I took Monday off to recover some from the 31 hour drive to the Pacific Northwest. Yep, you read that last line right! However, I could only do so much relaxing before I saw (and booked) a discounted tee time at The Reserve Vineyards & Golf Club’s South Course. I found a deal to walk the course for $40 and jumped on it!
Over the years I’ve made multiple trips to the Portland area and have played both of the courses here at The Reserve Vineyards. I liked both of them and was excited for a return visit. You can jump ahead on the posts for my review of the North Course, which I also played again on this Portland trip. You’ll need to note that each course is open to the public for a period of about two weeks, then the public and members change courses.
The Reserve Vineyards is one of the top public golf facilities in the Northwest thanks to its mint conditioning and the layouts of each course. If you scan a list of the top public golf courses in Oregon then you’ll likely find both courses noted on that list. Plus, if you are into playing PGA Tour courses then the Champions Tour played the Jeld-Wen Tradition here from 2003 to 2006. There is a nice marker that pays tribute to Tom Watson’s 62 here in the 2003 final round, when he won the event.
The South Course was designed by John Fought, who is one of my favorite architects. I played the black tees which are 72.9/137/6809 and typical of most Fought courses the South Course doesn’t require much precision off the tee. There are spots on the back nine where it helps to drive the ball straight, but you can still play out here on an off day with the driver.
The front nine has an open, parkland feel to it and while fun to play, there isn’t a ton of “wow” factor to it. The front has a shared fairway and a shared green (the back also has a shared green), which I think are always cool design features. But, there really aren’t any signature holes until you get to the back nine. You will want to do your scoring early as the course toughens when you reach the 10th, one of the signature holes.
The back nine has a more wooded (think tighter), Pacific Northwest feel and is where all of the eye candy is found! The 10th, 11th, 16th and 17th could all be signature holes thanks to their routing around a couple creeks. The 10th and 17th are long par-4’s (450+ yards) and if you don’t hit a good drive then you’ll have to figure out how aggressive you want to be on the approach. The 17th has the creek running up the entire left side which forces tee shots to the right. But that lengthens the already long hole!
The par-3 11th is my favorite hole on the course. It is 194 yards and plays a bit uphill. The green is framed by large Douglas fir trees and that pesky creek can grab the short-right shot. The green is large and actually shared with the 17th.
I think the toughest part about playing the South Course is trying to deal with all its bunkers and the tricky short game shots it requires. It is a heavily bunkered course (too much sand in my opinion) and the bunkers are deep! If you go pin hunting on the approaches you better have the distance and direction dialed in. I ended up with multiple sand saves, thanks to my 64 degree wedge – so you can scramble some from the proper spots.
The conditions on the South Course were phenomenal! Everything was lush, full and cut down. I always had a perfect lie, even in the bunkers. The greens were quick and pure. The rough was thick, but playable. You won’t do much better at a public course for the conditioning and presentation, let me put it that way.
Personally, I’d put the South Course as one of the best public options in Portland and one you wouldn’t want to miss if in the area. It is playable, shows off the beautiful scenery (no homes) and has a nice mix of yardages. If you are flying into Portland and driving to Bandon Dunes, I’d recommend a warm-up round here while in town.
Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):