Golf Trip of 2009
Golf Trip 2009 DAY 1:
May 17, 2009
After months of planning, the day arrived for the great golf trip of 2009. The tee times were set, the maps marked up, and the wife’s placated. We borrowed our moms Acura MDX (a midsized SUV) and packed it full of goodies, sleeping bags, and of course, golf equipment. We had about 150 golf balls. 48 of those were Utah Golf List logo balls, 74 were used balls we purchased off eBay, and the rest we hunted from various golf courses around the southern valley. We even jumped in a pond at a private golf course in a hidden valley in Sandy Utah. The funny part was that we stripped down to our skiveys and entered the putrid water. We would wade out to where the balls were which put the water about chest high, but both of us were to chicken to dunk our heads under the water. After being defeated but not deterred by the pond, we went home and got our home-made golf ball retrievers. We were able to get the remaining balls that we were too scared to get the first time and left victorious. With our horde of golf balls and the car packed, we left Draper Utah at 6:00pm. We were on our way the 272 miles to Monticello Utah. The Utah Golf List Golf Trip of 2009 had officially begun.
The drive to Monticello is not a terrible one. Spanish Fork Canyon, although windy and at times slow, is very scenic and beautiful and we enjoyed the views while the sun was setting behind us. Sadly though, the drive from Price to Moab is a different story. It is a desolate desert that is beautiful in a “I will kill you if you are stranded” kind of way.
We stopped in Moab to grab a bit to eat at a local wood oven pizza joint. The food was good and we were both impressed with Moab. Moab is a great little city. It is small but has a great Main Street with some good restaurants located there. If you have not been we recommend you go.
We arrived at Monticello at about 11:00 pm. We had a hard time finding the golf course but eventually figured it out. We slept in the car that night and fell asleep around midnight. Day 1 had come to a close.
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Golf Trip 2009 DAY 2: May 18, 2009
The Hideout Golf Course: Monticello Utah
We woke up from sleeping in the car (left) at 5:30am. Monticello is cold in morning. We got dressed and walked over to the club house/pro shop. When we got close we saw a guy walking up as well so we put in in high gear and beat him inside. A little rude, we know but we need speed in order to finish all the courses on time. We bought our logo balls, paid for the golf, and headed to the first tee. P.S., when we finished our 9 the guy we butted in front of had only finished 5.
We enjoyed the Hideout very much. The course is very tight and lined with tons of trees. You really can’t hit driver here unless you are spot on accurate, something I have yet to master. We are planning on going back in the fall when all the leaves have change, I am sure it will be an awesome sight. Below are a couple of pictures of the course.
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Moab Golf Course: Moab Utah
After Monticello we drove the 51 miles to Moab. We arrived dead on time for our tee time, chalk that up to fantastic planning on my part. They sent us off the back. We really enjoyed Moab’s golf course. The greens were probably the best we had that day. They weren’t particularly fast but they were smooth and consistent throughout the course. The course was not particularly long but the views were fantastic. All around, 360 degrees, you had the beautiful red rock of Moab.
(the views are fantastic)
After Moab we drove 57.4 miles to Green River. Green River is a small town that seems very low-key. What was cool about the town was that the Green River ran right through the middle of town and to the North you could see the towering Book Cliffs.
Moab Golf Course: Moab Utah
Green River Golf Course is one of three courses owned and operated by the Utah State Parks Department (the other two are Palisades in Sterling, Utah and the 36 holes at Wasatch state park). The golf course was a family run operation in that there was at least 3 generations present in the club house. We had the mother who took my phone call and tee time, the daughter who took our money and our picture, and her child who was not pulling his/her weight at all since all it did was drool and look cute.
The golf course is nice in a small town sort of way. There is water on pretty much every hole. It was also not busy AT ALL. In fact, we were the only people on the entire course I believe. Green River did have the best two hole combination of the day and possibly the trip. Holes 4 and 5 were awesome. Hole 4(pictured below) ran right up against the mighty Green River. It is a dogleg right par four that follows the curvature of the river. It is drivable for those with the stomach to put their ball over the river and bring it back into play. The green is protected though by 3 large trees that makes going for it off the tee a little more difficult. Hole 5 was a par 5 that also ran along the Green River, but the river was not as much in play since it was a dogleg left, running away from the river.
