Red Hawk Golf Club

Great day playing. Had fun trying to get better. :)

Visiting family in El Paso and was looking forward to playing at Red Hawk based off of the reviews especially since I booked a foursome on a hot deal through golfnow.com. I was pretty amazed by the condition of the course in late March.

Its a challenging course since the fairways aren't flat and the greens were slightly fast. The pace of place was good; we finished in 3.5 hours. There were moments when the folks behind us teed off while we were on the fairway but they slowed down once they saw that we had to wait a couple of times for folks in front of us. We must've seen the marshall about 3x to ensure things kept moving but he never rushed us.

All in all, I recommend this course especially this time of year.

Great Demo Day! All vendors on site had great clubs.

Day was great with mild winds, course in excellent condition.

Staff as always was very friendly and helpful.

Highly recommend this course.

Best course in town. Great deal from Golfnow.com!

A must play course, challenging. Food was excellent.

Cold beer and the staff are friendly and helpful.

Recommend this course.

This is the best course in the area....it is a must play you will not regret it

Jacob rushes to greet you at your car and loads your clubs for you. This is indicative of the rest of your experience. Pro Shop, Starter, Marshall - all very welcoming. Course is in winter conditions, but very playable. Greens are challenging. Bunkers everywhere my ball wanted to go. A really high quality course.

Lots of traps (83) and long holes

Not a tree on the course

Water features add to the difficulty

Could be good qualifying course for pro level

Good course, for this time of year, great shape, very challenging. Staff was all friendly and helpful

I have been looking forward to playing this course ever since I happened upon a pamphlet in a hotel lobby during a weekend golf trip to New Mexico a while back. As with any course that I have never played, I had high hopes, but one can never be 100% sure since most course websites doll themselves up to give a good impression. I am pleased to say that Red Hawk exceeded my expectations. The course is located in the foothills north of town a bit off the beaten path. However, I have a hunch that eventually homes will be built in the vicinity of the course. It is links-style, chock full of rolling fairways, an abundance of bunkers, and large, undulating greens. It is also at the mercy of the wind, and on this particular day, the winds were severe, almost to the point of making the course unplayable at times. The layout is such that regardless of the wind direction, you will be hitting into the teeth of it at some point. Therefore, it is imperative that you choose the correct tee box not only based on your ability, but how gusty the winds are. Some of the par 4s can be extremely long into the wind. The holes I found to be most challenging, however, were the par 3s. Not only are a couple of them pretty long, but three of the four have greens surrounded by water, which provide a very intimidating look. There is no shame in using the bailouts, especially if the wind is as severe as it was on this particular day. Also, stay out of the green side bunkers on the water holes because as is the case with most courses in this region, bunkers are a bit hard (e.g. skulling). Sand gets picked up and carried away by the wind and then the traps get baked by the intense sunlight. Although Lee Trevino made a nice living playing out of bunkers after growing up in this neck of the woods, the best advice is to stay away from them even if you think you are proficient. That is easier said than done, though. I found the sand on half of the holes, unfortunately. Most of the fairways are wide enough to accept even slightly offline tee shots, but of course, that hinges on the wind direction and severity. If you do happen to unleash a wild shot, don't automatically give up on your ball. In some cases, you might have a play out of the desert, but don't spend too long looking-- five minutes max, and take your drop. The greens are pretty fast, but reasonably receptive for a links-style course. If you are cognizant of where the mountains are and the wind direction, you ought to be able to minimize three-putts. Don't overread them. There is often less break than it looks. When in doubt, play it straighter on lag putts. Although I would have preferred a little less wind, I liked Red Hawk very much. I understand that it has hosted U.S. Open local qualifiers in the past, including two weeks after I played. I can understand why. There are some excellent golf choices in this area, but Red Hawk has moved right to the top of my list of the best in Las Cruces. If you are planning a little weekend golf getaway from Tucson, Phoenix, Albuquerque or elsewhere, Red Hawk would be well worth your time. Based on the high quality of this course, you won't believe what they charge, especially in the afternoon. I very much look forward to my next visit.