Bandon Dunes Trip Report (4/5/13-4/9/13)

[lowndes]

Well, just made it back from my first trip to Bandon and below is a report of the trip. Me and a buddy did one of the packages that was $1190 and included 4 nights in a Chrome Lake Double room, 4 rounds of golf, 4 breakfasts and 3 dinners. Thought it was an exceptional deal. We played at least 36 a day and the replay rate was $85. One day we played 54 with the third 18 free and the other we played 14 holes at Preserve also free. This made for 10 rounds of golf plus one on the Preserve.

 

Below is a brief summary and the day by day breakdown is below that.

 

Summary

 

First off this place is spectacular. Best place I've ever played and every employee I met was amazingly friendly. We were astonished by how great everybody who worked there was. I'll start by saying that I was skeptical on how much we would enjoy playing with a caddie, etc. However, our caddies were amazing and we used them for six rounds and they really made the trip special. They were great golfers so it was almost like getting a playing lesson out there at times (I was trying to learn as much as I could from my caddie), really interesting people to talk to, cared about our matches, etc. My caddie was clubbing me after 9 holes and I don't remember being misclubbed or misdirected once. Also, these guys are great at reading greens. I had Ciarian who was from Ireland and my buddy had David Hill. Highly recommend requesting these guys and they are a huge reason we are looking forward to returning next year. If I had to choose between more golf with no caddie or less with a great caddy like these guys I would choose the caddy. Me and my buddy both feel this way and neither of us had ever really enjoyed having a caddy before.

 

My favorite courses were

 

1. Bandon Dunes

2. Bandon Trails (I actually thought this was the most beautiful of the courses)

3. Pacific Dunes

4. Old Macdonald

 

Next year we will play 10 rounds again with 3 on BD, 3 on BT and 2 on PD and OM.

 

Bandon Preserve is a lot of fun but I would always choose one of the big 4 over it if that was the decision. Recommend playing it as one of your third rounds so it is free. $100 is a little steep for a par 3 course.

 

These courses call for all the shots one has to use at home plus a lot more ground game shots. I still used my 54 and 58 degree a lot but also did a lot of 7 iron bump and rus and 60 yard putts. The courses really allow you to be creative around the greens. I didn't find hitting off the really tight lies to be that much more difficult.

 

Ended up with having 6 of my lowest rounds ever here (80, 80, 82, 82, 82, 82). Really thought I was going to break 80 for the first time (especially on that last round of Pacific) but just couldn't get it done. Had five nine hole scores in the thirties though when previously I had only done it twice in my life. I couldnt have picked a better spot to play the way I did though (I'm a 12 handicap). Really made it extra special.

 

My biggest complaint is slow play. Some groups out there just really don't care and take their time. We had a 3 hour back nine on Old Mac one day and 2.5 hour back nine on trails on another. We were first off every day and would finish that round in around 3 hours. Next round was anywhere from 4:00 to 5 hours depending on who we go stuck behind.

 

Other tips

 

Ship clubs as it was so easy

Be careful not to eat too much as it makes the next day a bit painful

Ecco Streets are amazing

Gold Bond Medicated Powder does wonders

Don't need many golf balls

FJ Performance Sweater worked perfectly

 

Day by Day breakdown

 

August 5th

 

Flew into North Bend and was greeted by not great weather. Took a towncar from the airport to Bandon for $125 round trip. Highly recommend that route as it was pretty affordable and really comfortable. Check-in was a breeze. We elected to ship our clubs and they were waiting in our room when we got there. Accommodations were great. Really spacious room with a fireplace, nice tv, comfy beds and good bathrooms. Couldn't have asked for much more.

 

We immediately changed and went out to the practice center to hit some balls and loosen up as we had a 3:00 p.m. tee time on Pacific Dunes. The practice center is amazing. Absolutely massive. We spent very little time there though during the trip. Maybe 15 minutes today and 10 minutes at most before our morning rounds. Could definitely have enjoyed a lot more time there though but we came to Bandon to play golf and not just hit balls.

