My Quest to Check Off Golf's Best Experiences

I really enjoyed my day at Eugene Country Club.  It has a really casual Pacific Northwest feel, with no stodginess or arrogance to it.  I couldn't have felt more welcome as a visitor, and everyone did their best to make sure I enjoyed my experience...which I surely did.  The course is pretty much all right in front of you, and very scoreable if you have good control of your ball.  However, if you stray off line a bit, the trees will certainly make things difficult.  With that said, I didn't get the claustrophobic feeling that some people talk of from PNW courses like Sahalee.  The trees are there to get you if you spray it, but the corridors were wide enough to reward a well struck shot and enable some shaping.  I can't wait to see the college kids take on Eugene in 2016.  Thanks to all who had a part in my great day at Eugene!

#18, Par 4, 414 Yards


There isn't a great deal to this hole--just long and straight.  Spencer Butte is visible beyond the hole, which is a cool feature.  Long is a dangerous miss and the green is large and a difficult two-putt.  Two bunkers flank either side of this green.  

#17, Par 4, 331 Yards


Another tall cedar with a nickname.  In this case, it's "Olajuwon" who stands on the right side of the hole, ready to reject any shot that heads down the right side.  Apparently some of the older members call the tree "Kareem" for the same reason.  If you can navigate it through the "big man," the hole is pretty easy, and is a chance to get a good number on the card before a tougher 18th.

#16, Par 5, 474 Yards


A good reachable par 5 that presents challenge in the landing area in the form of many uneven lies.  A pond sits to the right of the green, though a shot has to be a good amount wayward to bring it into play.  However, if your drive ends up with an awkward lie, that pond might be in your head, making a lay-up a safer play.  This green is 42 yards deep, the largest on the course, and plays well to a long approach shot with a fairway wood or long iron.

#15, Par 4, 385 Yards


Probably the toughest hole on the back side, if not the entire course.  The driving area is pretty tight, and trying to cut the dogleg is something that only the longest and best hitters should consider.  From the white tees, it's about 260 yards through the fairway before the dogleg to the left.  Around the green, there is a closely mown collection area to the right of the green that makes for tricky up-and-downs.

#14, Par 4, 367 Yards


A fade off of the cedar tree known as "Marge" is the play on this one.  The tree carries that nickname because of its resemblance to the hair of a certain Marge Simpson.  From there, it's a pretty open shot into a relatively good-sized green for a hole of this length.

#13, Par 5, 518 Yards


This one is a par 5 that plays essentially straight away.  Keeping it in the short grass makes it a definite birdie possibility, though a well-placed strategic bunker sits right in front and center, ready to catch a tweener lay-up or a go-for-it that ends up a little short.  Strangely, this is the last hole on the course with a fairway bunker.

#12, Par 3, 168 Yards


This is the last one-shotter on the course, so take advantage of your opportunity to make a good score with one good swing from the tee.  A pond must be carried to get to the green.  Two bunkers guard the rear.  The hole doesn't have the same look as the first two par 3's, but again, a pond short and bunkers long.  They're not bad holes, but again, I would have preferred a bit more design variety on the short ones.

#11, Par 4, 362 Yards


The 11th was a fun little hole.  Play it out to the top of the hill to have a view into the green, which plays downhill and over a pond that runs in front of the right half of the green.  A driver might not be the play from the tee as placement is more important.  The pond is not visible from most parts of the hole, but don't forget that it's there.

#10, Par 4, 383 Yards


Both nines at Eugene begin and end at the clubhouse, so after a chance to take a short break and grab a drink or snack (apple trees on either side of the 9th are a nice snack too!), it's time to head back out and face a straight-forward par 4.  Fairway bunkers flank the fairway on the left on this one, with greenside bunkers on either side.  A drive down the right presents the ideal angle into the green.

#9, Par 4, 392 Yards


A challenging longish par 4 that plays back to the clubhouse ends the opening nine.  The hole bends to the right (which always fits my eye), and plays to one of the largest greens on the front nine.  The fairway bunker on the left protects the preferred side of the fairway and the better angle into the green.  With that said, the day I played, the pin was back left, so a shot on the right half was just fine.  

