Hole 16 Par 5
561 | 550 | 518 | 476 | 443 yards
The final par 5 of the day offers a big fairway target off the tee. Once again there are a couple of large bunkers down the right side. Clearing them off the tee is not likely so stick to the left center off the hole for your aiming line. Aside from those bunkers the desert is the only other worry on your first shot but the fairway here is wide so grip it and go.
On your second shot you have another very generous expanse of fairway to aim at. The fairway is wide open until you get about 100 yards out, where a left hand bunker sits on the edge of the fairway. Past this a greenside bunker wraps around the front right of the green and protects most of the front edge of the hole from a long second shot in.
Your approach in here will likely be a short wedge that must avoid both the bunker short, and another sitting behind the green. Aside from these two traps, there is plenty of grass surrounding the green, should you miss the putting surface. The green here does slope back right to front left.
There is not a ton of room behind the green before the desert comes into play, as seen in this photo. A ball that runs into here is possible to play though.
Hole 17 Par 4
423 | 388 | 365 | 334 | 297 yards
With the sun setting rapidly behind us we reached the penultimate hole, a quirky short par 4 that was actually one of my more memorable favorite holes of the round.
Off the tee the hole drops away into the distance at around 200 yards from the green. You can see a bunker just to the right of a large hill that frames the left edge of the fairway. That bunker is behind and right of the green. Between you and the green is a desert wash area that bisects the hole at around 100 yards from the green.
With a downhill tee shot and that wash sitting there, driver may not be a smart choice for some players. The best play is down the right side of the fairway, as down the left your view to the green becomes blocked by the hill over there.
Hopefully your second shot is a little further right than mine was. I essentially had a blind approach to the green, located over the top of that tree and hill.
From the right, the greens length is more exposed to you. Also, the bunkers that sit on either side of the bunker are not in play like they are from the left side.
The green is slightly crowned. so playing to the middle is the safest shot.
Just avoid those bunkers! This is a view from right of the green showing the slope of the green from back left to front right.
A view back towards the tee shows the elevation fall from tee to the wash, then back up again.
Hole 18 Par 4
472 | 444 | 412 | 382 | 352 yards
The final hole us a huge fairway that is visually pinched in by two bunkers sitting in the landing area, both on the left and right of the fairway. Your aiming line is between the 2 trees off in the distance down the center of the hole.
I slobbered a drive here which actually flew the right hand bunker. Beyond the bunker the hole falls downhill and with the aid of that slope I hit my drive over 336 yards, the longest I have recorded to date.
Just past that bunker on the right is the 150 yard mark. From there it is a downhill approach shot to a very wide green with a single centrally located bunker short of the green.
On your approach the green slopes to the left. Take good aim, account for the downhill, and enjoy one more great view of the mountains in the distance...
Final thoughts
I have a bit of mixed emotions about my round at Conestoga. It is a wonderful course. A course that I would picture when imagining playing in the Nevada desert. The conditioning of the course was beautiful. And speaking of beauty, the scenery here was awesome. There are plenty of wide open desert vistas with mountains and cliffs in all directions.
My dilemma was in that, having just played the fantasy land of Wolf Creek, Conestoga seemed a little pedestrian. That is not really a fair comparison since I think Wolf Creek is meant to be over the top. Where as Conestoga feels and plays much more like a traditional course.
I don't mean to discourage anyone from playing here, because it is a fabulous course, and one I would excitedly play again. It is just hard coming back to reality after wonderland.
One thing that did stand out for me on the course were the par 3s. With the exception of the 10th they all are very much postage stamp style holes. What they may lack in distance, they make up for in required precision. I very much enjoy these kinds of par 3s rather than just extremely long boring versions.
Other memorable holes for me were the 4th, the target golf 6th, and the 17th.
You can see my round on Game Golf here
Conestoga Golf Club
1499 Falcon Ridge Parkway
Mesquite, NV 89034
702.346.4292
Contestoga Golf Club Introduction
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 1-3
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 4-6
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 7-9
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 10-12
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 13-15
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