Lake Tahoe Golf Courses

[Shaka]

Any recommendations for a good course that is also a good value? I'll be holing up in Incline Village from Thursday-Sunday.

[PaloAltoCougar]

I haven't played up at Tahoe for a few years, having taken my bike instead of my bag the last few times, but I used to play there a lot. As one would expect, green fees will be relatively high compared to similar courses in Utah or the CA flatlands, but there are still some reasonable deals and some of the courses are really good.

The cheapest near where you're staying is Old Brockway. Interestingly, it's where Bing Crosby hosted his golf tournament back in the late '30s before he moved it to Pebble. That said, I wouldn't recommend the course as it's old and uninteresting, reflected by of its low rates.

The closest course to you is probably the Incline Village championship course. I loved this course in the '70s and '80s, and it's still very nice, but it's pricier (around $135, I think, during primetime),and perhaps past its prime.

Probably the best for the money is Northstar. The front nine is nice but fairly flat and uninteresting; the back nine goes back into minicanyons and is great. I played this course a lot and enjoyed it.

If I were going up this weekend and were to choose a course, I'd probably take Old Greenwood, a fairly new track designed by Nicklaus. It's tough but has several great looking, challenging holes. Also a bit pricier, but as with most courses at Tahoe, afternoon rates aren't bad. A course like Old Greenwood but which I've never played is Coyote Moon, about which I've heard good things.

Finally, down at South Shore, Edgewood is regarded by many as the best course at Tahoe. It's also the priciest, in part because of its location near most of the Tahoe casinos. It's been the site of several major celebrity pro-ams.

This is my report. Wish I could join you.

[The_Douger]

Not really a golf question, but my wife's birthday is at the end of the month and over the years she's mentioned wanting to go to Lake Tahoe to check it out and visit the area, a N Cal type of trip. Neither of us have ever been.

It would be just us. We both like hiking and stuff. We don't golf. I think we'd both enjoy paddleboarding, and would be interested in giving that a try if they have places for that. I'm sure they have some kayaking places around the lake.

Any suggestions for restaurants? Places to stay? Things to do? Things to do that might be a short 1-2 hour drive away? I think we'd be there for four or five days depending on how my work schedule was. I've been looking at a few things online, but I always like recommendations from people that have stayed before or had good experiences in a place over what I see online.

Thanks-D

[bluegoose]

I'm more familiar with north Lake Tahoe than I am with south. But PAC is really the person that needs to chime in here.

There is a very nice public beach in Tahoe city called commons beach. They have kayak and paddles board rentals there, or at least nearby. Further north in Kings beach and carnelian bay are also some nice public beach areas. In fact on the first CUF/CS Tahoe ride we took our first rest stop in Kings beach right next to the water at a public park. We have pictures of the group with kayakers and paddle boarders serenely paddling by in the background.

There are some nice hikes on the west shore over near emerald bay, although I admittedly haven't done them yet. Not exactly private and secluded, as the trail head parking lot is always jam packed.

Our cycling group has eaten at a cool restaurant up in carnelian bay a couple of times. I cant recall the name of the place. It is filled with old antique bicycles and other rusted machines hanging from the ceiling. Decent food but great memories, as that was where my imaginary friends finally became real to my always-skeptical wife, who concluded that everyone in the group was legit as far as she could tell.

[PaloAltoCougar]

Like bg, I'm more familiar with North Lake Tahoe than South, but I have a pretty good feel for the whole area. Both North and South will be crowded this month and next, but South Lake Tahoe is always the most congested. I strongly prefer the North. Incline Village, Kings Beach and Tahoe City have lots of places to stay and I wouldn't rule out Squaw Valley or North Star either. If you go on Hotwire or airbnb you can find some deals. Once there, you have lots of options for hiking, and sightseeing. Upon arrival, I recommend you grab a weekly periodical that used to be called North Tahoe Truckee Week but it looks like it's now Tahoe Weekly. It has some good hike and sightseeing recommendations, a little history about the area, and coupons for various activities. I usually golf and ride when we're up there, but we've also enjoyed boating (rented), jet skiing, kayaking, parasailing and, of course, hiking all over. One interesting hike is at Squaw Valley on nights with a full moon. A ranger takes you up to a mountaintop and you watch the moon come up while learning some cool stuff.

Reno is only a 45 minutes drive and they often have some good shows you can take in after having a nice dinner (several good to very good restaurants downtown).

Emerald Bay is a must see. From the road that wraps around the Bay you can hike up to Eagle Falls and/or walk down to Vikingsholm, a cool Norse-looking mansion built nearly a century ago.

There are lots of decent restaurants, although none that are spectacular. The official board pre-ride dining venue bg mentioned is Rosie's on the main drag in Tahoe City. Wolfdales and the River Grill have also been good. For breakfast, I strongly recommend the Fire Sign Cafe.

I'll be happy to answer any questions. You should have a very nice time even without any help from us, though.