 

At 3:00 p.m. we teed off on Pacific Dunes in the cold, rainy and windy conditions. I've never played golf in anything like this before. The wind really exposes all of your faults and I'm not a long hitter by any means and have quite a bit of trouble controlling my trajectory. A lot of my shots would go up and then completely balloon and go sideways with the wind. My buddy is a really good golfer and he even was having trouble getting adjusted to the wind. The other issue was the winds were opposite of what the course was designed for. The short holes played incredibly short and the long holes super long (for example, I pretty much drove the green on number 1 but on 18 had driver, 3 wood, 3 wood, 9 iron to reach the green). Overall an amazing course although very tough and penal. I ended up with a 97 and my buddy had an 85, however, we were playing match play and ended up all square after round one.

 

Ended the day by going to Mckees pub for some meatloaf which was really good. Too tired to make it to the Bunker Bar (which is the story of every night as we never made it down there).

 

August 6th

 

We had a 7:00 am tee time on Bandon Dunes so just went to the lodge for the breakfast buffett and practiced putting a bit before teeing off. Also, met our caddies who were awesome and added to the experience more than I could imagine. Cirian was my caddie and David Hill was my buddies. As a twosome this was the only round where we were paired up with another group. This turned out to be my favorite course on the property. Absolutely beautiful and I found it much more playable as a 12 handicap. Your misses aren't penalized quite as severely around the greens as at Pacific. Played a little better but not much as I ended with a 89 and my buddy had a 78. Match was still all square.

 

Had lunch and then went out on Old Macdonald (by ourselves without caddies) which was a really fun course. Just allows you to hit shots that I've never even imagined before. Also, the scale of the course is really amazing. It's just beautiful. My buddy was pounding me this round as he was 5 up after 5 and ended up beating me 5 up. Story of this round though was after our 1:21 minute front nine we ran into the slowest golfers I've ever played behind and had a 3 hour back nine. Bandon does a really good job in helping with slow play as much as possible but there is only so much that can be done. They made the group causing the backup have a caddie and blocked off the six times after that group and the marshalls explained the situation to us. Speaking of the marshalls every single one of them was great. When we didn't have caddies they would give us great information about the holes and were just a really friendly bunch. Anyways to sum up this was a fun course but I would rank it fourth on my list. I ended up with a 92 to my buddies 79. My buddy is now one up in the match.

 

Saturday evening we played the Preserve which is a super fun track. Could spend a whole day out there. We played 14 holes so we could get 50 in and winner of previous hole selected the tees. There is just 3 or 4 different tee boxes and you can choose whichever one you want to tee off from on each hole. I won this match 2 up to bring everything back to all square.

 

Saturday night we ate dinner at Pacific Dunes grill and it was alright. Not my favorite though.

 

April 7th

 

Today was forecasted to be really nasty. Nothing but cold, super wet and very windy. We teed off at Pacific Dunes at 7 am in those conditions and I was playing awful. Just struggled to swing with all the gear I was wearing. It even started hailing on us at around the 11th hole. Then out comes the sunshine for the first time on the trip on the 13th. Rest of the day was pretty nice until the last 4 or 5 holes in the afternoon. Once I was able to remove some layers I started hitting the ball pretty good. I shot an 89 and won this round on the last hole when my buddy got into trouble on the 18th. I was now 1 up in the match.

 

In the afternoon the fun really started for me. The sun was out when we teed off on Bandon Trails which would be my second favorite course. I started hitting the ball beautifully and shot only my third round ever in the thirties for nine holes. Ended the front with a 38 and was still two over through 10. On 11 we had about a 20 minute wait to tee off as we ran into a really slow group again. I couldn't get the thoughts of breaking 80 for the first time out of my head and proceeded to slice my tee shot way out of play. Ended up with a triple on the hole. Played great coming in though through some nasty conditions on the last few holes and shot an 82 which is my lowest round of my life. Really excited about that. Easily won the match to go two up.

 

Our bodies were telling us to take a break and we wanted to have energy for Monday and Tuesday so we just had lunch at Bandon Trails and then went and hung out in the room for rest of evening.