Some the cons to the course were that some of the holes needed a little TLC and were not in the best shape. There was also a ton of bugs. I guess if you want a lot of water on a course then you are going to get some bugs with it.
Roosevelt Golf Course: Roosevelt Utah
After Green River we went to Roosevelt Utah to play the Roosevelt Golf Course. The drive was the second longest of the day. The distance was only 148 miles but the road is mostly 2 lanes and very curvy. We only took 1 wrong turn and made it in good time. The club house is nice but the lady behind the counter had some serious attitude. First off, they did not have logo balls. So far, the only courses we had seen that didn’t have logo balls was Cherokee Springs and if you want to lumped in with them then that’s your prerogative. We tried to joke with her about not having logo balls and she didn’t even crack a smile. I asked her which 9 holes were better and she gave me the answer I hate the most—“both are good”. That answer is alme because all she needs to say is one or the other. Guess if you have to but have an opinion at least. I think she had never played on the course because I asked her then, “okay, I hear this course has a par 3 that has a big drop and a par 5 with a split fairway, what side is that on?” She said, “I don’t know, they are both good. I ended up looking through a yardage book they had there and quickly realized we wanted to go off the back.
When we arrived at number 10 tee box, some yahoos on 18 in tee-shirts and Levi shorts were yelling and spinning brodies in the fairway. I just looked at Kevin and we both shook our heads and teed off. Besides the staff and some of the clients, the course was very cool. Hole 13 (pictured below) is a par three with a 300 foot drop to a very small green. Hole 14 is a par 5 with a split fairway that makes an ordinary hole much more interesting. Hole 16 is a par three with an island green. If you ever find yourself in Roosevelt be sure bring your clubs because it is a fun course.
Dinaland Golf Course: Vernal Utah
The final golf course for the day was just 34 miles north in Vernal Utah. We arrived in plenty of time and grabbed a bite to eat at the local Taco Bell. The golf course in Vernal is called Dinaland Golf Course. After 5 minuets on Main Street you quickly realize that Vernal is the dinosaur capital of Utah. They have a huge museum and about every thing/business has “Dino” in the name. The course is a little tricky to find because it is off the main street and in a neighborhood a ways. It didn’t help that our GPS did not have half the roads in the town programmed. After a little guessing and golfers intuition, we found the course.
The course was nice in a relaxing way. The course is not very difficult and the holes do not seem to have a lot of imagination. There were some good holes though and 1, 5, and 9 come to mind. 1 is a par 5 downhill that is reachable in two and 9 is a par uphill elevated green finishing hole that is frankly more difficult to reach in two than #1. The greens there were very nice and very fast. All in all we gave the course a B-.
We left Vernal and headed to Bear Lake Utah. This was the farthest drive of the day and we were dead tired. We made a right turn off Main Street and started heading north directly over a mountain. The road was two lanes and very windy. If you have a nibble sports car we emphatically recommend the drive. The scenery was amazing. We popped out near flaming gorge and then entered Wyoming. Just after we crossed the Utah Wyoming border I took over driving for Kevin. I told him that I am okay to drive but he needs to talk to me so I don’t fall asleep. He was champ but he just couldn’t pull it off. I now know what Kevin would sound like drunk because while he was talking to me he would start slurring his words and then stop midsentence. A few minuets later he would wake back up and return right where he left off but the end result would always be the same. Finally I told him I was good and he should just sleep.
We arrived in Bear Lake (Garden City) at about 12:30 in the morning. We had reserved a room through a travel agency and since we were so late checking in they had put our room key and a map in a combinationed box. We found the box fine and retrieved our keys and map. The map was easy to read and showed us where we were and where the condos were located. The problem was that it was not to scale. The map basically said, “You are here, and your room is the next street over.” The truth was that we were here, and our room was almost 3 miles down the street. It took us about a half and hour to find it. We finally figured it out with 3 GPS units and the internet. We would have asked someone but the entire town was on lock down since it was past the bewitching hour. We arrived in the room and within seconds we were both asleep.
