Bandon First Timer's Trip Report - October 2018

[FAbb]

A year of anticipation came to a head last week, as I headed to Bandon Dunes with my father-in-law. I'm going to do my best to recap the experience, along with tips and lessons learned from the trip here.

 

Our planned itinerary was as follows:

 

Wednesday, October 3rd

 

Fly into Eugene, drive to the resort, Punchbowl and dinner

 

Thursday, October 4th

Pacific Dunes AM, Bandon Trails PM

 

Friday, October 5th

Old Macdonald AM, Bandon Dunes PM

 

Saturday, October 6th

Pacific Dunes AM, The Preserve PM

 

Sunday, October 7th

Departure

 

Round Highlights

 

I'm going to try and keep these pretty brief.

 

Round 1 - Pacific Dunes

 

What better way to start the trip than on the top rated course on the resort, that gets you playing out to the ocean by the third hole! It turned out to be an A++ weather day on top of that. By mid day, it was in the low 60s, calm (wind we had was apparently opposite of the summer wind), and amazingly clear skies.

 

My favorite par 3s were 11, and 17. 11 just felt so do-or-die, and is beautiful playing along the cliff with the ocean to the left. 17 was a really cool downhill Redan.

 

The cliff side par 4s (4 and 13) were stunning. It'd be hard to argue against them as the best on the course, though I'd put 7 up there with them, along with maybe one or two of the short 4s that were great risk-reward tee shots.

 

The 5s, depending on wind strength and direction, could all potentially be reached with 2 very good shots. I'd probably rank them 12-3-18-15.

 

Something I think Pacific Dunes did exceptionally well is to put the pedal down early, and never let up. Since all the clubhouses are inland, you have to play your way out to the ocean at the start, and back away from it to finish. Pacific Dunes gets you looking at the ocean very quickly, as you make it to the third tee. Then they move you through the properly brilliantly between cliff side and inland holes. They're just knockout holes all the way through. You start heading away from the ocean from the 14th tee, but the golf is of such high quality that you don't feel let down.

 

Round 2 - Bandon Trails

 

The stellar weather for the day continued into our round at Trails. We shed the beanie caps and outer layers for the round, as temps were around 60 with more shielding from the sea breeze than the other courses offer.

 

I wouldn't say the course gets off to a slow start by any means, but to me it really picked up steam and was absolutely stellar from 7-17. The 11th and 13th were such cool par 4s, and the view from the 14th tee is just unreal. The tee box is right near where Keiser, on his first visit to the property, had the "big reveal" moment where he saw a large chunk of the property laid in front of him from a single location. Overall, there is just a ton of variety, and great golf holes on Trails. I'm sure the lack of ocean side holes lead the course to be vastly under appreciated in comparison to it's peers on the resort. It's got a very similar feel and aesthetic to Dormie (the only other C&C original I've played), but is superior in every way.

 

Round 3 - Old Macdonald

 

By this point, we were gearing up to contend with some legit weather for the day. The forecast was in the mid 50s all day, with intermittent rain becoming steady around 11, and wind speeds moving up to sustained 20mph as we hit mid-day.

 

Granted there are some significant spots with terrain on the course, but Old Macdonald really showed what can be done to make interesting golf holes out on property with mostly small land forms. You play up to the ocean a couple times, and up and over a ridge line a couple others, but the rest of the course lays in a relatively flat area. The bunkering and green complexes made for brilliant golf holes throughout. They're some of the largest greens in the world, but they're nothing like what you think of when you see a large green around here. Here you might see a green with 3 or so distinct areas. The greens at Old Macdonald were more like giant potato chips, with ridges and bumps all over. It wasn't like you had to be faced with a long putt to have difficult slopes to navigate. For any pin location, you generally had a very small area near the hole where you'd be left with a putt that was easy to get close or make. It was a course you could play over and over, and keep getting better at playing it. It was fun watching shots land in the right spots and turn out well, and heartbreaking watching shots you thought were good land just a few feet too far/short/left/right, and bound away from the hole.

