Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland

Andrews AFB has three championship level, 18-hole, Par 72 golf courses:  The East Golf Course, The West Golf Course and The South Golf Course.  The courses all reflect a military presence.  They have a classic sense of style, gracious hospitality and timeless elegance.  The high-end amenities and exceptional facilities will make your round of golf an unforgettable golf experience.  The courses were created from an extraordinary design and provide an enjoyable challenge for golfers of all skill levels.  The golf courses are maintained in a relaxed “country club” atmosphere.

 

The East Golf Course is an 18-hole, Par 72 course that measures 6,883 yards from the back tees, with a course rating of 71.9 and a slope of 126.  The course was designed and built by Frank Murray and Russell Roberts, and originally opened in 1956.

The varying degree of difficulty makes this course more challenging than the other two courses.  The course runs through thick wooded areas with tree lined fairways that have large mature trees and thick green vegetation.  Some fairways are narrow so accuracy is a must.

The West Golf Course is an 18-hole, Par 72 course that measures 6,572 yards from the back tees.  The course has a rating of 70.5 with a slope of 120.  The course was designed and built by Frank Murray and Russell Roberts and opened in 1961.

The course is more enjoyable to play depending on your selection of tees.  With four sets of tees to choose from your decision should be rather easy.  The course is set on rolling terrain with stunning fairways and sloping greens guarded by trees and sand.

The South Golf Course is an 18-hole, Par 72 course that measures 6,759 yards from the back tees, and the course has a rating of 71.8 with a slope of 124.  The course was designed and built by Brian T. Ault and opened in 1998.

The South course is the newest course, with some trees, and more water hazards than the other courses.  It has wide open fairways and sloping greens that are guarded with trees and sand traps.

 

All of the golf courses at Andrews AFB are restricted to military personnel and their guests.

Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio

Wright-Patterson AFB has three golf courses:  1) Prairie Trace West Golf Course, 18 holes. 2) Twin Base Golf Course, 18 holes.  3)  Prairie Trace East Golf Course, 9 holes.  All golf courses are located on the base.

1. The Prairie Trace East Course is a 9-hole, Par 35 that measures 2,732 yards from the white tees.  If the course is played twice, it’s a Par 70 that measures 5,464 yards from the white tees with a rating of 66.3 and a slope of 118.  The designer of the course is not known and it opened in 1953.

The course is an enjoyable little course that runs through a hilly wooded area, which is the typical Ohio landscape.  We found it to be a shot makers course, with narrow fairways, tree lined greens but still a challenge for every skill level.

2. The Twin Base Golf Course is an 18-hole, Par 72 course that measures 6,903 Yards from the back tees. The course has a rating of 72.7 with a slope of 123.   The course was designed by William H. Diddel ASGCA and originally opened in 1963.

This course is the second course built at the Base.  As I played the course I could tell that the course was carved out of the rolling wooded area.  This tree lined course is more traditional golf with every hole in keeping with the natural topography of the area.  Accuracy is a must to play this course.  It has tight greens along with water and sand, If you’re lucky enough to play right this can be a very enjoyable course.

3. The Prairie Trace West Course is an 18-hole, Par 72 course that measures 6,745 yards from the back tees.  The course has a rating of 72.4 and a slope of 130.  The designer of the course is not known and it opened in 2007.

The newest course built was designed with a variety of uphill and downhill approaches will have you second guessing your shot decisions.  We found that the varying degree of difficulty promises a memorable golf experience for both the novice and the experienced golfer alike.

All Golf Courses are restricted to the military and guests only.

Langley Air Force Base, Virginia

Langley AFB has two courses: The Raptor Course, an 18-hole, Par 72 course, and the Eagle Course, a 9-hole, Par 36 course.  Both courses are carved out of a wooded area of coastal Virginia.  The topography of the courses features creeks, marshlands, lakes and thick wooded sections of hardwood and pine trees.  With Bermuda grass fairways and small guarded greens, it’s a shot maker’s course that requires accurate ball placement. With five different sets of tees that create varying degrees of difficulty, these courses promise to make a memorable golf experience.

The Raptor Course measures 6,652 yards from the back tees.  With a course rating of 72.5 and a slope of 130, the course was designed by Edmond Ault and originally opened in 1948.  The golf course was renovated in 2008 by Lester George & Arnold Palmer.

The Eagle Course was originally designed by Edmond Ault in 1948 as an 18-hole course.  The original Eagle course was renovated in 2008 after the Raptor Course was completed, but there are no plans to complete the upgrade. Currently, there are only 6 hole in use, the #10, #11, #12, #16, #17, and #18.  This makes an excellent practice facility and a great little course for beginners.

The golf course is restricted to military personnel and their guests only.

NAS Whiting Field, Florida

The NAS Whiting Field Golf Course is an 18-hole, Par 72 course that measures 6,991 yards from the back tees.  The course has a rating of 73.3 and a slope of 125.  The designer of the course is unknown.  The course opened in 1945 and was renovated in 1956.

The golf course is a typical Florida style course, primarily flat, wide open Bermuda fairways, mature trees, many water hazards, and even some sand.  The topography at the course features creeks, marshlands, and lakes carved through trees and vegetation.  Don’t forget the gators.  The course meanders through landscape and surrounding areas.

 

Whiting Field has been a naval flight training facility since WW II and is still in use today.  My father was in the first class of Marine Aviators to be trained there during the war.  To this day there are constantly aircraft flying around.

The golf course is open to the public. 

