Mini Golf Report

I was out in Vegas between 8 October and 15 October and was able to squeeze in four rounds of golf on a budget. The key is to plan in advance using coupons wherever possible and have a rental car.

Sunday 9 October - Wildhorse on a Groupon for $30 each

Six of us golfed Sunday afternoon starting at ~ 2:00PM after the football games and had no trouble finishing. My wife, my two sons, and their wife / girlfriend golfed and we had a blast. Very leisurely and never rushed. The 9th hole is a gem at wildhorse and although it is not on par with Paiute, for 25% of the cost it is a steal! I didn't golf particularly well and I managed a 101 --- my two sons beat me!

Tuesday 11 October - Wolf Creek in Mesquite for $115 each Twilight

I love Wolf Creek and I golfed with my youngest son. I birdied the toughest hole (#2 a blind shot over a mountain and an elevated green). However, we barely finished before dark teeing off just after 1:00PM - even skipping two holes! Play is slow at Wolf Creek so make sure you plan accordingly. a 5.5 hour round is not unexpected. Having said that, the group in front of us had three golf carts. Even though the 5th was not playing, she had people posing for pictures on each green. Arg! Great course, but not a great value.

Wednesday 12 October - Boulder City Muni for ~ $40 each

I golfed with my cousin and his buddy - an annual tradition at Boulder City. The course is not spectacular but the price is good and the service is excellent. We never felt rushed or rushing anyone and there are a few challenging holes including a dog leg left with a fence on the tee. Great value for the money and Boulder City never disappoints.

Thursday 13 October - Palm Valley in Summerlin for $34 each on a Groupon

I golfed with my cousin and his buddy and this was actually our best experience. The course was in great shape and finished the round in just under four hours. Although surrounded by homes, the fairways are wide enough not to intimidate the golfer (or in my case the homeowner). I would go back here again even paying full price. I had three pars on the front 9 carding a 46 and no pars on the back carding a 50. Go figure.

Nice report - love the pictures. The weather in Las Vegas is beautiful in October, and thus the golf pricing is prohibitive. Looks like you did well with your groupons though - $100 total for three of your rounds is outstanding this time of year, regardless of which courses. I also loved Wolf Creek when I played it; doesn't seem like it but that was 4 years ago already. May have to get back up there next year. Unless I'm mistaken, they do warn you to expect a 5 plus hour round. Still stinks that you had to skip two holes though. That would irritate me greatly. I suppose you take that chance playing twilight though.

I'm jealous! My last two trips were limited to one round because of wind. I know it always blows in LV, but 25-30 mph is not enjoyable. I'll make up for it on the next trip.

Five plus hour rounds are a bitch. My buddy works at a facility with both public and private 18s. They wanted him to move over to the public access course when it opened, but he said no way. There's that certain element out there that says "I'm in Vegas on vacation, I paid my money and I'm gonna have a good time!" They don't care about rules or etiquete. He says the average round on the private course is about 4 hours 15 minutes. Average on the resort course is just over 5 hours. Most don't do enough to get tossed, just enough to screw everybody on the course. Also the attitudes are night and day. Private members are very respectful. Many players on the public course feel that since they paid $140 to play, they can do what they want. Having played more rounds in LV than I could count, I'll attest to this. It's only a minority of players, but it only takes a couple of groups on a course to tie it up. Of course, the other problem in Vegas is course design. Whether it's housing or terrain, having a 500 or more ride from a green to the next tee will add time to the round. I used to get upset, but I just started thinking that I can't control it, so I just pace myself mentally. It does make you think that 6-7am starts aren't a bad idea!

Good Luck!
Ric at Joes

Wolf Creek's management cares nada about service and pace-of-play. Always been that way.

I had some fun with pace in a recent column on my website: Hit the turtles where it hurts