 

Round 4 - The Preserve

 

This was the audible of the trip. We were scheduled to play Bandon Dunes after Old Macdonald, and would've had no problem going right over to do so. Our caddie recommended we go in and check to see if we could swap to play Bandon Dunes the next afternoon, since the weather forecast was good the next day. They had one tee time that would fit for us, so we made the swap, and headed over to The Preserve instead.

 

Being our first trip, we didn't want to miss The Preserve, and I'm glad we didn't. It was 13 cool tee shots, to some really interesting green complexes. We were just getting pounded by wind and rain out there, having an absolute blast. I'm not big into trying to hit different shots into greens when the conditions don't really dictate it, but it was fun as heck to do it when they did. I'm glad we didn't skip out on playing it. It's also nice to get a mental and physical break from doing 36 on the main courses every single day, but still get more than 18 in.

 

Round 5 - Pacific Dunes

 

Another great weather day, albeit with wind this time, blowing in the prevailing direction.

 

We got to play to the lower green on 9, which was great. We played the upper during our first round, so we got to play the 9th to both greens, and the 10th from both tee boxes.

 

I won't re-hash the course talk again. It cemented itself as my current favorite for sure though.

 

Round 6 - Bandon Dunes

 

The rescheduled round was looking as good as ever, with mild temperatures, and abundantly clear skies.

I had my most "use the slope" moment of the trip on the second hole. My tee shot landed on the front, and rolled back all the way down the hill. I had a blind shot to the green, but could see the flag. There was a ridge short of the pin I had to get over. Rather than try to flirt with carrying that perfectly on a blind shot, I threw something that I knew would get all the way to the back of the green where there was a big backstop. I couldn't see it happen, but it went off perfectly, coming back down 2ft from the hole.

 

Overall, I thought Bandon Dunes was the easiest course of the bunch, regardless at how I scored at them all comparatively. The fairways were wide an accommodating, with room to miss off them without too much punishment. There were some tough holes, no doubt. Just on the whole, I'd say it was the most user friendly. I don't think it had the same strength of golf from start to finish as Pacific Dunes, or even Bandon Trails, but it featured some of the most spectacular holes on the entire resort. Playing out to the ocean on 4, 12, and 15 was stunning. The 16th jutting out onto little fingers of land on the cliff side was epic. Even the 17th, playing downhill with a nasty pit all along the right was a spectacular setting. Playing through the dunes on 5 was another exceptionally strong hole.

 

Overall Thoughts and Rankings of Courses

 

The setting of the resort is much more dramatic than I realized it would be. The land forms are much larger than I expected. I just expected everything to be flatter, when in actuality the topography was quite dramatic on all the courses. I don't think any number of replays would make my jaw drop less at the ocean views. They're just that stunning.

 

The golf was just so fun. If you can reliably get your ball airborne, and keep it on the planet, you can play these golf courses. There were options at every turn, fromt the tee boxes to the greens. Granted I wasn't aiming for the middle, but I managed to miss a fairway that had to be 100 yards wide at the spot where I ended up - I still hit the green and made a par. I was left with a terrible angle and much more challenging shot to get on the green and close'ish to the hole, but I had a chance.

 

Putting was hard. Pacific had by far the fastest, and truest greens of the bunch. The others were slower, and all pretty similar speed. Bandon Dunes got punched during our first day of play. While they used small tines instead of pulling plugs, they were still bumpy enough that it was very hard to make putts outside a few feet. Old Macdonald had the only all fescue greens, and they confused the crap out of me. I had uphill putts that blew by, and downhill putts that didn't get there. Maybe fescue is grainy? Dumb as it sounds, there also seemed to be something to the idea that putts toward the ocean were faster than putts away from the ocean. Speed aside, the greens were just difficult to putt. You generally had to get really close to the hole to have any chance at a relatively low breaking putt. Even then, I faced a way higher percentage of putts in the 3-8ft range with legit break than I do at home. With all the slopes to contend with on the greens, it was quite a challenge to lag putts to kick-in range. I definitely had to make a lot more footage of second putts here than at home as well.

