more reasonable priced denver courses?

landshark · April 25, 2016

i have seen a couple of posts for denver/boulder area golf, but planning to go in about 3 weeks(mid may). what are some of the nicer courses that offer best bang for buck? will have one senior player and one regular. looking for something in the 35 to 55 dollar range. i've played years back at legacy ridge, marianna butte, and a couple others. seemed reasonable back then, but prices seemed to have jumped up. any suggestions for real nice reasonably priced courses. will pop for the bears course as it seems to be highly rated.

Also, what would a good central location be to stay where traveling to most anywhere would be up to 30 to 45 minutes away.

thanks

Gary8180 · April 25, 2016

I'm a senior golfer and often look for budget friendly courses that are interesting and well maintained. The best deals are usually found on the many municipal and recreation district courses in the area (Cities of Denver, Aurora, Englewood, Westminster, etc). Some of my favorites are Heritage Westmore, Legacy Ridge, Hyland Hills Gold, Wellshire, Willis Case, Riverdale Dunes and Coal Creek (although the latter two have gotten a little pricey) to name a few. Most of the Websites for these and many others in the area offer deals. Golfnow usually has some deals as well. The best bang for the buck maybe Lake Arbor in Arvada. It's nothing fancy and only plays about 6000 yd's but it's usually in very good condition for the amount of play it gets.

Gary8180 · April 26, 2016

Here's a couple of sources that might be helpful in planning your trip. We have a local golf publication called Divot magazine. It's available for free at local golf shops such as Golf Galaxy and Golfsmith. The website is www.divotmagazine.com. Many local golf courses advertise in it and list their specials on occasion. It also has a listing of all the local courses and their fee ranges as well. The same publisher also sells a "Green Saver" discount book. It costs 39.00 (last time I saw it advertised). It has coupons for buy one round get one round free, others for free golf carts at certain courses and even access to some private clubs. I haven't used it myself but several friends have and they say it works pretty good. The web site for it is www.greensaver.com.

landshark · April 26, 2016

thanks for the info. any special courses anyoneone likes appreciated as well.

pseudoswede · April 26, 2016

Your options are severely limited if you can only play on the weekend and/or require a golf cart. Some of the better, reasonably priced golf courses are...

Wellshire (very walkable)

Riverdale Dunes (walkable)

Murphy Creek (walkable)

Saddle Rock (not walkable)

South Suburban (very walkable)

Meadow Hills (very walkable)

Homestead (somewhat walkable) - executive course (par 65), looks like they have an afternoon special of $39 with cart

Fox Hollow (somewhat walkable) - looks like they have an afternoon special of $49 with cart

rkrech · April 27, 2016

I think for those coming from out of town Fossil Trace and Bear Dance are great options although both are more expensive than $50 with cart.

Fossil Trace is an Engh design and isn't "traditional". Not I course I would want to play everyday. But it's always and great shape. It has great rock formations. Can be really fun. I've taken countless friends from out of town there and it's never disappointed my visitors.

Bear Dance is mountain style golf through the pines. Great track.

landshark · April 28, 2016

did some research and have a couple must plays that will be done, along with some i have played and were happy with and some from other research.

tell me what you think. will be trying to book through golf now when we can.

must play: bear dance and possibly ridge at castle pines north.

other ones likely are:

legacy ridge

fox hollow-27

green valley ranch

colorado national

murphy creek----or do you think todd creek is better?

a couple borderline(and please tell me which couple would be better) are: red hawk ridge or fossil trails, although a bit more $$, then it seems like hyland hills, common ground, deer creek, heritage at eagle bend or westmoor are all pretty decent.,

I've played Indian peaks and liked i a lot too.

thanks, and which area to stay(thinking a little bit mid south denver) would be best to avoid long drives. what i remember from before, most places we played were within 45 minutes, which is ok

Joelness · April 28, 2016

Landshark,

It all depends on the North or South Denver area courses. I don't know the South Denver courses nearly as well as the North Denver ones, having grown up in a Boulder suburb. There are a few I can speak to that I've played and will elaborate more.

Your two must-play courses are in the South Denver area and are great picks.

Red Hawk Ridge - Overpriced in my opinion. Good for $50-$60 but they try to charge $100

Fossil Trace - Never played it. Some friends have said overpriced, some loved it.

Legacy Ridge - Good track but for the same $ go 10 mins west and play Heritage @ Westmoor (Both owned by the same city)

Heritage @ Westmoor - This is my primary recommendation for bang for the buck. Has hosted the Denver US Open Local Qual for the last 5ish years. Links style layout, really great design and always solid.

Green Valley Ranch - Meh... I can get you on for $30 riding which is worth it but nothing special at normal price

Colorado National - You might already know my take. Last year I would say avoid it but the new Super is awesome and will be the best greens in the area this summer. I'm a member there so there are perks. Also, 7676 yards from the tips if you want a beating :P

Murphy Creek - I've never played it but everyone I've ever talked to loves it.

Fox Hollow - Never played but have also heard good things. I haven't heard as good about it as Murphy, but still good.

Riverdale Dunes - Pete Dye so you know it's good. The Super there is in the CO Golf hall of fame and both Riverdale courses are always in fantastic shape. If you're here make sure you play the Dunes Course.

Hyland Hills (Gold Course) - Yawn. Only reason to play it is if you want solid golf for cheap. Otherwise play the other westy courses (Legacy and Westmoor)

Commonground - Interesting layout. Very little elevation change but a decent course. Tom Doak redesigned it. They do a really great job of mounding to make up for the lack of elevation change. The greens are annoying on a few holes to me but I think it's easily the best inner-city bang for the buck. Has anywhere from 320 to 500+ yard par 4's so you get some good variety.

Indian Peaks - Really great layout. Not very hard but it's a great course. I'm a little biased as this is the one I grew up on but I've never found someone that didn't like it. Always in great shape

Arrowhead - Expensive and not really great as a golf course. However, it's my favorite to bring guests to because it's easily the prettiest in the Denver area. There's just something about playing golf through Megalithic red sandstone rocks that is something to behold.

Just my $.02. I hope this helps in your decisions.

landshark · April 28, 2016

Greatly appreciate the help and suggestions. Coming from st louis, even your ordinary courses would rank in our upper tier for public courses

Gary8180 · April 28, 2016

If you're going to play a number of courses north of I-70 A nice area to stay is in Westminster along US 36. There's a fair number of hotels and restaurants at the intersection with Church Ranch (aka 104th Ave). There's also a Golf Galaxy and Golfsmith in the immediate area if you have to re-stock. I also agree that Heritage Westmoor is nicer than Legacy Ridge but the latter is not bad by any means. Legacy is more or less your typical links style course thru a residential area. They did, however, provide ample area between most of the homes and the edges of the course. Heritage is much more open and with nicer views of the front range.

brianhorne8 · April 28, 2016

My personal favorite is Murphy Creek. I think it's a great value and a fun track. Usually in really great shape as well. Todd Creek is a similar style course, and if you can snag a deal, you can tee off at midday during the week there for less than $40 with a cart and range balls. Fossil Trace is worth the price. Tricked out, but a fun experience and one of those courses you play when you're in the area. Most of the Aurora courses are going to be good values, so you can't really go wrong. South Suburban is fun as well. Commonground might be worth a look, but I tend to think it's a little pricey for what it is. Usually in great shape though.

Enjoy your trip!