Peek’n Peak Resort, Upper Golf Course

Peek’n Peak has long been known to northwestern PA and New York as a great place to ski. With over 25 trails, “the Peak” entertains skiiers and snowboarders in those wintry months when golf can’t be played.

When golf can be played, the Peak offers two courses – the Lower and the Upper. The Upper course, some may remember, plays host to a Nationwide Tour event – the Lake Erie Charity Classic, won this past July 3 by Esteban Toledo.

Dave Koster, a scratch handicap player and staff member here at The Sand Trap, and I ventured to the Peak’s Upper Course on Monday, July 18 – two weeks after the Nationwide Tour had gone through. Due to some heavy rains the days before, the rough had not been cut in a few days. Except for the slower speed of the greens, the course, we were told by groundskeeping staff, was playing just about as it did for the tournament.

The drive on the fifth should be placed left of these fairway bunkers, but not so far left as to make the hole play longer. At 439 yards from the tips, you should have at most a 6-iron left to the green.

Conditions
As I said previously, the conditions were less than ideal for our visit. A steady, fairly strong wind was doing all it could to dry out the course, but the greens were bumpy and slow. The greenskeeper with whom Dave and I spoke said they had not been mowed in two days, which more than explains their condition. Typically, greens at the Upper Course stimp out at about 9 to 10, and up to 11 for the Nationwide Tour.

The rough played particularly difficult due to the thickness the rains brought on, but nearby courses have only recently started coming back from a mini-drought. There were no signs of a lack of water at the Peak, and conditions year-round are plush and green. There were very few bare or brown spots in the rough. This provided for a fair test of golf, with penalizing rough that at least managed to provide a consistent lie.

The sixth is a par three played to a modestly tiered green, about 200 yards away. With severe undulation around the green, there aren’t many “good misses” on this hole!

The fairways were quite lush and provided solid lies every time. Large groups of divots from the Nationwide Tour were still evident, though Dave and I were typically 20-30 yards behind them, but divots elsewhere were few and far between. Bunkers – including the course’s several fairway bunkers – were well-maintained and played consistently, though one had a bit less sand than some of the others. A minor nit.

All told, and given the weather conditions, the course was in excellent shape.

Design
The Upper Course is well laid out and makes good use of space. Though you’re required to take a cart (due, no doubt, to the massive elevation changes), there are very few long green-to-tee walks. Even so, only two or three holes share the same area as other holes – the rest are well separated by trees.

The downhill, 575-yard par-5 ninth is reachable in two if you are confident that you’ll clear the small creek protecting the front of the green.

The course features moderately wide fairways with very few blind shots, a surprise given how hilly the course played. The fairways narrowed and bottlenecked around 280-320 yards in many instances, rewarding shot placement over pure power, particularly on the 11th hole. The course presented a challenge and asked you to overcome it – that’s true golf in my opinion.

The greens were undulating but not incredibly tiered. They provided collection areas and false fronts without coming across as to circus-like in their topography, a common ploy to “trick up” some golf courses.

The course rewarded you for good shots and punished bad shots accordingly. Nearly every green is open in the front, leaving room for run-up and punch shots, but well bunkered to the sides with bumps and swales protecting the backs of the greens. Water comes into play very little, but is used effectively when it is employed.

The short par-4 third hole measures 345 yards, but my PinSeeker tells me that it plays only 300.

We played the Gold tees, which play 7,025 yards, in wet conditions. We felt like Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh as we were faced with no more than a 6-iron into any green. We reached a pair of the par-fives (though we barely reached the fairway on the 17th into the wind), and we hit 3-woods off of some of the par-4 tees. None of the par-3s required more than a 4-iron. Dave and I were looking for a bit more of a challenge here – no doubt this course would play very short in firmer conditions.

Value
The Upper Course at the Peak lays claim to fame as the host of a Nationwide Tour event. Dave, a scratch golfer, shot 71 and I, a 5.7 index, shot 77, including an even-par stretch over the last 13 holes (one bogey, one birdie, one up-and-down for par, all others GIR). It’s tough to imagine a professional winning a four-round tournament here with 274 (-12).

That being said, the course was in good condition and offered a good test of golf. If you’re looking for a long course, go elsewhere. Priced anywhere between $40 and $90, this course is a steal at $50 or less, a very good bargain between $50 and 70, and becomes somewhat unattractive for any more than $80 or so. Package rates are available for out-of-town golfers looking to stay at the Peek’n Peak resort, so factor that into your cost if you’re looking to play.

The scenic, downhill par-5 14th plays 563 yards, but you’ve gotta hit a 3W off the tee unless you like driving into the gulch. The far part of the fairway is a 350-yard carry.

The course offers a number of scenic vantage points, including the downhill, sweeping par-five ninth and thirteenth holes. Winding through groves of trees, golfers looking for a beautiful course will find that the Peak provides some nice scenery. The images scattered throughout this review attest to that.

Hole         1     2     3     4     5     6     7     8     9
Yardage     414   523   345   190   439   200   330   403   575    3,419
Handicap     3    15    17    11     1    13     9     7     5
Par          4     5     4     3     4     3     4     4     5       36

Hole        10    11    12    13    14    15    16    17    18
Yardage     167   409   483   201   563   430   400   555   398    3,606
Handicap    18    14     2     8    10     6    12     4    16
Par          3     4     4     3     5     4     4     5     4       36

Gold Tee Totals:
Par: 72, Slope: 137, Rating: 73.7, Yardage: 7,025

Overall
“The Upper” at “The Peak” is a solid test of golf with unique shot values, beautiful scenery, and a solid layout tee to green. Though it’s not quite worth the $80+ you’ll pay during the high season on weekends, it’s well worth $50-75 or so to play where the Nationwide Tour pros tee it up. If you’re a reasonably skilled golfer, you may even be able to shoot a great round of golf.