Conestoga Golf Club Holes 16-18

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

Conestoga Golf Club Holes 13-15

Hole 13 Par 4

396 | 378 | 368 | 345 | 275 yards

A shorter par 4 finally, this hole again features the prominent hazard off the tee in the form of a large fairway bunker to the right of the fairway.  Trying to clear this bunker requires a bomb- with a carry of around 280 yards.  There is a lot of room to avoid that bunker as the fairway bulges out to the left adjacent to that bunker.

Your second shot is to an accessible green with only a single large bunker short left.  There is plenty of room to miss your approach right here.

Hole 14 Par 3

148 | 136 | 132 | 114 | 98 yards

Yet another postage stamp green on the last par 3 of the day.  This green is partially obstructed by hills depending on which tees you play from.  There is a small grass area just short of the green, but it isn't much.  A drop area is offered in that bail out area for those not clearing the desert.

The views from this tee, off to the left are pretty spectacular.  We were playing it as the sun was setting and the scarlet tones being highlighted by the sun were beautiful.

Hole 15 Par 4

450 | 438 | 414 | 385 | 300 yards

While actually playing straight ahead to the hole, the 15th plays more like a dogleg right.  On your tee shot you must hit to a fairway that runs away from you to the left.  Your next shot then plays back to the right.

There is more room over the mound to your left then it appears.  A drive struck over the crest of this hill is actually position A.

The second shot plays downhill towards the green which slopes from right to left.  The green does sit on a bit of a mound so anything played short will not make it up on the green.

A trio of bunkers await anything missed to the left.  Missing right is a much better option, with plenty of grass on that side.

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 16-18

Conestoga Golf Club Hole 10-12

Hole 10 Par 3

198 | 186 | 168 | 148 | 124 yards

A forced carry over water awaits for almost all tees on the opening hole of the back.  The green is fronted by a single bunker, with a couple more bunkers sitting over the green.

The hole also features a series of small waterfalls.  Because, just like Wolf Creek, what could be more natural in the desert than waterfalls?

For those not wanting to go for the green, there is plenty of room to miss to the right, provided you also carry the water.  The building in the back is the Sun City Mesquite community center.

Hole 11 Par 4

487 | 460 | 430 | 420 | 335 yards

A long par 4 that plays as a slight dogleg left.  The tees are slightly elevated from the fairway but otherwise this hole plays fairly level until near the green.  The desert vistas on this tee are just fantastic.

The main danger on your tee shot is the left fairway bunker which is strategically placed in the landing zone for most normal drives.  Mounding on the right can help to keep balls hit down that side of the hole (and away from that bunker) in play and out of the desert.

Your second shot is to a green that is fairly open, save for a large bunker off to the right of the green.  It is not immediately adjacent  to the green though, so even if you are off slightly on your approach you may be OK.  This is a good thing as your second shot on this hole is likely to be a longer club.

Hole 12 Par 5

578 | 513 | 504 | 484 | 422 yards

A good thing you warmed up on the tough 11th as you now face the longest hole of the day on the 12th hole.

This hole is segmented into three main landing areas.  Off the tee you have a large area to land that squeezes down around 200 yards from the tee.  This area is marked by the left bunker you can see in the distance off the tee.  Past there the fairway narrows down due to the desert jutting in from the right.  A well played ball just to the right of that left hand bunker is the ideal tee shot.

After the first landing area the fairway then widens out again until you run into the next set of bunkers that come in from the right at about 100 yards from the green.

A long shot into this green is possible as there is a lot of grass around the green.  Two small bunkers sit on the left side of the green.

This view taken from the right side of the green shows how much room there is around the green to miss.

This green is large and as long as avoid those bunkers is an accessible target.

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 13-15
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 16-18

Contestoga Golf Club Holes 7-9

Hole 7 Par 4

324 | 285 | 276 | 243 | 185 yards

Specatacular desert scenery awaits you on this short par 4.  A forced carry is required off the tee to a fairway that starts at 150 yards from the green.  A series of bunkers juts out from the right side of the hole into the fairway.  The conservative play here is around 200 yards just in front of those cross bunkers.

For those being more aggressive, a carry of around 250 yards will clear those bunkers and offer a chance to reach near the green.  Beware though another large bunker sits hidden behind the first set visible off the tee.

A wedge into this green is likely all you will have.  The green is deep and slopes pretty severe back to front.  This view taken from the right side of the green shows that there is plenty of room to miss around the green, with a deep collection area located behind the left greenside bunker.

Hole 8 Par 4

458 | 417 | 388 | 349 | 292 yards

After leaving the 7th green hop on your cart and enjoy the breeze as you drive up to the 8th hole.