 

It's so hard to rank the courses, especially with only a single play on each course but Pacific Dunes. If I absolutely had to, I'd rank them as follows.

 

1. Pacific Dunes

2. Bandon Trails

3. Bandon Dunes

4. Old Macdonald

 

I've seen some other threads where as opposed to ranking the courses, people say how they'd split 10 rounds among them.

 

4 Pacific Dunes

2 Bandon Trails

2 Bandon Dunes

2 Old Macdonald

 

As is pretty obvious, I'd put Pacific Dunes ahead of the rest after a single trip. I wouldn't short change any of the courses, giving them 0 or 1 rounds. They're all too good to do something like that, in my opinion.

 

Bandon Dunes is the only course that can compete with the natural setting of Pacific Dunes. That's not to say that Old Macdonald and Bandon Trails are on shabbya pieces of property. They're both spectacular in their own ways. The topography and oceanside vistas on Pacific Dunes and Bandon Dunes are just very special, with a slight edge going to Pacific Dunes in my opinion. I think there are more intersting and dramatic land features on Pacific Dunes than Bandon Dunes. There were also some really cool spots on Pacific Dunes, where you can see other parts of the course, some where you can see parts of Bandon Dunes, and then on the 14th tee you can see all but like 4 holes of Old Macdonald that sit on the other side of the ridge.

 

I think Bandon Dunes had the best opening hole. The opening holes on all the courses were pretty easy, from the green tees at least. That's a welcome thing, since you're very likely showing up to the first tee cold. I just don't think there was quite as much to be gained or lost off the tee on the openers for the other 3 courses.

 

Pacific Dunes had my favorite closing hole, followed by the finisher at Old Macdonald. The closing hole at Bandon felt like sort of a letdown, coming off a pretty spectacular stretch from 15-17. Similarly at Bandon Trails, the stretch leading up to 18 (really the entire back 9 to be honest) is so spectacular, that it just felt a little lacking.

 

The par 3s on all the courses are so good, that it's hard to pick a favorite group. If I had to pick a single favorite hole, I'd probably take the 12th at Bandon Dunes. The view from the tee playing out to the ocean is stunning. The pin being back-left'ish probably helped me to appreciate the hole more than I would've if we played a pin on the right side of the green. It's just a perfect model of simplicity. They use the contours of the green complex, and a single bunker to dictate the play of the hole. The 15th also plays out to the ocean, but is a bit more do or die off the tee. The 6th plays along the cliff side, but I didn't find the hole really matched the drama of the setting in the way other ocean side 3s on the resort did. I don't think many people would pick one of the inland par 3s as their favorite, which really criminally under rates them. I could take or leave 14 on Bandon Trails, but the rest of the one-shotters there are superb. The downhill Redan 17th at Pacific Dunes is awesome. I think it's better than the Redan they did on Old Macdonald.

 

Food and Lodging

 

We stayed at the Lily Pond, which was totally adequate. You're pretty much using the room to sleep, and shower, which it was more than acceptable for.

 

The food was surprisingly fairly priced, I thought. For breakfast, being on east-coast time, we waited for The Gallery to open, and then either dined in or carried out from the menu. The breakfast buffet just seemed excessive, and most other people seemed to be ordering off the menu as well. For lunch, we just hit whatever turn stand we were near in the vicinity of lunch time. We ate at McKee's all but one of the nights, which we did at Trails End. McKee's was solid pub/bar type food. The pricing was very reasonable. I did apps one night, ribs another, and meatloaf the last night of the trip. Trails end is more Asian-inspired. I had the Indonesian Fried Noodles there. The portion sizes were very large at every meal.