Golf Trip 2009 DAY 1:
May 17, 2009
Bear Lake Golf Course: Bear Lake Utah
The alarm went off much earlier than either of us wanted. We quickly got up, showered and changed. We got out the door a half hour later than we wanted. We arrived at the Bear Lake Golf Course around 5:45 am and there was no one there. Everything was shut and the lights off. I had called the club house the day before and told them that we would be coming through about 5:30 am and they said that we could golf and pay after the round. Luckily we had brought carry bags so we could manage the course a little better. Of course, while I was switching the clubs from one bag to the other I forgot to grab my 58 and 52 degree wedges. When you don’t hit a lot of Greens in regulations like I do, these clubs are essential. It took us two hours to finish the round that would have taken only and hour and fifteen minuets had we had a cart so we were an hour behind schedule when we finished the course. Also, we finished at 7:45am and there was no one on the course for us to pay, so we got a free round of golf, thank you Bear Lake.
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We loved the Bear Lake golf course though. Being there when the sun was just coming up was a glorious site. All around was snow capped mountains and to the east was Bear Lake. It was a great site to see the sun come up over the lake. The course was also really fun to play. It has a lot of elevation changes and is a little harder to walk than others. Hole number 9 is a great hole. It is a par 5 that is basically three humps. You tee off on a large hill and have to hit over a ravine to another hill. In between the hills are all grassy and playable but it really makes the hole a lot longer if you don’t make it over. Assuming you make it over you have a choice to make, you can lay-up (like a sissy) and leave the ball on the edge of the second hump or do you go for the green, which is located across another gulch on the third hump. I hit a great first shot and was sitting in the fairway and had 230 to the green. The question become, do you go for it and maybe you end up in the bottom of the ravine and have a steep long 3rd shot or do you try to lay up to the edge of the hump and have a 180 yard shot to a green that is slightly elevated. I of course went for it and barely missed the green. I got up and down for a birdie and a score of 49. That birdie also kept my goal intact of not hitting over a 49 on any nine this trip.
Now late, we jumped in the car and made our way to Logan. We arrived an hour late for our tee time at Logan River Golf Course. I ran into the clubhouse and they told us they could squeeze us out the back. We put the bags on the cart and zipped to the 10th tee only to see 4 men all over the age of 75 teeing up. There were also 4 men over the age of 75 in the fairway 100 yards off the tee box. Then 4 more old men came up and told us that we were behind them which was then verified over the loud speaker from the clubhouse. Then the clubhouse paired us with 2 other men, both very long in the tooth. We decided for the good of the day we would skip Logan River and catch that the next time we were up in Logan. We were a little upset but not much, you cannot be mad at a course because it is popular.
Logan River Golf Course: Logan Utah
Birch Creek Golf Course: Logan Utah
We were refunded our money and we went on to Birch Creek Golf Course. We arrived about an hour early and they were nice enough to let us out the back. Birch Creek is a great course and I have not yet met a person that did not like it. The clubhouse is very nice and has a country club feel to it. The golf course was also nice and there was a good variety of holes. There are a few long holes and some short ones, and also some with blind greens and fairways. All in all it was one of our most favorite of the trip.
After Birch Creek we jumped in the car and punched in the next course on the GPS while sitting at McDonalds waiting for our lunch. The next course was Camperworld Hot Springs in Plymouth Utah. The GPS keep telling us to go back to the freeway to go around the large mountain that was blocking Logan Valley from Plymouth. We decided that we had a better route—right over the top baby. We started on this little windy road that could only fit one car at a time. After we had made it about 3/4th the way up the mountain, the road switched from paved to dirt. It was awesome! Once we started on the back side the road was akin to a roller coaster—it would go up and then down and up and down and so forth about 4 times. If I was a teenager again we would have tried to get some air off one of the hills, and I dare say we would have.gO