Golf: RANCH CLUB

When the Ranch Club first opened in the 1940’s, it was a six-hole layout with sand greens. But under the ownership of Dennis Napier and Bill Taite, who purchased the course in 1986, it has developed into a well-kept and challenging track with a couple of beastly par-3s that will test even low-handicappers.

With six par-4s and three par-3s – two of which play to 223 and 215 yards, the Ranch Club is almost too long to be considered a true executive course. But only one of the par 4’s – the dastardly narrow, 407-yard sixth hole that also has a line of telephone poles down the middle of the fairway – measures more than 350 yards.

Many of the fairways parallel each other, and it is not unusual to see golfers stopping to chat while passing in the rough between two adjacent holes.

Taite sold his share of the course to another investor in 2005, but Napier continues to manage the daily operations of the course and full-service bar and restaurant that are open year-round and share space with the pro shop in the Ranch Club’s nicely appointed clubhouse.

According to Napier, his clientele ranges from beginners to families to tourists, many of whom find their way down from Canada in mid-summer and take over camp grounds in the area.

“They come down and just populate the area,” Napier said of the Canadian visitors. “During August, you might as well call us Calgary.”

Water for the course is pumped from an underground swamp near the tee box on the sixth hole and services an irrigation system that became fully operational in the spring of 2006. The course has remained remarkably green throughout the past two summers.

Play is up – due in no small part to the restaurant and bar business.

Greens fees for adults are $15 for nine holes and $20 for unlimited play. The unlimited play rate drops to $13 after 2 p.m. and $10 after 5 p.m. Discounts of $2 are available for seniors over 60 and $5 for juniors under 12.