1/14/2024 0 Comments Black mesa golf course![]() The 4th has a green that is cut into a hillside. My favorite hole on the front nine was the 203 yard 4th, which is one of the four great par-3’s at Black Mesa. Mounds, bowls, tiers, ridges, wild shapes – whatever you can dream up, the greens have it. Then, the green complexes have brutal slopes. Besides all the blind shots, many fairways are narrow and the desert is waiting to grab wayward shots. No matter which tees you choose though, Black Mesa is going to be a very difficult course to play. At 5,600 feet above sea level, the ball went a long way so keep that in mind when choosing tees. For simplicity I marked all the yardages in my pictures from the black tees. We played the blue tees (70.5/136/6719) for the first six holes and then dropped back to the blacks (73.9/141/7307). Because of that the first-timer will have no idea where to hit the ball on many holes, but thankfully, my friend and I paired with two locals who were able to point us in the right direction. The tees, fairways and greens here seem to have just been dropped onto the land. The course winds through the fascinating topography and reminded me of the layouts at Wolf Creek or Cascata in Nevada, where holes are lined by small canyons. It is one of those golf courses where every hole could be a signature hole – and I’m not exaggerating when I say that. What makes Black Mesa so unique is how it is carved into the barren high desert landscape, which is dotted with small mesas everywhere. The par-3 4th disappears into a hillside. And, that is awesome because the course is one of the most unique and interesting places I’ve ever played. ![]() This was my first visit but everything I’ve read indicates that the conditioning at Black Mesa is “back” thanks to the work by the new owners. Sadly, the maintenance fell off, the course lost its luster and it changed ownership a couple years ago, I believe. It turned out to be a later night and earlier morning than I prefer while traveling, but our detour to Black Mesa was worth every extra minute it took to get there! My friend and I both agreed that the course treated us to a pretty epic and memorable round of golf.īlack Mesa opened in 2003 – it was designed by Baxter Spann – and spent many years as one of the top public courses in New Mexico, even making it onto some national lists. You bascially take the I-25 to Santa Fe and then go another half hour west. What I didn’t realize is that Espanola is a healthy drive from Albuquerque. We left Phoenix on Friday afternoon and got into the Espanola area late that night. I got to pick the course and selected Black Mesa Golf Club, which is outside Santa Fe. One of my friends has the same goal so we took advantage of the last part of my road trip (Phoenix to Dallas), which allowed him to add New Mexico to the list of states where he has golfed. I have been stuck at 48 states for a few years now. I don’t post too much about my quest to play a round of golf in every state.
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