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Golfing where dinosaurs roamed

by: Casey Coke

Golfing where dinosaurs once roamed? Not many golf courses can boast a claim like that, at least not many championship courses.

Squaw Valley Golf Course is built upon ground inhabited by dinosaurs millions of years ago and is located in Glen Rose, Texas (www.glenrosearea.com), which is affectionately known as the Gateway to the Hill Country, but Squaw Valley Golf Course is best known for its two challenging and acclaimed courses.

Squaw Valley Golf Course is a 36-hole municipal golf course owned by Somervell County. The club is known as one of the top facilities in the state and as ?One of the Top 5 Municipal Courses in Texas? by the Dallas Morning News and is managed by golf pro Duff Cunningham. Additionally, Squaw Valley Golf Course has been given a 4-star rating by the golfing industry authority, Golf Digest. The course is comprised of two challenging, yet different, 18-hole courses- Apache Links and Comanche Lakes.

Apache Links, opened in 1992, is the older of the two courses. It was designed by Jeffrey Bauer and GolfScapes, Inc and, per its name, is a links-style course. It's front nine has open fairways, while its back nine is characterized by narrow fairways that are tree lined and undulating. There is also a variety of water hazards that come into play on many of the 18 holes. Apache Links is a par 72 course with a total of 7063 yards.

Comanche Lakes is a new course, opened for play in 2001, and was designed by John Colligan. It is an 18-hole par 72 courses that is described as target style, which is an excellent complement to the open fairways of Apache Links. This course will challenge any golfer?s accuracy with over 100 bunkers and many water hazards throughout the 7000 total yards.

The differences in the courses are also reflected in the types of grass used on each. Apache links is composed of 419 Bermuda for the fairways and Bent on the greens, which makes it a more popular course in the winter. Comanche Lakes has TifSport Bermuda for its fairways and TifEagle for the greens and is the course of choice in the summer months; however, both courses can be played year-round.

Along with attracting avid golfers, Squaw Valley Golf Course has also attributed to the number of retirees that are moving to the Glen Rose area. Both Marilyn Phillips of Sunrise Properties and Hank Jones of Century 21 Quad J Realty have noticed an increase in retirees moving to Glen Rose and cite the increased recognition and acclaim the course has received in the past few years as a big reason why. The fact that the Comanche Lakes course is ranked in the top 10 in the Dallas Morning News list of ?Top 25 Mid-Priced Courses? also supports the claim that the Squaw Valley appeals to retirees, since often times they are on fixed budgets.

Squaw Valley Golf Course is a full service golf club. Included at the club is a full practice facility with putting greens, short game practice areas and a driving range. Private and group lessons are also available as well as tournament arrangements.

Weekday fees are $38 and weekend and holiday rack rates are $48, which includes green fee and cart rental. Discounts are given to Senior Citizens, Juniors and tee times after 3:00 PM. Squaw Valley Golf Course has also negotiated a Stay and Play package with Dinosaur Valley Inn and Suites in Glen Rose that includes a one-night stay at the Award Winning hotel and a round of golf on either course. The hotel has a 3-Diamond rating from AAA and has received 2 ?Best of The Best? Awards from Best Western International, most recently in October 2005.

For reservations and more information on Squaw Valley Golf Course, visit www.squawvalleygolfclub.com or call 1-800-831-8259.

For information on the Stay and Play package, visit Dinosaur Valley Inn and Suites at www.dinosaurvalleyinn.com or call 1-800-280-2055.

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