 

April 8th

 

This morning we played Old Macdonald and had another great time and I had another round of my life. I went out in 37 for my lowest nine ever and finished with an 80. So close to breaking 80 for the first time but really struggled with the distance on on putts. Had 5 three putts from within 30 feet which killed my chance for the 70s. No complaints though. My buddy played really well to and we halved this match. Still two up.

 

Afternoon was a picture perfect day on Bandon Dunes. I went out in 39 for another round in the thirties but again couldn't keep it together in the second. Highlight of the round (and trip) though was my buddy driving the green on 16 with a 3 wood and draining the putt for an eagle. He ended up shooting a 74 to my 82 to win this match. Back to 1 up.

 

Ended the day on Old Mac where I had another good round shooting 82. We didn't count this towards our match. We used pull carts for this round though which I hated. I find it much easier to just carry.

 

April 9th

 

Final day at Bandon and it was a beautiful one. Sunny and high 50s. Pretty calm in the morning but the winds really picked up in he afternoon. We started the day on Bandon Trails My buddy got off to a hot start and was -3 under after 4 holes but had trouble on number 8 again and finished with a 72. Still his best round in a decade though. I also was playing great still and shot another 82. A triple on 17 killed me as I was out of position and got an awful lie and was going back and forth over the green. Buddy won the match and brought it back to me being 1 up for the match with one round to go.

 

Final round was on Pacific Dunes and it was a great way to end. I was playing great golf and even had back to back birdies for the first time in my life. Chipped in on number 10 and hit it to about two feet on number 11 and made the putt. Back nine was tough though as the wind really picked up. Coming in to 18 all I had to do was make a bogey for my first round in the 70s (didn't know this at the time). Hit a great 3 wood, followed by a perfect 5 iron to leave myself an easy 54 degree into the green and then could even 3 putt for the 79. Well I was aiming left and pushed the 54 degree quite a bit and there is a deep bunker in front of green on right. My ball made it past the bunker and I thought it would kick forward and I'd get lucky and have a pretty easy birdie putt. No such luck. Ball just sat there for what seemed like an eternity and then slowly trickled back into bunker. Problem was it entered with such little speed I had to get up super fast which I didn't do and it took me two shots to just get out. Two putted to finish with a double bogey and an 80. Really disappointed as it would have been amazing to break 80 for the first time on Pacific Dunes. Nonetheless I played the best golf of my life and had a wonderful time.

[KPH808]

Great write up, BD is on my bucket list. Let's see some pics of the views.

[Chris_NH]

Sounds like you had an amazing trip! And great playing, too. I had to laugh about the comment where you were too tired to make it to the Bunker Bar, as the same thing happened to us.

What were the green speeds like on the courses? I'm curious if my experience about a week earlier than yours was the norm or not.

[lowndes]

I'll try to add some pictures soon but honestly didn't take a ton. Tried to leave phone in room to not get distracted with work for most rounds.

Chris, green speeds were slower than I suspected. Hardest thing was adjusting to the different speeds on the different courses. I thought Trails had the best greens followed by Bandon. Pacific and Old Mac were about the same with Pacifics being the slowest. Apparently they were trying to use kale (or something from the ocean can't remember the name) to fertilize the greens on Old Mac and because of dry conditions it didn't really dissolve like they thought. Didn't really bother me though.

[johnnylongball]

Great write up. Can I ask which service you used to ship clubs? I've never done that but am considering it for later this year.

[lowndes]

We used ship sticks which was fine. It cost us $65 to ship one way. They use UPS and I'm not really sure what extra service they provided other than it being super simple. Clubs were picked up at our house and arrived in great condition. We both used soft sided Tour Trek bags to ship the clubs in.

Coming home we just carried the clubs with us in case we wanted up play golf this weekend and it wouldn't be a big deal if our clubs got delayed. I've heard that they sometimes can't fit all the golf clubs on the plane and they get delivered later. We didn't want to have to worry about this on our way up.

[Mr22putt]

Lowndes
Thx for your detailed report.
Congrats for a 12 cap.....you shot 80-82 in tough conditions and an unfamiliar course.
Seems like Chris_NH really scored big time with his weather....I live in the PNW and that was a 10/10 and unexpected great weather for a week.
That's a heck of a lot of golf for 4 days.....good for you.

