Course Source: Bali Hai is worth trip to Vegas

IN THE PUBLIC EYE: Bali Hai Golf Club, Las Vegas (By Derek Harper)

THE LAYOUT: From the well-appointed rooms at Mandalay Bay, the only championship course located right on the Las Vegas Strip is hard to miss, a lush tropical paradise in the middle of the desert that you can literally carry your clubs to.

Located on the south end of the Strip, Bali Hai Golf Club embodies the adult playground that is Las Vegas. From the South Pacific theme to the "ParMate" caddies available to shepherd golfers around the course, there is an undeniable upscale but laidback vibe from the time you arrive at the Polynesian hut that doubles as the starter's shack.

But don't be mistaken: Bali Hai packs a very serious and thoroughly enjoyable golf experience.

The Lee Schmidt/Brian Curley-designed course opened in 2000 with seven acres of water features, white sand bunkers and thousands of palm trees -- not to mention one-of-a-kind views of the strip as you traverse the beautiful layout.

At 6,601 yards (70.2/125) from the gold tees and 7,002 (73.0/130) from the tips, Bali Hai isn't dauntingly long on the scorecard. But it's deceptive in that five of the par-4 holes play between 440 and 466 yards, and if the winds pick up, as they're known to do, many holes are a long iron or hybrid away even with a corked drive.

Bottom line, Bali Hai is a unique luxury resort style experience. You can be wayward with your tee shot on most holes and still find grass, but multiple bunkers dot every hole, elevation changes make club selection important and water comes significantly into play on eight holes.

GENERAL MANAGER: Butch Fogler

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE: One of Bali Hai's best assets is the variety. No two holes feel the same, and the par 3s are especially memorable. The 164-yard ninth is a true challenge if the pin is tucked on the left side, forcing a full carry over water, with sand over the back. The 165-yard 11th often features a two-club headwind, and the 224-yard 14th is a bear despite playing downhill.

Like most courses, the par-5s are the scoring holes. The best designed is the 527-yard 15th: "Mandalea" is a dogleg left that is reachable in two and features one of the best views of the strip.

Forecaddies are complimentary, with a $50-per-bag tip the norm. They're not necessary as long as you have a rangefinder or GPS -- it is a fairly straightforward resort course -- but local knowledge is handy on several of the more difficult par 4s.

With deep, hard white sand bunkers protecting virtually every green and several long irons required, potential blowup holes litter Bali Hai if you leave yourself short-sided in a head-high trap.

Don't get lulled to sleep by your first sweeping view of Mandalay Bay on the tee box at No. 8. At 464 yards, it's the second longest par 4 on the course and is the No. 1 handicap hole despite playing downwind.

"Upaway" also serves its name justice -- the 458-yard par-4 13th plays back into the wind and is difficult for many average handicappers to reach in two.

Most will point to the par-3 16th as the signature hole, and it's hard to argue with the 123-yard island green with the restaurant as the backdrop that is also featured in the popular "World Golf Tour" video game. But the truth is Bali Hai has several memorable holes, including the par-3 sixth, where I carded my first hole-in-one.

The back nine ratchets up the difficulty level with four of the most difficult holes lying in wait on the final third of the course, highlighted by a score-busting 1-2 punch to close.

The par-4 17th is aptly named "Ambush" and plays 456 yards from the gold tees. The ambush can come in the form of the wind, which can stretch this into a hole requiring a pair of Nick Faldo-esque "career" shots for a birdie look. Most likely, the third shot will come with a wedge in your hands trying to navigate the tiered green to salvage a decent par putt.

Survive that and you're treated to arguably the best designed hole on the course. The closing 18th, "Kuda Bay," plays 466 yards from the golds. Palm trees protect the left side and a bunker 285 yards out on the right side is eminently reachable downhill and downwind. It's also the equivalent of jail when you consider trying to carry all water to the green.

Even a straight drive leaves an approach shot into a small green surrounded 300 degrees by sand, which is in turn protected by water. Considering the typically hard and fast greens found in Vegas, anything more than a short iron is nearly impossible to hold the green, and we watched more than one group hack their way back and forth from sand to sand.

OTHER COURSES IN THE AREA: Walters Golf has three outstanding and unique golf courses in Las Vegas. Royal Links is 10 miles from the strip and is a tribute to some of the most iconic links holes from around the world. Desert Pines is a Dye-designed resort-style course also a short drive from the Strip.

Rees Jones designed two gems, Rio Secco in Henderson and Cascata, about 30 minutes outside of the city featuring a 418-foot waterfall.

