A Trip To Sand Hills, The Destination
This is the second installment on a post I call “A Trip To Sand Hills”.
Sand Hills is the rare combination of a fun, fair, challenging, rewarding golf course. You find complete variety in the holes. Many holes have large drive zones, but some don’t. Many have large greens, but some don’t. Many greens have significant undulations, but some don’t. All clubs in the bag are used. And when the wind blows every hole changes dramatically. Out on the prairie the wind can blow hard, but in the middle of the summer it is generally playable with the wind being calm at times.
One of the secrets to a great golf course is topography. Sand Hills has great topography with stunning vistas across wide fairways. Looking down from the high hills, huge wind blown bunkers typify many of the holes. The bunkers are intimidating and can be very penal, but, with the width of the fairways, a good shot will never find one.
On day one we leave the first tee at our appointed 2:00 time, caddies at hand. The group hustles around the first 18, then heads out again for a nine hole alternate shot game, before heading back to the clubhouse. We climb on to the carts which are still sitting where we left them six hours earlier. Heading back down the sandy cart path the sun approaches its free fall behind the rolling sand hills in the distance. Just stunning.
The sleeping accommodations are rustic, adequate, but not extravagant. Golfers do not go to Sand Hills for granite bathroom counter tops, spa like amenities or stone fireplaces. Built in 1995, it would not be unexpected to see a modernization of the cabins, but what is there is just fine.
Most of the two and four person cabins sit above the Dismal River as it passes by the clubhouse. It’s a beautiful, peaceful little river cutting through grassy sand dunes on its way to connect with the Middle Loup River. Porches with comfortable rocking chairs overlook the river.
“Someday I am going to skip playing and just sit and look at this river,” Tom commented as I pulled a cold Blue Moon from the small refrigerator in the cabin. “You sit and only hear the sound of the water and birds. It’s my definition of peaceful. There’s no way to bogey watching the river!”
One of the rituals of a golf trip is talking about the holes on the course. The holes at Sand Hills are so beautiful, fun and challenging that discussing them is a non stop activity. “Any one of the 18 could be the best hole on the course,” commented Tom, as we relaxed a moment before heading to dinner. “There is not a hole on the course that I don’t like, don’t think is fair, or would change,”
“I agree,” said Brad, “plus you can find your ball when it’s hit out in the stuff. I hate to lose my ball!” It’s true, not many balls are lost at Sand Hills, even though it looks pretty tough off the fairway. The stubby grasses do not hide balls and are generally not thick.
It’s a clear night as we head back to the clubhouse for dinner, the lights on the carts leading the way. Some would say this is the best part of a golf day. Reviewing the rounds and shots, thinking about how much better play will be tomorrow. It’s a wonderful part of the Sand Hills experience and all golf trips. Enjoying a glass of wine and laughing with your buddies about your bad course management. All those catastrophes that were so important during the round seem less so as the pairings for tomorrow are announced. Tomorrow I will go low.
“This may be my favorite part of the entire trip, come on with me,” I tell Colby as we hop in the cart after dinner.
We head back up the road. “Where the heck are we going?”
“We just have to get a short distance away from the clubhouse, where there is no ambient light,” I respond. We drive only a minute or so. “Ok, this is perfect. Get out and lay down on your back.”
“What?”
“Just do it,” I say.
We both lay on the ground, looking up at the stars in the sky. Luckily there is no moon. With no cities for miles and miles, it is pitch black. Spectacular. Millions of stars. Once in a while I have been lucky and seen a beautiful display of the Northern Lights arrayed across the sky. That is exceptional!
“Fantastic,” says Colby. “Now I understand what you have been saying. An unforgettable part of Sand Hills!”
After a few minutes looking at the stars we jump back in the cart and head to our cabins to hit the hay and get ready for a full day of golf tomorrow.
The next morning I wake at 5:30 and decide to sit on the porch as the sun is creeping up in the east. It’s dead calm, not a cloud in the sky and about 62 degrees. I sit in the rocking chair on the wooden porch just off my bedroom. I am looking down on the Dismal River maybe ten feet below and 50 feet away from the cabin. The water babbles down the Dismal with cardinals, sparrows, meadowlarks and finches singing a morning refrain. A dense pine forest has grown up along the river taking life giving water from the river. The narrow band of forest hasn’t been touched for hundreds of years as there are trees that have seen better days, some down, while others are tall, green and healthy.
It is so quiet but so alive. It seems like one set of birds is active singing for a half hour or so and then another breed takes over. The frogs must be in mating season as there is a constant croaking coming from the thick undergrowth at the river’s edge.
