Golf
GOLF AS IT WAS
MEANT TO BE
T
he Bandon Dunes Golf Resort has coined the phrase “golf as it was meant to be.” Located on the Pacific Coast, that slogan fits as players can immerse in the spirit of Scotland’s ancient links. The resort is just outside the small town of Bandon, Oregon and has 90 championship golf holes situated on miles of the Pacific Coast shoreline. I recently spent four glorious days attending the 2020 PGA Magazine Golf Professional of the Year Conference and was fortunate enough to play three of the five championship courses. We stayed in the Grove Cottages that accommodated four guests comfortably with individual rooms, bathrooms and a large parlor with full amenities and a fireplace. The property has several different lodging accommodations available ranging from two bedroom, standard guest rooms featuring two queen beds, single rooms with views of the Dunes of the
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LAKE LIFESTYLES // JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2021
STORY AND PHOTOS BY PAUL LEAHY
Pacific Ocean, rooms with views of the course and the cottages where we stayed. Bandon’s vision started with one man’s dream of building a destination course that people would flock to, where traditional golf was the focus, and everyone would walk and experience golf as it was decades ago. Mike Keiser bought the property and the locals thought he was throwing his money to the wind when he said he was building a golf course. Situated 2.5 hours from the closest commercial airport in Eugene they thought “who in their right mind is going to play?” He proved them all wrong, as Bandon is now recognized as one of the premiere golf destinations in the word. The original course at Bandon Dunes opened to rave reviews in 1999. Over the next 20 years Pacific Dunes opened in 2001, Bandon Trails in 2005, Old McDonald in 2010 and in June 2020 Sheep Ranch opened to complete the 90 holes. Over these 20 years, five different lodging facilities were opened with another under construction currently. A 13-hole par-3
course opened surrounded by the 50 acre practice facility featuring two full practice ranges, one allowing you to hit balls from the North and the other from the South, depending on the wind. A 100,000 square foot 36-hole putting course called the Punch Bowl was also added. I was fortunate to attend the conference and experience this special place first-hand with other golf professionals from around the country. I played Sheep Ranch first and was amazed at how beautiful the landscape was. On the fourth hole my playing partner, Bill, turned to me and said “I have played all of the other courses and if the rest of the course is this good it’s now my favorite.” High praise after a few holes and it certainly did not disappoint. We lucked out with partly sunny conditions, low 60 temperatures and only 10 to 15 mile winds. For November we were told this was a great weather day. Four birdies on the back nine made me an instant fan and I couldn’t wait for the next two days. Day two found me at Pacific Dunes, the
