The Green Fee Over the past week I went out to Vegas to enjoy some time away and play some golf. I have always heard about how great the golf is in Vegas so I needed to check it out for myself!
Paiute Golf Course
Nestled on the far north Side of Vegas sits Paiute Golf Resort. It sits on the Paiute Reservation. The resort has 54 holes split between 3 courses , Snow Mountain, Sun Mountain, and Wolf. I was luckilly enough to get out and play Snow Mountain. The course tips out at 7146. I cant hit the ball a decent distance but thats a little long for me! My new friend Jeff and I decided to to play from one tee forward, the Gold Tee Box, which plays at 6645 yards.
The wind was howling and according to Jeff this was a normal day at Paiute. The wind was easily a 3 club wind. If youve never played in a wind this strong it really takes a strong mental game to go through it. Admittedly mine isnt the best when it comes to tough weather. Jeff was a treasure chest of local knowledge. He shared with me the fact that the primary wind out there is a southern wind so the course was built with that knowledge. Well I was lucky enough to be playing in a northern wind so holes that are usually downwind were into the wind and holes that normally played into the wind were downwind.
The Pete Dye (yes, that Pete Dye) designed course weaves through the desert in a snake like fashion. I know that brown grass is in on golf course architecture but to see the beautiful sea of green mixed in with brown of the desert was just beautiful. One of the most important aspects of golf course design is the routing and no surprise here Mr Dye nailed the routing. The way you work your way through the desert is mind blowing. The routing takes you deep into the desert and gives you a nice sense of seclusion. Despite having a group in front of us and catching them on some of the tee boxes the course does a great job of silencing the sound from other groups. There is a real sense of seclusion and silence.
The golf itsself is wonderful. The rye grass fairways and greens were awesome. I play inexpensive munis with Bermuda. Bermuda isnt the softest and most lush grass in the world so playing on this rye grass was a huge change. I liked it personally. The other big surprise was the greens. I guess I play on REALLY slow greens. The greens at Paiute felt blistering fast. They rolled true. I found myself hitting putts much softer than I would down in Dallas. I also found myself putting better and making much longer putts than I did.
Where this course really shines is the par 3’s. They are 154, 171,174, and 182. While they may not range in distance they all seemed to play in a different wind. They also were absolutely beautiful. The us eof water on the holes in the desert is awesome.
Final thoughts
If youre a golfer in Vegas, Paiute is an absolute must play. Its close enough that it you dont lose a full day and can still enjoy your night. In my personal ranking this is well into the top three. It slots behind Pebble Beach and Spyglass but its well ahead of many great courses! Its worth the price and the 25 minute drive.