2nd Vegas round. Played Wolf late afternoon when it was pretty much deserted (literally and figuratively speaking). Nice design that seems to harmonize well (mainly) with its stark desert surrounds. ... Continue »

2nd Vegas round. Played Wolf late afternoon when it was pretty much deserted (literally and figuratively speaking). Nice design that seems to harmonize well (mainly) with its stark desert surrounds. Plenty of inventive and surprising elevation change for what appears at first glance to be a flattish desert plain. It has teeth, but less so in the Pete Dye design (for once) and more so due to the constant 15-25 mph wind. Difficulty wise it plays somewhere between Dye's TPC Stadium course and an easier Dye resort design like at Mission Hills in Palm Springs. Conditions were simply awesome. Best, fluffiest, most padded lies I've ever played from in the fairways. I rarely took a divot as the ball sat up so high it was like hitting everything off a tee peg. Greens were flawless and had zero repair marks. Only slight quibble was the inevitable slowness due to it being hot and all the water they receive to stay alive. You can tell it's a Dye design with the mounding bordering each fairway and the subtle slopes on the well bunkered greens. My only critique would be that the inevitable Dye water features did not harmonize well with the terrain, given how stark and primordial it really is. But you play Pete Dye and you must have an island green, I suppose, so #15 is a reprise of #17 'Alcatraz' at TPC Stadium, complete with large boulders ringing the island (or TPCSawgrsss #17 with the bunker in the middle front - at Wolf it's a grass bunker but the look is the same.) I suspect when we colonize the moon or Mars and they build a Pete Dye course there then it too will have to have a water feature/island green too. Paid 89$ which seemed like a steal and all the natives were very friendly and welcoming too (more so than at TPC Vegas). Play it. It's worth it for the views alone even though it's a bit outside the city.