Inn at Gamble Sands

Played GS for the 2nd time this weekend - 36 holes. Greens had been punched a few weeks ago so were not as good as they were earlier in year, but ok considering the time of year and the price. The design and the views are wonderful, turf is real links style (and I grew up playing links golf in the UK every week) and it's a very fair and totally playable course - lots of terrain helps the ball towards the green/hole if you know how to look at the green surrounds not just the pin.

We stayed at the newly opened Inn, and the rooms were excellent and decent value at $120/person total for 2 nights.

Food in the restaurant was a bit hit and miss, some good, a couple almost inedible.

Our big issue was music on the course. I realize some people like that but the acoustics at GS are so clear that you can hear a dog barking (or coyote howling) from miles away, so having groups playing music out loud will carry 2-3 holes easily. GS needs to ban it quickly. Pace of play was ok in the morning, very poor in the afternoon - they did have staff out on the course in the afternoon trying to speed it up but it didn't really help - we had to play the last hole in the dark.

Course is fine for walking - we walked in the morning then hopped in a cart for the afternoon (they have golf boards too).

If you're wondering if it's worth the drive from Seattle or Spokane, I think it's well worth it. Would recommend staying at the Inn for 1 night/2 days golf and visiting in September before the lunch the greens or maybe May. It will definitely be better once they add a 2nd course but it's still worth it now....

Links course with generous fairways & a few obstacles to avoid. Overall, very fair layout. Conditions were very good and staff very friendly. Still seems like a brand new house, and staff getting used to it...but not a problem. If you want to use a GolfBoard, recommend asking for one when making a tee time (suggest calling & not just doing tee time online). Did not use "19th hole". Would definitely play there again.

It started poorly when we arrived, we were quoted a price when making the reservation and they didn't honor it. Cost an additional $100. Pace of play was exceptionally slow with no course marshals. Group ahead were drinking heavily and were very slow, they wouldn't let us go through. Greens were large and didn't roll as seen , very hard to make the ball stop. Value is not there. Would not recommend this course for the price, $160, with cart. Many other courses in the Eastern Washington are of better value. Don't waste your money. By the way I shot 76.

A new DMK design, Gamble Sands is intended to be a links style course (which I love) set in the desert scablands of central Washington State. That is a tough concept to carry off, but he did it. (There is one other such course in Washington that does so MUCH better, and I'm not spilling the beans where it is.) I felt the value at GS is good, and I'm a tightwad.

It takes some time and effort to get to Brewster and it's not close to anything else notable except Grand Coulee Dam. It will help if they build at least one more course to attract people to the area. Alone, it may not be worth a special trip, unless you stay and play two or three rounds. The family that owns it has at least another 1,000 acres to work with surrounding Gamble Sands so I'm hopeful.

The routing of GS is superb. Many of the individual holes are very good - especially the par 3's on the back nine. The greens are huge and roll as true as any I've played. You can have 100 foot putts on several holes. The course is VERY walkable. Being in the middle of Nowhere, it is very quiet. A barking dog was very noticeable for a few minutes - it was on the OTHER SIDE of the Columbia River, a mile or more away. Serious quiet.

The fairways at Gamble Sands are generous and the greens were very receptive - even at the end of the summer when we were there. Significant risk/reward on several holes, including a nominally driveable par 4. Numerous blind shots from the tees and fairways, and lots of angles and waste areas bordering fairways that often make short drives better than long. I hit 3 irons off the tees on several holes simply because I couldn't figure out what problems lurked out ahead or how far away they were. Some of the fairways are very sloped. Buy the course book! Given it was my first time on this course I played the 6,100 yard routing #white tees). Next time I'll play the blues because the ball rolls and rolls and rolls.

Matt G rated it #32 of the courses in the USA that we common people can play. Not sure it is worthy of that lofty rating, but it is very good. Fescue predominates throughout. Given a couple years of seasoning it may be up to that rating, but right now I would only put it somewhere in the middle of the Top 20 in Washington State. I'll definitely play it again and will recommend it to friends as part of a multi-day golfing trip.