Camas Meadows Is the Real Deal!
Camas Meadows Golf Club has been on my radar for some time, but for whatever reason I haven’t had the opportunity to play it. That changed recently as I decided to spend a day or two in Vancouver, WA to play a few area courses. Interestingly, a few of my golfing buddies felt that both Camas Meadows and nearby Green Mountain are off the beaten track and its best to hit a course closer to Vancouver or Portland metro. Well, after playing both courses, you know what I say to that notion? “Rubbish!” Yes, to get there is a 15 or 20 minute trip from the I-5 corridor, but so what? I’ll drive 15-20 minutes to visit the bank and that’s not half the fun.
I opted to play Camas mid-week and invited my local distributor who had played Camas years ago to tag along. Camas Meadows opened in 2000 and is highly regarded by locals and Portland golfers alike being awarded “Best Public Golf course” and “Most Challenging Course” by Portland Business Journal. From the tips, Camas is a bonafide championship course with a 72.4 rating and 144 slope; however, my fellow mid-handicapper and I opted to take the more palatable route and play from the white tees making the course a more manageable 5743 yards and 68.7 rating and 136 slope. Camas is not long by any measure, but with narrow, tree-lined fairways, natural wetlands in abundance, and grassy flower-filled meadows, you should expect to shed tears earlier than anticipated if your aim goes south!
Overall course conditions were outstanding; in fact, we often bumped into groundscrew working the traps and generally focused on making the course as good as it should be. Yes, Camas is a quality course and the mix of wetlands, towering trees, firm and fair greens, not to mention the 50 sand bunkers dotted along the way will ensure your focus will be on your game. Oh, and don’t forget the water features, which are superbly integrated into the Andy Raugust-designed course.
While Camas plays with a balanced mix of playable holes, there were a few that stood out for me. Yes, my favorite hole, not to mention the one that gave me the most fits, is hole four, which is a mid-length 338 yard, par 4 offering golfers a subtle dogleg left and a small green. This hole plays just plain tough. Conventional wisdom would demand a tee shot to the generous layup area beyond the dense wetlands that stretch out in front of the tee box. Why? With water hazards left and right and mid-fairway bunkers to trip you up, smart play is needed on this very challenging par 4. Youthful (ha!) exuberance required that I let it rip with my 3 wood; however, my tee shot found the water hazard on the right requiring a dropped shot. Not a good start, but with a comfortable 9 iron into the small green bordered by yet another hazard, there was light at the end of the tunnel. Yes, this hole was fun to play and I can’t wait to get out there again to forge my revenge! Camas is not short on memorable holes and the signature hole #9 is one worth mentioning. With Mount Hood serving as a stunning back drop you are faced with a 522-yard par-5 fairway that slopes hard left with fairway bunkers hugging the right side and water running the left side. A good tee shot favoring the right resulted in a favorable release down the slope into the fairway and a clear path to the green. You’ll need a solid tee of 280 yards plus to avoid the right fairway bunker and the towering firs. Beyond that, a solid par is gettable.
While Camas Meadows is undoubtedly a challenging course, and it did decide to rob a few of my Taylormade “Noodles,” the good news is that it will reveal just enough chinks in its armor to entice and demand that you return for more and that includes players of all abilities. Yes, Camas is a “goodie” including their first-class practice and teaching facility offering 20 golfers a covered, lit, and heated area and grass tees during the golf season. The grass tees have up to 50 stalls. Director of Golf Jenny Duce and her staff are efficient, personable, and professional and the full service pro shop is one of the better ones I’ve seen. Of course, it just wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the top-notch club house and Oaks bar and Grill offering golfers good food at reasonable prices, Yes, the Oaks Clubhouse Sandwich coupled with a pint of the Camas Meadows private label beer, did sit nicely after our round. Camas might be a short ride from the hustle and bustle of downtown Portland, but if you truly want a quality golf experience, get out to SW Washington and visit Camas Meadows.
**As a super twilight card holder at Camas Meadows, you will be entitled to play after 5pm May 1st, 2009-August 31st, 2009 for only $399**