 

There's just not a ton to say in this department. The resort is well laid out. When we used the shuttles, they were very convenient. We mostly drove, since we had rented a car. The place is very well run. The service is excellent.

 

Trip Planning and Lessons Learned

 

We did the trip with caddies for all 5 rounds. There were times where the caddie got on my nerves, gave me "plays like" numbers that F'd me, and neglected to give me adequate information about where balls needed to land coming into the greens. There were also times that the caddie gave me invaluable advice off the tee and coming into the greens. The good and the bad probably cancelled each other out. I ended up just reading my own putts the entire time. His reads were suspect. I could have and could in the future play those courses without a caddie to advise me for sure. That said, I would absolutely do it with caddies again if I'm able to return. Those courses are not easy walks, at all. I think the fatigue from carrying or pushing would put a serious damper on the enjoyment of such a packed itinerary. I stood on the tee of the 36th hole of our last day fully energized to swing away. There's no way I'd have felt that fresh if I was lugging my own crap around for the duration of the trip.

 

I decided to go with the green tees for all rounds, which I think was the right call. If I was out there playing 18 holes a day, I'd play the back tees. For such a packed trip, playing up to the green tees just made it less stressful, and more fun. I made 14 birdies in 5 rounds, and had a lot of missed chances on top of that. I had one or more eagle putts every single round I played, because all but a few 5s were reachable with two well executed shots, and there were a few 4s you could get on from the tee. I honestly don't think it ruined the strategy or intention of the course to play up, either. There were times I could tell that I was blowing it over hazards that were supposed to play, but there were basically always others that would come into play at the range I was hitting it. I didn't find myself in a shortage of fairway bunkers compared to normal home rounds by any means.

 

I think the trip was about the right length. We were supposed to play 36-36-18+Preserve, with travel days on either side. It may have worked out to our advantage to do the 18+Preserve day in the middle of the golf days, as somewhat of a rest between 36 hole days. You could add maybe one more 18 hole round on either end of the trip, but I wouldn't want to do much more. Between the golf, and the travel, it was a really exhausting trip. We landed back home around midnight on the return end of the trip, and I spent pretty much the entire day lounging around feeling wiped out and like my equilibrium was off from the traveling.

 

It was just 2 of us on the trip, which worked out really nicely. It was cool to get paired with and meet different people. The single who was supposed to be with us on our first round at Pacific Dunes didn't show, but another single joined us on the 7th hole. He was on the trip alone, and we found out within a few holes that he was actually going to be paired with us in the afternoon on Bandon Trails. He was such a nice guy, and it was fun to get a second round in together. We played with 2 highly entertaining Canadian guys from Vancouver at Old Macdonald the second morning. The last day, we got paired with a couple buddies from Portland for our morning round at Pacific Dunes. They have been playing at the resort basically since it opened. The one guy was like the Asian Tommy Fleetwood with his hair. My jeally meter was maxed. They were so nice, and we ended up having lunch with them in the bar at Bandon Dunes since we both had afternoon rounds there. We finished the trip playing with a father-son duo that were a pleasure to play with as well. This is not all to say that you shouldn't go with 4 or more buddies. It's more to say that getting a foursome shouldn't be a prerequisite to planning a Bandon trip. We had a phenomenal time with 2 of us, and meeting other people was actually an addition to the experience.

 

I'm glad we played The Preserve, but I do think it's skippable if you're really set on doing 36 every day of a trip. Or if you don't want to spend the 100 bucks on it, you could go over and play Shortys one or more times instead of The Preserve. I think I'd try the latter if I make a return trip.

 

I'm glad we hit the Punchbowl on our first night there as well. It was a welcome introduction to putting on greens unlike anything we see around here. It was fun trying to find ways to use slopes to get putts close. There were a couple times we played holes with "infinity greens" so to speak, and it was hilarious watching balls hit too far run 50 yards clear off to another part of the course. It's something I think you've got to hit at least once, but I wouldn't be sad if I made a return trip and just didn't have time for it. Great way to kill time doing something golfy if you have it, but not a must if you've seen it before.

