Aliante’s wide-open spaces beckon golfers of all levels

A decade ago, the alluvial fan bordering the valley's northern edge featured little more than desert scrub and rain-carved ravines. During the real estate run-up that followed, that all changed as Aliante bloomed amid the yuccas. The manicured master-planned community's centerpiece was a championship-length golf course designed to put North Las Vegas on par with its more established competitors in Summerlin and Green Valley.

While the housing market's decline has been well-documented, Aliante Golf Club has fared surprisingly well, continuing to draw players because of its egalitarian design and attractive rates, made all the more so by management company OB Sports' Clark County resident golf card, which was seemingly created just to give golfers a reason to get out on the links at least three times a month.

More information about that is available on Aliante's website, but golf enthusiasts could hardly imagine a better deal than getting deeply discounted rates for their entire foursome at Aliante, Angel Park and Legacy, with The Chase at Coyote Springs tossed in as a bonus.

As for the course itself, its listed yardage is a shade over 7,000 from the tips but, thanks to fairways that run like a purse-snatcher from a Brooklyn cop, it plays significantly shorter. What's more, four sets of tees allow players of varying skill levels to enjoy a round together without one suffering for the benefit of the other.

The fairways are generally wide and, although there is certainly trouble to be found for those who stray too far from the path, the course is quite forgiving.

Aliante opens with a short par 4 that represents an early scoring chance for straight drivers. With a sole bunker assigned to defend the green's left edge, the iron approach should induce minimal stress.

The greens, on the other hand, belie their coarse texture and play surprisingly fast. A few preround lag putts on the practice green are a prudent investment.

After a tiny par 3 that should yield a birdie chance comes an even better scoring opportunity, in the form of the driveable 357-yard, par-4 fifth hole. Although a trio of bunkers fronts the green, a drive that grazes the inside edge of the right fairway bunker has a legitimate chance of careening onto the putting surface.

There are few more satisfying experiences on a golf course than putting for eagle on a par 4, so unleashing the big dog is a risk worth taking.

The front nine's final offering is an arrow-straight 403-yard par 4 that provides golfers the opportunity to roll into the turn with some momentum. A solid drive on this slightly downhill hole sets up a very reasonable approach to a peanut-shaped green bracketed by a pair of bunkers. While a back-right pin placement is cause for pause, any other flag position is a green light.

One of Aliante's more scenic holes, the 550-yard, par-5 11th is reachable in two for bombers, but mere mortals will need a third shot with a wedge. While the large pond fronting the tees adds visual drama, it really isn't in play.

Sliding just past the lone fairway bunker creates the optimal angle to a well-fortified green. Most important is to avoid the cavernous bunker fronting the putting surface; compact, shallow sand makes the steep-faced trap difficult to escape.

Although the scorecard indicates that No. 15, a par 3 measuring only 135 yards, is the biggest chump on the course, try telling that to someone who has landed their wedge tee shot in one of the five massive greenside bunkers. Taken altogether, the sand covers almost as much area as the green it surrounds.

The round ends with a medium-length par 4 that plays directly toward the Aliante Station hotel-casino sign. Particularly long drivers should be aware of a ravine that crosses the fairway about 60 yards from the green, but most players can swing away with impunity.

The right side of the putting surface is fronted by a bunker, but the entire left portion is defenseless. A drive just inside the left fairway bunker sets up the perfect approach.

Aliante does not try to intimidate golfers with excessive length, blind shots or forced carries; instead, its design seems tailor-made for casual players out for a relaxing round. It's the kind of course that begs golfers to post a low score. And with surprisingly low greens fees, they keep coming back for more.

The Aliante Golf Club is located at 3100 W. Elkhorn Road in North Las Vegas. For more information or to reserve a tee time, visit www.aliantegolf.com or call 399-4888.