The Course at Wente Vinyards- Livermore

The course at Wente Vineyards wraps subtly around the hills and the vineyards themselves. In fact, you barely notice the course as you drive by. A wayward drive can land you right among the grape vines. (I suppose when it’s time to harvest, the pickers have to wear helmets.)

You’ll want to keep the ball in these beautiful fairways, though. If you do, the Greg Norman-designed course is very playable, not like some high-end courses that make things impossible for mid- to high-handicappers with tricked up holes and lightning-fast greens.

First of all, the place has five sets of tees, so everyone can find a comfortable spot.

Don’t immediately head to the whites, if that’s what you’re used to playing, though. On this course the blues are the tees for most typical male golfers.

There are still two more tees behind the blues, in case you are one of those guys who can’t stand to be hitting from the same tees as some 18-handicapper.

The course also starts off easy, as if to welcome its guests with a confidence-building pat on the shoulder, and an atta-boy. No. 1 is a straightforward par 4 -- with one of many elevated tees -- that doesn’t play very long. No. 2 is a very short par 4 (279 from the blues), but it’s narrow and heavily bunkered to keep you from going for the green. Still, it’s an easy par with a couple short iron shots. And No. 3 is just a little ol’ 9-iron par 3.

Things don’t get hairy until No. 6, an uphill par 4 that demands a precise layup if you want to have any sort of decent lie to attack this green. Then you go all the way back down the hill with a long par 3. If the pin is up front here, it’s almost impossible to stop the ball close. 

Then again, it’s almost impossible to stop the ball on any of these greens. At first you might be frustrated because the greens are so hard that they aren’t holding your shots. If you’re smart, though, you’ll adjust. Use a little less club and bounce ‘em up there. It’s easier to hit a 7-iron than a 6-iron anyway, right?

Once you’re on the greens, you’ll love ‘em. They are fairly easy to read and they roll very true. How do I know? Well, I’m not a very good putter, and I had one of the best putting days of my life on this course (Don’t ask about the rest of my shots). You hardly ever find  yourself saying: “That putt shouldn’t be that fast,” or “That shouldn’t break that much.” What you see is what you get.

Back to the course. The front finishes with a couple monsters. Nos. 8 and 9 are both long, uphill holes, a par 5 and 4, respectively. Then you get to drive your cart up Lombard Street. That’s what they call the switch-back path that carries you all the way to the top for the 10th tee. If you want to walk this course, the marshals will give you a lift up this hill. Otherwise you’ll still be panting halfway to the 11th green.

The most interesting holes on the back are Nos. 12 and 18. The former is a long par 5, uphill at first then downhill. What makes it tough is there is a tree positioned about 100 yards from the green, right in the way of your approach. And, of course, the fairway slopes toward the tree.

And the closing hole is a classic risk-reward, although to me it seemed like risk-risk. It’s a 416-yard par 4 from the blues. There are two fairways, separated by a creek. Go to the right and you’re closer to the hole, but of course there’s much more room on the left. Thing is, you’re gonna have a mid- to long-iron into the green either way, and if you’re on the right, you have to clear a pond to get to the green. Here’s my tip: aim your drive into the creek in the middle. That way you’re gonna hit the fairway unless you drill a perfectly straight shot. And how many times does that happen?

This course costs $80, or $100 on weekends, so it’s a little upscale for most of us. But if you’re looking to treat yourself, this is a great place to play.

By Jeff Fletcher
Editor, sfbaygolf.com

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