Kansas Golf Vacations – Wolf Creek Golf Course

I played at Wolf Creek Golf Links, Inc., located in Olathe, Kansas a couple of weeks ago in a Kansas City Cup match and must say it was a very beautiful golf course. We won the match, which may have made it that much better, but I thought post my review of the course while it was still fresh in my mind.

If you don’t know about Wolf Creek or hadn’t heard of it, you are in for a treat. First of all, it is a men’s only club. And that means literally no women allowed. The bartenders are men. The cart girls are men. Everybody there is a man. It is actually kind of a strange experience, but I guess some people are looking for that kind of environment.

That it is only men makes it a very exclusive golf course, and it is 100% private (except for events like the KC Cup, where we got to play because of the format). I don’t know the exact dues required to become a member, but based on the shape of the course, I’m sure they are quite large.

The course itself, although located in Olathe, Kansas is very isolated. It is in the southernmost part of Olathe, out in the middle of a bunch of fields. The seclusion provides great tranquility and a great golfing experience.

Driving up to the course is not an imposing experience like you might have at some other exclusive places. The clubhouse is modest, neither extremely extravagant nor shoddy. There is a bar, a locker room, and a dining room, among other rooms (post-round I did glance a poker table located in the back of a room full of gentlemen playing in what I am going to assume was a friendly game). The course is gated, but again, does not give off the air of something as exclusive as it is rumored to be.

I think the reason the clubhouse and facilities are so modest is twofold. First, with only guys there, how extravagant does it have to be? Isn’t it cool enough just to say you belong to an all-male golf club? Second, by the shape of the course – it was gorgeous – it appears that all of their money goes back into maintaining and upgrading the golf course itself.

Starting off, the range was very nice. It is grass, they a bunch of balls set up in range ball bags at each station (about 20 stations), and they have a bunch of bags filled with tees for your indulgence. Off the range, you hit to several different flag sticks at several different yardages. It was in great shape.

If you ever play here, a couple of putts on the green is a must. The greens are firm and fast, and beautifully cut. They roll true, but take some getting used to because they are faster than your average green. For me, truthfully, the day we played I thought the greens were just marginally fast. But I think that was because we played so early in the season. In the middle of the summer, I could see them being lightning fast.

As for the course itself, there is a lot of undulation and a lot of holes with little to no undulation. There are two par threes in particular, one on the front nine, one on the back, that I particularly liked. The first was slightly downhill with water guarding the front and right side of the green (everyone missed long and left – go figure). The other par three sits high on the tee box before descending what must be at least 100 feet to the green. It is a fantastic looking tee shot.

Overall, I’d rate the course a 9 out of 10. The course was great from tee to green, and I had a great time. The only thing holding it back from being a 10 was that wow factor (although one of my opponents was a former major league all-star pitcher – that was cool – and he was a decent golfer). It was a very nice course, but when I was done I didn’t feel different as a golfer – that’s what a 10 takes from me.