Denver area golf advice

[Wittler]

After 35 years in the soggy Pacific Northwest I am going to try something different. The wife and I have decided to move to Denver (area). I am really looking forward to living somewhere that the ball won't plug three months out of the year.

I would greatly appreciate any advice on where to play. I have never spent any time in Denver but it looks like there are a ton of great options.

We are thinking of living on the west side, somewhere around Arvada or Pleasant hill...

[Fourputt]

Lots of courses to choose from, depending on budget and distance.  Heritage at Westmoor, Legacy Ridge, in the Westminster area.  In Golden is the fun Fossil Trace.  Applewood, though I haven't played there in 30 years.  Willis Case is the westernmost Denver muni.  Farther south on the west side are Fox Hollow  and the Homestead in Lakewood, then Foothills and The Meadows in south Jefferson County.  That's a start.

[Wittler]

Much appreciated! Coming from Washington I am used to heavily treed courses with plenty of elevation change. My assumption is courses on the west side less flat and therefore more what I am accustomed to. Is that correct? Google earth only shows so much...

[Fourputt]

Much appreciated! Coming from Washington I am used to heavily treed courses with plenty of elevation change. My assumption is courses on the west side less flat and therefore more what I am accustomed to. Is that correct? Google earth only shows so much...

It depends.  Fossil Trace has some nice dips and rises, probably the most of any of the courses I mentioned, but that doesn't make the others less fun, just different.  Fox Hollow has 27 holes, and the Canyon/Meadow nines are the most interesting.

I play some of the mountain courses during the summer, and then you get hills and trees and wetlands.... lots of variety.  Out here where I live now, everyone thinks that its flat, but the course I'm playing most now is as hilly as any course in the Denver area, and I'm 125 miles northeast of the city, out on the plains.

Follow this link and you will see that there are a lot of courses around the metro area. Denver area courses

[Wittler]

Well that sure is a handy site! Thanks again. I'll have to get my bearings and treat you to a round for the kindness!

[Club Rat]

Much appreciated! Coming from Washington I am used to heavily treed courses with plenty of elevation change. My assumption is courses on the west side less flat and therefore more what I am accustomed to. Is that correct?

Hello @Wittler , welcome to the Sand Trap.

As @Fourputt mentioned there are many great courses in Colorado around the Denver area and the mountain courses.

Also, there are several members here who will probably give you some of their favorites, once they get around to reading the thread.

Front range golf offer's a wide variety of course designs. Most are open courses, one course has a local rule "free drop" if a tree obstructs your swing.

The name of this course is Buffalo Run. There is only ONE tree on the course and it is next to the club house.

I played in Colorado for many years and loved many courses. Moved back to my home area in 2000.

There may be several new course now, a few friends have told me about a few.

High altitude golf offers a longer ball flight, especially in the mountain courses during the warm summer dry air.

A few of my favorites in your area are - Inverness, Omni Interlocken, Buffalo Run, Raccoon Creek, Riverdale, Fox Hollow, Meadows.

Head south of Denver and you find more private courses and public courses like Meridian, Plum Creek, Castle Pines, Arrowhead, Broadmore, Highland Hills, and

the Air Force base has a great course (Gold course)

There are several others north near Boulder which are older courses and more traditional type.

Enjoy Colorado Golf, it is a great style of golf and has beautiful courses.

Club Rat

[Wittler]

Awesome! Thanks for the input! I can't deny the appeal of gaining a little distance... Sea level and wet aren't exactly the best recipe for big pokes! I am more excited to potentially play year round without the plugging and slogging through the mud!

[Fourputt]

Awesome! Thanks for the input! I can't deny the appeal of gaining a little distance... Sea level and wet aren't exactly the best recipe for big pokes! I am more excited to potentially play year round without the plugging and slogging through the mud!

Year round golf is highly dependent on the weather.  This year hasn't been too bad in some parts of the state.  We've been able to tplay out here for the last week and a half or so.  The temps haven't been bad, but just enough to keep the snow from melting away.  It's frustrating when I can sit out on the deck in the warm sun and know that the course is still snowed in.  I've had many years where I only lost a month or so in December and January, and was mostly able to play the rest of the winter.  On the other hand, we've had years when snow hut the courses down in late September and they didn't thaw out until late February, although that's the extreme.  Our USGA handicap season runs from March 15 through November 15.  We still get in a lot of play outside of those dates, but it's unpredictable enough that they don't allow rounds to be reported for handicap.

[BuckeyeNut]

Colorado is hardly a place known for a long golf season due to the snow!!    Sheesh....you should have moved to a lower elevation or further south!!

[Fourputt]

Colorado is hardly a place known for a long golf season due to the snow!!    Sheesh....you should have moved to a lower elevation or further south!!

Surprisingly that isn't true.  I've lived here since 1973 and I've played in shorts in every month of the year.  Not every year, but outside of the mountains, Colorado has a pleasantly temperate climate.  I'll gladly take it over Missouri in midsummer.  Or during a March sleet storm.  I've experienced both.

[BuckeyeNut]

when it snows a foot in May............I'll be laughing.    Seriously...... you are delusional selling the benefits of winter golf in the Rocky mountains.  Somebody is smoking too much Colorado weed.........

It's all about the elevation.....if you live in a lower elevation west of the rockies..how much lower is western Colorado?...isn't it all elevated to an extent?

