Fossil Trace Golf Club

This is a great and fun course that has an interesting layout throughout. Some traditional holes, and some "go for it" holes. If it anything it plays a little short, and if you are an advanced player I would recommend the black tees (also, the "t-rex" tees were not an option when I logged my score on the GHIN app). It takes one round to get used to it, and by your second round you can expect to play pretty well here. Great course if you have someone visiting. Nicely kept, good pace.

Came to Colorado on vacation and found this course near us to play. Very well maintained, seriously. Tee boxes, fairways and rough, sand soft, greens very consistent. Charged me $80 to play on weekday morning. Rentals were a bit expensive but most are.

Lots of tee boxes to choose from. Was challenging but not Pete Dye difficult. If you know your game it's not a problem. Most errant shots put you in high rough or you lose a shot. You can find harder courses, but a good round with choice. I really liked this course option.

Driving range and practice areas are top notch. Staff very customer focused and polite. Bar looked great but I did t try it.

You won't dislike playing Fossil trace

This is another fabulous Jim Engh design. There are areas of exposed fossils (Hence the name of the course) and there are also old pieces of quarry equipment that tell the story of the lands prior use. The course is well laid out and maintained. The staff is very helpful. All of this lends itself to a very positive golf experience. One of the signatures of a Jim Engh design is his bunker design. You are better off admiring them from afar, they are beautiful but penal. In short this does not feel like any muni track I've ever played

I played the 6577 “T-Rex” tees at Fossil Trace (because, really, how do you not play the “T-Rex” tees???) and I found the track pretty true to its 71.4/136 rating. There is a nice variety of holes here which really encourages you to use all of the clubs/shots in your bag. For example, no two par 3’s are alike (going 151, 95, 186, 205, and 160 respectively so you won’t be just firing 7 or 8 irons into them all day like some courses. The par 5’s also range from 536 to 626(!), although most are right around the 540 range.

The big draw to Fossil Trace (as the name implies) is the archeological dig remnants on the signature 12th hole, a fairly easily accessible 545 yard par 5 if you place your second shot in the right spot, or a frustratingly troublesome hole if you don’t (fortunately, my second was just about perfect and I had a pitching wedge into the well protected green for a two putt par… after missing a 8 footer for birdie). Both 12 and 15 have unusual rock obstacles I’ve heard complaints about; however, I liked the challenges they present and the fore-thought they require on your approach shots (this, of course, from someone who managed to avoid both of them). It’s certainly worth taking a few minutes and checking out the trace fossils after holing out on 12.

Friendly advice, don’t get complacent on 13 (or caught up thinking about the hole you just completed); you’ll want to put your tee shot on the left hand side of the fairway. If you don’t the hole gets quite a bit harder, my failure in this area led to my first bogey on the back nine (complete with a penalty for a lost ball on my blind approach shot over trees).

While the back nine features interesting geographic features, the front has its own brand of challenges. One and two feature downhill holes toward interesting green locations. Two especially requires a good approach as the green sits alone in the bottom of a “pit” with tall rough all around. I actually fired my tee shot to the right of the cart path (i.e. very right) and this provided me a great angle to attack the pin from. Not the way it’s drawn up for sure, but it led to an easy two putt par.

There are some deep and unusually shaped bunkers throughout the course as well that provide some interesting playing options (not all great) out of them. Some will force you to play sideways from a fairway bunker, which might be a little too punitive in my mind, but the knowledge of this should certainly keep you honest on your drives.

Overall I really liked the layout of the course. There is ample water, elevation change, use of angles for defense of greens, and the bunkers are such that sand saves will most definitely be earned if achieved. It’s a course that will test your full game as many of the greens are also challenging in and of themselves. Further, it was in great condition with immaculate fairways, well-groomed greens and bunkers that played as well as they looked.

I played a little early (I was first out) to really speak to the pace of play; however, the few groups I saw finish after me were in well under 4 hours so at least an early round should be nice and quick. The staff was great and everyone I met went out of their way to ensure I had a great round. The grounds crew also was mindful and considerate of players on the course while doing a great job of keeping everything in good shape. Also, on a non-golf note, the restaurant makes a completely fantastic (and affordable) lunch; I eschewed my usual Benedict for their hash and would do it again and again.

My entire experience at Fossil Trace was great and I will absolutely be going back to play again…

I've played FT multiple times over the years and used to hold it in pretty high esteem. Over time what I realized though is that compared to most of the Jim Engh designs around the state (Redlands,Lakota,4 Mile and Red Hawk Ridge..) you don't get anywhere near the value you do at those other courses. I still find Fossil enjoyable, but would never play there at peak season when there are that many better options that won't kill your wallet and are more fun to play.

this is one of my favorite course town. its a must play for anyone that enjoys a good quality course.

I have played Fossil Trace a bunch of time and it is one of my favorite Jim Engh courses. It is a really fun layout and it can play as easy or as difficult as you want it to based upon what tees you play. The group I was with played it from the blue tees and it had a few par fours that you could drive and all of the par 5's could be reached in two. The course was in great shape and while it is a muni it is one of the best muni's there is. But, as a muni you do get muni golf service. No bag drop. No towels. No water bucket. No nothing. Just golf.

Dinosaur fossils, old quarry remnants and a terrific design by Jim Engh combine for one of the best municipal courses in the west. The holes on the back nine through the boulders and fossil remains is really unique. Terrific clubhouse and practice facilities, too. A can't miss experience if you're going to play a public golf course in the Denver area.

Great course. All you could ask for when playing at place that is advertised as one of Denver areas top courses. Great views & excellent course. Will definitely be back if in the area again!

On the first hole, I saw a fox... how cool was that?

Loved the short par 3's. Had some trouble with the longer par 5 holes as large CO rocks in the fairway make it a challenge. Narrow hitting area's on some holes.

Great fun course though.. beautiful mountain views.

I was lucky enough to play this course when it wasn't too busy. The boulders throughout the course and views made made the round really enjoyable. I will definitely play here again

It's been a few years since I played it, but it was very well maintained at the time. The course has some good, slight elevation changes. I like how a course designer will include those instead of simply flattening out an area. There's a fair amount of water hazards on the course. I'm not complaining -- just mentioning it in case you want to bring an extra sleeve of balls. Some of their well placed bunkers have higher sloping walls. They also incorporate more unusual snaking and/or puzzle piece patterns on some of the bunkers. I really like that from a visual standpoint because it's not just another oval or peanut shaped cutout. The greens were nicely size with just the right amount of breaks and undulation. And the rock out-croppings and the occasional mid-fairway obstacle add a little extra visual that you just don't get on other courses. All in all, I'm a fan.