• Black Rock Golf Club - Coeur d'Alene, ID

• Circling Raven Golf Club - Worley, ID

• Coeur d'Alene Resort Course - Coeur d'Alene, ID

• Gozzer Ranch Golf Club - Coeur d'Alene, ID

in 2003 Black Rock Golf Club was ranked the Best New Private Golf Course by Golf Digest and started off as #27 on Golf Digest's top 100 golf courses.  That same year, the course designer, Jim Engh, was named Architect of the Year.  Needless to say, I was looking forward to getting after this beauty.

After lunch and a quick tour of the outstanding facilities, we headed out to the first tee.  The first hole lures you in but the vibe changes quickly on the 2nd hole, a great short par 3.  With fantastic variations in design, the course demands a number of different shots and requires many strategic decisions to be made.  With the guidance of one of the course's Assistant Professionals, I was able to navigate my way around the course without losing a single golf ball.  Nice work, Taylor Made 2.

While some courses feature a signature hole, Black Rock Golf Club features about 10 signature holes. The stretch of holes from 11-13 probably garner the most attention offering fantastic views of Lake Coeur d' Alene and some pretty cool waterfalls. Don’t go chasing them waterfalls.

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Just about every local golfer that I spoke with in Coer d'Alene mentioned Circling Raven as one of their favorite tracks in the area.  It was easy to find out why.  Circling Raven offers a great test of golf in a scenic and remote setting.  Designed by Gene Bates in 2003, the course features a great variety of well designed and fun to play golf holes.

For the 2nd leg of my 36 hole Saturday in Idaho, I teed it up for a nice twilight round.  Just about every hole at Circling Raven is out there on its own giving the golfer an "it's just me and this golf hole" type feeling.  Since I was playing as a single, it was just me and the Raven… and several birdies.

I particularly enjoyed the bunkering on this course as it framed the holes very nicely.  My 4/4 sand save percentage helped my appreciation for the beach.  If you are ever in Coer d'Alene, put this course on your must play list.  It is a steal at $85.

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The resort course at Coer d' Alene is one of those golfing experiences that every avid golfer should seek out.  Playing to a par 71 at 6800 yds from the back tees, the course is as forgiving and as fun as you can imagine.  The par 3's here really made an impression as some of the most scenic golf holes that I have played.

Arriving to the course early, I was greeted by our forecaddie, Shane, and after hitting some floating range balls into the lake it was time to play golf.  The course starts out with a forgiving par 5 and I started out with a hot birdie... which I promptly gave right back on the difficult second hole.  A barrage of world class par 3's quickly greats you on 3, 5 and 6.  The 5th hole quickly became one of my favorites.

After some good golf and a few birdies, we finally arrived at the island green 14th hole.  Is that a floating island green?  Indeed it is!  The green is movable and on this Saturday, it was playing at 180 yards.  I managed to find the surface and took an enjoyable boat ride on the "Putter" a wooden boat that gives groups rides out to the green.  After receiving my certificate of achievement for completing the world's only floating, movable golf hole with a score of 3, I moved on with a smile on my face.

On the tee of the 18th, I needed a birdie to shoot an even par 71.  I was not to be denied as I rolled in a casual 10 footer to cap off an outstanding day on a memorable golf course.

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Widely considered as one of Tom Fazio's best designs is the deliciously good, Gozzer Ranch.  Named after the Gozzer family that previously owned the land, Gozzer is consistently ranked as one of America's top golf courses and was named the best new private course in America when it opened in 2008.  The course is also frequented by celebrities and sports hero types.  NHL legend, Wayne Gretzky and motivational guru, Tony Robbins have homes nearby.  

While the golf is outstanding, the experience at Gozzer Ranch would not be complete without several visits to the "comfort stations" throughout the course.  With a full bar, hot sandwiches, mini hot dogs, a taco bar, a full selection of nuts and snacks, soft serve ice cream, and several different options for jerky you will leave fully comforted.  For brevity's sake, the list of amenities has been truncated.

After completing 18 holes, we kept the party going with a bonus 9.  Because the only thing better than 18 at Gozzer Ranch is 27 at Gozzer Ranch.  Eventually the sun would set and one of my favorite days on the golf course would come to an end.