#8, Par 5, 471 Yards


Bending the opposite direction from the prior par 5 6th, the 8th plays to the left and a fairway bunker on the outside elbow.  For the tournaments this club hosts, this hole typically converts to a par 4, which ups the course to a par 71.

#7, Par 3, 140 Yards


Another good par 3, but my only complaint is that it's way too similar to the 5th hole.  Both are similar distances, play over water and are framed with three bunkers in the rear.  They're not identical, and the greens are definitely different, but they're just a little too close to each other for my taste.  With that said, this is an interesting green with a valley in the middle and higher tiers on the right and left of the green.  So, rather than picking the right distance (which is still important), hitting to the proper directional target is more important to ensure a makeable birdie putt.

View looking back from the green up the hill to the fairway

#6, Par 5, 515 Yards


The first three-shotter at Eugene is a near 90 degree turn to the right after the drive, with a downhill second shot.  For a big hitter, hitting the green in two is conceivable with a good drive, but the green is something of a peninsula with water on three sides, making a long shot into the green a dangerous one.  Keeping two shots in play and coming in with a wedge is a much safer play, and probably the better way to make birdie for most players.  This is the number 1 handicap hole.

#5, Par 3, 155 Yards


The fifth is a really good looking hole that plays downhill and into the prevailing wind.  It typically plays pretty true to the yardage due to these two factors cancelling each other out.  The shallow green of only 22 yards has three bunkers behind it and a pond short and runs back to front.  The back bunkers present a really tough recovery shot.

#4, Par 4, 390 Yards


This one is relatively long, straight, and one of the more difficult holes on the front side.  The fairway widens past the bunker on the right side, so if you have the yardage to carry it, do so.  From there, it's another undulating green with three bunkers surrounding it.

#3, Par 4, 373 Yards


Bending to the left, don't try to cut the corner as bunkers guard the inside elbow of the dogleg.  A draw is the ideal play off the tee to keep your ball in the fairway.

#2, Par 3, 200 Yards


There are four par 3's at Eugene, and this is the only one without water on it.  However, what it lacks in penalty stroke hazards, it makes up for in distance and difficulty.  A pin on the right side of the green is especially difficult given the bunker placement around the green.  We had an easier pin position the day I played, but the hole is still tough, with a green that's only 24 yards deep.

Looking from the 1st green back to the clubhouse.  This would have been the look of the original 18th hole.

#1, Par 4, 380 Yards


As will be the case throughout the day, keeping drives straight off the tee and avoiding the dense rough and tall trees is key to quality scoring at Eugene.  The first hole has fairway bunkers on either side and tall trees outside of them.  Any shot down the middle will provide a good approach on this straight-away hole with bunkers flanking either side of the green.  Keep it straight and you can get off to a good start.  Stray off the tee, and a par can become tricky.

Since this is a golf blog, I'll get back on point.  After driving through campus, I pulled into Eugene CC and my five day golf trip had officially begun.  I checked in with the professional staff, who couldn't have been more welcoming.  I had a personal tour of the clubhouse from the head pro, who told me about the club's history and walked me through some of the pictures and artifacts in the clubhouse.


Eugene was one of the first golf clubs in the Western United States, being initially formed in 1899.  However, it wasn't until 1926 that the club moved to its current location, and opened an 18-hole course designed by H. Chandler Egan.  Egan, an amateur player of note, and native of the Pacific Northwest designed over a dozen course in the region, but Eugene is probably his most acclaimed design.  He is also known to have assisted Alister MacKenzie with a renovation of Pebble Beach in 1929.  The head pro said it's thought that he actually helped MacKenzie with parts of Augusta National as well, though he hasn't been given credit.  I obviously can't confirm or deny that one!  While Egan routed the original course, what you see today is more the works of Robert Trent Jones Sr, who completed an incredibly bold renovation in 1967.  The renovation consisted of a complete reversal of the course golf--that is to say, the 18th green became the 1st tee, and the routing continued it's play, in reverse, with tees becoming greens and vice versa.  The logic was that the ponds were by tees and would be more effective if located around greens.  Playing the golf course today, it's hard to comprehend that it used to play backwards.  I can't imagine being an older member who has seen the course play both ways.  


