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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Beauty and a beast

Bring your camera and your ‘A’ game

The latest arrival on the central Washington summer recreation scene, Bear Mountain Ranch is a gem of a golf course that sits on the side of a mountain overlooking the south shore of 55-mile long, glacier-fed Lake Chelan.

It is as well-maintained and challenging as it is scenic.

And that is far from faint praise, considering the lake and majestic Cascade Mountains are visible from nearly every point on the golf course, which is owned by Jerry and Mary Pat Scofield. It features five sets of tee markers on every hole, allowing golfers to chew off any distance between 5,042 and 7,231.

The firm bentgrass greens and predominantly bluegrass fairways and tees unfold over 350 acres of the 6,000-acre Bear Mountain Ranch community and take full advantage of the rugged, rolling terrain. There is 550 feet of elevation change between the highest and lowest point on the golf course and level lies are little more than a rumor.

Wide fairways let golfers bomb away off the tee, but the large, tilted greens put a premium on most approach shots. The course has remained in splendid conditioning since opening in April of 2005, and it was recently named one of six courses, nationwide, that were listed as favorites by PGA golf professionals in a newly published guide prepared by the PGA of America.

“Since the first day we opened, we’ve been getting nothing but positive feedback from customers,” said Cory Pickeral, Bear Mountain Ranch’s director of golf. “They really seem to like the challenge, the views and the condition of the golf course.

If there is a drawback to the seemingly endless number of jaw-dropping views the course affords, it would be that they tend to overshadow everything else the course has to offer – including excellent service in the pro shop and downstairs snack bar and outdoor patio.

Designed by Jerry Scofield, a developer, and Robin Yount, a landscape architect – neither of whom have much in the way of golf course design experience – Bear Mountain Ranch has its share of quirks, the first of which surfaces on the first hole, where a blind tee shot is supposed to be played over a dreaded “aiming pole” to a two-tiered fairway.

It is not the ideal introduction to such an otherwise delightful golf course, or the abundance of wonderfully designed holes that follow.

Among the best is the postcard-like 233-yard, par-3 seventh that plays severely downhill to a green that is protected on the front left by a pond ringed with tall reeds. There are bunkers left and right of the putting surface, with Lake Chelan serving as a perfect backdrop.

Another fantastic hole is the 417-yard, par-4 fourth, which features a 170-foot drop in elevation off the tee and plays over a set of bunkers placed side by side in front of a waste area just short of the green. And the 643-yard, par-5 finishing hole is another classic that forces golfers to decide whether attempting to carry a wide creek bed in front of the green with the second – or third, in some cases – is worth the substantial risk.

There are 80 sand traps on the course, most of which are ingeniously placed. And you don’t have to be all that fortunate to run across some local wildlife during your round – like my playing partner and I did when we drove up over a hill to find a spotted fawn grazing from a bush just to the right of the tee box on the 14th hole.

Greens fees, which include unlimited range balls and riding cart equipped with a GPS device, range from $39 in the early spring to $79 during the mid-summer’s peak season on Monday through Thursday and jump from $60 to $84 on Fridays and weekends. Afternoon and twilight rates are also available and also differ in price according to the time of year.