Did you arranged your $1190 pkg with Bandon?
I did a quick ala carte calculation and did a very conservative cost on breakfast/dinner and came out with $1400.

Hit em straight.

[TheCityGame]

Nice report. Thanks for sharing.

What is this $1190 package? When I was putting my trip together (it's next year), I just booked rooms and made times. I didn't see anything about a package.

[lowndes]

Thanks guys and yes I was very pleased with the way I played. Don't want to read to much in too a few rounds but hoping my Slicefixer swing changes are really starting to take hold. As far as the package goes it is only available between November and April or so ( I believe this is the last weekend they offer it for the season).

Basically, we booked this time last year and since they don't know the rates yet you book ala cart and just have a deposit of one night accommodation to make your tee times and hold the reservation. Then before 3 weeks out you need to call and get it folded into the package. If you call reservations they can explain the whole thing for you.

As far as food goes it is a really solid deal. Breakfast Buffett is $15 so that is just sixty but tax and gratuity is included in the voucher they give you. The dinner voucher includes a salad and entree with no limit on what you can order. I had a salad and steak one night that would have been over $50 if paid for. This also included tax and tip.

I'll also point out that if you go in mid February the same package is like $800. We went at the most expensive time they were offering these off season packages.

[Chris_NH]

[quote name='lowndes' timestamp='1365697197' post='6810639']
Basically, we booked this time last year and since they don't know the rates yet you book ala cart and just have a deposit of one night accommodation to make your tee times and hold the reservation. Then before 3 weeks out you need to call and get it folded into the package. If you call reservations they can explain the whole thing for you.

I'll also point out that if you go in mid February the same package is like $800. We went at the most expensive time they were offering these off season packages.
[/quote]

Interesting to hear about the package, because I looked into one extensively. We were considering the 3-night package.

The price was $840 and included 3 nights in Lily Pond, 3 rounds, 3 breakfasts and 2 dinners. The room/golf equated to $690, which meant the package was $150 for 3 breakfasts and 2 dinners. I think that's pretty close to a "push" as far as value. In fact, I priced it out a few times and I called back reservations to ask if I was missing anything, since it didn't appear that we were really saving much (or anything) by adopting the package. She agreed, and said that some people just prefer to be on a package. I think I called probably 3 times to clarify, and got the same math each time.

It's interesting that yours not only worked out differently, but that you were able to do it with Chrome Lake (we were told it could only be done with Lily Pond or the doubles in the Lodge). I'll have to make sure to ask again when we book for next year.

On edit: I wonder if there's a significant difference in the pricing/value of 3-night versus 4-night packages. Good excuse for a longer trip :-)

Second edit: you got an outstanding value. Look at the per/night cost of my package quote versus yours, then factor in the fact that mine was during March and yours during (the more expensive) April - you guys got a GREAT deal.

[lowndes]

Separately it would have been (per person):

$640 for lodging (doesn't include tax)
$660 for golf (doesn't include tax)
That is $1300 so just a $100 savings but the breakfasts buffett was worth about $75 and the dinner vouchers about $150. All told about a $325 savings.

Guess it wasn't really as big of a savings as I thought.

Also, I checked out various rooms at the lodge and inn as we might come with a bigger group next year but I thought the Chrome Lake Double was the most comfortable there. They were great.

[Mr22putt]

Lowndes
Ya I got the same math as you......don't forget there are add'l savings on top cause tax and tip are included in the food element.
I estimate you saved approx 20% which is a huge savings considering Bandon has no 'real' competition and can use a quasi 'price what the market will bear' strategy.

Or you can look at the $325+ savings as 2 rounds or golf or 3 caddies.

Ya Chrome seems like good value in comparison to others.
But for me.....I not overly choosy on accommodations when I vacation as a spend so little time in the room....I just need a clean room, bed, bathroom, TV and hot shower and I'm good.

Now if it's a nice romantic stay over with the wife or GF....different story....thru my experience....the nicer the room...the better what is reciprocated from the wife...LOL.

