oiler3535

My cofavourite course in the valley. Wonderful staff and conditions. Great layout with some easy and some hard holes. Greens are smooth and fast. My only criticism is that like basically all courses I've played, they need to force people to play together to improve pace of play. Too many 2somes playing when busy. But again, if you told me I'd get a free round at any public course anywhere in the valley, Whitetail would likely be my choice.

Course was a lot of fun. Absolutely amazing conditions, and lots of interesting holes. Plenty of bunkers, but wide fairways allow you to miss them pretty easily. My only criticisms would be 1-no washroom we could find on the back, and 2-from the tips, there are some missing tee boxes on 6/12/16 so the yardages are way off for those holes from the back golds; doesn't matter at all unless you play from 7000 yard tips. It's fine if you know about it, but they didn't mention it beforehand and I hit an incorrect club on 2 of those holes because of it.

I'd heard going in (this was my first time playing) that the course had been hit particularly hard by last year's drought. We got there and once we found the practice green (the whole place is a maze, with the course well signed but everywhere else not), it was in terrible condition and I was getting worried. But the course was in very good condition. Not once did I have an issue on the green complexes or tee boxes. There were some obvious places on and off the fairways where the grass was struggling, but nothing major. The only time I had a bad lie all day was when I hit into a divot in the rough on 18, and that's just bad luck.
Besides the 246 yard par 3 from the tips (into the wind!), I really enjoyed nearly every hole. Each had character (my wife particularly liked the planters made from old tree stumps; I liked that it has lots of exposed rocks and strategically placed trees), and the routing allowed for some really interesting shots with many elevation changes. To the point where despite my preference for walking courses, I might not ever want to do so at Wolf Ridge. My particular favourites were #2,3,5 (DO NOT hit anything but iron off the tee), 15 (hit it to the white marker or extremely difficult 2nd), 17, and 18.
My only issue was one that occurred because I've never played. There were a few holes where I didn't know where to hit, and it cost me a bunch of strokes. The worst was #7. A longish par 5, the 2nd shot is blind up over a hill. I hit my second to just lay up past the 150 marker. Lost ball into the hazard lining the left side. Anything landing between the 150-100 mark bounces down a steep hill to the left, right into the hazard. Not a big deal (made me mad that day lol), but if they had a little booklet you could buy for a buck or two that had a course tour with advice on it.

The conditions were great besides one hole (can't remember which) where the green was pretty rough. Very tree lined but besides the 2 holes where landing in the middle of the fairway still often results in going into them (the aforementioned unfair 11th and 15th), it just adds to the atmosphere and isn't really a danger. Overall the course is very nice, but there really aren't any holes that stick out as interesting. Very straightforward but a fun round.

Greens were very smooth, fast and true running. With a few exceptions (11/12/13), every hole has personality and is interesting. Starting on a par 3 is odd (could easily re-arrange the holes-10-14/6-9, then 1-5/15-18), but otherwise the layout is great with lots of risk reward, especially from the back.

Overall, the course is varied and a lot of fun. It is not super difficult, with not too much major trouble (water and OB lining 2 and 8, have to carry water on 15) unless you are really wild or greedy. Par 3s aren't very interesting except for 18, though 7 is good if you play from the back (5 would be great if longer). Grass is always well conditioned, and the greens have never been anything but above average when I've played. If rained a lot recently, does tend to have a few holes where it gets soggy. Good snack bar, and pro-shop has anything you need. Bring your own water if you don't want to buy drinks though, as tap water isn't potable. To be picky, the practice area could be bigger, and getting 15-20 balls to hit on the range with a green fee would be a nice perk.

Favourite holes: 2,4*,7,10,15*,16,18*
Not so much: 12 b/c the fairway is difficult to hit and stick, 14 b/c I'm stupid and always take too much club of the tee.
P.S. lots of wildlife too. Besides the in-season dragonflies (especially on the back), I've seen deer, osprey, hawks, a beaver, and the usual critters.