Southern California's No. 1 Golf Source
SITE
SEARCH
GOLF RESOURCE GUIDE:
The Golfing Nomad
|
||||
 Elevation changes and tight landing areas highlight Champions Club. There’s a beautiful clubhouse with a dining room, locker rooms and a fitness club, and a large outdoor pool and patio is a favorite spot for members to cool down during the warmer months. While most of the amenities remain strictly for members, the main attraction for any golfer is the course. GETTING STARTED For this round, my playing partner and I played from the blue tees that stretch to just over 6,200 yards. The yardage on the scorecard means nothing, as nearly every hole is influenced by changes in elevation or design elements that shorten the landing areas. Sometimes it’s both. If your accuracy is not on the mark, the par-71 layout may deplete your golf bag of balls sooner then you’d like. The greens are a collection of manicured slopes and swales that resemble an old vinyl record that was left too long in the back seat of a car on a hot summer day. If ever there was a course where patience, strategy and a straight shot outweigh the value of a long drive, this is it. PLAYING IT SMART It was six holes before either of us considered hitting a driver. All of the opening holes called for some sort of iron, hybrid or fairway wood off the tee. We even played a 5-iron off one tee to increase our chances of finding grass. Our drivers didn’t make their first appearance until the 545-yard, par-5 seventh hole. With water guarding the right side and thick scrub brush protecting the left, we would have been better off hitting it in play with a shorter club off the tee before moving the ball up the fairway with a pair of iron shots. Driver really isn’t called for until the 393-yard, par-4 ninth hole, which is longer than the listed yardage because it plays uphill toward the clubhouse. Our approach shots played nearly three clubs longer into the heavily bunkered green. The back nine opens with a rollercoaster of a par 5. We each hit 5-irons from the elevated tee into the landing area and were left with the option of going for the green with a fairway wood or playing a short iron to set up a pitch into the elevated green. There is no break on the back nine as the holes continue this familiar pattern — you can’t even relax on the par 3s. While making our way up the fairway at the 360-yard, par-4 finishing hole, we both were glad we had balls in our bag to finish the round. Champions Club at the Retreat is a supreme mental and physical test, serving as an excellent barometer for your love of the game. If you stick it out, you’ll be ready for any future challenge. RATES AND INFORMATION The club is located west off of the Weirick Road exit on Interstate 15. Green fees for Southern California residents are $60 Monday-Thursday, $65 Friday and $80 weekends and holidays. The club continues to offer full private memberships. For more information: (951) 277-5378 or visit championsclubretreat.com. |
||||
RSS SubscribeReaders Feedback:
I?m not wohrty to be in the same forum. ROTFL
| Comment at 6/4/2011 |
TKltT9 , [url=http://zdygfavaabxv.com/]zdygfavaabxv[/url], [link=http://kcyjdnvxfxkn.com/]kcyjdnvxfxkn[/link], http://bngfsmmfdvdg.com/
| Comment at 6/6/2011 |
u6oLe2 , [url=http://viqumogvyeou.com/]viqumogvyeou[/url], [link=http://xictwltdgsdd.com/]xictwltdgsdd[/link], http://olguykozkikj.com/
| Comment at 6/9/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/5/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/8/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/12/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/15/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/19/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/23/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/25/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/28/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 10/30/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 11/1/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 11/3/2011 |
SUBJ1
| Comment at 11/5/2011 |
