Highland Hills Golf Course Detail
This writeup was done from the white tees (6018 yards). The blue tees run 6535 yards, and for those true gluttons for punishment, the black tees are 6807 yards.
While this course isn't that long by Colorado standards, bear in mind that it's fairly narrow, and accuracy off the tee
is a necessity.
The opening hole is a straightaway par 4. It's a blind tee shot, but like I said, it's straightaway. It's 363 yards, and the second shot is downhill, so you could
probably get away with a three wood off the tee, but really, this fairway is as wide as it gets, so you might as well hit driver here.
There's a large trap fronting the green on the right.
#2 is a long par 4, back up the hill you just came down. It's 393 yards, but you can add another 30 yards to that in your mind because
of the hill. This is definitely a place to hit your driver.
#3 is only 341 yards, with a slight dogleg right that makes the fairway feel a lot narrower.
If you're worried about accuracy, three wood might be a good play here.
#4 is a really short par 5, at only 460 yards. The woods are dense here, and you definitely
want to stay in the fairway, so favor accuracy over distance. Heck, hit an iron off the tee,
but keep it in the fairway!
#5 is a 153 yard par 3. The green here is really squirrely -- there's 4 or 5 feet in elevation change! Pay close attention to
the pin placement, and do not get above the hole!
#6 is a par 4, which crosses a pond in front of the green. A plaque on the ground by the blue tees warns that it's 270 yards
to the water. There's a slope down to the water also, so factor all that in when you're
choosing the club you use to tee off.
#7 is a 511 yard uphill par 5. Again, the trees will kill you if your drive is offline, so
choose your teeing club carefully. (I hit my drive into trees, tried to hit a three wood out of the
trees, hit a low-hanging branch, and had to hit the three wood again!) Accuracy matters!
#8 is a long (420 yards) par 4, with the green tucked in behind the trees to the right. It's also
kind of narrow...
The ninth hole is a 167 yard par 3. The green is two-tiered, so pay attention to the pin
placement. (The back of the green is 2 or three feet higher than the front). Being on the
wrong tier makes putting interesting...
The back nine starts on the other side of the clubhouse. The 10th hole has a really big
dogleg to the left. It's 374 yards, and yes, there are lots of trees, so don't get too cute
and cut the corner too close. Hit it down the middle.
#11 is a 353 yard par 4, again with lots of trees on both sides. Same advice as always... hit it
straight!
#12 is a 364 yard par 4, which runs alongside the driving range.
#13 is located down the path past the 11th tee and the 10th green. This is a 365 yard par 4 with a pronounced
dogleg right. Again, don't try to cut the corner too close to the right, or you'll get blocked out.
#14 is a 156 yard par 3. What you see is what you get. Try to avoid the bunkers.
#15 is a par 5 that has a short carry over a pond, to a narrow tree-lined fairway. It's only 485
yards, so you can certainly sacrifice distance in favor of accuracy. (That's kind of a standard
bit of advice for most holes on this course.)
#16 is a short par 4 (349 yards). Hit it straight to set up a mid or short iron into the green.
#17 is a 143 yard par 3. There's a huge tree almost blocking the green on the left, but
you can avoid it by teeing off on the right side of the tee box.
#18 is dogleg to the right. I hit my best drive of the day, barely missing the trees on the
right, and ran out of fairway and wound up having to chip out for my second shot. The hole
is only 343 yards, so don't be greedy like I was. Use a fairway wood off the tee!
This is a challenging course, favoring accuracy over distance. In retrospect, I probably shouldn't
have taken the driver out of the bag. Mostly the challenge here is to stay out of the trees.
| 