 

Flying to Eugene was a good call, I think. Since we went at the start of shoulder season, commercial flights into North Bend were either done for the season, or reduced to the point where it wouldn't work for our trip. I don't care how pretty the drive is - there's just no way I'm flying to Portland and then driving 5+ hours. Flying to Eugene proved to be pretty easy, and the 2.5 hour drive couldn't have been any easier. Driving 2.5 hours on highways around here is stressful. Driving 2.5 hours on totally not crowded 2 lane highways in a scenic area was a breeze. I'd do it the same way if I go back, provided I don't hit the lottery and have a private jet to take into North Bend.

 

Final Thoughts

 

Somebody made a comment along the lines of "you end up wanting to go back even more than you wanted to go in the first place" on a picture I posted. That sums it up pretty darn perfectly. Nothing I read about, or looked at remotely prepared me for just how special the experience would be. It was truly the greatest golf experience of my life. It's not easy to find the time, or save the disposable income to get there, but I'd recommend anybody with a passion for this great game do their best to find a way to go. I wish I had been able to go sooner, and I hope I can go many more times before I find myself on the wrong side of the grass. Since I've used every other hyperbole in the book by now, I'll finish with the only one left. Bandon Dunes is magical. Find a way, and go. Don't wait for somebody else to plan it. Don't wait for a big group. Start pinching pennies, and planning now. There is not a chance in hell you'll regret it.

[kamizzou91]

Excellent write-up! My dad and I leave for Bandon in 22 days...

[spud3]

Now that is how you do a trip report.....!

[bird206]

Great post....I'm looking forward to it next year! I'm going by myself, couldn't wait for others who say they wanna go but procrastinate. Thanks for your details.

[BlueCollarKid]

Wow...thanks for the read! Our trip is coming up. Can't wait!

[eboettne]

You made me so jacked up for my 1st trip in 50 days... damn near have goosebumps. Your trip itinerary is almost a carbon copy to mine just about 7 weeks earlier. Fly in with 2 guys on Wed, stay at the lily pond, same courses on every day as you and fly our Sunday. Only difference is we don't currently have caddies but have gone back and forth on maybe getting a caddie for one of the rounds each day. Think that would be a good way to go? Also, if we have a choice of playing The Preserve or Bandon Trails for the 2nd time, which would you recommend?

[FAbb]

You made me so jacked up for my 1st trip in 50 days... damn near have goosebumps. Your trip itinerary is almost a carbon copy to mine just about 7 weeks earlier. Fly in with 2 guys on Wed, stay at the lily pond, same courses on every day as you and fly our Sunday. Only difference is we don't currently have caddies but have gone back and forth on maybe getting a caddie for one of the rounds each day. Think that would be a good way to go? Also, if we have a choice of playing The Preserve or Bandon Trails for the 2nd time, which would you recommend?

 

If the cost isn't a financial hardship, get the caddie. There were times where their advice was invaluable, but more than that it just really saved fatigue.

 

As long as you can handle it physically, I'd go for the replay at Trails over Preserve 100%. Trails was such an excellent course.

 

What's the current itinerary that you're having to consider that replay?

[Lexicographer]

Very good report. "you end up wanting to go back even more than you wanted to go in the first place" That is the essence of it. I wanted to go very badly. Now that I went, I want to go back even more.

[wtoomey]

The idea of wanting/needing to get back is so true. My buddy turned to me on our last day of the trip and said, “We need to make this an annual thing.” My reply was, “I already made the reservation this morning.”

 

We both had a laugh, and that was three years ago. April can’t come soon enough.