Over the years, Eugene has served as host to numerous amateur and professional golf championships, including the NCAA Championships, USGA Junior Amateur, Women's Mid-Amateur, Men's Mid-Amateur, Women's Amateur, and Pacific Coast Amateur.  In, 2016, the club will host its third NCAA Championship for both women and men, which will be shown on Golf Channel.  Casey Martin, and his brother are notable members, and Casey's University of Oregon golf team calls the club home.


The course, as it stands today, includes 66 bunkers, and upwards of 1,500 trees with about 100 varieties.  Douglas Firs are among the most prevalent, with some climbing to 200 feet tall.  The bunkering is awesome, with interesting shaping, peaks, and valleys.  From the Championship tees, the course plays to 7,020 yards and a par of 72 with a rating / slope of 74.0 / 135.  There is a Blue tee that plays one notch in front of that and 6,854 yards, but being a guest of the club and being a little rusty in March, I thought the White Tees would be appropriate.  The Whites played to 6,418 yards and a rating / slope of 71.2 / 129.  I'll quote those below:

I'm not sure how many instances there are where I can pinpoint my interest in a course to a single day.  However, in the case of Eugene Country Club, that is definitely the case.  Aside from seeing the course on various national rankings through the years, Eugene entered my radar on September 8, 2007.  It was this day that the Oregon Ducks football team played a game in Ann Arbor against the University of Michigan.  For football historians, this was the Saturday after Appalachian State's infamous upset over Michigan.  There were three Oregon Duck fans who were guests at our tailgate in Ann Arbor that day, and after they blew out Michigan by a score of 39-7 that afternoon, I had little interest in discussing football after the game; the conversation turned to golf!  These guys came from Eugene to watch their ducks play, and upon learning of my interest in golf, starting talking about the famous Bandon Dunes Resort, and the fact that I needed to make the trip.  However, they stressed, a trip to Oregon wouldn't be complete by simply playing the Bandon courses (there were only three at the time, with Bandon Trails still being fairly new).  They said traveling to Oregon and not checking out Eugene CC would give any trip a grade of "incomplete."  So, I filed this one in the section of my brain that is filled with useful and useless golf information.  


In 2015, when the opportunity finally came to make the pilgrimage to Bandon, Eugene immediately came to mind as a critical addition to the trip.  Even before securing a tee time at the private club, I reserved my flight with an extra day of golf at Eugene in mind.  When the plans all came together, and I was assured of a spot on the first tee, I was giddy.  Not only would my first trip to Oregon include the famed Bandon Four, but Oregon's #1 private club as well.


My trip to the Beaver state began with a flight from Detroit, through Minneapolis, to Portland.  There are multiple opinions on where to fly when playing Bandon (Portland, Eugene, or North Bend).  I picked Portland due to cost, more flight options, and the ability to check out Pumpkin Ridge on the back-end of the trip.  So, I stayed in Portland upon arrival on a Wednesday night, and made the drive of about 80 minutes from Wilsonville to Eugene on Thursday morning.  As an aside, there is no way I was going to be in Eugene and not check out Oregon's famed football facilities, with Phil Knight's checkbook being it's backbone.  It happened to be Oregon and Marcus Mariotta's "Pro Day" the day I was there, so there was plenty of activity, and enough going on that nobody was worried about a guy in golf clothes wandering around taking pictures with his jaw on the ground. 

Eugene Country Club

Eugene, Oregon


http://www.eugenecountryclub.com/


Checked off the Bucket List March 12, 2015


Golf Digest:

#5, Best in the State of Oregon (2015-2016)