A straight away long par 4, this holes most dominant feature is the towering retention wall on the left edge of the hole.  The primary hazard here is the desert off the tee.  There is a series of bunkers down the right but they are placed in a location that seems to not be a likely place to land a well struck drive.

A view shown here near the bunkers shows that the hole is actually quite open.  As long as you avoid these bunkers you should be on the grass.

A well played ball to the 150 yard stick offers one more test as your approach shot must hit a narrow but deep green the is guarded by a large right bunkers, and another that sits halfway up the green on the left.

One of the first real glimpses of houses on the course, a row sits behind this green in the background.

Hole 9 Par 5

595 | 564 | 536 |494 | 467 yards

The final hole on the front is also the longest on this side.  The tee shot here does not offer a lot to aim at as the hole starts to drop down hill past the bunkers.

The best play here is to split those bunkers visible in the distance.  The right bunker is closer than the one down the left side.

More houses lone this fairway but it is wide enough that you don't really notice them.  More imposing is the awesome ridge line in the distance.

As you drive down the hole you start to see what this hole is really made of.  Past the bunkers the hole drops down to the green.  The green sits adjacent to a large pond.  Anything played down the left side of this hole will require a shot over that water.  Anything played down the right, takes the water out but brings in a lot of sand into play.

Provided your tee ball landed near those first bunkers, your next shot is a conservative shot of less that 200 yards which will give you a wedge in.  The bunker shown here on the left is only about 120 yards to the green.

The approach in on this hole is a little nerve wracking with plenty of sand to contend with, along with the water out to the extreme left.

There is plenty of room to hit in on your second shot.  Provided you miss that one bunker sitting on the right and all the water left, you should have a more open pitch into the green, as shown here:

Contestoga Golf Club Introduction
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 1-3
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 4-6
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 10-12
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 13-15
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 16-18

Contestoga Golf Club Holes 4-6

Hole 4 Par 4

394 | 373 | 365 | 349 | 315 yards

The 4th is an interesting short par 4 which strongly encourages a layup off the tee.  This hole is divided into 2 distinct fairways.  The upper fairway ends at 150 yards from the green.  From there a cliff separates the lower half of the hole that runs to the green.

A play of around 200 yards will set you up well for an elevated shot down to the green below you.

Once again on this hole, the desert vistas are pretty stunning as you look to either side of the hole as you play it.

From 200 yards out the second shot is still pretty much blind.  If you are nearer the fence and the 150 yard range the green is more visible.  Big hitters could try to drive the cliff I suppose.  You would need a carry of 260 yards though from the tips.

Here you can see the lower half of the hole, seen as you descend the path on the left edge of the hole.  The green is guarded by 3 large deep bunkers to avoid.  Two sit on the right and another borders the left side.

A shot of the green shows a large collection area deep and left of the putting surface.  This is the far more preferable miss, rather than the bunkers.  I imagine this area gets a lot of play, especially if people are hitting longer shots in from atop the upper fairway.

A look back from behind the green shows the dramatic elevation change in play on this hole.

Hole 5 Par 3

208 | 188 | 160 | 140 | 100 yards

Another postage stamp style hole, the green is framed by the desert cliffs that wrap around the back of this hole.

There is some room to miss short, but not a lot.  Most of the grass on this hole is on an elevated tier from the desert floor.  A brick wall runs across the front portion of the hole.  Anything short of that wall is pretty much unplayable.

Aside from the hazard brought on by the desert, there are also 2 large flanking bunkers on either side of this green

A shot that comes up short of the stone wall is likely to be unplayable.  There is a drop area in front of the forward tee but you still must carry the desert wash and wall to get the ball back into play.

Hole 6 Par 5

536 | 515 | 490 | 433 | 414 yards

The first par 5 of the day typifies more traditional desert golf strategy.  Three distinct fairway landing areas are featured on this hole (and subsequent multiple drop areas).

A good 200 yard carry is needed to safely reach the first fairway area off the tee.  This fairway is generous but ends around 300 yards from the tees.

Depending on whether a good drive was hit off the tee, the next decision is to either play to the second fairway, or skip that section and ply up to the third fairway zone.

This second fairway area is only about 50 yards deep, from 200 to 150 yards out.

A shot played to this second fairway will have to carry the stone ledge that traverses the hole and separates the second and third fairways.

For those who carry that rock ledge, the third fairway area is wide open until you reach the green.  The green is fronted by a wall of bunkers stretching all the way across the front edge.  Another bunker wraps around the back right of the green.

Contestoga Golf Club Introduction
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 1-3
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 7-9
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 10-12
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 13-15
Contestoga Golf Club Holes 16-18