Rio Secco Golf Club Holes 16-18

Hole 16  Par 4

398 | 377 | 339 | 276 yards

The final three holes begin with a shorter par 4 that plays straight away.

Off the tee it is a bit intimidating with a relatively small landing area which is surrounded by desert scrub.  A desert wash runs across that hole as well about 120 yards from the green.  With the tight fairway and desert looming beyond, a driver here is probably not wise or needed.

The right side of the landing zone is sloped heavily back to the left, so a shot hit down the right may still find a safe kick to the center. Missing left offers no such advantage, as the hole falls off into the desert on this side.

Your approach shot must carry the wash that extends across the hole.  This is a great looking shot into a green that is surrounded on all sides by  dramatic cliffs.

The shot into the green needs to be fairly accurate.  There is room to miss short but if you stray too far left or right the desert comes into play.  Behind the green is some grass mounds to help hold shots in play.

As you head up to the 17th, you get a great vantage point to the 16th green and the Rio Secco sign that is prominently displayed behind the hole.

Hole 17 Par 3

516 | 485 | 460 | 446 yards

The 17th is another straight ahead hole.  This one is a par 5 but with a good drive, the green is reachable in two.

Off the tee you have a wide landing area.  There is a large bunker down the left side of the hole but it is off the fairway a bit and shouldn't be a hazard if you are relatively straight.  Another wash runs across the hole around 200 yards from the green and dividing the the hole for your second shot.

For your second shot you are offered another large landing zone, if you choose to play this as a 3 shot hole.  An enormous bunker runs up the left side of the hole almost 100 yards, and wraps around the left side of the green.  On the right, another bunker juts out, narrowing the fairway and framing the second shot landing area.  You want to play to no less than 75 yards to avoid that trap.

If you want to go for the green in 2 you must avoid that right side bunker and carry your ball all the way to the green, or play up the left side of the fairway where you can run the ball up onto that half of the green.

The approach is relatively flat into the green, making longer run-up approaches possible, provided you miss all the sand.

The large kidney shaped green is also pretty flat.  There is room to miss long and right here while avoiding the sand.

Hole 18 Par 5

634 | 601 | 576 | 521 yards

Another par 5 finishes up your round.  Off the tee you have a great view of the straight ahead par 5.  Beyond the green is another great last overlook of Vegas stretching out on the desert floor before the mountains in the distance rise up to the sky.

Your tee shot here needs to avoid the 2 large bunkers that sit on either side of the fairway.  A shot aimed ot the left edge of the casinos, and at the distant bunker is the safest play.

Another open shot to the green welcomes the long hitters.  A bunker does sit down the left side of the fairway at 200-100 yards from the green.  If you can avoid that there is room to miss beyond down the left side.

Another bunker plays in from the right just short of the green.  It doesn't really cover any of the hole and wont come into play if you find the fairway.  There is a small deep bunker down the left side of the green.

The approach into this green has a generous fairway corridor to run the ball up.  The green is slightly elevated in front so ball struck short may not make it all the way up to the green but it will be close.

You can see here that there is plenty of room to miss just short and left of the green.  This is the area over the top of that left fairway bunker that is in play from 200-100 yards out.

The green is slightly crowned on all sides so hitting the proper portion is important to prevent the ball from running off.

Conclusion

I really enjoyed my round out at Rio Secco.  Like all the courses I played on my trip, it is kept in really, really great shape.  I think that the price is a relative bargain compared to a lot of the other higher end daily pay courses in the area.

While I didn't sniff the chance for the million dollars on the 7th hole, I still felt like a winner.  The course offers a lot of variety in its design.  Particularly notable are the par 3s.  All 4 of these holes are well designed and offer a good deal of variety in both hazards and length.

My favorite holes were probably 3 with the forced carry of the ravine, 11 with its great tee shot view, the short but demanding 13th, and then the 15th and 16th with their greens tucked in among the cliffs.

While hole for hole, Rio Secco is not a scenic as the courses up north in Mesquite, it is a great deal for those who want to stick closer to Vegas. It offers a fair test, and if you are hitting it straight, the generous fairways should offer some good scoring opportunities.

I played as a single in the morning and after being allowed to play through the couple of groups that were ahead of me I got to the front of the line by the ninth hole.  I finished my round in just under 3 hours which you sure can't beat.

After the round I cashed in my 7th hole ticket for food and drink at the club house bar.  The Monterrey Chicken sandwich  I had was really good, as was the service.  I was the only one at the bar and the staff was very friendly and attentive.

What is my my most vivid memory of this round is unfortunately nothing to do with the golf.  While seated at the bar I received a text from my cousin that Prince had passed away.  I'm a Minnesotan who grew up with the songs of Prince.   A private concert I attended at Paisley Park still ranks as the greatest musical performance I have ever witnessed.

It was a sad way to end an otherwise great round of golf. 

Rio Secco
2851 Grand Hills Dr, Henderson, NV 89052
www.riosecco.net
702 777 2400.


Rio Secco Golf Club Introduction
Rio Secco Golf Club Holes 1-3
Rio Secco Golf Club Holes 4-6
Rio Secco Golf Club Holes 7-9
Rio Secco Golf Club Holes 10-12
Rio Secco Golf Club Holes 13-15