Cordillera - Valley Course - Edwards, CO
The beautiful par-3 8th at Cordillera's Valley Course
Design: 4 stars
Difficulty: 4 stars
Maintenance: 4.5 stars
Value: N/A
The Vail Valley is so gorgeous in the spring, with emerald hillsides, gushing waters, and snow-capped peaks, that it’s unfortunate that many of the higher elevation courses aren’t yet open. Fortunately, Cordillera’s Valley Course opens before most, and gives some lucky golfers a chance to enjoy the first blush of spring in the Rocky Mountains.
The par-3 4th at Cordillera
The Valley Course is a Tom Fazio design, and is packed with breathtaking golf holes. Some high-end housing clogs up a bit of the view, but gives the course more of a resorty feel (reportedly) than the other two full-length courses at Cordillera: Irwin’s Mountain Course and Nicklaus’ Summit Course (neither of which have I played).
Relative to its neighbor, the Fazio Course at Red Sky Ranch, this Fazio layout has a more varied mix of holes, some higher shot values, and more risk/reward scenarios. And while it may not have all of the jaw-dropping beauty of its Red Sky brother, it demands more strategy to successfully navigate the Cordillera course.
The par-5 5th is an uphill brute, with a green fronted by a deep bunker and a lovely, but sinister, waterfall. The approach is wide open on the right side, but the impulse to try and fly the waterfall might be too much for some people (though, for those of us playing for bogey on this hole, it’s not even an option).
Things get even more interesting at #7 and #8, which play back-and-forth along a mountainous gulch. The tee shot on the 7th plays over the resort road, which is kind of odd, but anything in the fairway will lead to a reasonably short approach shot and a nice chance for a birdie. The par-3 8th is a postcard, with a downhill shot over a sagebrush-filled ravine from the zenith of the course…awesome.
The brutal 5th at the Cordillera
A couple of holes on the back nine play along I-70, which may be distracting to some, but they’re nevertheless pretty holes that play very well.
The clubhouse at the Valley Course is in the rustic, Western style, but is posh enough to satisfy anyone. The bar closed a little early for my taste (when we were starting the back nine it was already locked up), but it was still early in the season, and we were blinking in the darkness as we putted out on eighteen.
Value is difficult to determine on this one, as anyone who doesn’t have a connection (ahem) will have to either be a resident of Cordillera, or be staying at the Lodge at Cordillera. That puts the rate for a round and a room at somewhere over $500, which is way too much for people don’t have that kind of money to spend on golf, and probably inconsequential for those that do. And for those who are spending only time to play the Valley Course at Cordillera? Priceless.
-Bryan Fryklund
Loading ...
June 3rd, 2009 at 6:13 pm
For me, any uphill is a brute and any par-5 is a brute. And then adding a “sinister waterfall” to the mix could pretty much be golf-aversion therapy for me. Maybe I could just skip the 5th hole if I ever get the chance to play that course. I like the beautiful aspect of the course, though.
Thanks, Bryan.
–Sally
June 4th, 2009 at 11:01 am
You like what you see? Then why not come try it out. Say…September?
-Bryan