Soldier Hollow Sets Standard for Golf in Northern Utah

By: Steve Habel

All one really needs to know about the quality of the two courses at Soldier Hollow is that the USGA thought highly enough of the facility for it to become the first Utah course to host a national championship.

Designed by Florida-based architect Gene Bates and opened for play in 2004, Soldier Hollow is located about an hour southwest of Salt Lake City in the town of Midway. It boasts two 18-hole courses, named Gold and the Silver, with each offering many testy holes and amazing views of the Heber Valley and looming Mount Timpanogos.

All four of the course's nine-hole loops end near the clubhouse, so it's easy to get in a quick round in the late afternoon when the courses aren't as hectic.

The facility and its massive, gleaming clubhouse are part of the Wasatch Mountain State Park. The site was utilized for the Nordic events at the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, making it the only golf course in the United States built on a Winter Olympics venue.

In July 2012, the USGA fashioned a hybrid routing for the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship. Seventeen holes on the more mountainous Gold course (all but the second hole) were combined with one (the 11th) on Silver for the tournament.

Golf in northern Utah is an underrated combination of value and quality, with many courses within 100 miles of Salt Lake City worth a visit. During a trip to there in fall 2013, I was lucky enough to play a dozen of region's tracks. Yet if there was one venue that ranked significantly higher than the others, for me anyway, it was the two courses at Soldier Hollow.

Great Mix of Mountain & Flatlands Golf

Because Soldier Hollow's routing takes golfers as high as 6,000 feet above sea level, the USGA set up a course that was the longest (7,660 yards) in Publinx history. The thin air mitigates the length, however, helping make Soldier Hollow one of the most fun courses anywhere.

Both layouts feature treeless fairways separated by long-grass-edged bunkers typical of links-style golf. There is plenty of rough, 150 bunkers filled with white-silica sand from Idaho and a handful of water hazards.

The rolling Gold course, at a whopping 7,719 yards from the tips, is the proclaimed "championship" course at Soldier Hollow because of its narrower and more undulating fairways, tee shots requiring longer carries, and trickier greens. It carries a rating of 75.0 and a 136 Slope.

Gold clings to the side of the mountain, crosses some of the site's highest rises and involves significant elevation change, often within individual holes. Its flora mimics the area's native vegetation of scrub oaks and mountain valley grasses.

Every par-4 on Gold is at least 400 yards from the back tees, and there are three two-shotters (the 490-yard second, the 511-yard sixth and the 481-yard ninth) that make golfers wonder why they aren't par-5s. The front nine contains all the mountain holes, while many of the holes on the home half skirt the Silver course.

Winning a silver medal means runner-up status in the Olympics. But Soldier Hollow's par-72, 7,355-yard Silver course plays no second fiddle to Gold. Designed in a six-six-six arrangement of par-5s, par-4s and par-3s, it is the flatter and tamer of the two layouts, and more a parkland-style with broad fairways.

Silver sports big grass bunkers and some serious mounding along with, according to Bates, "big tees, big fairways and big greens," meriting its rating of 74.2 and the stout Slope of 142, seven clicks higher than its more ballyhooed brother up the mountain. Silver also features more water. It was built on former alfalfa fields on a lower part of the property, but has some huge contours.

The course is highlighted by demanding par-3s, all of which play 188 yards or more from the way-backs. None of the par-4s extend more than 455 yards, and with the elevation still at 5,200 feet even on its lower valley locale, golfers will often find themselves using a short iron for approaches.

The clubhouse offers wonderful views of the course and Heber Valley. Constructed with massive floor-to-ceiling windows and rough-sawn trusses, the building has a rustic alpine vibe and houses the golf shop, cafe and banquet space for up to 350.

Bates' designs at Soldier Hollow were given an architecture award by Golf Digest in 2007-08, with Gold considered among the magazine's Best in State. Golfweek magazine named Gold in its Best Courses You Can Play in Utah, Best Municipal Courses and Top 50 Best Public Access Courses.

Getting a good bang for your buck is another of Soldier Hollow's many attractions. Green fees with carts for 18 holes run only $47 (even less for seniors and juniors), which is next to nothing for golf courses of this caliber.

For more info, see www.soldierhollowgolf.com.

Steve Habel is a freelance writer contributing Cybergolf news stories, features, equipment and book reviews and personality profiles from his base in Austin, Texas. He also works as an associate editor for Horns Illustrated magazine, a publication focusing on University of Texas sports, and is a contributing writer for Texas Golf Insider, Golf Oklahoma magazine, Tri-State Golfer and ATX Man magazine. Habel's blog (www.shotoverthegreen.blogspot.com) features news on golf and chronicles his many travels, including playing almost 1,000 golf courses since 2008. Habel is a member of the Golf Writers Association of America and the Texas Golf Writers Association.

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