Granulated Black Slag at Old Works This is Part 3 of my series covering the 2013 Summer Trip. On Monday, July 8, I left the hotel just before sun up as I had the first tee time at Old Works Golf Club in Anaconda, MT. Anaconda is about a 25 mile drive to the west from Butte. Old Works was rated 84th on the 2006 Golf Magazine list and it was one of my favorite courses on the trip.
Old Works is a “black sands” course, built on an old copper mine and funded by millions of federal government Super Fund money--your tax dollars at work! Jack Nicklaus decided to use leftover granulated black slag as his bunker material. I had only seen this one other time in my various travels at Hawktree Golf Club in Bismarck, ND. A sign just before the first tee provided a bit of history about the course.
Old Works is a “black sands” course, built on an old copper mine and funded by millions of federal government Super Fund money--your tax dollars at work! Jack Nicklaus decided to use leftover granulated black slag as his bunker material. I had only seen this one other time in my various travels at Hawktree Golf Club in Bismarck, ND. A sign just before the first tee provided a bit of history about the course.
The Par 3 7th Hole at Old Works As one gazes out at the course, customary light-hued bunkers are replaced by the nearly black bunkers at Old Works.
It was at Old Works that I encountered one of my only glitches on the trip. Our threesome got stuck behind the grounds crew. The superintendent began on the practice green and then proceeded to fertilize every green from one to eighteen in front of us. He easily could have started at eighteen and worked backwards and we would only have waited one time. So what could have been a three hour round turned into almost a four hour round. The superintendent apparently didn’t care that one of us faced a 390 mile drive through Missoula, MT and the back range of the Rockies in Idaho for a 5:00 tee time at Osprey Meadows Golf Club near McCall, ID. Of course, he didn’t know. So I didn’t leave the property until nearly 11:00 A.M. Running into the ground crew is one of the issues associated with scoring the first tee time. And I am certain they like it less than I do.
Remember in an earlier post when I wrote about trip planning? For a 390 mile drive, Yahoo Maps will not show the hairpin curves and elevation changes. Not all 390 mile drives are equivalent. Obviously. This 390 mile drive took a little over six hours due to the winding, mountainous terrain and back roads of Idaho.
To make a long story short, I missed my 5:00 P.M. tee time by five minutes--a first in all the golf trips I have ever taken. This did not prove to be an issue as the course was nearly empty. I never waited on a single shot!
Osprey Meadows is rated 32nd on Golf Digest's “America’s Greatest Public Golf Courses” 2013 list and was rated 79th on the 2010 Golf Magazine list. The course has a bit of elevation change with a beautiful backdrop of water and mountains. The temperature was in the low 80’s and for me, it was a relaxing, leisurely round. Lack of course knowledge hurt me a bit here as did some road weariness and I did not score well.
It was at Old Works that I encountered one of my only glitches on the trip. Our threesome got stuck behind the grounds crew. The superintendent began on the practice green and then proceeded to fertilize every green from one to eighteen in front of us. He easily could have started at eighteen and worked backwards and we would only have waited one time. So what could have been a three hour round turned into almost a four hour round. The superintendent apparently didn’t care that one of us faced a 390 mile drive through Missoula, MT and the back range of the Rockies in Idaho for a 5:00 tee time at Osprey Meadows Golf Club near McCall, ID. Of course, he didn’t know. So I didn’t leave the property until nearly 11:00 A.M. Running into the ground crew is one of the issues associated with scoring the first tee time. And I am certain they like it less than I do.
Remember in an earlier post when I wrote about trip planning? For a 390 mile drive, Yahoo Maps will not show the hairpin curves and elevation changes. Not all 390 mile drives are equivalent. Obviously. This 390 mile drive took a little over six hours due to the winding, mountainous terrain and back roads of Idaho.
To make a long story short, I missed my 5:00 P.M. tee time by five minutes--a first in all the golf trips I have ever taken. This did not prove to be an issue as the course was nearly empty. I never waited on a single shot!
Osprey Meadows is rated 32nd on Golf Digest's “America’s Greatest Public Golf Courses” 2013 list and was rated 79th on the 2010 Golf Magazine list. The course has a bit of elevation change with a beautiful backdrop of water and mountains. The temperature was in the low 80’s and for me, it was a relaxing, leisurely round. Lack of course knowledge hurt me a bit here as did some road weariness and I did not score well.
A Gorgeous Backdrop at Osprey Meadows I was off the course before 8:00 P.M. and after a beautiful 110 mile drive that included a stretch through Hell’s Canyon at sunset, settled into my hotel in Grangeville, ID. What a grueling day! Up at 5:30 A.M., 18 holes of golf, a 390 mile white knuckle drive, 18 more holes of golf, 110 miles on back roads, and finally to bed at 11:00 P.M. Quite possibly, the most ambitious day of any golf trip I’ve made.
Now on Pacific Standard Time, I left the hotel at 5:00 A.M. Tuesday morning on my way to a 9:00 A.M. tee time at Circling Raven in Worley, ID. Circling Raven is rated 90th on Golf Magazine's 2012 list and is 96th on Golf Digest’s current list. Although I had the first tee time, the starter wanted to move me back to 9:20 to join a twosome. Since this was my only scheduled round of the day, I readily agreed. Bill was from Nebraska and Bob was from Maine and both were golfers staying at the Circling Raven casino. While a pretty, well-manicured course, I wasn't fond of the group of par 3’s. All had elevated tees with a forced carry to an undulating green. And from the tees I played, were each 185 to 205 yards.
Now on Pacific Standard Time, I left the hotel at 5:00 A.M. Tuesday morning on my way to a 9:00 A.M. tee time at Circling Raven in Worley, ID. Circling Raven is rated 90th on Golf Magazine's 2012 list and is 96th on Golf Digest’s current list. Although I had the first tee time, the starter wanted to move me back to 9:20 to join a twosome. Since this was my only scheduled round of the day, I readily agreed. Bill was from Nebraska and Bob was from Maine and both were golfers staying at the Circling Raven casino. While a pretty, well-manicured course, I wasn't fond of the group of par 3’s. All had elevated tees with a forced carry to an undulating green. And from the tees I played, were each 185 to 205 yards.
The Par 4 8th Hole at Circling Raven But Circling Raven had a VERY cool driving range. I especially liked the target about 150 yards out.
The Driving Range at Circling Raven I left Worley, ID and began the 360 mile, six hour drive to Bremerton, WA on Puget Sound. I encountered my first real traffic on this leg of the trip as I drove through Tacoma, WA. Some sort of event at the Tacoma Dome caused bumper-to-bumper traffic for more than an hour. After a car wash and a gas fill-up, I reached my hotel and settled down for the night.
NEXT: Summer Trip 2013: Washington
NEXT: Summer Trip 2013: Washington
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