Round 3 on our trip. I played here on 01/25/18.

I played the Championship Course back in 2009 and enjoyed it immensely! I don't really bother ranking courses that I play, but prior to this trip San... Continue »

Round 3 on our trip. I played here on 01/25/18.

I played the Championship Course back in 2009 and enjoyed it immensely! I don't really bother ranking courses that I play, but prior to this trip Sand Hollow held the distinction of being the favorite course that I've played!

The things to love about Sand Hollow is the out of this world scenery and the fact that it is a playable, modern course. I'm not exactly clear on who did what when it comes to the design work. I thought the course was a John Fought design, while I've read that Andy Staples did most of the work. As best I can tell Staples started the project and Fought was then brought in by the owner. For the average golfer though, it doesn't really matter. Staples and Fought created a masterpiece in Southern Utah!

The landscape in Southern Utah is incredible and Sand Hollow showcases the area's beautiful rock formations and the Pine Valley Mountains! The front nine loops out and around a group of red rocks, with multiple greens set right up against them. However, the back nine is even better, as it has holes that play along a cliffside on the rocky terrain!

The front nine is links style, with many large, open holes in the middle of the desert. Everything is pretty flat on this part of the property which makes it harder to design distinctive golf holes. The front nine tests you with troublesome sight lines and longer holes, but none of the holes stand out all that much when you think back on your round. The sagebrush really has you questioning where to hit it, and there is a 468 yard par 4 and a 563 yard par 5!

The back nine is where Sand Hollow shines! In fact, it might just be the most memorable, inland set of nine holes that I've played. The back nine at Sand Hollow opens with a beautiful par 5 that allows you to take in the surroundings from an elevated tee. Once you finish with that potential birdie hole, you get to the brilliance of the design! The best holes at Sand Hollow are the 11th through the 15th and you will want to have your camera ready! I wouldn't expect to hustle around as we were the first group off, taking 4.5 hours to enjoy the scenery, and we had a bunch of space between us and the next group.

The 11th is a 164 yard par 3 with a reverse redan green, guarded by bunkers on the right. Basically you can play your tee shot to the left side and get a nice bounce onto the green, without having to challenge those bunkers! The 12th is a long par 4, and the first of the cliffside holes. The 12th looks like it was blasted apart by dynamite as a jagged hill is to the right of the fairway while a dropoff of at least 100 feet is to the left. It sure is a scary tee shot!

The 13th is a potentially drivable par 4, but no matter what you hit off the tee you'll need some excellent short game shots to get a birdie! The 14th is another long par 4 that isn't quite as dramatic as the previous holes before the 15th is a stunner. The 15th is a 191 yard par 3 which plays through a rock formation to the green. There isn't much room to miss, so hopefully it is one of your better shots of the day.

While the front nine has changed some since I originally played there, the back nine is still awesome! Prior to this visit, I read someone's comments about how Sand Hollow is a course that is just waiting for homes to be built around it (or something along those lines). If I'm honest, I agree with that assessment, at least when talking about the front nine. There is a bunch of construction going on so the noise and new buildings made the front nine less interesting than it was years ago.

My last comment about the design is going to be about the playability. All the yardages I've mentioned so far are from the blue tees which are 71.8/126/6893. I think part of the reason I enjoy Sand Hollow so much is that it is friendly to play! The fairways and greens are large, the greens aren't crazy to putt, and you might get lucky being able to advance your ball from the desert. Plus, there is a desert rule in effect. The difficulty comes from the wind, many deep bunkers bunkers, and three putting.

The conditions at Sand Hollow were good, but not great. Keep in mind that it is the off-season! I remember this place being pristine in 2009, but I played there in June. Still, it seems that the word about the course got out. There were a ton of divots and ball marks, and the fairways had some winterkill looking areas in them. Lies were a bit thin so you needed to be precise. The course played firmer but the greens were receptive. The greens were smooth, but only super quick on downhill putts. The sand was sort of clumpy and rocky.

Even after playing Wolf Creek later on in this trip, Sand Hollow remains my favorite course. I'm a bit surprised that the course doesn't get mentioned more on a national level, when it comes to top public courses.

Played on 12/7/17 @ 10am as a group of 7 and finished in about 4 hrs. Been 5 years since we last played here so expectations were high going in. Very cold in the morning so they didn't let anyone ou... Continue »

Played on 12/7/17 @ 10am as a group of 7 and finished in about 4 hrs. Been 5 years since we last played here so expectations were high going in. Very cold in the morning so they didn't let anyone out till about 9:30am and didn't see many golfers out all day.
Considering the weather, course conditions were good to very good with no complaints on tees, fairways or the greens. For the first few holes, red clay bunkers were still hard packed but got better as it got a little warmer.
We chose this course for the views that are very different than So Cal and enjoyed a day of picture taking golf outing. However, since our last visit 5 years ago, they have build many new homes on most of the holes along the front 9. Although most homes are low rise single level homes, they still took away from our enjoyment of the surrounding scenery. No homes on the back 9 and the holes 12 to 15 along the virgin river gorge still remain breathtaking.
Still one of our very favorite courses and recommended but a few points off for the new housing developments.

