The Lakes course is my 2nd review on courses in the Primm Valley. To read my Desert course review, click here.
About Primm
Primm is a border town between Nevada and California, about 30 minutes South of Las Vegas on Interstate 15. Trying to get info online about Primm is confusing because essentially the whole town is in Nevada and the two golf courses (Desert & Lakes) are technically in California.
Primm is where the famous Wiskey Pete’s and Buffalo Bill’s resort casinos are. These are the places you see at the Nevada/California border when driving from L.A. to Vegas.
I stayed in Buffalo Bill’s and even rode on the famous Desperado roller coaster. I rode the Desperado once. With the desert heat and the massive g-forces, I thought my eyeballs were going to pop out of my head and I had a mind splitting headache after…
Primm Valley will soon be changing it’s name. When I have the new name and info I’ll certainly do an update post giving the new details.
Lakes Course
Both courses in Primm Valley were designed by probably the most famous designer of our era, Tom Fazio. Fazio courses definitely have his signature look and feel and the Lakes course is no exception. On each hole you feel like there are no other holes on the course.
The Desert and Lake courses have won numerous awards including “top 100 public courses in the United States, “top 100 Resort Courses You Can Play,” Golf Digest’s Four-And-A-Half-Star Award, Top 10 courses in Las Vegas. Go to this page to see all the awards.
The Lakes course is a par 71 (36-35) layout which measures 6945 from the tips.
Tees
There are four sets of tees on the Lakes course which enables the course to provide an enjoyable and fair test of golf for players of every level. As I mentioned, the tips measure out at 6945 and the shortest tees, the green tees, measure out at 4842 yards.
The tee areas on the Lakes course are all very picturesque, more so than the more rugged Desert course. The views from the tee to the fairway and/or green all “frame up” for a perfect golf photograph. Each tee provides a perfect golf photo opp.
The requirements for the player on the Lakes course are not overly demanding. The hole shapes and targets self explanatory.
Fairways
The landing areas in the fairways are very fair and in some cases don’t penalize errant shots due to the “U” shape they have. Many of the fairways curve to the center, allowing you to hit either side or play either a draw or a fade. Missing the fairways on the Lake course gets you in some rough, traps or possibly a few trees. It takes an extremely errant tee shot to find the more rugged desert that is in play more on the Desert course.
Greens
The greens on the Lakes course are a little easier than the greens on the Desert course both in the contours of the green and the areas around the green should you miss on your approach. Though they don’t have a ton of quadrants or tiers in each green, they’re certainly not flat. They play like a mountain course, with subtle and not so subtle slants. Speed is crucial on these greens and the player needs to be aware of whether his putts are going uphill or downhill.
The Shot
In the image to the right you can see some flowers in the foreground and then the green. This is the 538 yard par five 11th hole. I made it to about 30 yards short of the green in two and then bladed my lob wedge into the flowers behind the green. If you look closely, you can see my divot in the flower bed. I had nearly an impossible shot. The green was very slanted in the back, running away. If I hit a good shot, I’d be 20 feet below the cup. I opened up my lob wedge, hit a very high blast shot and landed the ball in the fringe. It landed very softly due to the height. The ball trickled down the hill straight at the hole, hit the flagstick and dropped in for birdie! The players in my group cheered. That shot was one in 100,000 easy.
Practice Facilities
The practice facility is a full 22 acres with a double-ended circular driving range. All the practice areas a player would need can be found on the Lakes course: target greens, putting greens, practice bunkers.
Clubhouse
The pro shop is fully stocked with all the great gear and apparel you could ever need. There’s a full service restaurant and lounge and nice outdoor patio seating as well.
Critiques
I have no critiques about the course or the facilities. The one problem my group experienced was the beverage cart, or lack thereof. The temperatures were nearly 110 degrees and the air super dry. I was prepared enough that I had some backup sports drinks in my bag which really saved me. But the poor guys in the group with me were dying, and hoping the beverage cart was close. The first time we even saw a beverage cart was on the 9th green. When we tried to flag her down, she told us she was working the back nine and that the other drink cart would be around soon.
Conclusion
The Lakes course and facilities provided me with a wonderful golf experience which wasn’t too rough on my confidence. My 76 there could have been much lower had I known a few of the nuances of the layout and the breaks in the greens.
One thing that really stood out to me is that on every hole, just like the Desert course, you feel like it’s the only hole out there. You hardly ever see any parallel fairways. The visual horizon you have is essentially that hole and only that hole. Every tee shot and approach had me reaching for my camera.
To see all 116 of my Primm Valley golf course pictures go to the HOG Primm Photo Gallery.
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