Utah: Black Desert Resort
BENJAMIN GOLF OVERALL RATING: ★★★★
History: Black Desert Resort opened in 2023 in Ivins, Utah; its landscape is defined by volcanic lava fields dating back nearly 2.3 million years. The course was the final design of Tom Weiskopf, the 1973 Open Championship winner who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer during construction and passed away four months before the course was finished. Longtime partner Phil Smith carried the project to completion. It has since earned rapid national recognition, becoming the first course in Utah history to host a PGA Tour FedEx Cup event.
Practice Facilities: ★★
The range features Trackman technology, music, and a genuinely great atmosphere, similar in feel to The Park at West Palm. My heart sank when I learned it was mats only, but I'll give credit where it's due: these were some of the best mats I've hit off, striking the right balance between not being so forgiving that they mask your misses, and not being so unforgiving that you walk away with sore wrists, back, and elbows. Target areas at the range were a bit underwhelming. Behind the hitting area sat an 18-hole practice putting green that I genuinely wish I had spent more time on, as the abundant slope made two-putts far from a given and lent itself to some legitimate competition.
Now for the not-so-fun part: the chipping area. This was a significant disappointment. In preparation for their fall PGA Tour event, the facility required all chipping to be done off designated mats. That's a fine policy in October. We were there in April. The phrase that kept coming to mind was "tools, not jewels." Grass is meant to be used at a golf course, not preserved like a museum exhibit.
If there were a dedicated category for ranking mats-only practice facilities, Black Desert would be near the top. As we all know by now, this is not the case and my 2-star ranking reflects that.
Course Layout: ★★★★★
This course walks a fine line between feeling claustrophobic and feeling genuinely expansive, and it does so remarkably well. For context, I am not a fan of the Troon North, or video game style of golf, where fairways are flanked by a narrow strip of rough before abruptly giving way to an unplayable lie. Black Desert operates on a similar principle in that any ball finding the lava rock is unplayable, treated as a red stake. The difference is that the fairways here are wide enough that you rarely feel strangled off the tee. Miss the short grass and you are likely in trouble, but the landing zones give you a fair chance to find them.
The layout itself rewards multiple styles of play. The greens are firm, which opens the door for a ground game on approach shots if you are inclined to use it. Risk-reward opportunities are plentiful, with several par fours and fives reachable in one and two shots respectively, though the lava has a way of making you pay for overconfidence. We played two rounds, the first from the Black Desert tees and the second from the Weiskopf tees. The distinction was significant, as the shorter layout largely took driver out of your hands. The 19th hole is a nice touch as well, a fun 70-yard pitch shot that gives any remaining wagers one last chance to be settled.
The pace of play was solid throughout. Other groups are rarely in sight, aside from the occasional bottleneck at the halfway house, and the caddies do a good job of keeping things moving.
Does this course pass the litmus test of every hole feeling memorable? Not necessarily, however that is to be expected with a resort style of golf. After playing it twice, I feel like I can remember 60-75% of the holes very well, with the remainder being a bit blurrier.
Course Conditioning: ★★★★★
Conditioning was very good, however I did notice some greens were riddled with ball marks. To my caddies’ credit, he went out of his way to fix as many ball marks on the greens as he had time for.
Post-Round Beer: ★★★★★
No complaints here. Club 73 neighbors the chipping and putting area. We enjoyed having a beer and continuing the competition from the round into a putting competition.
Hotels: ★★★★
The rooms are genuinely nice, but this is a classic case of overengineering. Figuring out the light switches alone felt like a puzzle, and the shower handles were no different. Sometimes simple is better.
Food: ★★★★★
We ate at Oasis, Club 73, and the 20th Hole. Oasis and Club 73 are the two on-course venues that offer free food & drink, beginning 2 hours before your round and ending right after. The standouts were the churros and birria tacos at Oasis and the breakfast burrito at Club 73, all of which I would strongly recommend. I also sampled a few dirty sodas along the way, which are very much a Utah thing. They are enjoyable, but if you want to take the edge off the sweetness, stop at a nearby grocery or liquor store beforehand and pick up some shooters to add to the mix. The food at the 20th Hole was a bit underwhelming for the price. It is the first time I have seen chicken tenders rival the prices of other entrees.
Price: $$$$
We flew into Las Vegas Thursday night, drove out to Sand Hollow Friday morning for an afternoon round, then made the drive to Black Desert and arrived late that night. Saturday afternoon and early Sunday morning were spent at Black Desert before rushing back to catch a 3:30 pm flight out of Las Vegas on Sunday. It is a lot of ground to cover in a long weekend, but it is entirely doable. Here is what it cost us:
Flights, Round Trip JFK to LAS (Thursday to Sunday): $500 per person
Las Vegas Hotel (1 night, 2 rooms): $350 total
Rental Car and Gas: $475 total
Black Desert Resort Hotel and Golf (2 nights, 2 rooms, 2 rounds for 4 people): approximately $5,000 total
Food (excluding the complimentary food and non-alcoholic beverages included during the round): $150 per person
Caddie Tip ($75 per round per bag): $150 per person
Total Estimated Cost Per Person (excl. Sand Hollow): $2,231
