Golf Course Review by: Billy Satterfield
The Takeaway: Bayside has amazing potential with great terrain and hole designs, but maintenance standards are currently holding it back. Strategy and memorability abound on this course that could be one of the best public courses in Nebraska with some work. Grade B-
Quick Facts
Designer: Dave Axland and Dan Proctor 1999
Cost: $71 - $98 Click for current rates
Phone Number: 308-287-4653
Course Website: Official Website - Visit Bayside Golf Club's official website by clicking on the link provided.
Directions: Get here! - 865 W Lakeview Rd, Brule, Nebraska 69127 – UNITED STATES
Photos: See additional photos of Bayside Golf Club
What to Expect: Bayside is located above Lake McConaughy in southwest Nebraska just 1.5 hours north of famed Ballyneal; the Tom Doak layout carved through the choppy sand hills of northeast Colorado. But it was the team of Proctor and Axland that designed Bayside and is located 1.5 hours west of their most famous design, Wild Horse, in Gothenburg, NE. They did a great job at Bayside with several of the same designs, strategies, and shaping found there as was employed at Wild Horse. The front nine is laid out on the tamer property of the two nines and is a much easier walk, but the green slopes and contours are more severe. On the slip side, the back nine, which opened two years later, has much larger changes in elevation and will be a nice workout for your quads if you don't take a cart. The shaping of both nines is great and brings character to each hole design, but the back nine requires more penal carries where you may find yourself hunting for balls more often than you'd like. In its current state, it doesn't take much to see that the course has great bones in the design, but the unfortunate turf conditions detract from the overall experience and eliminate how some of the design features are meant to be played. It would take a pretty good infusion of cash and labor to maintain the course at a level the architects surely hoped for; yet Wild Horse manages to do it just fine. As a location for a couples retreat or buddies golf event, Bayside delivers with onsite lodging that is certainly lighter on the wallet than many resorts while still delivering beautiful views of Lake McConaughy. While many of the great golf courses in Nebraska are private, Bayside offers a great experience for the public to get a taste of that modern minimalist architecture style.
By the Numbers
| Tees | Par | Yardage | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 71 | 6545 | 71.7 | 135 |
| Blue | 71 | 6130 | 70.4 | 131 |
| White | 71 | 5762 | 69.0 | 128 |
| Gold | 71 | 5143 | 65.9 | 120 |
| Red (Ladies) | 72 | 4282 | 68.6 | 119 |
Individual Hole Analysis
Signature Hole: 17th Hole – 138 Yard Par 3 – Taking a page out of Riviera's design book, the 17th at Bayside features a bunker in the center of green to navigate on this short one-shotter. The left side is by far the more generous portion of the green for the flag to be on and should be where you take dead aim when it is found there, whereas the right side is much smaller and with more slope to navigate. If you get stuck on the wrong side of the bunker from where the hole location is, the sloping in the green behind the sand can be used to navigate a ball around the hazard and yield a look at birdie.
Best Par 3: 13th Hole – 205 Yards – Playing westerly towards a green that is pitched into a hillside on the left and death around the other three sides, the 13th essentially places like an island green. Hitting it on the left third of the green will have the ball release to the right towards the day's pin location and is certainly the play if you don't feel confident going at the flag. There is a bunker in front and a larger one on the right that are both penal, but likely better than the alternative of hitting your ball into the native where it can be lost or result in a very poor lie. The visuals of the slope of the left side of this green and how it mimics the sloping hillside in the distance is pleasing.
Best Par 4: 6th Hole – 461 Yards – Just a fantastic two-shotter that is made better by the backdrop of McConaughy Lake, the 6th will take some game to walk off with a par. A ravine works in from the right a pair of times enroute to the green while the left side stays pretty steady but with thick grass outside the fairway. The first ravine can be carried for players driving up the ride side and will set up a better angle into the raised green that is fronted by a deep bunker. Going up the left side with your drive is much more forgiving but creates a challenging angle into this green that is twice as wide as it is deep. The bowl effect on the left side should give players some confidence when approaching the green, but the falloffs in front and on the right should instill some fear. The movement in the terrain on this hole makes it one of the most engaging on the property.
Best Par 5: 15th Hole – 616 Yards – Shockingly not the longest hole on the back at Bayside, the 15th stretches over 600 yards but plays downhill to help cut some distance off the journey. The horseshoe shaped hole features a substantial carry to the fairway with McConaughy Lake not only creating the background but also standing as an aiming point off the tee. Cheating the hole to the right can really reduce the yardage and open up an opportunity to get home in two, but a misexecution with the tee shot can leave you with a lost ball. Taking the safer line up the left side of the fairway will likely result in needing to layup on the second shot before attacking the green which is fronted by trouble except for a small sliver of fairway that ascends to the putting surface with a pot bunker in the way. The green is wider than it is deep, so the approach shot has to have proper distance control to come out victorious. This is an enjoyable hole that feels so big due to the open space, distant views, and total length.
Birdie Time: 7th Hole – 307 Yard Par 4 – Many players will walk off the 6th hole with a bogey, but the 7th offers an opportunity to take that stroke right back with a birdie. From the tee the hole resembles a long par three although the trio of bunkers to navigate enroute to the green make sure that there is some challenge to deal with. Keeping your ball up the left side will yield the best results with the fairway feeding into the green from that side while missing to the right will leave your ball in the junk. This is a great hole to grip it and rip it on, and if you don't reach the green, you'll have just a flip wedge into the flag.
Bogey Beware: 11th Hole – 652 Yard Par 5 – The longest hole on the course and an absolute beast to tackle, the 652 yard 11th will require the best of your game from tee to green. The tees are set up at an angle to the fairway and players that get too aggressive trying to chase the short grass to the right as it moves away from the players may find themselves coming up short and leaving their ball in the native grass; and potentially lost. Players looking more left will have more forgiveness but will need to avoid the raised pot bunker that is often used as an aiming point. As players traverse their way towards the green they may find themselves feeling claustrophobic as the fairway continuously narrows and the falloffs on each side become more imminently in play. With the narrow but deep green featuring an infinity edge, it is a reminder to players that going long is a virtual death sentence. This is a very challenging hole that delivers a knockout punch with a sloping green that makes for some challenging two-putts.