Played here 10/27/17 with a group of 40. POP was good. We did a shotgun start at 10:30 Utah time. Played in 4.5 hours. My #1 favorite course. The sand traps are like something you will never see. Ther... Continue »

Played here 10/27/17 with a group of 40. POP was good. We did a shotgun start at 10:30 Utah time. Played in 4.5 hours. My #1 favorite course. The sand traps are like something you will never see. There are tons of them and they are all red clay. Luckily i was only in one the whole day. This course pays much longer than it is. Fairways were immaculate and greens roll very fast and for the most part they roll true. Staff was very friendly and courteous. Definitely recommend this course. They should actually raise their rates because they could make much more from people from this course. My #1 favorite course!!! Perfect scores all around! Rough was tricky but that's how the rough should be!

Played 9/9 in some pretty hot weather (101) but hey as they say "it's a dry heat". We also played right after a large tournament that day, so the course was not in the best of shape but pace of play w... Continue »

Played 9/9 in some pretty hot weather (101) but hey as they say "it's a dry heat". We also played right after a large tournament that day, so the course was not in the best of shape but pace of play was great. Customer service superb at all levels. Tee boxes were acceptable. Fairways showed a lot of bare/burnt spots due to the recent summer heat and water restrictions but overall playable. Sand traps were messy from lack of raking during the tournament. Greens were in surprising good shape, given the recent tournament that day. Still a beautiful golf course and glad I had the opportunity to go back and play it again, after so many years.

Played Friday in a fairly constant 20+ mph wind making for a rather challenging round. Trying to give an honest review without taking weather into consideration. Tee boxes - mostly fine, beat up quit... Continue »

Played Friday in a fairly constant 20+ mph wind making for a rather challenging round. Trying to give an honest review without taking weather into consideration. Tee boxes - mostly fine, beat up quite well from white tees Fairways, really nice, some patchy ares, but mostly lush Bunkers - a mixed bag, the ones I found had too many stones, nicked my SW really good in one. Greens - firm, and fast...didn't hold anything. Lots of patchy spots.... Aside from a couple of holes on the back 9, I found this course a bit overrated...lot of hype and it didn't quite live up to it. Carts have gps, no cooler, no beverage service, no restrooms on the course.....so be prepared.

Played here 4-1 on a picture perfect day until about hole 14 when the wind kicked up a little.
Tee time was 9:54 and went out about 10 minutes early with a twosome. Pace of play was 4:10 and we never... Continue »

Played here 4-1 on a picture perfect day until about hole 14 when the wind kicked up a little.
Tee time was 9:54 and went out about 10 minutes early with a twosome. Pace of play was 4:10 and we never felt rushed or pushed.
This is the second time playing here and I really enjoy this course. Challenging but not overly so if you play from the white tees. Good variety of holes and some really stunning holes on the back nine.
Most tee boxes were fine and level. The fairways were a mixed bag. Most were fine with good grass to hit from but several were a little thin which made for some thin lies.
The rough was not overly long so you couldn't find your ball but it made you work to get it out.
Bunkers here are red sand/dirt and several had too many rocks in them. They were all well raked and had good coverage.
The greens were quick and smooth but did have some un-repaired ball marks. d%mn lazy players!!
I really enjoyed my day here would play again when in the area

Finished my weekend trip to Nevada for my yearly butt kicking and what I think are two of tconstant light breeze he greatest courses past Vegas. First stop this year was Sand Hollow (Championship cour... Continue »

Finished my weekend trip to Nevada for my yearly butt kicking and what I think are two of tconstant light breeze he greatest courses past Vegas. First stop this year was Sand Hollow (Championship course) Played from the Whites as it comes in at just under 6500 yards. Try and rotate my course selection every year expect for one course so it had been awhile since the last time I played here. Nothing has changed. The course is stunning visually, with lush green fairways, well placed red sand bunkers fairways on tight vistas overlooking deep caverns and valleys. Greens were well suited to all types of shots, lower running or high soft drops. Natural vegetation, a constant slight breeze and enormous red rock out cropping's are just a few of the hazards you will encounter. Playing from the bunkers here is a treat you most experience. Forget trying to just barely clear a lip, most bunkers here are deep and evil. Several greenside bunkers are at the least 6 or 7 feet with views of the top of flag or no view at all.
Rough is really not your problem here although it will make you think, ball position is your priority here. Greedy players can and in most cases will suffer. The course presents it self as a good combination of Desert golf and links style.
Services here are outstanding where staying at the resort or off in one of the many fairly priced hotels. Customer services is outstanding an practice facilities rate the same.

I had great expectations about this course as it was rated #1 in Utah by Golfweek. The front nine was nice but nothing special. In fact until you get to #12 thru #15 the course is only average. Condi... Continue »

I had great expectations about this course as it was rated #1 in Utah by Golfweek. The front nine was nice but nothing special. In fact until you get to #12 thru #15 the course is only average. Condition is very nice and the staff was fantastic. Probably had I not expected so much, I would have been less disappointed. (I was told by the starter that the back side was better than Wolf Creek) Not in my opinion. Again I do not mean to be critical, as the course is very nice and those 4 holes on the back side are incredible, but I have played a number of courses in Utah and I could not rate this as #1

The greens were by far the best I have played on during my trip to Nevada/Utah

Played Wed. 01/22 Course is very good shape. The starter told me they had snow a couple of weeks ago that hurt conditions a little but I thought it was it was still very good.
Tee boxes are in great... Continue »

Played Wed. 01/22 Course is very good shape. The starter told me they had snow a couple of weeks ago that hurt conditions a little but I thought it was it was still very good.
Tee boxes are in great shape and the fairways are lush. The greens are soft but putt pretty fast. The greens are tough because they don't seem to have any flat spots.
The hardest part of this course in my opinion are the bunkers. The fairway bunkers seem to have high lips so you seem to be just punching out of them.