[lowndes]

[quote name='Mr22putt' timestamp='1365701211' post='6811269']
Lowndes
Ya I got the same math as you......don't forget there are add'l savings on top cause tax and tip are included in the food element.
I estimate you saved approx 20% which is a huge savings considering Bandon has no 'real' competition and can use a quasi 'price what the market will bear' strategy.

Or you can look at the $325+ savings as 2 rounds or golf or 3 caddies.

Ya Chrome seems like good value in comparison to others.
But for me.....I not overly choosy on accommodations when I vacation as a spend so little time in the room....I just need a clean room, bed, bathroom, TV and hot shower and I'm good.

Now if it's a nice romantic stay over with the wife or GF....different story....thru my experience....the nicer the room...the better what is reciprocated from the wife...LOL.
[/quote]

Yeah for sure, savings pretty much paid for the replays which came to $330 for the 4 days ($85 a round). I'm the same way as you but having that room where you could open up the huge doors at night and feel like you were sleeping by a lake in the woods was pretty nice. Not to mention the big tub to soak sore muscles and feet in at the end of the day. All the rooms looked comfortable though.

[gambit]

Great review Lowndes, really great review. Bandon is on my short list of must play places.

Just two things:
1. The wind and rain are your friends. How and why? Because they give you an excuse for hitting a bad shot, and anything good is miraculous.
2. Did your buddy square everything up or did you win 2 up?

[lowndes]

Number 1 is a great point and I won 2 up. I won 5 up on the last match. You've got to make it out there. I booked the trip for next year this afternoon.

[2putttom]

We fertilize with kelp.

[lowndes]

[quote name='2putttom' timestamp='1365723462' post='6814583']
We fertilize with kelp.
[/quote]

Haha, that's what it was. I knew it couldn't have been kale but couldn't remember what we were told it was.

[jchungum]

lowndes...we were at Bandon at the same time. My group ended up playing 15 holes at BD on the 7th, 36 holes (PD, OM) + Preserve on the 8th, and 45 holes (BD, BT, 9 at PD) on the 9th. I agree with a lot of what you said, but my course favorites were different than yours:

1. Pacific Dunes
2. Bandon Trails (Agree that this is the most beautiful course. If it were possible to have trees, hills, and elevation with more water views, I bet this would be the favorite)
3. Bandon Dunes
4. Old Macdonald

I was not impressed with OM, and we actually met the designer Jim Urbina at one of the bars before we played it.

Some points of agreement:
- Yes on caddies for at least one round a day if you are playing multiple rounds per day. They were great, and took a load off. A few guys in my group used the carts, but I carried in the afternoon and used Tobey as my caddie in the mornings. Great guy, played golf all his life, read greens great! One other guy in my group did the same thing as me, and had Kelly. Another great guy, good at clubbing, good at reading greens. If you can afford it, get a caddie.
- Gold Bond is a must!
- You don't need many golf balls if you are a decent player. I brought 2 dozen ProV1s. I lost three balls total for six rounds (lost one at Preserve goofing around).
- The staff, employee, starters, rangers, caddies, servers, front desk people...EVERYONE is extremely nice and helpful. Crazy how nice these people were!

Difference of opinion:
- I thought the greens at Bandon were painfully slow. Surprised you thought Pacific was slow.
- Pace of play was very good for me. We didn't even get close to a 4+ hour round. Every one of our rounds were just under 4 or at 4 hours. Nobody in front of us, nobody behind us. We played two threesomes and never had anyone waiting on us, we barely saw any other players.

I'm already ready for Bandon 2014 next March. Great write up.

[gambit]

What is this Gold Bond medicated powder? Also, with the wetness, how do you guys maintain a good grip...Tommy 2 glove it?

Lowndes - congrats on the win! I'm planning a trip for next year...April the best time or closer to summer?

[kidcardio]

OP,
Thanks for sharing. I was there the first week of April in 2011. Truly a magical place for golf die-hards. Although my buddy recently went to Pebble for a few days and he was absolutely raving about it. Can't go wrong with either one if you get the chance, IMO.