[eboettne]

You made me so jacked up for my 1st trip in 50 days... damn near have goosebumps. Your trip itinerary is almost a carbon copy to mine just about 7 weeks earlier. Fly in with 2 guys on Wed, stay at the lily pond, same courses on every day as you and fly our Sunday. Only difference is we don't currently have caddies but have gone back and forth on maybe getting a caddie for one of the rounds each day. Think that would be a good way to go? Also, if we have a choice of playing The Preserve or Bandon Trails for the 2nd time, which would you recommend?

 

If the cost isn't a financial hardship, get the caddie. There were times where their advice was invaluable, but more than that it just really saved fatigue.

 

As long as you can handle it physically, I'd go for the replay at Trails over Preserve 100%. Trails was such an excellent course.

 

What's the current itinerary that you're having to consider that replay?

 

Thursday - Trails, Pacific

Friday - Old Mac, Bandon Dunes

Saturday - Trails, Pacific

 

On Wednesday our first flight leaves at 5AM central time, we have 2 connections, and land in Eugene at 1045AM assuming everything is on time. So we could play Bandon Preserve but currently the latest tee time available is 1PM and there's no way we make that. So if something opens up we'll play Preserve Wed night and not have to worry about subbing our a Trails replay. If we can't get on Preserve that night though I'm considering stopping at Sandpines on the way from Eugene then subbing Preserve for the last round on Saturday. Although I really liked how you did it and put the par 3 on the 2nd day to save your legs a bit. Then could do the same as you and move Bandon to Saturday in place of Trails.

[FAbb]

Thursday - Trails, Pacific

Friday - Old Mac, Bandon Dunes

Saturday - Trails, Pacific

 

On Wednesday our first flight leaves at 5AM central time, we have 2 connections, and land in Eugene at 1045AM assuming everything is on time. So we could play Bandon Preserve but currently the latest tee time available is 1PM and there's no way we make that. So if something opens up we'll play Preserve Wed night and not have to worry about subbing our a Trails replay. If we can't get on Preserve that night though I'm considering stopping at Sandpines on the way from Eugene then subbing Preserve for the last round on Saturday. Although I really liked how you did it and put the par 3 on the 2nd day to save your legs a bit. Then could do the same as you and move Bandon to Saturday in place of Trails.

 

If you can handle going 36 for 3 days in a row, I don't think you'd regret leaving your itinerary as-is, and missing Preserve. I really did enjoy it, particularly being out there in strong wind and rain with the place to ourselves. Mostly it was a good way to take a break during the trip, without feeling like we didn't do enough that day.

 

If you have any doubts about going 36 for 3 days, it might be helpful to get the preserve subbed in to the rotation on the second or third day. The courses are not easy walks, with Trails being the most strenuous walk of the bunch.

[spud3]

If it's your first time, and especially if you are unsure of when you'll return, I'd recommend playing the Preserve. It's a pretty special course, in its own right.

 

Shorty's would be optional, but not the Preserve.

[krtgolfing]

Every time I see a Bandon thread it makes me want to each a little more each time. Pretty sure I would have to go alone which makes things a little easier to go, but won't have any good company.

[spud3]

Every time I see a Bandon thread it makes me want to each a little more each time. Pretty sure I would have to go alone which makes things a little easier to go, but won't have any good company.

 

I can't stress enough that going solo is worth it, in so many ways. I waited for years for my buddies to get it together for a group trip and finally got fed up and went by myself. I am so glad I did.

 

There's lots of threads in the NW forum about going solo, so I won't rehash the reasons here, but there are things you get out of a solo trip that you just can't get with a group.

 

Just go.

[eboettne]

Thursday - Trails, Pacific

Friday - Old Mac, Bandon Dunes

Saturday - Trails, Pacific

 

On Wednesday our first flight leaves at 5AM central time, we have 2 connections, and land in Eugene at 1045AM assuming everything is on time. So we could play Bandon Preserve but currently the latest tee time available is 1PM and there's no way we make that. So if something opens up we'll play Preserve Wed night and not have to worry about subbing our a Trails replay. If we can't get on Preserve that night though I'm considering stopping at Sandpines on the way from Eugene then subbing Preserve for the last round on Saturday. Although I really liked how you did it and put the par 3 on the 2nd day to save your legs a bit. Then could do the same as you and move Bandon to Saturday in place of Trails.

