Black Butte

[ThermalDan]

We’re discussing taking our 32 man tournament to Black Butte next year.  We’ve got handicaps between 3 and 27.  I haven’t been there in 10 years (it was post renovation).  Anyone play there lately?  Thoughts on the courses?  I hardly remember anything about them.  Hoping my guys that are a little more erratic off the tee won’t be hitting out sideways from behind trees too much?  Thanks for any feedback.

[Jeff58]

I live in the area and played both courses last month. Current conditions are excellent, as they almost always are. This is a fair review -

 

https://www.thehackersparadise.com/forum/index.php?threads/course-review-black-butte-ranch-glaze-meadow.87133/

 

I would add that the cost of golf at BB is substantially lower than the standard alternatives in Central Oregon, while the quality of play and course conditions is similar to the best. IMO it’s an excellent choice in most regards. 
 

As far as high-capper compatibility, it’s not good. On both courses, almost every hole has unimproved woodlands and/or water and/or deep grass immediately off the second cut. Many times, a lack of direction results in lost balls and slow play rather than chipping back into play. The BB website has flyover vids for both courses that adequately portray the courses.

[puttnforthe8]

Yeah...I would say 15+ HCs will have a tough time.   Seen a lot of woodsmen lately. 🙂

 

I would consider other options like Sunriver or Redmond courses.

[spud3]

Eagle Crest courses are much milder, and they have the full resort amenities/lodging options.  It's also not far away from Black Butte if some of your better players want to make the trip there.

 

Plus, they have a great short course for the evening fun.

 

 

Edited August 14, 2023 by spud3

[doc52]

Played both courses a couple of weeks ago. They were meh. I had a morning round at Glaze and they had the sprinklers going on most of the holes with no staff to turn them off. Hitting into greens with sprinklers on is pretty entertaining...

[503Mike]

Between the 2 courses, Big feels slightly more "open" to me than Glaze. I think the trees are larger and more spaced on Big, so while sideways off the tee is never ideal at either course, it's slightly less penal at Big in my opinion. I have a work foursome that drives over and plays every spring when the courses first open, handicaps range from 12-22 and we have a great time every time.

[kaschreiber]

We finished our fall trip there two years ago - played Tetherow, both Pronghorn courses, and Juniper all agreed Glaze was a hidden gem. Echo what everyone else says here about the higher handicaps potentially having a hard time off the tee but don't think it's absolutely unplayable. I was pretty erratic off the tee (9 hc) and was still able to punch, if not advance the ball on any wayward tee shot. Either way, was a really cool facility. Not sure it would warrant multiple rounds on both courses. We snagged an airbnb in Bend (it's amazing how many massive houses you can find for a reasonable price) and never had more than a 20 minute drive to the courses listed earlier, Black Butte was ~50 mins. My guess is finding a 32 person house would be difficult, but finding 2 houses near each other seems feasible. Our preference on these trips is to always find a house unless going to a resort - Bandon, Pinehurst - where that proves more difficult. It's nice to have a communal area to all spend time together in the evening and most hotel / condos just don't lend themselves to that nearly as easily.  

[ThermalDan]

Just finished a four round, 32 man tournament at Black Butte.  The group loved it.  Had a couple guys shoot career rounds (one of them was a 20 handicap)!  Front 9 on Glaze and the Back 10 on Big Meadow would be an epic course (long cart ride between 9s, but no judgement).   Very playable/enjoyable for all skill levels.  Greens on Glaze have a lot of tilt, so don't be above the hole.  I would complain about the round taking a little longer than I would have preferred, but it was probably due to my group, darn it, just don't know how to speed some guys up!