With a variety of terrain and climates, an abundance of majestic scenery and some of the finest courses to be found anywhere, Oregon has developed a firm grip as one of the top golf destinations in the country. From the high desert in the central part of the state to the lush Willamette Valley to the coastal lowlands, the variety of golf is truly stunning. Here are a few recommendations, courtesy of our sister publication Golfing Oregon Magazine, for your next trip to the Beaver State, also known as a Pacific wonderland.
Visit us at www.GolfingOregonMagazine.com and order your free copy today!
Bandon Dunes Sheep Ranch
Region: Oregon Coast | Course type: Public
The legendary Sheep Ranch has long held a special place in Bandon Dunes lore. And in 2020 when Sheep Ranch opened, Bandon Dunes added a new page to their stunning golf repertoire.
Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw — the incomparable team that designed Bandon Trails and The Preserve — returned to Bandon Dunes to breathe new life into the Sheep Ranch. The result is a par-72, 6,636-yard, 18-hole design that offers perhaps the most dramatic Bandon Dunes setting yet.
Etched along a spectacular mile of oceanfront on Five Mile Point, the Sheep Ranch presented the designers some unique opportunities. And Coore and Crenshaw made the most of the stunning geography. The Sheep Ranch offers views of the Pacific Ocean on every hole, a first among Bandon Dunes designs. And nine holes are set directly on the coastline, the most of any Bandon Dunes golf course.
It is the newest and best chapter in the Sheep Ranch, which has long been one of Bandon Dunes’ most compelling tales. Co-founded by Phil Friedmann and Mike Keiser, the original Sheep Ranch was for many years a mysterious golf landscape set just north of Old MacDonald and Pacific Dunes. Easily seen, but not often played.
When the Sheep Ranch opened in the middle of 2020, that changed forever. And Bandon Dunes once again made good on its promise to showcase “Golf as it was Meant to Be.”But words can only do the Sheep Ranch so much justice. So only one question remains … when are you going to experience the Sheep Ranch for yourself?
To learn more visit: www.bandondunesgolf.com
The Retreat at Silvies Valley Ranch
Region: Eastern | Course type: Public
An incomparable golf experience for players of every skill level, with six courses designed and built by Dan Hixson, and maintained by Torin Foster – who has helped build and maintain the courses since design began in 2009. The six courses are built on 600 acres of the high desert ponderosa pine forest and are the highest elevation courses (5,000 feet) in Oregon. The reversible Hankins and Craddock Courses, both 18-hole championship courses, ranked in Golfweek’s top 50 courses in the U.S. McVeigh’s Gauntlet is a stunning 7-hole razor ridge challenge course, and Chief Egan is a fun, mountain meadow 9-hole par 3 course.
A “must play”, the 18-hole courses were the first reversible championship courses built in the world in over 450 years (since the Old Course at St. Andrews in 1552) and the first in the United States. The course direction is reversed each day to create a different and more sustainable layout with a variety of pin placements and tee box options, creating the opportunity for thousands of unique rounds.
Named for the pioneering Hankins clan who homesteaded much of the ranch, Hankins provides an unforgettable perspective to the natural landscape and elevations—at 5,000 feet “in the desert—that highlights the playing experience and gives you long drives. The course was voted Best New Course in the U.S. by Golf Digest (#4) and Best Resort Course by Golfweek (#25). Chief Egan was the last War Chief of the Paiute Tribe who last engaged the U.S. Calvary in 1882. The course is located on Paiute Creek, which is believed to be close to Egan’s last camp.
McVeigh’s Gauntlet is named for Myles McVeigh, a homesteader from Scotland, known to drink “a little” whiskey with the Craddock and Hankins boys, and with Charlie Owens (rumored to be his moonshining partner.) McVeigh’s Gauntlet, a challenge course for you and your friends, also features the now world-famous Goat Caddies – who grew up on the ranch and really know these courses. McVeigh was named Best New Golf Experience in the U.S. by GOLF Magazine.
