LANE COUNTY GOLF GUIDE

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By Jim Gullo, for Oregon.com
 
With a landscape that stretches from the sea to the coastal mountains to the broad plains of the southern Willamette Valley, Lane County offers a lot of variety for golfers. Pick your favorite kind of golf course layout – seaside, sandy, park-like, forest – and you’ll find it within a short drive. And for equipment needs, Eugene boasts one of the finest golf outfitters in the country. Check out these great courses when you’re stocked up and ready to hit the links
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EMERALD VALLEY GOLF CLUB
833301 Dale Kuni Rd., Creswell, OR; 541-895-2174
            Considered “one of the best public golf courses in the state,” according to Larry Koets, a manager at the nearby Fiddlers Green pro shop, Emerald Valley is also a tree-lover’s paradise. Tall, mature pine trees, maples, cottonwoods and oaks line the fairways and – in the case of a sturdy oak guarding the dogleg on the 12th fairway – snatch balls from the air. Big hitters love the hefty, 7,148-yard layout that offers up a 610-yard par 5 on the 13th hole, and then follows it with one of the brawniest par-4s in the state: 453 yards, water in two places and a well-guarded, elevated green. Bring your sand game, too: The bunkers are deep, nasty and plentiful.
 
FIDDLER’S GREEN GOLF CENTER
91292 Highway 99 N; Eugene, OR; 800-548-5500
            Getting outfitted is the main focus of this complex near the Eugene airport that boasts the largest on-course pro shop in the country. Players come here for everything from new sets of clubs, custom fitting and great deals on balls to full lines of golf apparel and weather gear. Lessons are available, too. Clubs can be tested on the driving range or on the delightful, 18-hole executive course, a short course where only one hole measures over 200 yards. Great for family and beginner play, accuracy is a must, especially on the front nine, where water comes into play on every hole. 
 
OCEAN DUNES GOLF LINKS
3345 Munsel Lake Rd., Florence, OR; 800-468-4833
            Architect William Robinson was inspired by the links courses of Scotland when he designed this rolling layout on the coast. Sand dunes, pot bunkers and small, protected greens all deliver the links effect, and one must consider the prevailing winds on every shot. Course knowledge is a must: The 363-yard 10th hole, for example, is protected by a tall dune that blocks views of the green from drives that land on the right side of the fairway. The best advice is to keep it low and rolling, laddie, to have the best chance for a good score on this atmospheric course.
 
TOKATEE GOLF CLUB
54947 McKenzie Highway, Blue River, OR; 800-452-6376
             Golfers love to walk this Ted Robinson-designed course in the McKenzie River Valley: The views of the Three Sisters mountains, forests and streams are stunning. Hundreds of trees frame fairways and greens, and Robinson’s signature use of water comes heavily into play on the back nine. Holes like the 16th, a 534-yard par-5, provide a true challenge, as the fairway is bisected by a stream, the approach must avoid a lake on the left side, and the green is guarded on one side by a deep bunker and on the other by tall trees. 
 
RIVERRIDGE GOLF COURSE
3800 N. Delta Hwy., Eugene, OR; 541-345-9160
            The Willamette River provides the inspiration for this 18-hole layout in north Eugene. At 6,256 yards, the course has plenty of golf packed into its 107 gently rolling acres, but the emphasis isn’t so much on power as it is on shot-making and good course management. The 394-yard third hole plays alongside the river, and is followed by a 174-yard par-3 that puts a lake between tee and green. Birdies of the avian variety are commonly seen here: The course is an Audubon sanctuary, with over 120 species of trees among the 1,200 planted. Two shorter, par-3 courses are also available for families and kids.
 
(photos courtesy of travellanecounty.org)