Idaho Club offers chance to play Nicklaus Design course

SANDPOINT — The Golden Bear, winner of a record 18 golfing majors, had arguably the best feel for the game of any golfer ever, backed up by his sterling résumé.

Jack Nicklaus tore up golf courses from Augusta, Georgia, where he won six Masters championships, to the famed St. Andrews links course in Scotland, where he won two British Opens, playing with a nearly unrivaled flair and magic, as well as some hideous checkered pants.

Some of that same golfing magic can be found in his handiwork along the Pack River, where he designed the Idaho Club nearly a decade ago, still the only Nicklaus Signature Design course in the Gem State.

The course is now open for public play with semi-private rates, including $75 greens fees on Monday through Thursday, and $95 greens fees on Friday through Sunday and on Holidays. There are also twilight rates (after 2 p.m.) that knock $20 off the cost, which includes a cart.

If you haven’t played it yet, you’re missing out on a great challenge, especially if you’re sadistic enough to play from the tips (back tees). The course is as difficult as it is scenic, with several signature holes.

Nearly three decades of Bee sports editors teed it up recently, courtesy of a media invite from club pro Randi Fisher, when Mark Nelke and myself played 18 holes.

Fischer, a two-time state champion at Twin Falls High School who later played in college at McNeese State University, took over as pro at the Idaho Club last year after being an assistant pro at Banbury Golf Course in Eagle.

And in case you were wondering, yes, she can stripe the ball. I learned this lesson first hand when I hammered a drive down the middle, only to be out-driven by about a yard by Fischer.

She was nice enough to play six holes with Nelke and I, before dropping back to join the other media groups enjoying a complimentary round on a vintage Friday afternoon recently.

It was a shame when she left, as my score of even par after those first six holes, featuring two birdies and a closest-to-the-pin win, quickly escalated and I finished with an 86. Me and Nelke waxed nostalgic about Sandpoint, sports, golf and whatever else came up during the four-hour round.

Former Sandpoint No. 1 player David Currie, who is working for the summer at the Idaho Club, joined us for the last six holes, reminding us that neither are young, limber or as strong as we used to be. He’s working toward a degree in the golfing field at the University of Idaho, and honing his near-scratch golf game when he has the time.

Afterward, Nelke and I hung out on the makeshift clubhouse porch with a handful of other local media representatives, some of them longtime Sandpoint golfers, and drank a couple of beers as the Pack River rolled slowly along nearby. There were certainly worse excuses to get out of the office for an afternoon.

Admittedly, I salivated a bit when covering the Sandpoint Invitational about a month earlier, which for the first time was hosted by the Idaho Club, as the course is in top-notch shape. It also can play pretty tough, as the fortunate high school players from around North Idaho quickly found out.

I bumped into Coeur d’Alene golf coach Craig Leaf, whom I coached football with for four years many moons ago, and the first thing he said was ‘my kids need to check their egos at the door and put their drivers away.’ The next thing he said was ‘as soon as we drove in here, us coaches all said we have to come up and play here.’

Fischer mentioned that memberships are on sale again, with current rates very low and sure to go up considerably in the future. For more information, visit www.theidahoclub.com.

For tee times, call 263-2345.