Championship – 567
Back – 539
Middle – 525/501
Forward – 456
Deer Valley starts out with a scoring hole that can set the tone for the entire round. Reachable in two big hits, this par 5 is beatable if you ignore the natural shape of the hole. Remember, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.
Big hitters should ignore the fairway and take it right over top of the furthest tip of the left hand bunker. Since the maintenance shop brings O.B. to the right of this hole, anyone with a slice should also start the ball out at the bunker as there is plenty of room left in the area between #1 and #9.
If you manage to hit it over the bunker, you’ll have anywhere between 265 and 200 yard into the green for your second shot. If you think you can reach it, give it a rip but don’t be long. Wascana Creek meanders behind the green and is probably within 15 feet of the back of the green at the closest point. You can bring it in off the left hills, but there is some thick brush waiting to swallow anything short and left. Safe play is to lay up to 100 yards (marked by the red old school water pump on the right hand side by the cart path) and play a full shot into the green for your third. The layup is a good idea especially when the pin is back right because anything short will either leave you with a long breaking putt, a tight bunker shot, or a lob over the bunker to a tight pin. And like I said earlier, that creek creeps up on anything long. If the pin is front left, there’s no harm in taking a shot at the green in two as anything short is an easy uphill chip for an easy par option birdie.
Hopefully you’re off to a good start, and it’s up the hill to one of the best par three’s in Canada.
Deer Valley Hole #2 – Par 3
Championship – 176/172
Back – 158/146
Middle – 134/126
Forward – 109/92
The sign says it’s “Canada’s 5th Best Signature Hole” or something like that. I remember the article in The Globe and Mail and it didn’t quite read that way (it was just one of the featured holes in the article) but don’t let the vanity get to you – this is a great golf hole. You’ve probably seen it in the Tourism Saskatchewan ads or above someone’s mantle (like in our house).
This hole has 6 different tee decks, so that will dictate your club selection. Some of the tee decks are eroding into the creek side though, so there’s probably only 4 tee options. Either way, it’s probably going to be a one or two club drop in elevation. It’s a big green, but anything that misses is pretty much dead. There’s a couple of front bunkers to bail out in, but bush and the creek wait to gobble up anything else that doesn’t hit the green.
The green has three distinct levels, so hitting your shot to the right one is definitely a plus.
Deer Valley Hole #3 – Par 4
Championship – 433
Back – 410
Middle – 393
Forward – 352
Oh the options. Hole #3 at Deer Valley is a great example of the risk/reward aspect of the course. You can take an aggressive line off the tee and wind up with an easy 100 yard pitch, but any misses will end up right in the creek or short in the bush. You can take a 3 wood off the tee and leave yourself between 150 and 160 yards in by taking it over the dead tree to the left of the thick patch of bush on the right. Using a driver on that line could put you through the fairway and into the bush depending on the wind. One place you don’t want to be is in the left bunkers – unless of course you’ve mastered the 165-220 yard bunker shot.
The green is quite shallow and wide. Make sure you end up below the hole (the green slopes deceivingly sharp from back to front) and on the correct side. Long is dead. Anything on the left slope of the green will bounce hard into the bush, but the bunker to the right is a forgiving place if you do miss.
After you’re done putting out, make sure to check the direction of the wind because the tee on #4 is secluded and the wind tends to swirl back there.
The rest of the Deer Valley hole summaries can be found by clicking the links below:
Deer Valley Golf Course Holes #4-6
Deer Valley Golf Course Holes #7-9
Deer Valley Golf Course Holes #10-12
Deer Valley Golf Course Holes #13-15
Deer Valley Golf Coures Holes #16-18
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