 

If you can handle going 36 for 3 days in a row, I don't think you'd regret leaving your itinerary as-is, and missing Preserve. I really did enjoy it, particularly being out there in strong wind and rain with the place to ourselves. Mostly it was a good way to take a break during the trip, without feeling like we didn't do enough that day.

 

If you have any doubts about going 36 for 3 days, it might be helpful to get the preserve subbed in to the rotation on the second or third day. The courses are not easy walks, with Trails being the most strenuous walk of the bunch.

 

I'm leaning towards doing almost exactly what you did and subbing Preserve in for Bandon and moving Bandon to the last day in place of Trails. I can and usually do walk instead of riding without any problem(carried my own bag at Bethpage in May w/o issue) but honestly 36 for 3 days straight sounds pretty heavy to me.

[FAbb]

Every time I see a Bandon thread it makes me want to each a little more each time. Pretty sure I would have to go alone which makes things a little easier to go, but won't have any good company.

 

I can't stress enough that going solo is worth it, in so many ways. I waited for years for my buddies to get it together for a group trip and finally got fed up and went by myself. I am so glad I did.

 

There's lots of threads in the NW forum about going solo, so I won't rehash the reasons here, but there are things you get out of a solo trip that you just can't get with a group.

 

Just go.

 

Absolutely. I thought meeting and playing with new people was such a cool part of the trip that I didn't even think about going in. We played with seasoned veterans of the resort, and newbies like us. They were all great people, and enjoyable to play with.

[payerasjl]

ahhhh i can taste the chilly.

 

Great writeup, thanks for making me want to go for the 3rd time in 3 years. My wife might kill me, but at least id die in heaven!

[LeftRightLeftRight]

Great report! We leave for Bandon in 17 days. First-timer and beyond excited. We had 8, but two dropped due to season-ending surgeries. Itinerary: Sunday - Old Mac; Monday - Bandon Dunes, then Trails; Tuesday - Pacific Dunes, then Preserve I had planned on a caddie for only Monday's 36. The other guys are open to group caddies, but hadn't planned on it. Any comments on group caddies? Do you need reservations for McKee's? Thanks!

[ebrasmus21]

FAbb -

 

Excellent report. Bandon deserves the hyperbole. It just does. I was there 4 weeks ago and, as you've stated, it was the greatest golfing moment of my life. I really could not have had a better time and I got seriously sad when we had to leave.

[Sushiyoshi]

Amazing TR!

 

I am thinking of going by myself in December if my buddies don't want to go.

[mallrat]

You made me so jacked up for my 1st trip in 50 days... damn near have goosebumps. Your trip itinerary is almost a carbon copy to mine just about 7 weeks earlier. Fly in with 2 guys on Wed, stay at the lily pond, same courses on every day as you and fly our Sunday. Only difference is we don't currently have caddies but have gone back and forth on maybe getting a caddie for one of the rounds each day. Think that would be a good way to go? Also, if we have a choice of playing The Preserve or Bandon Trails for the 2nd time, which would you recommend?

 

If the cost isn't a financial hardship, get the caddie. There were times where their advice was invaluable, but more than that it just really saved fatigue.

 

As long as you can handle it physically, I'd go for the replay at Trails over Preserve 100%. Trails was such an excellent course.

 

What's the current itinerary that you're having to consider that replay?