Named for the Craddock family—Jake Craddock and his four sons—who originally settled much of the ranch and helped consolidate it from over 70 smaller ranches into the ranch you experience today. Craddock’s championship 18-hole layout was voted Best New Course in the U.S. by Golf Digest (#3) and Best Resort Course by Golfweek (#32).
To learn more visit: www.silvies.us
Pronghorn Club at Juniper Preserve
Region: Central | Course type: Public / Private
Perhaps no other facility has had a greater impact on the Central Oregon golf community over the past decade than the Pronghorn Club at Juniper Preserve. Opened in 2004, Juniper Preserve has received recognition as a premier resort community in the West and was the first to offer a Jack Nicklaus Signature Course and Tom Fazio Championship Course side-by-side. The high desert backdrop appeals to both the links lover and the outdoor enthusiast, as skiing, biking, and fishing can all be found nearby. Both the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course and the Tom Fazio Championship Course at Juniper Preserve in Bend have earned multiple accolades, including several from Golf Digest. The Nicklaus Signature Course opened first in 2004, with the Tom Fazio Championship Course following in 2006. Voted #6 in Golf Digest’s “The Best Golf Courses in Oregon” for 2018, the Nicklaus Signature Course is available for play to the public, and resort guests. The more challenging of the two tracks, the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course has been selected more than once by the USGA to host US Open qualifying events, most recently in 2022. The Fazio Championship Course is available for play as a guest of a member, or on limited reciprocal request. Immaculate maintenance, and a minimalist approach to the design gives the golfer a sense that the natural surroundings and landscaping remain largely untouched. Though the Fazio Championship Course is a bit more player friendly, with both courses, immaculate conditioning, and an unwavering attention to detail are a hallmark of the Pronghorn Club experience. Club membership and real estate opportunities within the Juniper Preserve community are available. For additional information, contact West and Main Homes, the exclusive brokerage within Juniper Preserve, at 541-550-1340.
To learn more visit: juniperpreserve.com
Black Butte Ranch
Region: Central | Course type: Public
For more than half a century Black Butte Ranch has been the very embodiment of why visitors fall in love with Central Oregon. The majesty of Black Butte Ranch’s setting at the base of the Cascade Range is the first thing that strikes you. Get a bit closer, and you find a destination resort that is family-friendly, high-quality, affordable, close to nature, and best of all, fun, too.
Black Butte Ranch’s 36 holes of championship golf — Big Meadow, a 7,002-yard Robert Muir Graves gem, and the 7,007-yard Glaze Meadow that John Fought redesigned in a classical style a decade ago — has long been a headliner. And for good reason.
More recently, though, Fought brought an extra helping of fun with Little Meadow. Black Butte Ranch’s new 12-hole putting course, which first opened in 2020, Little Meadow was shaped
with the same attention to detail that Fought put into Glaze Meadow. Near Big Meadow, the sloping, undulating putting course looks as if it was always meant to be there.
Little Meadow has been a perfect complement to the playable designs Black Butte Ranch is best known for. Big Meadow, which was designed by Graves in 1970 and renovated in 2008 by Damian Pascuzzo, presents generous fairways, accessible greens, and panoramic views of neighboring Mount Washington, Three Sisters, and Broken Top.
With Fought’s lauded 2012 redesign, Glaze Meadow upped its game from its original 1978 design. Fought reached into the golden era of golf design for inspiration, adding grass-faced bunkers and turtleback greens to challenge golfers of any skill. But with a spectacular mountain setting that Donald Ross could have only dreamed about.
Golf is but one attraction at Black Butte Ranch, which unveiled its new Lodge in 2023. The addition includes an all-new Lodge Restaurant and Aspen Lounge, featuring fine dining with a side of incredible views.
There is so much else to do, too. Guests can settle into one of more than 120 vacation homes situated throughout the 1,800-acre
resort and enjoy an array of outdoor activities, including biking, swimming, canoeing, tennis, horseback riding, paddle-boarding, fly-fishing, or something else. Or they can find rejuvenation at the full-service spa.
In other words, there’s something for everyone, which is what has always made Black Butte Ranch special.
