale, Arizona, make sure to book a tee time at the Boulders Golf Club, you’ll be glad you did. I can’t wait to return and play the South Course.

More information http://www.bouldersclub.com

On my first trip to Scottsdale, Arizona this June I stayed at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort & Spa and one of the to-do items for this trip was to play as much golf as possible. I was able to do so without leaving the resort by playing at the Wildfire Golf Club located on the JW Marriott property.  The Wild Fire Golf Club features two 18-hole championship golf courses, one designed by three-time Masters and three-time British Open champion Nick Faldo, and the other designed by Arnold Palmer.  The par-72 7,145 yard Arnold Palmer course is the original golf course of the Wildfire Golf Club and was was opened in 1997, 5 years before the JW resort. When the resort was being built Marriott agreed to have another course built and designed by Nick Faldo but only if the Wildfire Golf Club allowed hotel guests access to both courses.  On this trip I planned on playing both courses, but the Arnold Palmer Course was closed for repairs, so I only played the Faldo Course.

The Faldo Course

The 18-hole, par-71 Faldo Course is carved into the Sonoran desert and features a total of 6,846 yards, with very wide open fairways, surrounded by incredible views of the McDowell Mountains, Camelback Mountain, and Piestewa Peak. The course is the more scenic of the two Wildfire courses and meanders around the JW Marriott Desert Ridge property. The Faldo Course sits on a 174-acre site that offers a slight variation from the typical desert-themed courses. For instance, the course has Bentgrass greens. This is a nice feature because it provides a much smoother and truer putting surface. It is also is something you don’t find at other area courses, typical greens in Arizona have Bermuda grass, and are not as forgiving. Another interesting feature of the Faldo Course is the placement of the 106 sand bunkers, which are reminiscent of the Australian sand belt courses of Nick Faldo’s homeland. The bunker placement becomes very evident when you play the 15th hole, where the narrow green is surrounded by  eight bunkers and also on the 16th hole, where the green is protected by six dramatic bunkers. I feel this makes the course quite challenging and fun, allowing you to really practice your sand game.

Amenities

The Wildfire Golf Club also offers a full range of amenities, including: an all-grass driving range, putting and chipping greens, an enormous green-side bunker (really deep), and state-of-the-art Global Positioning Satellite System(GPS) with CBS Sport-line updates streamed to each golf cart.

The E-Z-GO golf carts all come equipped with the Informer GPS system, featuring a 10.4 inch LCD display. This is a really nice feature and more courses should begin to invest in this technology, because it can really speed up the pace of play.

The GPS system gives you the following features:

• Detailed mappping of the Faldo and Palmer courses
• Precise yardages for tee shots and approach shots; I verified this with my SkyCaddie SG5 GPS
• Communication between the Golf Shop and the golf carts; A cool feature is that it lets you know if your  keeping up with the pace of play by displaying your pace as “On Time”.

Full service Golf Shop that was recognized as one of the “Top 100 Golf Shops in America” by Golf World. The 2,500 square-foot shop offers golf apparel and the latest equipment from Nike and Callaway.

At the end of your round enjoy a meal at Meritage Steakhouse at the Wildfire Golf Club, offering sweeping views of greens and fairways.

Overall, I really enjoyed playing golf at the Wildfire Golf Club. The staff and starters were extremely friendly and knowledgeable. I look forward to going back and playing the Palmer Course on my next trip to Arizona.

Wildfire Golf Club