Bandon Dunes Trip Report and Review

schneidm10 · April 27, 2019

I’m finally doing a write up about my trips to Bandon now that I’ve played all of the courses. My first trip was in late November as a final hurrah before my daughter was born. With the limited daylight, I was only able to play a round per day and thus missed on playing Old Mac. Thankfully, my in laws live less than a couple of hours east so it’s easy for me to make a day trip and I did so on Good Friday and was able to play Old Mac. Have been really lucky to have great weather both trips with minimal rain and little wind. Here are my thoughts:

Courses (reviewed in favorite to least favorite):

Pacific Dunes

Have been able to play this course twice now and it’s definitely my favorite course. While the greens are difficult to read, I enjoy the different shots that are required at this course. I’m fond of courses that require you to use all clubs in your bag and I like that this course gives you options in terms of being aggressive vs playing to certain yardages. Plus, you can’t beat the views at 4,10,11, and 13.

Bandon Trails

Was lucky to play this course with a fellow WRX’er (mallrat) and I’d label this course “sneaky good.” This was also my first taste of Bandon when I arrived in November. I feel like you least expect to like this course initially because it’s inland, but I think this difference vs the other 3 is what makes it so great. The routing gives you the ability to feel like you are the only group on the course. It has a great mix of holes in terms of short 4’s, long and short 3’s and good par 5’s. Unfortunately, the greens were in the worst shape but it’s relative as they are still good.

Old Mac

Skipped this course on my first trip as I felt I would like this course the least but it’s almost a tie between Trails and Old Mac for my second favorite. It’s cool to play replicas of some of the iconic holes and I think that it has some great “Wow” holes. Only downside for me is that I feel like every hole is Driver off the tee, which to me isn’t as exciting (see why I like Pacific). But the greens are tough, and second shots require you to use the slopes and be precise which was great. For me, definitely the most difficult course but somehow managed to score the best there.

Bandon Dunes

Being the least favorite is a relative term. This is still an awesome course. It has the iconic Bandon holes that you can’t beat (4,5 and 16). For me, I felt like the middle of the course is a little blah in terms of holes. Greens to me were definitely the easiest to putt but still challenging. You can’t beat the view coming around the corner to your second shot at 4 and playing 16 is magical (helps when you make birdie too!).

Overall thoughts

This was an awesome experience and Bandon makes you want to get back as soon as you can. The courses, conditions, and views are all amazing. I think the best advice I can give as I’ve mentioned in other threads is to play your game and don’t psych yourself out. If you feel you have to change your game too much, I feel you’ll end up playing worse. To prepare best for Bandon, I recommend practicing a ton of lag putting focusing on speed and being as confident as you can in your short game. I consider myself a good chipper and I still use my 60 degree wedge mostly around the green and do just fine. Prepare to not only be physically tired but mentally tired as well because the courses require you to grind.

Food/Lodging

We stayed in the Lily Pond and it was great. Nice to have the extra space for all of your gear and a good lounge area. Would definitely recommend it. The food was decent. My wife and I’s favorite was lunch at Pacific as we left. The food may not blow you away but it’s adequate for sure. I would like to go more into Bandon next time I go, although per Mallrat’s suggestion, Bandon Brewing was great in town. Given how crowded it’s getting, I think they could go for another restaurant. Doesn’t need to be anything fancy, maybe Italian or Mexican.

This is an awesome experience that I recommend to everyone and I can’t wait to go back. Everyone is a golf nut like you there and everyone I’ve encountered is really friendly. I haven’t taken a caddy but had one in my group at Old Mac and I’d recommend him right away (Nick G.). If you’re debating about going, find a way and go, even if it’s by yourself. My wife came the first time and she is not a golfer but still enjoyed the walking trails and beauty of the property. So you have no excuses not to go! Hope to see some of you out there in the future and thanks for reading!