 

Thursday - Trails, Pacific

Friday - Old Mac, Bandon Dunes

Saturday - Trails, Pacific

 

On Wednesday our first flight leaves at 5AM central time, we have 2 connections, and land in Eugene at 1045AM assuming everything is on time. So we could play Bandon Preserve but currently the latest tee time available is 1PM and there's no way we make that. So if something opens up we'll play Preserve Wed night and not have to worry about subbing our a Trails replay. If we can't get on Preserve that night though I'm considering stopping at Sandpines on the way from Eugene then subbing Preserve for the last round on Saturday. Although I really liked how you did it and put the par 3 on the 2nd day to save your legs a bit. Then could do the same as you and move Bandon to Saturday in place of Trails.

 

I would sub in Preserve on Thursday or Saturday afternoon. Depending on when exactly you go, I would talk to the shop on the day you arrive and do a 6 or 9 hole loop through one of the big courses. I forget what Pacifics is and Bandon is like 9, 20, 15-18 or something

[FAbb]

Amazing TR!

 

I am thinking of going by myself in December if my buddies don't want to go.

 

Thanks.

 

And, do it!

[payerasjl]

Great report! We leave for Bandon in 17 days. First-timer and beyond excited. We had 8, but two dropped due to season-ending surgeries. Itinerary: Sunday - Old Mac; Monday - Bandon Dunes, then Trails; Tuesday - Pacific Dunes, then Preserve I had planned on a caddie for only Monday's 36. The other guys are open to group caddies, but hadn't planned on it. Any comments on group caddies? Do you need reservations for McKee's? Thanks!

 

Ask for Kirin (the irish) or for Gus. Buy Gus a coors or 5 and enjoy your rounds.

[R4haehl]

To the OP - great trip report!! I love following these trip reports, especially first timers. Bandon is truly a magical place and these threads get me through the in between until we go in Feb. I am having beers with a buddy who went last week for his first time to get his trip report lol

 

Great report! We leave for Bandon in 17 days. First-timer and beyond excited. We had 8, but two dropped due to season-ending surgeries. Itinerary: Sunday - Old Mac; Monday - Bandon Dunes, then Trails; Tuesday - Pacific Dunes, then Preserve I had planned on a caddie for only Monday's 36. The other guys are open to group caddies, but hadn't planned on it. Any comments on group caddies? Do you need reservations for McKee's? Thanks!

 

Ask for Kirin (the irish) or for Gus. Buy Gus a coors or 5 and enjoy your rounds.

 

+1 for Kirin (if that is how you spell it) - he is awesome and I think he was quite the stick when he was playing. I want to say he won the Irish Am and also South African Am (could be wrong on that one) in the early 2000s.

Brown Bear is another good one. He has some good stories, definitely enjoys himself out there and will keep it light hearted

[lhahn]

morrrrrrr pics please =)

[Woody79]

I’m heading to Bandon on the 20th and can’t wait. How were the course conditions? Any aerification going on?

[FAbb]

I'm heading to Bandon on the 20th and can't wait. How were the course conditions? Any aerification going on?

 

They aerated the greens at Bandon Dunes during our first full day of golf. They were a bit bumpy because of that, but I suspect you won't even know it was done by the time you get there. You can always call them and ask if any of the other courses are getting done prior to your trip.

 

I thought the conditions were pretty great overall. Pacific had the best conditioned greens. They were fast, and smooth. The greens at Trails had some rough spots, but nothing crazy. I think Bandon's greens will also be excellent, once they're healed up from aeration.

[LeftRightLeftRight]

Great report! We leave for Bandon in 17 days. First-timer and beyond excited. We had 8, but two dropped due to season-ending surgeries. Itinerary: Sunday - Old Mac; Monday - Bandon Dunes, then Trails; Tuesday - Pacific Dunes, then Preserve I had planned on a caddie for only Monday's 36. The other guys are open to group caddies, but hadn't planned on it. Any comments on group caddies? Do you need reservations for McKee's? Thanks!

 

Ask for Kirin (the irish) or for Gus. Buy Gus a coors or 5 and enjoy your rounds.

Thanks!