Badlands Golf Club

Las Vegas, Nevada

Badlands Golf Club is target golf at its finest. This Johnny Miller design is not so much about distance as it is about accuracy. With its diminutive greens and forced carries, Badlands is a great test of golf for die-hards and rookies alike. Badlands Golf Club is now the only golf course in Vegas with air-conditioned golf carts, this Troon Golf facility is a must-play for any golfer who wants a healthy challenge. Another improvement to the Badlands Golf Club, a new clubhouse, will have a greater capacity for large golf groups and golf tournaments. Earlier this year Badlands Golf Course hosted the Southwestern Golf Association tournament on June 12th in its 91st year, an event older than the US Open.

Steve Moore, Marketing Director at Badlands Golf Course, says that this golf course is not the typical desert track. "People are accustomed to coming to Las Vegas and getting a links style course or a resort course, which is not what we are. We are a target course." In explaining the difference, Moore says,it's definitely not one of those courses that is going to beat you up yardage wise, where you've got to drive 300 yards. It's a golf course where you have to think yourself around the hole. And that sets us apart. - Here you have three nines to choose from - the two Johnny Miller nines, Desperado and Diablo; and the Outlaw, designed by Chi Chi Rodriguez.

Prior to the recent Troon Management takeover of Badlands Golf Course, there was GPS on all the carts. The system was less than helpful, however, because it gave the yardages without taking into account the forced carries and desert areas. Yardage books now serve as the replacement to the GPS system. The books give yardages in different areas of the fairway, green, and desert areas, helping the golfer factor the desert into how they play each hole. Moore remarks that this huge investment on the part of Troon Golf has made a great difference in play. Along with the yardage books, Troon has added tee markers at every tee box that indicate how far the carries are, the distance to the desert, etc.

As far as improvements to the golf course go, Troon has much more in store for Badlands Golf Course than just yardage books. Now available at Badlands Golf Course are the aforementioned air-conditioned golf carts. After trying them out for a few years in Arizona, Troon will now be introducing them to the Las Vegas valley. They should be in play by the end of summer 2006. Moore says that after using these golf carts, "you don't want to go back!" As well as the new carts, Badlands Golf Course will have a new clubhouse within the next year.

"If you play Johnny Miller golf courses, you're going to realize that this is quite different from the rest of his golf courses. We have a lot of ravines, a lot of forced carries. The greens are very small, very undulated, so your second shot into the green is as important as the shot off the tee." Moore's description is nowhere more evident than on the number 15 Diablo. Head pro Jeff Quentin says that it's easily the most talked-about hole at the facility. It's a high elevated tee to an island fairway with the second shot to a virtual island green. The green is hidden from the tee boxes on this par four, making for an exciting hole. According to Moore, it's not easy, but it's something you won't soon forget. You won't forget a Johnny Miller design."

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