The final round of my extended Fourth of July weekend was at Quail Valley Golf Course. Quail Valley isn’t a course which gets mentioned much in the Portland golf scene and rightfully so. It isn’t one of the area’s premier courses. Also, the course is a good distance away from most of the Portland area so that is another reason I’ve never heard much about it. But, I still had to check it out!
Quail Valley is in Banks, which is about as far west as you can go before getting to Oregon’s Coast Range. The course is tucked into a mostly flat piece of farmland – without any homes crowding it – and you’ll have views of the mountains on many holes. The course has a country vibe to it and seems to be popular with the locals. In fact, many golfers were out walking to take advantage of the flatter property. Our round took 4.5 hours so it was on the slower side.
Quail Valley opened in 1994 and probably the main reason to check it out is because of its player-friendly feel and the value it offers. My friend and I paid $47 each and the green fee gives you quite a bit for your money.
The design at Quail Valley is fairly basic but most holes have an open, links look which is unique in the Pacific Northwest (from my experience). The fairways are wider than average and there are many shorter holes to score. I liked the opportunity to put together a decent round. For reference we played the black tees which are 71.6/125/6628. The biggest challenges here are water and fescue to grab offline shots.
Overall, I thought the back nine was the better nine. You can score on the front and if you do, then you’ll probably have to hang on in spots while playing the back. The 12th thru the 15th is the course’s toughest stretch. The 12th is a 474 yard uphill par-4 and the 13th is a 239 yard par-3. Thankfully the 13th plays a tiny bit downhill. Then, the 14th was my favorite hole at Quail Valley. It is a mid-length par-4 with water all down the left side and a cool tee shot through a group of trees.
The conditioning was solid for the price. Overall, the turf had good coverage. The fairways were on the longer side and so were the greens. Putts rolled true, just slower.
I thought Quail Valley turned out to be a decent place and if I lived on the west side of Portland it would be in my regular rotation. It isn’t an upscale course, but if you set your expectations accordingly I think you’ll enjoy the round here.
Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):
