Utah County's Dream 18: The back nine

The Front Nine

It's nice to have a few conservative golf holes to warm up the swing before the nerves are really tested. The average golfer doesn't always have time to hit a bucket of range balls before hitting the first tee for a round of golf.

That's why most course designers tend to offer nine opening holes that are little more forgiving. It's also why golf is usually a little more difficult coming down the stretch. Most good courses have several challenging holes on the back nine that require golfers to save their best shots for last.

We believe in that same philosophy. In the back nine of our Dream 18 golf holes of Utah County, we have also saved a few of the more difficult holes from across the valley for the finishing side. We've also tossed in a few holes that are among the more enjoyable to play and holes that offer a good chance for birdie but are also no piece of cake. Here's a look at how we'd complete our dream layout from Utah County's 11 public-access courses.

The Back Nine

10. THANKSGIVING POINT NO. 12 (420-yard par 4) — This is a great hole when it comes to letting golfers decide how much they want to bite off from the tee, so take your pick on how you want to start your round — daring or safe.

The entire dogleg-left hole wraps around a large pond and has hazard along the entire right side. From the elevated tee you can pull out your safe club if you want, like a hybrid club or long iron, and stay right of the lake from the tee. But be careful — wander too far right and you'll end up in the marsh.

Or pick a spot over the water and make the hole shorter by hitting a longer club off the tee. Again, beware, there's a load of golf balls in that water.

The green is also well protected by the pond and a bunker front and left and hazard long and right. When the hole is cut on the front right, the pin is fairly accessible. When cut back left, more trouble comes into play.

Putting on this green is not as severe as most of Thanksgiving Point's greens, so once on the putting surface you'll have a good chance of draining a long one.

11. SPANISH OAKS NO. 16 (442-yard par 4) — This is a hole that has ruined plenty of good rounds and made a lot of golfers feel pretty good about themselves when they walked off the green with a par or birdie. There is trouble all around on this dogleg-right beauty, but good shots are usually rewarded and bad shots punished.