Off-Season Seattle Area Courses

[evanm]

No, the season is not over yet! but just wanted to get this thread rolling with suggestions on courses to play in the wetter months. I'm mainly focusing on the affordable courses here. To get the ball rolling here, I think West Seattle is a so-so course but in the winter is amazing. I think the course is better in the winter than the summer actually. Please give your recommendations here.

[robeans]

Do you read golfchops.com? They do great course reviews, most of which are done in the early spring so you can tell which courses play better wet.

Home Course is awesome in the winter, but far and a little pricey.

[wkuo3]

Actually, depending on the the weather, West Seattle could be a muddy golf course in the Winter, especially #1 fairway, #12 in the dip, and some of the side hill fairways in the back nine.
Willows Run used to be a dry Winter golf course but in recent years the sanding did not keep up with the maintenance and it does not drain well like it used to be.
Jefferson Park drains better than the West Seattle in the Winter for around the Metro area.

Most of the golf courses will be muddy if the rain persist more than a few days. Key is the drainage, if you look in your own back yard and see sitting water and muddy condition, so will the golf courses.

[evanm]

Thanks for the replies. I'll check that site out! Of course, if we get persistent rain, any course around here will be muddy. But some courses continue to stay muddy all the way until summer. I only play when we get a few dry days in a row and that's when I noticed West Seattle to look good, but maybe I just got lucky, and I could imagine Jefferson staying a bit drier.

[DeNinny]

+1 for Home Course. I thought their rates were fair. I've played it a couple of times in typical NW rain and it's fine in the winter. Plus just a great course all around. I'm from Portland and it's as good as any of the best winter courses down here.

On the side to avoid, I would say Druid's Glen. I remember boggy sections of it that would swallow your ball or it would be sitting in standing water. I've only played it once though and it was a steady rain all day.

[Ben Tang]

+1 for Jefferson Park. Also, Jackson always seemed to be decent when I've played there in the rain.

[bogeycentral]

Played Salish Cliffs a couple days ago which did not drain well at all. How about White Horse in the winter? I would imagine it would drain fairly well as it typically is hard as a rock out there. I typically go down to the Home Course for winter golf, but going to take this winter off from golfing.

[evanm]

Just played Auburn yesterday, wasn't bad at all. Greens were solid and only the 1st and 10th fairways just beyond the tee box were a little swampy. I was expecting much worse then again it hasn't rained that much the last couple days.

[twixster888]

Here are my top 5 best wet golf course to play within Puget Sound:

1) Chambers Bay .......first course i think of when i want to play after heavy rainfall.....but then i think about the price.
2) Classic ...........The Moore's have did a great job in making the course dryer than before. drains real well.
3) Lipoma Firs .......this course is dry but the rock dents on forged clubs makes it risky business.
4) Gold Mountain ......usually the course i like to go when showers are in the forecast
5) Washington National .......they use to be sloppy muddy wet but i can see they made some improvements with lots of sanding on fairways. Pricey place though.

[Dr. Shankenstein]

Great thread OP! I think Chambers is a given and have not seen HC yet but I think after the above mentioned posts, I'll give it a shot. I have had luck with Jefferson Park and Wa Nat'l. Both drains fairly well.

[TheMackDaddy]

Chambers, Gold Mountain (both Olympic and cascade), as well as the home course and white horse are all nice to play in wet weather.

Everything else seems to be hit and miss, especially even the best of the private clubs.

[SPY ZINGER]

I always thought NewCastle drained well in the winter when I lived there.

[SeattleLefty]

Hands down Chambers and The Home Course.

[TMBob]

[quote name='SeattleLefty' timestamp='1354085824' post='5988335']
Hands down Chambers and The Home Course.
[/quote]


Yep, those two are sooo much different then what we see up here. They are by far the best and you can count on roll ou and clean pants.

They were some comments about Jefferson.....I play there and have for sometime now. Jefferson is never to bad BUT, without a sanding program in place, it is getting worse every year. Good luck finding any good grass to place the ball on as the worm castings are so bad because of the lack of sanding. This is why it is getting worse and worse as time goes on and It will be a Mud Bog soon.

We use to play Cap City back in the days to find a dry course...been a long time since then with many new courses like HC and CB that have opened.

Someone mentioned WH and I think that should be good also. Mt. Si should be another bad for people on the East Side. Always dry down there. Last, Maplewood has done quite a bit of work with sanding and the troubled backside has improved over the past 5 years. One might be surprised after a trip down that way.

[TMBob]

[quote name='SPY ZINGER' timestamp='1353768001' post='5972401']
I always thought NewCastle drained well in the winter when I lived there.
[/quote]

I hit balls there all the time, but do not play there. I saw a huge sanding project there last month and I have seen this for about the past 3 years which should make it much better.

