Hole 16 Par 4
393 | 377 | 346 | 278 | 231 yards
A good drive is paramount here with a forced carry off the tee of close to 200 yards. The two white bunkers frame your aiming line on this straight ahead par 4. The better miss here is down the left as bunkers run down most of the right side beyond what you can see from the tee.
The fairway is split to two levels. The right half is lower and may offer a better angle into the width of the green.
The approach into the green must navigate the two different colored bunkers and the desert that comes in dangerously behind the green. This green is relatively shallow so make sure to pick your distance carefully.
Hole 17 Par 5
562 | 527 | 511 | 483 | 384 yards
I find the tee shots at Wolf Creek fall into the wonderful and the absurdly wonderful. The penultimate hole offers the final of the super-breathtaking vistas from the tee.
Perched on the cliff tops your target here is that tiny strip of fairway far below you. I hit a sloberringly long tee ball here. With the elevation my ball traveled 316 yards to just short of the creek that bisects the fairway around 190 yards from the green.
Once down on the fairway you can look back up the cliffs you just were on to get a sense of how high you were.
Your second shot will need to either carry to the second fairway landing area on the far side of the creek, or if you have advanced it far enough, onwards to the green on the other side of the second water feature.
The second fairway area is fronted by the creek and then surrounded by bunkers around the back side. To the farthest portion of the second fairway you only have about 60 yards to the green.
A view of the sand running up the right side of the fairway.
The green is well protected. Water runs along the front, a large bunker wraps the right side, and on the left is this steep bank into a thick grass swale.
Looking from the 9th tee you can get a good view of the 17th hole and the carry needed to reach the green.
As you climb up to the final tee box you have one last look of the green. There is a bit of room to miss the green right and deep but not a lot. Behind the green the hole falls away down to the water so anything hit long is not likely to stay dry.
Hole 18 Par 4
307 | 395 | 278 |278 | 167 yards
The final hole offers one last challenging tee shot. The tees are slightly elevated, but not so much as most holes. Your vantage point is high enough to see all of the trouble ahead. The desert is in play down both sides of the hole. Bunkers further squeeze down the visual appearance of the fairway.The groundskeepers really show of their skill on this hole with the near vertical grass growing like the crest of a wave sweeping over the desert. I have no idea how they keep that grass in that location in the shape it is in.
The pair of bunkers on the right are around 200 yards to carry. There is more fairway over the top of them than what can be seen from the tee. Be aware though that a creek bisects this hole only 250 yards from the tee.
On your second shot you must carry the stream cutting across the hole. Missing right of the green is problematic with a trio of bunkers hanging out there, and the desert close beside them.
I hit my tee shot a little too far left. Luckily I got a good bounce of the cliff face and onto the cart path, with my ball bounding up the left side and ending in the rough, The angle from this side of the hole takes the sand out of play and seems the better approach into the green.
As you drive up the cart path and approach the green, enjoy the waterfall tucked into the left side cliffs. Because, why not?
A view back from behind the green shows how deep yet again this hole is. there is plenty of safety to miss long left on your approach, which is a much better spot that short right.
Final Thoughts
How to best sum up Wolf Creek? Fantastical? Outrageous? Beautiful? Ostentatious? Scenic? Difficult? Ridiculous? Fun? The answer has to be yes to them all.This is one of a very short list of courses that exceeded my expectations in every way. The conditions were absolutely perfect from tee to green. The fairways were immaculate and the rough was unbelievably lush. It is always a bit of a forced dichotomy to see such verdant green in the desert. I had read some reviews before going that talked about poor conditions. That could not have been further from what I found during my round.
This course is truly a wonderland of almost surreal beauty. The massive elevation changes set among the desert canyons makes for a unforgettably fantastic venue. I was blessed with near perfect weather- sunny skies and low winds.
While the course is not like anything you have likely ever experienced, the roller coaster thrill ride you get to partake in when you play here is one the truly special golfing experiences that can be had. I can easily see why this course is rated so highly. It is a bucket list type experience. You will have more "wow" moments atop these tee boxes than on just about any other course.
If you are in Vegas and want to golf, rent a car, get up to Mesquite. Play Wolf Creek. You won't regret it. And you certainly won't forget it!
You can check out my GameGolf summary of this round here
Details
Wolf Creek Golf Club
403 Paradise Parkway
Mesquite NV 89027
866 252 4653
http://www.golfwolfcreek.com/
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