Washington National

Washington National Golf Club, home of the University of Washington Husky golf teams is about a 40 minute drive south from UW when there’s no traffic. I’m not sure if the Huskies still consider this their home course anymore, but there is purple and gold everywhere including a giant purple W by the 18th green. Other than that, I really like playing this course and will definitely play it again this summer. I try to only play this course during the dry summer months. I played in in the spring a few years ago and the course was a bit soggy. To be fair, it was a spring when we had lots of rain, so that’s why it may have been a bit soggy, but combined with the longer drive, I’m sticking to the summer months on this one. While there aren’t many trees on the course, the outer edges of the course are tree lined.

The driving range has grass tees and a really deep bunker to practice from. Do yourself a favor and spend some time hitting out of it. There are bunkers all over this course. Every greenside bunker I was in had plenty of sand and very few rocks. A couple of the fairway bunkers could have used a little more sand, but that’s a very small criticism of an otherwise nice course. The course is not overly hilly and easy to walk, but if you’re going to walk, take a picture of the green map that’s in each cart so you’ll know which of the 9 pin positions the flag is in that day. Or, just bookmark this review and see the photo above.

I love it when a golf course opens with a par 5, and Washington National does. Get a birdie and start off your round the right way! The first four holes follow the outer border of the course with trees lining the left side of all four. The par 3 5th hole has a steep two tiered green, so getting your ball on the correct level is crucial. If you come up short into the deep front bunkers, you’ve got your work cut out for you. The par 4 7th is a great risk/reward hole. If you’re feeling good about your game, go straight over the water and see if you can put it on the green in one. An easy 7 iron down the left side is the safe choice, and usually what I do. You finish off the front side with a 9th hole that has bunkers everywhere. If you’re going to pull driver here, think about going down the right side.

The back 9 has a different feel than the front. The holes on the back 9 meander around the property and each one feels like a more private affair. The 10th hole has a waste area that takes the driver out of most players hands. I’ve seen big hitters go left of that waste area over to the 18th fairway, but I’ve never tried it myself. I usually play a pair of 7 woods and hope for the best. The par 4 15th is a short hole with a deep, narrow creek running across the front of the green with a pond to the right side of it. It’s shallow front to back, so distance control is huge here. They call the 18th hole the final exam, but I really like it. It has a wide drivable fairway that runs downhill towards the green. The green is the main defense here. It’s 3 tiers sloping from back to front. Being on the wrong tier increases the difficulty greatly.

Even though there is purple and gold everywhere, and the course is all the way down in Auburn/Black Diamond, I really like playing here. I miss the Pac-12 days when I could try and get the WSU golf cart, but I won’t get started on all that. If you have a chance to play Washington National, you should. Have fun, and Go Cougs!