San Antonio, Texas. The Military City Golf Trip

San Antonio Texas is known as the Military City, with four bases in the area.   Three of the bases have golf courses and it is our goal to play every military golf course in the country and this is a great place to start.

Our trip started with three Army retirees, Col. Bill Logel, Ltc. Tom Wilczak and Msg. John Zook arriving on an early morning flight from Chicago.  The fourth golfer is a good old Texas boy named Earl.  He drove down from the Dallas area to pick us up at the airport and complete our foursome.  Earl has a vast knowledge of the area and had some great places to eat.

We checked in at the now closed Brooks City AF Base on the south side of town early, and decided to check out the golf course at Lackland AFB.  We thought it would be a great idea to play the front 9 holes, and come back next day to play the back 9 holes that was the plan.

A torrential rain storm turned the little creek at Lackland’s Gateway Golf Course into a large lake and all of the courses in the area were closed.  The storm shut down the Velaro Open, a longtime San Antonio PGA event.  So on to plan two, site seeing and shopping.

 

Sunshine on the 3^rd day enabled us to get in our first full round on the trip at Sam Houston.  There are two courses, the Salado-Del-Rio course and the La Loma course; we played the La Loma course.  This course is the shorter of the two courses with many scenic views.  That afternoon we stopped by the Gateway Course to complete the back nine holes we missed because of the storm.  Famous Texas BBQ was on the menu for that evening.

Next on the agenda were the Randolph AFB Oaks Golf Course and another golf treasure.  The course is a typical Texas course, flat, open fairways small greens and lots of Texas wildlife. The base is a major flight training facility of the Air Force, that means constant loud jet and propeller noise from aircraft take-offs, fly byes, and landings, distractions are normal.  Mexican food at Papasitos and a late night cigar ended the day for us.

On our last day we played the second course at Fort Sam Houston, the Salado-Del-Rio course - a real challenging course, with more beautiful scenery.  We ended the day with a great meal at a steak house in old town San Antonio.

The morning of our last day, after breakfast at a well-known pancake house we packed, thanked our friend Earl for all of his help, and checked in for our flight back to Chicago.

Our first military golf trip was to Wright-Patterson AFB, in Dayton, OH. This is where we thought up the idea to play all of the military golf course in the country, all185of them.   San Antonio, the “Military City” was our second and the beginning of the vision to play all of the military golf courses in the United States. As noted above, there are four very nice military courses in the greater San Antonio area.

There are many cities throughout the country that have multiple military bases and golf courses; this was just the beginning of many more trips to come.  We take advantage of our Retired Military benefits by using the military facilities as much as possible. They vary by base but generally include Distinguished Visitor Quarters (DV), Temporary Military Lodging (TML), golf courses, Commissaries, Exchanges and any other post clubs and activities.

Coronado Naval Base, North Island Naval Air Station, California

The Sea ‘N Air Golf Course located at the North Island NAS, California is an 18- hole par-72 course, at 6,382 yards from the back tees with a rating of 70.3 and a 117 slope.  The course was designed by Jack Daray and opened in 1959, the course was renovated by Jack Daray and constructed by his son Halsey Daray.

The Sea ‘N Air Golf Course is the only course in the San Diego besides Torrey Pines that sits right on the Pacific Ocean and is the only golf course to play at sea level.  The signature hole is #14.  We found the greens fast and undulating, soft, and a challenge.  The aircraft overhead add to the ambiance of the course.  It’s the sound of freedom to all ex-military everywhere.  As we played the course, we enjoyed the spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean along the back 9 holes where you’ll practically play next to the shoreline.

This is a military golf course and is for military personnel and there guest only.

Head Golf Pro.        Matt Brumbavgh    619-545-9658

The Horseshoe Café, Wickenburg, Arizona

While traveling across the country in my pursuit to play all 185 military golf courses, I have stumbled into a variety of restaurants, dinner, and dives that served great food.  There was Odies Big Sky Café in Shelby Montana, Rudy’s real Texas Bar-B-Q in Houston Texas, The Coloumbia Restaurant in Ybor City, the old Cubin cigar making district. But one of my favorite places for breakfast is the Horseshoe Café in Wickenburg Arizona.

During our military golf trip through Arizona, Col Bill Logel and Msg John Zook stopped for some breakfast in Wickenberg.  It was the only place open so in we when.  After nursing bills skinned up knee, we asked what there known for, and without hesitating, a loud Biscuits & Gravy came out from the waitress and the customers, but you boys better only get a half order.  Every time I’m in the area of Wickenburg Arizona, a Horseshoe Café visit is on the schedule.

Yes it’s small, yes it’s hard to find,  yes you’ll see cowboys and bikers, yes it’s just a little diner, yes the portions are large, but the food is outstanding especially the biscuits and grave.  As you can see, I’m having a full order of biscuits and gravy with a Denver omelet with hash brown potatoes and Rusty, my golf buddy is having a half order.

Dick Hoyt was the big kahuna in the kitchen that morning that makes it all happen and sometimes its Steve or Anthony.  Amber and Leanne keep the food flowing and all the customers happy.    You won’t find any tofu, sprouts, or any of that California stuff here, just eggs, sausage, gravy, meat, potatoes, and all your deep fried favorites.  Rule number 1 at the Horseshoe Café, GREAT FOOD AND LOTS OF IT.

If you’re in the area, this is a must stop on your bucket list.  Just tell them Msg. Divot sent you, and enjoy the experience.

Deb & O.J. Thompson’s  Horseshoe Café  Wickenburg, AZ.  (928) 684-7377