Like many of the newer courses around here, they start out good but after time seem to change. Wa. Nat. is a example of this. So different then 6 years ago now, greens and fairways.

[theD1]

Headed out to Seattle mid-January to visit family and was thinking of taking advantage of Chambers Bay winter rates. Any thoughts on what kind of course conditions to expect assuming the weather is decent (big assumption, I know).

[kenwiggins11]

My favorite is Chambers at times can be clear but have a good wind blowing. I would still play it. I like Gold Mountain #2 playing pretty firm and #3 the Home Course.

[mctrees02]

[quote name='theD1' timestamp='1356315996' post='6109955']
Headed out to Seattle mid-January to visit family and was thinking of taking advantage of Chambers Bay winter rates. Any thoughts on what kind of course conditions to expect assuming the weather is decent (big assumption, I know).
[/quote]When are you going? I'm going up to Seattle on Jan 11/12 and hoping the weather is good enough for a round or two at Chambers Bay. Unfortunately they won't let me book a single and can only join on w/ a booked tee time (of which the first one is at 10:30AM right now).

[parpar41]

White Horse GC has a new website It says they are open for play 364 days a year; only close for Christmas day. I hope that means it is a good Winter course.

[Dr. Shankenstein]

If you are in Western WA, Chambers bay is a good bet. Everything drains well and should be a great experience, fairways and greens should be in great shape. Of course wind/rain/cold can also be in play but that just adds to the allure. I have not seen HomeCourse yet but I hear that its a off season sure thing as well.
Have fun on your trip!

[mctrees02]

Forecast for this week is showing rain for Monday-Wednesday in Seattle. Thursday and Friday look to be clear as of now. Would Chambers Bay be in good, playable condition by Friday if the forecast holds? I also have all of Saturday available but it looks like showers might be back in town then. Thanks!

[TMBob]

I have not been down that way for sometime now, but I have played a large amount of my rounds there in Jan. and Feb. and it was never an issue for me in the past. I am talking the ground condition of course....always firm, plenty of roll and no mud.

Looking at the forecast, the main concern would be a possible frost delay. Once past that, it looks good! I would look at a 9:30-10:00 tee time....if there is a delay, you will still get in 18 is my guess.

I would be very open minded when it comes to the greens there and the condition of them. If you think that you are coming to this pristine future US Open course, you will be unhappy. If you want to take in a different type of golf with your eyes spending just as much time looking at what is around you then what is in front of you, then you will enjoy it.

Drop the 58 or higher wedges from the bag and lighten your load....it's a good walk.

[mctrees02]

Thanks Bob. My plane lands at SEA at 10AM on Friday so I'm going to shoot for a noon-ish tee time. Tee sheet looks pretty open as of now so I'm optimistic that a 4 1/2 round shouldn't be a problem.

Now I just have to figure out what to do in Seattle on Saturday since I don't fly out until late Saturday night. Looking forward to my first trip up to the area.

[Dr. Shankenstein]

If you can tee off before noon, that would be your best bet. It gets pretty dark here at around 4:30. Despite it's yardage, this course plays pretty long and hilly. You could probably knock it down in 4 hours if you are in pretty good shape, keep it in the fairway and play by yourself.
Have fun!!!

[FlyFish]

I played Legion Memorial recently (for the first time) and the drainage there seemed superior - I didn't get any plugged balls. The course isn't that difficult, but conditioning was good.

[TMBob]

[quote name='FlyFish' timestamp='1358055153' post='6218609']
I played Legion Memorial recently (for the first time) and the drainage there seemed superior - I didn't get any plugged balls. The course isn't that difficult, but conditioning was good.
[/quote]

Good to now

[Dr. Shankenstein]

[quote name='TMBob' timestamp='1358055730' post='6218641']
[quote name='FlyFish' timestamp='1358055153' post='6218609']
I played Legion Memorial recently (for the first time) and the drainage there seemed superior - I didn't get any plugged balls. The course isn't that difficult, but conditioning was good.
[/quote]

Good to now
[/quote]
that is good to know. However with the ground frozen solid like it has been the last couple of days, no one is plugging anything. You should get that nice summer time roll out.

[Ben Tang]

Played Newcastle and Jefferson the past two weeks and both played fine. Lucked out with nice weather both times though.

[theonlybfc]

I joined the Everett golf and country club after many winters of playing golf there since its the only place I could play that I never got muddy. I've never had a ball plug there. I've only on one occasion even seen standing water and that was after a week of downpour and playing during the downpour. I have always been impressed with the draining there. if anyone wants to come and play I have no problem getting you on as my guest, granted you pay your green fee. Just thought I would give the invitation out there.

[TMBob]

[quote name='Ben Tang' timestamp='1360784341' post='6422079']
Played Newcastle and Jefferson the past two weeks and both played fine. Lucked out with nice weather both times though.
[/quote]

Jefferson has no fairways...just worm pop