Sadly, a California family member passed away last week so I headed out west for the funeral. I’m always one to favor the car over an airplane and with the COVID-19 pandemic unfolding I thought it was best to drive out to California, instead of fly. I would have rather not traveled at all right now, but sometimes life happens.

Anyway, I ended golfing three times on my road trip including a Saturday morning round here at Coyote Del Malpais Golf Course, which is an hour or two west of Albuquerque. I hoped that I might be able to squeeze in a round somewhere in Albuquerque but the timing didn’t work for that and the course selection falls off dramatically once you get out of town.

I’ve always appreciated a muni (Coyote Del Malpais is a city course) and my round here went well, aided by my lightning fast pace and the dramatic landscape that is New Mexico.

My goal was to get from Albuquerque to Bakersfield, CA on Saturday and get in at a decent hour. That didn’t leave much time for golf, so I dropped by Coyote Del Malpais to see if it was busy. It wasn’t (think two cars in the parking lot!) and I was out playing about five minutes after stopping. I scooted around in a bit over two hours and was back on the road.

The design at Coyote Del Malpais is fairly basic with large driving areas, flatter greens and an overall relaxing feel. The course has a links look to it. I played the black tees which are 71.6/124/6921 (par-71) and the biggest challenge comes from some lengthy holes. The par-3’s are all long, a couple par-4’s top 450 yards and the 14th is a 587 yard par-5. You are at some elevation (6,000+ feet) so I’m sure the ball flies farther when things warm up.

Even with the length, the round here should be a pleasant scorecard experience. The front nine is fairly nondescript and offers a chance to go low. The back nine mixes in more challenging sight lines, more water and is nearly 300 yards longer than the front. The back nine also features the 587 yard par-5 14th. The 14th doglegs right and runs along a small ravine. If your tee shot can carry the edge of the ravine then you could even get home in two!

My favorite part of the round at Coyote Del Malpais was getting to see the rugged landscape. The course sits at the base of a hillside so one direction you have a good view of that hillside while the other direction has a view of the high-desert valley and flat-topped mountains. And, I’m sure the course contrasts much better against the desert when the grass is green.

Conditions were acceptable for the $30 green fee, nothing that couldn’t be overlooked for the price. Everything was still in winter shape – the grass was dormant and the greens were slow and fuzzy. I mostly had good lies in the fairways but there were some large bare patches. The rough was mixed with thick lies and areas the desert is trying to reclaim.

I enjoyed adding Coyote Del Malpais to my list of courses played and it fit into my schedule perfectly! However, at the end of the day it is a course for the locals and there are certainly more memorable courses in Albuquerque that are worth a look before stopping here.

Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):