A tree branch has broken off and landed straight down in the river. The fast moving water forms an eddy behind the branch, swirling in a predictable, constant motion. It’s a peaceful, easy feeling, as the Eagles song says. It’s a calm and peacefulness that we seldom experience in the big city.
“I like to get the first time at 7:30,” said Tom at our 6:45 breakfast. “That way we are done with 36 holes about 4:30 and we can get back and relax before dinner.” It’s a good plan as walking 36 in the dry heat, frequently carrying your bag for 18 holes, takes it out of you. We board the carts, head to the practice tee to develop some semblance of a golf swing, hit a few putts and move with anticipation to the first tee.
One thing that is a near constant is hot weather, frequently over 90. The heat sneaks up on you. We start out in the morning at a moderate 66 degrees with no wind. As the day heats, a breeze kicks up and by 10:00 we’ve got a pretty good two club wind, maybe from any direction. With the heat and at altitude of 2700 feet the ball goes a long way. “Bring my four hybrid, please,” I ask my caddie, Billy. Looking at a shot of 210 yards uphill, I make a good swing and knock it right on.
The course requires many different types of shots we don't see on the parkland courses of Minnesota. The tight, firm fescue fairways call for bump and run shots or putting from distances off the green. Sloping fairways and greens require shots to land in certain areas or face difficult plays to the hole. However, when the right shot is hit and the ball takes the slope just as planned, it is a thrill.
Ben’s Porch, which sits on the highest point of the course, is the starting place for the round. Every hole can be seen from this vantage point. The starter is here along with an outdoor grill and deck area with seating for lunch. At the turn we place our order for the grill. It’s just a burger or chicken breast with the grill master's special seasoning but, wow, does it taste good. We sit on the deck after our morning round looking out across this spectacular view of the course. The break between rounds is another special part of the Sand Hills experience.
Sand Hills does so much with so little. Ben’s Porch can be no more than 20 x 20, plus a small surrounding deck. However, it takes care of the starter, the outdoor grill, eating area and bathrooms. Who needs more? “I could just sit here all afternoon and look out at this place,” commented Russell in his Scottish accent. I’m sure he was not the first to say so.
But we can’t sit as there is another war to fight against my fellow competitors and the tough Sand Hills golf course. That leads to another point of enjoyment when playing Sand Hills, good scores are not out of reach. Every trip yields one or two rounds with a score with which I am pleased . This adds to the fun of the trip.
There is enough variety in the holes that a player can find ‘breather’ holes here and there, dictated by the direction of the wind. Good shots can produce birdies. Then, if you make it past the difficult holes, a good score will result.
As we approach the 16th tee we are watching an ominous looking storm brewing on the western horizon. It hasn’t started to blow and the temp hasn’t changed, but the group needs to hustle to get in. “That four footer is good,” I say to Colby on the 16th green. With a little extra ‘giddy up’ in our step the afternoon ends with Russell and Tom finishing at even par. The rest of us play respectably with no serious damage done in our nassau and skin games.
We head back down to the cabins just as the drops of rain start to fall. After 36 holes with a temp nearing the mid 90’s, a shower has never felt better. Oh my god, you climb in feeling hot, sticky, sandy and climb out feeling brand new and ready for dinner.
“What a great day!” says Brad, sipping a glass of wine before dinner. “I feel special when I come here. There are never many people and it’s so easy to move around, eat and play when you want.” Another special part of Sand Hills.
The third and last day again begins with an early breakfast and on the tee at 7:30. We play in light breezes on a beautiful summer day. We get to the short, difficult 17th and I am determined to make a par. At just 155 yards it is the only hole I have not made a par on in three rounds. This hole is slightly up hill to a small green, surrounded by bunkers, with a sand berm on the right that falls off into sand and grasses. It requires as accurate a shot as one can make, to a typically firm green. Although it is the shortest hole on the course, some would argue it is the most difficult. If a player hits the green but ends up behind the hole, he is faced with a most challenging down hill putt. Par on the hole nearly always wins in a nassau game. Birdies are cherished.
Somehow I make a par and another at 18 to finish a great trip to Sand Hills.
We clean up, grab a bite and head to the car by 1:30. 4 rounds, 2 nights, wonderful memories. On the way home we review our good shots, bad shots and events of the past 48 hours. Fun!
My opinion of Sand Hills has only been confirmed. If I had 2 days left on earth I would head to Sand Hills to finish A Life In Golf.