[lowndes]

[quote name='jchungum' timestamp='1365780541' post='6819503']
lowndes...we were at Bandon at the same time. My group ended up playing 15 holes at BD on the 7th, 36 holes (PD, OM) + Preserve on the 8th, and 45 holes (BD, BT, 9 at PD) on the 9th. I agree with a lot of what you said, but my course favorites were different than yours:

1. Pacific Dunes
2. Bandon Trails (Agree that this is the most beautiful course. If it were possible to have trees, hills, and elevation with more water views, I bet this would be the favorite)
3. Bandon Dunes
4. Old Macdonald

I was not impressed with OM, and we actually met the designer Jim Urbina at one of the bars before we played it.

Some points of agreement:
- Yes on caddies for at least one round a day if you are playing multiple rounds per day. They were great, and took a load off. A few guys in my group used the carts, but I carried in the afternoon and used Tobey as my caddie in the mornings. Great guy, played golf all his life, read greens great! One other guy in my group did the same thing as me, and had Kelly. Another great guy, good at clubbing, good at reading greens. If you can afford it, get a caddie.
- Gold Bond is a must!
- You don't need many golf balls if you are a decent player. I brought 2 dozen ProV1s. I lost three balls total for six rounds (lost one at Preserve goofing around).
- The staff, employee, starters, rangers, caddies, servers, front desk people...EVERYONE is extremely nice and helpful. Crazy how nice these people were!

Difference of opinion:
- I thought the greens at Bandon were painfully slow. Surprised you thought Pacific was slow.
- Pace of play was very good for me. We didn't even get close to a 4+ hour round. Every one of our rounds were just under 4 or at 4 hours. Nobody in front of us, nobody behind us. We played two threesomes and never had anyone waiting on us, we barely saw any other players.

I'm already ready for Bandon 2014 next March. Great write up.
[/quote]

Wish we were playing behind you guys! I think there were just two larger groups and one in particular that had the reputation of being really slow as they were highlighted on the tee sheet and everybody knew who they were,

Jealous that you got to talk to Urbina as I heard he was a great guy. When we were teeing off on Pac Dunes for our last round he was out there with Keiser and a bunch of others walking the new putting course.

I actually have the same feelings on Old Mac. It was the course I was most looking forward to and just didn't love it. We only have it on the schedule for one round next year. Probably add it as our third round in the day though to play it twice.

[quote name='gambit' timestamp='1365785556' post='6820247']
What is this Gold Bond medicated powder? Also, with the wetness, how do you guys maintain a good grip...Tommy 2 glove it?

Lowndes - congrats on the win! I'm planning a trip for next year...April the best time or closer to summer?
[/quote]

Gold Bond medicated powder prevents and helps heal chafing. That stuff is incredible. After a lot of walking you can gt sore pretty easily and this stuff solves that.

Thanks for the congrats! We picked April because it was a little cheaper than the peak times of May to October. I think you are more likely to have better weather in the summer but my buddie and I talked about it and are sticking with April. You still have a decent shot at great weather but the resort is much less crowded which allows more flexibility in moving tee times around, etc. Also, it was nice having my own caddie and in the summer they pretty much all double bag from what I'm told.

[gambit]

Awesome. My birthday is in the beginning of April anyways so I can make it a gift to myself. If we're there at the same time I hope I'm behind you guys. I'm trying to knock out a round in 3 hours. Hit the john. Grab a bite. Get back out and do it again.

[swizbeatz]

Never been but it sounds like an awesome experience, thanks for taking the time to do a write-up and congrats on all the good rounds you had!

[jchungum]

[quote name='lowndes' timestamp='1365786486' post='6820397']
Jealous that you got to talk to Urbina as I heard he was a great guy. When we were teeing off on Pac Dunes for our last round he was out there with Keiser and a bunch of others walking the new putting course.
[/quote]

On our round at Bandon Trails, one guy had to catch a plane. So we were down to five dudes. We asked to play a fivesome, and we were told absolutely not, even though there was only one group behind us. The group behind us happened to be someone "important". I looked at the tee sheet with the starter, and he mentioned that it was an investor with Keiser. No other names were on the tee sheet, and it was blocked off and highlighted. The starter mentioned that Keiser might be in that group, because "no details were given on who else was playing".