Golf Course Review - Sky Mountain - St. George Utah

Sky Mountain

Summary: Value Rating = B++

Sky Mountain is a very scenic course with great views of the surrounding south west Utah area – some really spectacular panoramic vistas of the Virgin River gorge and Pine Valley Mountains. The course isn’t very tough in comparison to other courses in this area of Utah but you will enjoy your round here.

Sky Mountain offers rolling fairways and fairly flat greens surrounded by red rock and black lava desert surroundings. The course is very well maintained and is very affordable. This isn’t a resort course and isn’t impeccably manicured like you would find at most resort courses but Sky Mountain does offer a casual and comfortable round of golf and value for your golfing dollar.

I would definitely play this course again – take your camera with you to capture some great scenery shots. It was in very good shape when my buddies and played here.

The green fees were $35, including cart (US – in 2005) for 18 holes. Current fees are in the $50 range – still good value.

Refer to this website for course contact information – www.redrockgolftrail.com/sky-mountain.html

Play and Value Evaluation Rating Table

Scenery	A+ really spectacular views and vistas from the course. Check out my photo’s at the end of this review.
Mix of Holes	B
Consistency and Condition	A
Character	B+
Golf Challenge	B
Tee Shots	B+
Fairway Shots	A
Pin Placements	B+ average size greens
Putting	A greens were fast
A Chance to Recover	A Some spots are definite lost ball or unplayable lie areas.
Intangibles	The scenery and setting as well as the price raises the value rating. The course is very average on most other aspects.

Refer to my evaluation criteria – www.lifepast50.ca/topic-list/golf/reviewcriteria

Some Details:

Sky Mountain is located in Hurricane, Utah – just north of St. George, Utah – about 15 to 20 minutes north of St. George. It is just a bit off the beaten track but not too far off of the Interstate (I 15) – about 15 minutes drive. We did manage to make a wrong turn on our trip to the course – turns out we missed a sign at one of the intersections we passed through.

We played this course on March 25, 2005. We thoroughly enjoyed playing the course and spent more than a few moments admiring the views – very appealing. The course was not very busy and we enjoyed a very leisurely pace of play.

One of the first things you will notice as you get to the clubhouse is the great view – red rock canyons and really interesting rock formations. On parts of the course you get to look into a canyon that runs along the edge of the course – a small canyon but spectacular none the less. You get great views from the 1st, 5th, 17th and 18th holes – rivals any course I have ever played with its views – breathtaking, spectacular – all good words to describe the views.

Sky Mountain isn’t overly long but it does require accuracy. If you are a long driver you may want to use a different club off the tee because you can hit your ball through the fairway on some of the par 4s. Hitting tee shots in the 200 to 220 range will serve you well. There are homes around part of the course and you can end up in some backyard troubles if you hit a really stray shot. We didn’t encounter any problems.

Although the course isn’t very tough you do still have to keep the ball in play. Hitting good drives off the tee leaves shorter iron 2nd and 3rd shots – I didn’t use my utility clubs much or my 3 or 4 iron. The scenery on the course really gives Sky Mountain some personality.

I shot 92 despite the fact I didn’t find the course as tough as others I’ve played. A few 3 putts and a penalty stroke added to my score.

The key to putting on these greens is to get the ball online with the right speed. There aren’t big tiers or undulations on these greens.

There are elevation changes – you will be hitting some uphill or downhill fairway shots to the green on a number of holes. On the downhill shots it is possible to overshoot the green or land on the green and roll off the back.

The range is interesting because of the view – you hit your practice shots out towards the beautiful scenery. The driving range falls away from you and you get the feeling that your ball could fly forever, or at least until it hits the mountains with the wonderful red rock formations. One of the most beautiful views from a practice range you will ever see.

My Evaluation Details:

Scenery – Some really spectacular views of the surrounding area.

Mix of holes – Just average on this front.

Consistency and condition – The course was in great shape.

Character – the scenery is what really gives this course its character.

Golf Challenge – the course does offer some challenges…..

tee shots – the course does require accuracy off the tee but you don’t have to hit it long.
fairway shots – some uphill and downhill shots will challenge you and the fairways were in great shape.
pin placements – the greens are average size and pin placements near the edges can make the holes challenging given the speed of the greens.
putting – the greens were fast and the speed was consistent across the entire course.
greens – the condition of the greens was very good.
a chance to recover – The rough was very fair and we didn’t encounter any huge difficulties playing from the edges of the course. You can get into trouble in the desert areas with the bushes.