With that said.... this thread was started by a person moving to Denver in high country.   Winter golf sukks in high country....no way around it.

Yes...it can get hot in KC during the summer, but I wouldn't trade that for Rocky Mountain snow winters.  screw that.......LOL   We have yet to see 1" of snow in KC this winter............all we have had is a dusting.....twice.   I played today..........sunny 65....there was no snow to melt, so I didn't have to sit outside and wonder........."What if"......as if there was a foot of snow that had to melt before playing today........LOL

If I was relocating to extend the golf season, Denver is the last place I'd consider for a new home.  Of course there are worse places like Buffalo New York, but that's besides the point............LOL

[Fourputt]

when it snows a foot in May............I'll be laughing.    Seriously...... you are delusional selling the benefits of winter golf in the Rocky mountains.  Somebody is smoking too much Colorado weed.........

It's all about the elevation.....if you live in a lower elevation west of the rockies..how much lower is western Colorado?...isn't it all elevated to an extent?

With that said.... this thread was started by a person moving to Denver in high country.   Winter golf sukks in high country....no way around it.

Yes...it can get hot in KC during the summer, but I wouldn't trade that for Rocky Mountain snow winters.  screw that.......LOL   We have yet to see 1" of snow in KC this winter............all we have had is a dusting.....twice.   I played today..........sunny 65....there was no snow to melt, so I didn't have to sit outside and wonder........."What if"......as if there was a foot of snow that had to melt before playing today........LOL

If I was relocating to extend the golf season, Denver is the last place I'd consider for a new home.  Of course there are worse places like Buffalo New York, but that's besides the point............LOL

No, he's moving to Denver.  Denver sits on the plains east of the mountains.  Just because the city is a mile above sea level doesn't put it in the mountains.  30 miles west you can go to over 14,000 feet, almost 3 times as high.  Fully one third of the state lies in the plains east of the mountains.  Denver rarely sees the snow that falls in the mountains.  That's west coast moisture, and Denver's winter moisture usually is sucked up from the Gulf of Mexico across Texas by low pressure centered over northern New Mexico.  It takes just the right combination for significant snow to fall, and even when they do get a few inches, the next weather front coming over the Continental Divide creates chinook winds (downslope winds the warm as they come down off the mountains) that melt it off.  We got the chinook winds in Montana too, and I literally witnessed the temperature go from 10 below to 40 above overnight, without even any benefit from the sun.  If you haven't experienced it, then you have no idea.

We have been in the 50's and 60's, even hitting 70, for most of the last 2 weeks.  Today I was working out in the garage and outside in the yard in shorts and a t-shirt.

[BuckeyeNut]

On average.........Denver gets a lot of snow. Not a winter golf destination........this is my only point. Of course "A lot" is a relative term...... a lot compared to what?   LOL

[Fourputt]

On average.........Denver gets a lot of snow. Not a winter golf destination........this is my only point. Of course "A lot" is a relative term...... a lot compared to what?   LOL

No it doesn't get a lot of snow.  Denver's total average annual precipitation is in the 13-14 inch range, and most of that typically falls in March-May.  About 6 years ago we had 18" of snow in a late April or early May snowstorm - it snowed on Sunday and we were playing golf again on Friday.   The heaviest storms are the spring storms and they melt way as fast as they come in.  Denver's climate is semi-arid, the next thing to desert.  It was dry grassland before settlers started moving in.  You have some significant misconceptions about the weather and climate here.

[Club Rat]

I've played in 80 weather during Jan & Feb at times in Denver over the years when I lived there.

I also played throughout the winters and only recall having a few time periods when there was snow sticking around for over a week.

Denver gets a lot of sunny days thru winters. When it's sunny and no wind, temps are usually comfortable.

Not to say, weather can be a bear at times and brutal.

Some days we would drive a little further south to Pueblo when Denver was closed just to play.

Other times we would go west to Grand Junction or Moab.

We also made many weekend trips to St. George & Mesquite.

A friend of mine played every single weekend during the winter by traveling to areas when necessary.

Club Rat

[Wittler]

I will gladly trade the possibility of being snowed out for a week (although that seems like an exaggeration) for the 6 months of soggy messy shit fairways that I currently get. I love Washington but the fall/winter/spring season is growing old. I think I'll listen to Club rat and Fourputt when it comes to CO weather! Also golf is not the only reason to live... So having mountain access, fly fishing, and whatever other outdoor activities one could imagine helps offset the handful of times I won't be able to play!

[Missouri Swede]

Hey, @Fourputt and @Club Rat I’ve got a couple of days to play next week in the Golden CO area. I’ve made a reservation for one day at Fossil Trace. For a second day, what would you recommend: Applewood, another day at Fossil Trace, or another course out on the west side? Thanks.

[HJJ003]

26 minutes ago, Missouri Swede said:

Hey, @Fourputt and @Club Rat I’ve got a couple of days to play next week in the Golden CO area. I’ve made a reservation for one day at Fossil Trace. For a second day, what would you recommend: Applewood, another day at Fossil Trace, or another course out on the west side? Thanks.

Forgive me for answering a question that you didn’t direct to me, but I have heard that Fox Hollow in Lakewood  is good. I think it’s 27 holes, and one of the combinations (canyon/meadows?) is thought pretty highly of.