Texas Outside golf course review of Breckenridge Golf Club in Breckenridge, CO

Date Played: August 17, 2009
Front Nine Rating: 9.5 Stars
Back Nine Rating: 9.3 Stars
Approximate Weekend Price Range: $69.00 to $107.00
Where To Get Coupons: Colorado Avid Golfer Passbook

Brief Description: This Jack Nicklaus designed 27-hole public course sits beautifully at 9,324’ above sea level. Breckenridge is a charming Victorian town most known for skiing but has increasingly become a popular destination for that perfect summer or fall get away. What better way to enjoy the beauty of the Colorado Rockies than to play 18 or 27 holes on a great golf course without breaking a sweat?

Today I played Breckenridge with two very friendly Breck locals and a club pro from Pueblo, CO. We had a noon tee time for the Beaver course (my favorite with beautiful terrain and vistas). The Beaver Course 8th hole is a classic. It's a gorgeous double dogleg par 5 crossing marshlands and beaver ponds twice and playing 580 yds from the tips and 408 yds from the forward tees (see photo).

Then we transitioned to the Bear course (the course you see upon entry to Breck GC off Highway 9). The uphill 6th hole par 5 with a split fairway is another beauty on the Bear Course. This nine becomes a real "bear" with it's three tough finishing holes.

After this 18 I sat out on the deck of the idealistic Breckenridge Clubhouse restaurant (see photos) for a relaxing snack and beer while watching golfers try to safely survive the pond and sand traps of the Beaver 5th hole.

I didn't have time to play the Elk Course this time. Elk is the newest and most challenging of the three nines at Breckenridge. Playing the par 72 Elk/Beaver is the toughest public golf in Colorado measuring 3,563 yds on Elk and 3,694 yds on Beaver for a 7,257 yd total and a 73.5 rating with a whopping 151 slope from the Gold tees. This is the toughest slope rating of any Colorado public course...but you don't have to play the tips, of course. The yardage, rating and slope stats shown below are based on Elk/Beaver combo.

From past experience I remember the Elk course has some wild holes. The wildest are the par three downhill 5th, then uphill par 4 6th followed by the blind dogleg right downhill par 4 7th. Get through those three in par and you’ve earned a Rocky Mountain High! Breckenridge Golf Course is walker friendly. The greens are every bit as good as could be expected in these high altitude conditions. The fairways are near perfect even though Breckenridge Golf Club has finally dropped their carts on paths only policy to the pleasure of many players visiting from lower elevations.

You’ll want to bring your camera to capture the beauty of Breckenridge’s lush bluegrass fairways, beaver ponds, meadows, wildflowers, wildlife, pine and aspen forests and the backdrop of the snowcapped Ten Mile Range, Mt. Baldy and Buffalo Mountain. And, of course, the famous Breckenridge Ski Resort is clearly visible on many of the holes especially Bear #5 (see photo).

The practice facility is also excellent so arrive early and get a feel for launching your ball through thin mountain air.

Lodging and great bars and restaurants are plentiful in Breckenridge and throughout Summit County. For some great lodging deals for golf and other activities go to http://www.gobreck.com

PGA Professional Erroll Miller is very accommodating to visiting golfers. Including Texans! Give yourself time for a great 18 or 27-hole day at the only 27-hole municipally owned Jack Nicklaus-designed course in the world. It’s a “must play”.

Sam Sherstad Writer, Recreation Travel Reviews

Here's How Texas Outside Determines the Scorecard Rating

The Texas Outside rating scale ranges from 1 to 10 – a perfect 10 course would be something like this: links along a cliff overlooking the Pacific ocean and bordered by tall trees; lush fairways on rolling hills with lots of natural hazards; water (which is crystal clear) on most of the holes; immaculate greens (but they are undulating and tough); lots of variety and character (each hole is completely different and includes blind shots, elevation changes, doglegs, and significant challenges); perfectly manicured traps with the whitest and prettiest sand you’ve ever seen; a nice club house with great food and a 19th hole; a GPS; plenty of beverage carts or your own cooler and ice; and it only costs $40 bucks! What this means is that you probably won’t find any 10s in Texas – try Cabo San Lucas, Pebble Beach, or some of the Hawaii courses!
Texas Outside rates courses on the following:

Beauty – tall trees, rolling hills, beautiful houses, waterfalls, and similar stuff would score high; a 1 would be flat, bushes or cactus instead of trees, and some grass but mostly weeds

Difficulty – a straight, 300 yard par 4 with no traps or hazards, no out of bounds or water would probably get a 1; if it is a 460 yard par 4 over two ravines, with water along one side, natural hazards on the other, strategically placed traps or that dreaded tree right in the middle of the fairway, we are talking a 10.

Variety – what would you give a course where all the holes looked and played exactly the same (“I thought we just played that hole!”); were side-by-side, which is good for finding or dodging other people’s balls, but not much fun; and you can see the flag from every tee box? That’s right, it gets a 1.

Fun Scale – a 10 is where you walk off the course and say “now that was fun” and you can’t wait to get back, or you immediately turn around and play another 18 holes

Value – a 5 is $50 to $60, a 10 is $20 to $30, and 1 is $200 or so – of course all of this is dependent upon how you liked the course. For example, if a run down, boring municipal course, with six players on each hole was only $10; it would still get a value rating of 1.

Condition – this one’s pretty easy – what condition are the fairways. A 10 commands very lush perfectly manicured fairways, compared to a 1, which has fire ants, weeds, and more dirt than grass!

Condition of Greens and Difficulty – very hard to read greens with lots of undulation and tough pin placement, rate very high on the difficulty scale. Condition is self-explanatory.

All of the above determines the overall score for the golf course. In other words, we like courses that are pretty, fun, very challenging with a lot of variety, and fairways and greens in excellent condition – all for $40. We also tend to play the courses that are affordable for the masses, which means in the $30 to $80 range. We rate hard and we haven’t found a 10 in Texas yet – don’t worry we haven’t given up and we’re still looking.