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SAVE SOME GREEN
1 • Battle Creek Golf Course • Tulalip
Since its opening in 1990, Battle Creek Golf Course has been a favorite among golfers seeking a well-maintained and thoughtfully designed course.
Located in Tulalip, Wash., Battle Creek is 40 minutes north of downtown Seattle just off I-5.
Players here will revel in views of Puget Sound, Camano Island and the Olympic Mountains. This 27-hole golf course is outfitted with an 18-hole championship course, a nine-hole par-3 course, and a practice area equipped with a grass-tee range, practice green, chipping green and bunker.
The 175-acre facility is accessible to golfers from beginners — who might launch their golf lives on the 1,313yard par-3 course – to experts, who will encounter significant tests of golf at Battle Creek.
The 18-hole course reaches 6,575 yards with a par of 73. There are open fairways here, but there are also treelined holes that require attention to shot-making detail.
No. 2 is a 438-yard par 5 to an elevated green. Play down the right side to avoid the large mound at 200 yards but beware the tee-to-green out of bounds close on the right.
No. 8, a 356-yard par 4, is devilish fun with its elevated tee, new extended fairway and wicked forced carry (though recently shortened by 20 yards). This hole is rated the toughest on Battle Creek.
The signature 12th hole is a par 3 known as “The Rock” and it’s a test for sure. It can stretch out to 200 yards, and you don’t want to hit this meteor.
No. 18 is a long and tough par 4 at 421 yards that nonetheless rates as a favorite here. A natural marsh guards the green in front.
The course offers a variety of pricing options designed for different budgets. Weekday green fees top out at $45, with a discount at $40 for juniors, seniors, military, twilight and early bird. The top weekend rate is $52 with a twilight discount at $45.
The par 3 costs a tidy $13 for nine holes.
YARDAGE (PAR 73) 5,179-6,575 yards
RATES $40-$52
TEL (360) 659-7931
WEB battlecreekgolfwa.com
* Check website for current rates
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2 • Peninsula Golf Club • Port Angeles
Situated in the marine-moderated climate of Port Angeles, Wash., Peninsula Golf Club offers a blend of challenge and scenic beauty.
This semi-private 18-hole course, open to the public seven days a week, has long been a favorite among locals and out-of-towners, known for its friendly atmosphere and well-maintained greens.
Port Angeles summer weather is typically around 70 degrees, while winter months have less rainfall than Seattle, making Peninsula pleasantly playable year-round.
A golf simulator room is new at Peninsula, offering swings in a climate-controlled atmosphere. A golfer’s choice of 24 courses beckons, with a full array of technical readouts making it ideal for group play, lessons and club-fitting.
The main course features a par-72 layout stretching to just under 6,400 yards. Highlights include the risk-reward of potentially drivable par-4s at No. 3 (295 yards from the blue tees) and No. 16 (302 yards) as well as reachable par 5s – No. 10 at 475 yards is the longest.
The smooth greens predominately slope toward the sea and provide ample challenge, testing golfers of all abilities. The course’s landscaping emphasizes its natural Pacific Northwest topography, with mature evergreens and native shrubs and compelling views of the Olympic Mountains and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Many fairways are wide with rolling terrain, while others demand strategic placement from the tee to leave straightforward approach shots.
Peninsula’s value proposition is based on pricing designed to be accessible, with booking available up to 30 days in advance. Regular green fees start at $47, with twilight rates of $36.
Memberships are available for the simulator room priced at $120 a month for up to four hours per week. Daily rates are set at $30 per half-hour for members and $25 for non-members, one hour at $50/$40, a five-hour pass at $200/$170, and a 10-hour pass at $375/$325.
YARDAGE (PAR 72) 5,236-6,332 yards
RATES $36-$54
TEL (360) 457-6501
WEB golfinportangeles.com
* Check website for current rates
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3 • Twin Rivers Golf Course • Fall City
Nestled in the picturesque Snoqualmie Valley, Twin Rivers Golf Course in Fall City, Wash., offers golfers a scenic and affordable experience.
Established in 1994, Twin Rivers’ history (read about it at twinriversgolfcourse.com/course/) tells about a dream long deferred, finally realized in Fall City between two rivers. The course packs a punch into its smallish acreage and its homegrown landscaping at the confluence of the Snoqualmie and Raging Rivers, which frame its fairways.
The course spans 6,074 yards from the longest tees, featuring a par-70 layout (par 34 on the front, par 36 on the back) that is grumpy but generally kind to golfers of all skill levels.
No. 7, a 420-yard par 4, plays usually into the wind to a green canted left to right. The green was rebuilt and enlarged recently to allow additional pin placement options.
The longest hole on the course at 583 yards, No. 13 plays alongside the Snoqualmie River tee to green. Players should favor the left side and avoid the tree 100 yards from the green.
No. 9 presents a tricky tee shot that must carry the water that flows 215 yards from the back tees — obviously, it’s easier from one of the forward tees. Once safely down on dry land, a second shot should stay left, which is the best way to reach one of the hardest greens on the course.
The par-4 11th is 396 yards of difficulty. A solid tee shot will give you an uphill second shot to a green rimmed by three bunkers. Par is a good score here.
Pricing at Twin Rivers is competitive, with weekday green fees at $45 with discounts for juniors and seniors and weekend rates at $55. Various punch card options offer 10 rounds for the price of nine.
YARDAGE (PAR 70) 4,668- 6,074 yards
RATES $40-$55
TEL (425 ) 222-7575
WEB twinriversgolfcourse.com
* Check website for current rates
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4 • Lake Chelan Golf Course • CHELAN
Lake Chelan is considered the top summer in-state vacation getaway in Washington, drawing folks from both sides of the mountain, from Seattle to Spokane, to meet in the middle.
When going on vacation, what’s one of the most popular activities on just about everyone’s list? Golf, right? Exercise, competition, relaxation, with a measure of frustration. This is where Lake Chelan Golf Course comes to golfers’ recreational rescue, as it has for more than 50 years.
The course was conceived in the mid-1960s as a private course to serve a local resort community. But it was turned over to the City of Chelan in 1970.
The facility is run by local legend Jim Oscarson, a 1985 Chelan High School graduate, who was hired in 1991 and became Chelan’s head golf professional in 1994. He has taught thousands of Lake Chelan golfers over the years and was coach of the Lake Chelan High golf team for 16 years.
The club has a traditional feel to it, with tree-lined fairways, light rough and small elevated greens. The greens are its best defense, lightning fast in the heat of summer. What surrounds the course might be one of its best qualities: views of the lake and surrounding mountains.
The 6,459-yard layout opens with the longest par 5 on the course, 531 yards from the white tees (the yellow tees provide a better birdie break at 463 yards). Then after weaving through the picturesque course adjacent to the most scenic lake in the state, you finish with perhaps the most challenging of the four par 3s, the 182-yard 18th.
It’s a bit unusual to finish a round with a par 3, but it’s not easy. It’s uphill, which means you might need an extra club to reach the green. There’s water on the left, trees throughout and a small elevated green target. Plus, you are under pressure to finish strong because that’s where random folks gather for post-round refreshments.
For those golfers visiting the lake this summer, there are two things to keep in mind. One, the course does have clubs available to rent so you don’t have to jam your golf bag into your trunk filled with suitcases, cornhole boards and rubber ducks. And two, the course takes tee-time reservations 30 days in advance. Once you confirm your vacation dates, give a call to (509) 682-8026 to secure your scenic tour above the lake.
YARDAGE (PAR 72) 5,058-6,459 yards
RATES $44-$70
TEL (509) 682-8026
WEB cityofchelan.us/golf-course
* Check website for current rates
