Sun Mountain at Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort

Paiute Sun Mountain Golf Course, created over desert sands in North Las Vegas, has a cohesive look distinguished by its gently rolling terrain, by fairways often girded by mounding and desert wash, and by a consistent asymmetry to the holes. What this layout does not have is much of the meanness that often characterized Pete Dye’s earlier, iconic designs. This is toned-down Dye: not unrelentingly tough, but with plenty of “hazardous material” to keep golfers honest throughout the eighteen.

From Tee to Green

The most pervasive hazards at Sun Mountain aren’t water features but the desert itself—trees and native grasses, shrubs and bushes, sand and rocks. These elements lie beyond the vast majority of the fairway and greenside roughs; in other cases, they function as waste areas—broad and exposed, like stretches of a dried-out sea—that must be crossed to reach fairway zones. Water comes into play on a few tee shots and approaches. By comparison to a layout like TPC at Sawgrass, such appearances seem almost minimal.

From tee to green, as long as your driver is behaving, the land seems open and forgiving, though the sand waits. It is sometimes fully in view, yet often partly beneath the surface of things. Dye has disguised some of the fairway bunkers from the tee, often to appear closer than they are. Most of the course’s eighty-six sand pits are of the familiar American sort, and many can be lethal. Varying widely in size, most bunkers have an amorphous look, and many appear in clusters. Now and then, a pot bunker appears—small and unwilling to compromise. Railroad ties show up intermittently, accenting the walls of some of the largest bunkers, and they fit the ground well.

What deepens the design’s complexity is the wide diversity of fairway forms. They do not always conform to predictable models of straightaway holes and simple doglegs; added instead are serpentine corridors, split and offset fairways, and more than one peninsular landing area. Holes three and nine feature tightening bottlenecks, while seven is a double dogleg. As if they have a will of their own, fairway lines bend, twist, and skitter across the landscape, adding another strategic layer to play.

The Green Complexes

Unfortunately, three-putting can be a snap here. Modest in size and often firm, the greens run unusually fast. They are also appreciably sloped—some moderately, others more subtly. The ground contours in the greenside roughs, however, vary far more widely in slope and intensity. Miss a green in regulation and recovery becomes a matter of touch and judgment, as many chips and pitches must be played carefully onto firm surfaces whose contours sometimes seem like muscles wound tight. A pitch shot may be straightforward at times; at others, near-perfect execution is required. Watch for greens, too, that are set at angles to the line of play–they will favor certain angles of approach or, when necessary, an approach that is drawn or faded.

Two Notable Holes

For my money, the best holes here are not the virtual templates Dye has long favored (such as the Cape-styled eighteenth or the daunting fourth, a par-3 over water), but instead several of the more “conventional” ones. For example, the rugged and steely ninth, a dogleg par-4, lurches 445 yards uphill. Lying in wait off the tee are a pair of pinch point bunkers, and further on are large traps, which often snag underpowered approaches. A slender green, not only hard to hit, has exactly the kind of contouring that discourages an easy read. Three, a long par-5, has a weaving fairway menaced by six bunkers. It begins with an open driving zone but turns hard-edged on the second shot, and its green complex can be a minefield of trouble for the unwary.

Some Conclusions

–Sometimes intimidating, but mostly engaging, compelling, and challenging—never over- the-top. A solid all-around test of any golfer’s game.

–There is no single “key to success” here. Instead, firm competence in every aspect of one’s skills is required. Strategy, too, is vital.

– Enjoyed the day on this well-conditioned course (although the greens were a bit too firm and often difficult to hold), and I appreciated the company of my three interesting playing partners.

Only problem . The guy in the office below pro shop , where you take the receipts was an issue. But everyone else first class. Course is amazing and can't waite to take another shot at it!!

First time playing sun mountain , now played all 3 and they are all amazing shape and fun layouts!! Great staff all around as well as great value and a great test!!! Can’t wait to play again!!!

It’s been several years since I golfed in LV but have played Paiute many times in the past. It was just as I remembered, very well maintained and the staff is excellent!

I liked everything about this but the heavy winds. It was a pretty good deal so I can’t complain, but if you’re not used to playing in the wind, just know that it affects you on every hole here and playing with locals like a dad. It’s a pretty common Issue. So next time I’ll look for an early morning teatime.

We played Paiute Sun Mountain. It was in great condition. This is a beautiful golf course. The greens and fairways couldn’t have been in better shape. I highly recommend it. The contrast between the lush green course and the desert with the mountains in the background give you great views on every hole.

Played the Paiute Sun Mountain course and was beyond thrilled at this track. It's well worth the 25min drive from the strip to play this masterpiece. Everything from the bag drop to the check-in process to getting to practice range is absolutely first class. The driving range is massive, with plenty of space for all golfers from all three courses. Lots of marked targets at varying ranges for a great warm-up / practice. Putting green was equally large, with ample space for uninterrupted putting efforts at multiple holes.

The course itself is simply breathtaking. The fairways are very generous and well-manicured, the grass is thick and lush (which is somewhat surprising in a desert), the rough is very tough, but also very fair in terms of being able to recover from it. Cannot say enough about the quality of the greens, they were immaculate. Very receptive to good shots, relatively fast and true to well hit putts. Having played golf in Las Vegas for nearly 15 years, this is by far the best golf course I've had the opportunity to play and I can't wait to get back out there.

This is the hidden gem of Vegas. Great courses. Great food. Cooler here in the summer than the strip

The course was plush and green. Great shape. Great layout. Greens rolled true and fast. Played all 3 courses in 2 days. Tough course but fair. Had a great time and staff was nice and friendly

The course is awesome. Great layout. The course is in great shape. I got paired with some great guys. It absolutely sucks to have to pay more than 2x as much as them because I live in another state. I would go back there every year, but can't afford to with those non-resident rates. I would buy gear from the pro shop. I would've eaten lunch there. I would just feel a lot better about the place. I wasn't giving them another dime though cause I felt robbed paying $75 more than the locals.

Kinda pricey for non resident $160. Unfortunately they do not provide Veterans discount. We played the morning Saturday and they were some super soggy spots and hole 16 fairway was flooded and grounds crew was out with hoses draining. Will probably be cheaper to stay and play somewhere else for non residents. Played with other local veterans and they only pay $90, hard pill to swallow!

I played both paiute snow and sun. If you are in Vegas, it is 100% worth the 30 minute drive to play here. It's on a reservation, so they do not have any water restrictions, making it plush and beautiful everywhere. Snow has amazing views from the entire course. I highly recommend playing here during the

summer over any of the other courses in the area because it will be the best conditions, having no water restrictions.