Newport Beach Club Tests the Short Game

If you’re the type who delights in the occasional par-3 hole and uses it as a kind of life preserver to save a flagging round, the Newport Beach Golf Club will probably look like one big birthday present.

The 17-year-old course is one of Orange County’s few “executive courses” (meaning, for some reason, that most of the holes are par 3), and therefore a solid iron player’s bread and butter. It’s the sort of course for golfers who get a bigger kick out of watching their pinpoint iron shots land on a green “like a butterfly with sore feet,” as Sam Snead used to say, than of crushing a John Daly-esque drive with the latest in Neanderthal driver technology.

This is not to say the place is a cream puff. There’s more to the game of golf than clouting the ball out of sight and then chasing it. Courses like the NBGC are where you go to develop finesse.

“You can use every club in the bag here,” said Steven Lane, the course owner. “It’s a really good test of golf for your short game.”

What makes it a bit more than your average pitch-and-putt course is the fact that there are at least five holes on which you have to do more than that. The fourth, seventh, 15th, 16th and 17th holes are par 4. And the par-3 10th and 18th holes, at 207 yards and 217 yards, respectively, require strong and accurate tee shots. (According to head PGA pro John Leonard, wind often affects tee shots, and as a result the 18th “can play like it was 225 yards.”)

There isn’t much truly hair-raising trouble on the course, apart from a handful of opportunities to hit out of bounds and water coming into play on the 10th, 14th and 15th holes. Bunkers are few.

However, if you don’t reach the green, particularly on the back nine, you have to be comfortable playing on slopes. There are several fairly dramatic dips, bends and undulations in the fairways, and it’s possible to end up addressing a fairway shot from a good distance above or below the ball.

The greens, Lane said, are forgiving but can be deceptive. The prevailing wind, he said, blows from the ocean inland, and some golfers believe that putted balls will also break in that direction. They don’t, he said. They break toward the Back Bay and the sea.

The course is well-tended and gets a lot of play from beginners, senior citizens, tourists and local business types who want to get in nine holes on the way home or hit a bucket on the driving range. And, if you happen to be working late, you can still play under the lights; the last foursome is usually sent out around 8 p.m., Leonard said.

An unexpected bonus is the separately owned pro shop, run by Leonard and generously stocked with equipment (which can be tried out on the driving range) and clothes. There’s a particularly broad selection of clothing for the female golfer.

A drawback: You hit your tee shots off of mats rather than off grass. Mitigating factor: The posted maximum playing time for 18 holes is three hours and 15 minutes.

A Matter of Course

* Newport Beach Golf Course, 3100 Irvine Ave., Newport Beach, 92660. (714) 852-8681.

* Distance: 3,216 yards.

* Par: 59.

* Greens fees: Weekdays before 3 p.m., $11. Weekdays after 3 p.m., $7 for front nine, $9 for back nine (no 18-hole play after 3 p.m.). Weekends and holidays before 3 p.m., $16 for both nine and 18 holes. Weekends and holidays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., $9 for front nine, $16 for 18 holes. Weekends and holidays after 5 p.m., $9 front nine, $11 back nine (no 18-hole play after 5 p.m.). Senior rates: before 3 p.m. weekdays (except holidays), $8 for both nine and 18 holes ($9 after June 1).

* Carts: Pull carts only, $2.

* Lessons: Group lessons, for single half-hour lesson for two people, $40 per person. Package of five half-hour lessons for two people, $75 per person. Package of five one-hour lessons for three to four people, $75 per person. Single half-hour private lesson, $30. Package of five half-hour private lessons, $120. Junior golf lessons (ages 7 to 14), $50 per person for four one-hour lessons (includes nine-hole tournament).

* Driving range: Large bucket, $4.50; small bucket, $3.

* Reservations: One week in advance. Call (714) 852-8681.

* Amenities: Restaurant, snack bar, pro shop, putting green.

* How to get there: From Corona del Mar (73) Freeway, exit at Irvine Avenue, right turn one block to clubhouse.

Los Angeles Times