¶ Notes
Thanks to Patrick Calhoun, the League was able to play the Country Club of Colorado for our October 2022 outing. Click the logo above if you'd like to see their Web site. Many in the group had played the course previously. It is the home course of the Cheyenne Mountain High School golf team. Patrick negotiated a phenomnal group rate of $85 for us. That rate is less than a number of public courses we've played when adding up greens fees, cart and practice. It was a real treat to get to play there as you'll see from the description below. Thanks, Patrick, from all of us!
It was a crisp autumn day, low to mid-50s. It was overcast most of the time. It was breezy, but not so much that it negatively affected golf. The golf course was in beautiful shape overall. There were several holes on the back nine that had ground under repair due to a drainage issue the Club is trying to fix. It wasn't a problem playing through/around it, though. The areas were not extensive, they were well marked and it was easy enough to take a drop when a ball wound up in them. The greens were on the fast side but smooth and balls rolled true. The slopes on the greens were challenging and some of the pin placements were tough (e.g. pins placed 2-3 paces on behind bunkers. The grass in the fairways and rough along the fairways and around greens was still green and healthy.
Many of the hole designs are fun - for example, #14 tempts longer hitters golfers to try to go for a green at 280+ yards while others will play to a fairway and then hit a second shot into the green but, regardless of the tee or choice of shot, players have to deal with some amount of water carry. Those kinds of options off the tee are typical of Pete Dye designs and found throughout the course. Also like other Pete Dye courses, there are plenty of inconveniently placed bunkers that encourage accuracy. Feedback from the group about the course was that it was on the harder side among courses we've played but fun regardless. Everyone that rendered an opinion said they'd happily play it again. Patrick has already offered to have the League out there again next year.
The practice facilities are excellent. Greens fees include unlimited range balls. The range is small-ish, both in width and distance, but plenty big to warm up on. There is a huge putting green right between the pro shop and first tee. Also near the first tee are two chipping/pitching/sand pratice greens. The electric riding carts were top notch, including GPS as one might expect but also including bluetooth with speakers from which to play music. There are well cared-for restrooms on the front (5th hole) and back nine (14th hole) as well as right down the hall from the pro shop.
Beverage service on the course is very good. The selection is somewhat limited but the service is frequent and attentive. There is a great snack bar at the turn that is adjacent to the clubhouse. It has a really good selection of sandwiches (burgers, dogs, wraps, etc.), chips and other snacks. The sandwiches are pre-made so it's easy to grab and go quickly. The restaurant/lounge has plenty of seating and very nice selection of beverages with and without alcohol. They offer a slightly elevated golf course fare like nachos, wings and burgers as well as more upscale options like ceviche, a crab sandwich and bison burger.
The competition this time around was a stroke play with prizes awarded to the top 4 in low net score after applying a Scheid handicap, a variant of the Callaway handicap. Tees were not assigned for those in the competition because they don't matter in Callaway. There was likewise no max hole score except to help speed play. Nine of the 14 participants in the outing elected to play it the competition.
Callaway/Scheid is a way of dynamically computing a handicap. The Scheid handicap is based on the holes on which each player does worst. It seems to give high handicappers a little bit better chance to compete, thus giving everyone a chance to win. For the curious who want more details, please see this page.
As it turned out, the Scheid system seems to have worked, since one of the worst golfers in the competition (John Allen) and one of the best (Patrick Calhoun) tied for first. The prizes were awarded as follows:
| Player | Place | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| John Allen | T1 | $60 |
| Patrick Calhoun | T1 | $60 |
| Patrick Shin (Jerry's son | 3 | $24 |
| Kevin Heim | 4 | $16 |
The full results may be found in the attached documents. They are available, as indicated, in Excel and PDF formats.
¶ Rates (as of 16 October 2022)
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Greens Fees | $85 |
| Riding Cart | included |
| Walking Cart | included |
| Club Rental | $75 (late model Callaway clubs) |
| Range balls | included |
¶ Tee Times and Pairings
10:00
Ken Moon
Jerry Ohu
Patrick Shin
Evan Castle
10:09
Kevin Heim
Curt Balcerzak
10:18
Patrick Calhoun
John Allen
Madeline Allen
Tyler Carroll
10:27
Pete Friesen
Jacob Skorka
Marcus Fast
Elisabeth Fast