Isleta Eagle Golf Course - Lakes Course Review

Texas Outside Rating: 8.8

Golf - Public Course · 9 Holes · Par 36
Albuquerque, NM

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Isleta Eagle Golf Course - Lakes Course Review

Isleta Pueblo, which is centrally located in the Río Grande Valley about 13 miles south of Albuquerque owns and operates the Isleta Eagle Golf Course which is home to three very good nine hole courses - Arroyo, Lakes, and Mesa. The course opened in 1996 and has received a four-star rating from Golf Digest and s rated it  “Best Places to Play."

Each of the nines is a little different from the others - the Lakes course has plenty of water, the Arroyo has several arroyos that can cause you a problem, and on the Mesa nine you'll encounter forced carries and natural areas crossing the fairways.  Each of the nines is a modified Parkland course, meaning they have an open links feel, a scattering of trees, natural areas that can result in extra strokes, and contoured and rolling fairways.

Although each nine has its own characteristics and personality, but common to all three of the Isleta Eagle Golf Courses are:

  • lush rolling and heavily contoured fairways
  • good sized greens that are in excellent condition but a real test of your putting skills
  • thick roughs that can devour you ball
  • panoramic vistas of the valley, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Albuquerque, the mountains, mesas, and the Rio Grande Bosque which is an oasis-like ribbon of green vegetation
  • bunkers that were challenging because the sand was thin, hard, and gritty
  • affordable rates

To learn more, read our review of Isleta Eagle Arroyo Course and the Mesa Course. 

The Lakes Course as the name implies plays around some lakes which brings water into play on 6 of nine holes.  The Lakes Course at Isleta Eagle Golf Course is very fair and the middle of the road course in terms of yardage and difficulty.  In addition to water, what makes this nine both fun and challenging are the elevation changes, rolling and contoured fairways, and thick roughs. 

The fairways are ample, but when we played the rough was cut very thick and had a tendency to devour our golf balls.  It was very challenging for us to have a decent recovery shot from the rough - which put a premium on accuracy and staying in the fairway.  The fairways also have plenty of slope, contour, and undulation which can cause several uneven lies and unusual bounces, some of which may not be in your favor.

The bent grass greens were in near perfect condition when we played.  They were fast, rolled smooth and true, but were very testy thanks to lots of slope, undulation, and some tiers.  Pin placement can be very challenging.  Try to stay below the pin if you want to two putt.

The Lakes Course has several fun holes and some good variety, for example:

  • #1 is a 544 yard par 5 with an elevated tee box and a great view, a wide landing zone, and a dog leg left to a downhill green
  • #2 is a long 444 yard par 4 with a carry over the lake, lots of mounding, and an uphill shot to a dog leg right green
  • the green on #7 is small and has severe slope and a couple ridges which makes this 432 yard par 4 very demanding
  • the #1 handicap 8th hole is 638 yards with a narrow heavily contoured fairway and a tough approach to a raised green

The Lakes Course is a fun and challenging nine that you'll want to play again.

The slope and rating are based on playing the Lakes and Arroyo nines together.  Playing the Mesa and Lakes nines is longer by 300 yards or so and a few strokes harder. 

The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Albuquerque is across the freeway from Islelta Eagle and it is also owned and operated by the Pueblo.  You can read our review of the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Albuquerque to learn more.  They also have some good stay and play packages. 

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Course Slope & Ratings

Tee Box Yardage Rating Slope
Blue 3,426 70.9 127
White 3,127 68.0 122
Gold 3,745 73.7 130
Red 2,806 64.8 106

Course Information

Course Architect:
Bill Phillips
Greens Type:
Bent Grass
Greens Condition
9.5
Greens Difficulty
9.0
Fairway Condition
9.5
Bunker Condition
6.5
GPS:
No
Walkable:
Hard
Scorecard
Beware of water on 6 holes and the 18 sand traps.

Texas Outside Rating

Overall Rating:
8.8 out of 10
Beauty:
8.0
Difficulty:
8.5
Variety:
7.8
Fun to Play:
9.0
Value:
9.5
Condition:
9.3
Front Nine Rating:
8.8
Back Nine Rating:
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FEES & AMENITIES

Approximate Weekend
Rates: $30.00 to $65.00

Service is ok, the pro shop is well stocked, and the grill has everything from dogs to Philly Cheesesteaks. The range and putting green are adequate.

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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.