Course Tour

Favor the left side of the fairway on this fairly short and open par 4. Be careful, though, because even though the fairway is wide, there is Out of Bounds on both sides of this hole. It’s best to place your tee shot on the left side of the fairway for the best approach angle to the green. Most putts on this green will break toward the bunkers.

Even long hitters play this hole as a three-shot par 5. Tee shots that miss the fairway to the left often bounce into the hazard. Keep in mind that the creek is designated as an Environmentally Sensitive Area, so if your ball goes into this hazard, you may not enter the hazard and you must take a drop with a penalty of one stroke. The green is fairly deep, so make sure you check the pin placement on your approach. Everything slopes toward the creek on this green, which has a ridge that runs from the front left to back right.

A long, dogleg right, the tee shot here requires length so you can clear the creek in front of the green on your second shot. Favor the right side off the tee to shorten the hole and take the creek out of play. The green slopes from left to right with a large tier on the left side. If you are above the hole, your putt will be very fast.

Under the right conditions, long hitters may be able to reach this green off of the tee. For most, it’s best to play your tee shot to the center of the fairway about 100-150 yards out, so that you avoid the huge bunker on the left. Stay below the hole, if you can, on your approach shot. Putts from above the hole are very quick.

This downhill par 3 has a large green with plenty of trouble surrounding it. From the higher tees, you should hit less club since you are hitting downhill. Obviously, you will want to avoid the pond on the front left, but the bunker on the right is very difficult to get up-and-down from. There is a lot of slope in this green towards the pond.

This is our shortest par 5, but it often plays into the wind. There is a lot of room to the right off the tee and the bunkers on the left are very penalizing, so favor the right side. This is one of the most difficult greens to read on the course. The front half is flat with very subtle breaks, while the back half has some undulation that might fool you.

The fairway is wide here, but there’s trouble on both sides, with Out-of-Bounds left and tall native grass on the right. Longer hitters don’t need Driver and may prefer to have a full shot into the slightly elevated green. The left side of the green has a lot of slope, so try to stay to the right of the pin on your approach.

You’ll feel like you are playing a true links course on #8. There are no bunkers and the green is large, so it would seem as a great opportunity to make par. However, it features three different collection areas for shots that just miss the green and it often plays straight into the wind. This green is very deep, so use an extra club if the pin is back.

Driver is necessary on this long par 4. Aim at the 150-yard pole for your tee shot to shorten your approach shot, but favor the right side. There is a small part of the pond in front of the green that is difficult to see, so you might want to lay up unless you can fly it to the green. With a double-tier green, it’s best to hit your approach on the same level as the pin, to avoid three-putt.

A straight and long par 4 and a great start to the Back 9. The fairway bunker on the right comes into play for shorter hitters from the tee. Also, errant drives to the right can end up in the native grass or out of bounds with one bad bounce, so it’s best to go straight down the middle or a little left off this tee. Make sure you have enough club to clear the bunker on your approach if the pin is cut on the left half of the green. If you do, you’ll be rewarded with a makeable putt for birdie.

It’s a par 3 on the scorecard, but locals refer to it as the “Shortest Par 5 in the Vail Valley”. With a creek guarding the front right of the green and a fiendish bunker guarding the back left, there is not much margin for error on the tee shot. Our advice is to use plenty of club and swing easy for the middle of the green. While hitting this green is most of the battle, there are no automatic two-putts here.

This could be the most beautiful and demanding hole on the course. Favor the left side of this narrow fairway as most shots will tend to bounce to the right. You may have a decision to make on your second shot as you might want to lay up short of the creek. Keep in mind that this hole is uphill, so you may need more club than usual for the yardage. Once you are on the green, there is a little slope from back right to front left.

The tee shot here is a great risk-reward situation. The more you take it over the ravine and fairway bunker, the better your angle will be for your second shot. But, if you don’t clear the bunker or you go left, you are playing for bogey. To play safe favor the right side of the fairway. The approach is a little tricky. It’s a little downhill, so you might need a little less club. Shots just short of this green usually will stay short and shots landing on the back third of the green will usually bounce down off of the green.

The second drivable par 4 on the course for long hitters. Just like #4, this hole presents options for how you play it. Bomb it over the fairway bunkers and you’ll have a short, but somewhat tricky half-shot into the green. Or, play a shorter tee shot to the left of the fairway bunkers to give yourself a full shot into the elevated green. A front-right pin placement will present some difficult putts.

From the Black tees, this tee shot is straight across the gulley, but from the Blue and White tees, it’s downhill. So if you’re playing from those tees, you can use a little less club. Putts will break towards the middle of the green. The “Mormon Derrick” to the left was left over from the ranch that occupied this land and was used to move hay.

The last three holes at Eagle Ranch have ruined many good rounds. #16 is a great three-shot par 5. Most golfers can shorten the hole by trying to carry the fairway bunker on the right. Like #12, the second shot again may require a decision of whether to lay up short of the creek or carry it. This green is very shallow, especially on the left side. Favor the middle and try to play a lofted shot into this green.

This may be the most intimidating tee shot on the course. The fairway looks narrow, there’s OB left, a creek on the right, a fairway bunker jutting into the fairway and it’s usually into the wind. Instead of thinking about all of those obstacles, focus on hitting it at the 150-yard pole and take a nice smooth swing A tee shot in the fairway makes this hole much easier as there is quite a bit of room in front of the relatively flat green.

The finishing hole at Eagle Ranch has placed an exclamation point on many players’ rounds. A birdie here has swayed the fate of many matches while, for many, a big number has destroyed what could have been. The creek and pond comes into play to the right off of the tee, so favor the left side. Be careful to avoid the large collection area left of the green on your approach. This is another deep green that you’ll need a little extra to get to a back pin placement.