2016-2017 Travel Guide: Las Vegas

Las Vegas' Angel Park Golf Club
Angel Park Golf Club

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Scottsdale/Phoenix
Tucson
Las Vegas
Mesquite
St. George

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“Las Vegas’s most complete golf experience,” Angel Park Golf Club (pictured above) sports the Palm and Mountain courses designed by Arnold Palmer and Ed Seay, as well as the Cloud Nine Short Course, which features 12 holes inspired by such classics as the Island Green at Sawgrass and Riviera’s sixth (with a bunker in the green). Better yet, you can play nine of these 12 under the lights and also compete on Angel Park’s illuminated nine-hole putting course. The female caddies known as the Angel Park Angels add a heavenly touch. angelpark.com

On the Tee

The Legacy Golf Club, Las Vegas
The Legacy Golf Club

SHORT ON TIME? Take a spin on Durango Hills Golf Club. The executive-length course boasts four par-4 holes, 14 par-3s and stunning views of Red Rock, Snow and Sheep mountains. durangohillsgolf.com

HEARTS, Diamonds, clubs and spades form the shapes of the teeing areas on the 10th hole—aptly named “Suits”—at The Legacy Golf Club in Henderson, just outside Las Vegas. The  7,233-yard Arthur Hills design features fabulous views of the Sin City skyline and a trio of tough par-4s known as the “Devil’s Triangle” on holes 11-13. thelegacygc.com

OB IS IN PLAY at Angel Park, Durango Hills and The Legacy. OB Sports, which manages all three, as well as 10 courses in Arizona and many in other states, offers a loyalty card that guarantees “best price” access (and other benefits) to its courses as well as those at The Chase at Coyote Springs; Falcon Ridge and Oasis in Mesquite; and Coral Canyon in St. George, Utah. obsports.com

FEW ARGUE that Tom Fazio’s opus at pricey Shadow Creek is over-the-top Nevada’s top course. Treat yourself at lease once and experience it. shadowcreek.com


Bali Hai Golf Club, Las Vegas Golf
Bali Hai Golf Club

VEGAS IS SURREAL and so are its golf courses. Walters Golf’s Royal Links Golf Club and Bali Hai Golf Club respectively transport you to Scotland and the South Pacific. Royal Links faithfully replicates 18 of the best holes from 11 different Open Championship layouts (including St. Andrews, Carnoustie and Royal Troon). Set right on the Las Vegas Strip, paradisiacal Bali Hai is a 7,002-yard palm tree-lined oasis that features white Augusta sand bunkers, black volcanic rock outcroppings, blue lagoons and 100,000 tropical plants and flowers. waltersgolf.com

On the Money

Caesars Palace, Las Vegas Guide
Caesars Palace

REES’S PIECES: As the iconic Caesars Palace turns 50, celebrate on its two spectacular Rees Jones-designed courses: Rio Secco Golf Club and Cascata. The former lays at the foothills of the Black Mountain Range, with six holes threading through steep canyons, another six perching atop a plateau overlooking the city and six more sprawling across a broad desert wash. Rio Secco is also home to the Butch Harmon Golf School and the female forecaddie program, T-Mates. Located in Boulder City, Cascata takes its name from the 418-foot natural waterfall towering above the driving range that leads to the river roaring through the 37,000-square-foot Tuscan-style clubhouse. The course, ranked #2 in Nevada by Golf Digest, winds, climbs and falls impossibly through canyons and around lakes, streams and arroyos—all negotiable thanks to Tour-level caddies. A lavish restaurant and bar punctuates the experience. Although Caesars owns and operates both highly decorated courses, both are open to guests of all area hotels. caesarsgolf.com

Cascata Golf Club, Las Vegas 2017 Travel Guide
Cascata Golf Club

Choice Spots

ORDER A COSMO: Über-chic and sophisticated, the 3,000-room Cosmopolitan has become the place to see and be seen on The Strip. The opulent, three-level Chandelier Bar alone is worth experiencing, as is the casino (with cabanas), “pool district,” unreal “restaurant collection” and rooftop Marquee nightclub and dayclub. cosmopolitanlasvegas.com

Cosmopolitan Las Vegas
Cosmopolitan

INITIAL THOUGHTS: The ultra-hip SLS Las Vegas, located at the old Sahara Inn, now includes a W Hotel in the 289-room tower that operated under the SLS LUX brand. The W features a dedicated reception area, an Away Spa, and WET, an exclusive outdoor pool and bar. slshotels.com; starwoodhotels.com

HR HIGHNESS: Party like a rock—or even a PGA Tour—star at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Located off The Strip, the 1,500-room shrine to music teems with memorabilia and live tunes, as well as the swinging Rehab Beach Club pool complex, The Joint concert arena, swank restaurants and more. hardrockhotel.com


This article appears in the Fall 2016 issue of Colorado AvidGolfer. Subscribe today!

Colorado AvidGolfer is the state’s leading resource for golf and the lifestyle that surrounds it, publishing eight issues annually and proudly delivering daily content via coloradoavidgolfer.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

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