To learn more visit: www.blackbutteranch.com
Tetherow Resort
Region: Central | Course type: Semi-Private
A golf trip to Central Oregon would not be complete without a stop at Tetherow Golf Club in Bend. Opened in 2008 and immediately recognized by GOLF Magazine as the “Best New Course You Can Play,” this David McLay Kidd design features a fusion of high desert golf with a pure links experience.
Mr. Kidd’s other renowned design in Oregon, the iconic Bandon Dunes, shares a number of similar traits that are certain to give the avid golfer plenty to think about before, during and after his round.
For many players, the golf experience at Tetherow is a test of patience and comes with an understanding that the more one plays the course, a greater knowledge and appreciation of its nuances and secrets will result.
The course demands accuracy off the tee in certain spots while providing generous landing areas in others. The location of the natural outcroppings, grassy knobs and strategic bunkering within the fairways have been known to affect well-positioned tee-shots, however. Approaches to the expansive, contoured greens are often met with the challenge of two-putting.
Many view the 17th hole, a 182-yard par 3 whose putting surface rests within what was once a pumice quarry, as one of the most interesting and exciting holes on the course. With such a small target to hit (the green is a just over 2,500 square feet, less than half the size of any other putting surface on the course), and a defined sideboard design on the right side and behind the target, wayward tee-shots have an opportunity to kick back to the flag for a chance at birdie.
In the heart of the resort, Tetherow’s vacation rental homes are the ideal setting for group golf trips, family gatherings or boys/girls weekends. Vacation rentals range from one to five bedrooms, and boast fine finishes with modern furnishings, well-appointed kitchens, modern appliances and technology, hot tubs, fire pits, Wi-Fi, large patios and more. Enjoy your vacation near the heart of the resort, with easy access to the Clubhouse, dining, golf course, pool and fitness center and other amenities.
Tetherow’s fitness center provides 14,000 sq. ft. of weights, cardio machines and group fitness classes, as well as a café, locker rooms, sauna and steam room and access to Tetherow’s heated outdoor pool and hot tub. Guests can relax after their round in cabanas at the pool. Food and drink service to the pool is also available.
Tetherow Lodge features 50 rooms centrally located on property with unforgettable views of the golf course and neighboring Cascade Range.
The luxurious amenities allow traveling golfers to enjoy a stay and play experience, while taking in all that the Bend area has to offer. Just minutes from the heart of the city, Tetherow is uniquely situated to provide its members and guests access to the best of high desert living and activity. Guests of the resort also enjoy free shuttle service to Downtown Bend and the Old Mill District, as well as to the airport for a small fee.
Wildhorse Resort & Casino
Region: Eastern | Course type: Public
A plush, green oasis in the vast, rolling wheat fields of northeastern Oregon, the golf course at Wildhorse Resort & Casino is endlessly inviting. Located in Pendleton, the par-72 design is elegantly punctuated with over 60 white sand bunkers and five sparkling lakes. The course, which ranges from 5,718 to 7,112 yards, is readily playable by both novices and experts.
With generous fairways that are viewable from any and all trouble areas, the tees are spread out enough that no matter what level golfer you are, the course is neither remarkably difficult nor inordinately easy. Expert players enjoy the fast greens during prime golf season (April through September) and players of all levels enjoy the refreshing wide-open vistas of the Blue Mountains year-round.
Admired for its impeccably maintained fairways and challenging greens, Wildhorse Golf Course has played host to many major OGA, OPGA and PNWPGA tournaments. The 18th hole, however, retains the most acclaim as one of the toughest finishing holes in the region—a 474 yard par 4, flanked with water on the right and a challenging bunker on the left. This last hole can be a game changer.
The large, modern clubhouse includes an expanded pro shop, locker rooms, a full bar, a restaurant and banquet room overlooking the 18th hole, and patio dining. Open to the public, the Wildhorse Resort Golf Course offers a complete array of services, including professional lessons, a driving range, practice greens, and rentals.
To learn more visit: www.wildhorseresort.com