TPC Las Vegas has been the site of PGA and Champions Tour events, while Las Vegas National is close to the strip and offers little trouble off the tee for golfers looking for a less stressful experience.

WHERE TO STAY: If you're in town for multiple rounds, stay at one of the hotels affiliated with Walters Golf, including Aria, MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, Luxor and the Stratosphere. Numerous stay-and-play packages are available along with discounts for playing multiple Walters Golf courses and very good replay rates. The staff is very accommodating in arranging additional tee times at any of the three courses.

On the web: http://www.waltersgolf.com., http://www.balihaigolfclub.com.

THE LAST RESORT: Ranch Course at the Alisal in Solvang, Calif. (By Tom LaMarre)

THE LAYOUT: Noted designer William F. Bell crafted a classic resort course through the trees in a rustic valley on the outskirts of Solvang in 1955, and Steve Halsey upgraded the layout in 1991.

The course, which plays to a par of 72, stretches to 6,551 yards from the back tees with a USGA rating of 72.0 and a slope of 133.

The narrow fairways are lined by mature oaks and sycamores, with deer and other wildlife often seen on the course.

Al Geiberger, a native Californian who played at USC and was the first player in PGA Tour history to shoot 59, holds the course record of 65 on the Ranch Course at the Alisal.

DIRECTOR OF GOLF: Dave Hartley.

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE: Even though the fairways are narrow in places, this is an ideal resort course because what you see is what you get -- there are no tricks to the course.

There are several elevated tees on the Ranch Course, which is lined by oaks and sycamores, and the Santa Ynez River runs along the West border of the course, which is traversed several times by Alisal Creek before it meets the river.

Every hole is a picture postcard, but none more than the 161-yard sixth. The tee shot from the top of a hill must carry the creek to a green 50 feet below that is heavily bunkered on the left. Pause for a moment to appreciate the view of Solvang and the Santa Ynez Valley.

The eighth is a demanding 416-yard par 4, the most difficult hole on the course. A barranca that bisects the fairway 236 yards from the elevated tee is reachable with a big drive. Once on the fairway, the approach shot must be hit with a fairway wood or long iron to a small green that is only 15 yards wide and is protected by traps right and left.

There are some interesting quirks to the course, which includes three par 3s, three par 4s and three par 5s on the front nine. Both nines open with a par 5 and close with a par 3 -- but the 208-yard ninth and the 201-yard 18th are anything but easy.

Players coming down the stretch with a good score must first get past the 420-yard 17th, a daunting par 4 that requires a tee shot to the right of the fairway short of a barranca in order to see the green on the big dogleg left.

Anything to left makes it virtually impossible to go for the green and probably means a lay-up short of the barranca.

Get past No. 17 and you still have the ticklish 18th to deal with.

OTHER COURSES IN THE AREA: Right down the street from the Ranch Course is its sister course, the public River Course at the Alisal, which plays through a wide-open meadow.

La Purisima Golf Course a few miles down the road in Lompoc is one of the best public courses in Southern California, having played host to the PGA Tour Qualifying School and U.S. Open qualifying.

Also nearby are some other outstanding courses -- Black Lake Golf Resort in Nipomo, Avila Beach Golf Club, Marshalla Ranch Golf Course at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Cypress Ridge Golf Club in Arroyo Grande and Rancho Maria Golf Course in Santa Maria.

Only 40 minutes away are several more top-shelf courses in Santa Barbara, including Rancho San Marcos Golf Club, Glen Annie Golf Club, Santa Barbara Golf Club and acclaimed Sandpiper Golf Course, which is known as the "Pebble Beach of Southern California."

WHERE TO STAY: The Ranch Course can only be played by club members and guests at the Alisal Guest Ranch, which was founded in 1946 and became a hideaway for Hollywood icons such as Doris Day and Clark Gable, who married Lady Silvia in the old library on the grounds.

In addition to golf, the 10,000-acre Alisal Guest Ranch offers tennis, horseback riding, biking, swimming and hiking, plus boating and fishing on Alisal Lake. There are nature walks and bird watching on the property, which borders the Ronald Reagan Ranch that served as the Western White House during Reagan's presidency.

Solvang, an authentic Scandinavian village founded by Danish settlers in 1911, is one of the top tourist sites in California. Of course, the Spanish padres arrived much earlier, in 1804, and founded Mission Santa Ynez.

The town features several themed hotels, including the Royal Scandinavian Inn, the Best Western King Frederik Motel, the Best Western Kronberg Inn and Svendsgaard's Danish Lodge.

Also close is the Best Western Pea Soup Andersen's Motel in Buellton.

ON THE WEB: www.alisal.com.