Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Golf Course Buzz: Los Lagos Golf Club is the newest, and has quickly become one of the favorite courses in western Arizona, located nearly on exact spot where Arizona, Nevada and California converge, just south of the gambling town of Laughlin, Nevada.
The course looks out on the Mojave National Preserve, with the Black Mountains coming into view on nearly every hole. Los Lagos is at its aesthetic best in the spring when wild Gazania flowers bloom in the transition areas throughout the layout, providing an appealing contrast to native grasses and other vegetation.
Los Lagos was designed by Ted Robinson, who is known for creating water park-themed courses, so it’s no surprise that Los Lagos (Spanish for “the lakes”) is defined by its water features. All that water comes into play on seven holes and natural-terrain waste bunkers complicate several others.
The course opened in 2008 and has four sets of tees, ranging from 4,804 to 6,804 yards, with a rating of 71.5 and slope of 126 from the back tees. The water can be daunting, but the overall layout is player friendly, with plenty of birdie opportunities for golfers who play the game strategically.
The signature hole is the 11th, a 561-yard uphill par 5, where you must negotiate two lakes. Boundary Cone Mountain, which serves as a boundary marker for Mojave Valley, provides a backdrop for the green on this risk-reward hole.
No. 18 provides a memorable finish with a 446-yard par 4 that plays downhill, but to an elevated green. A creek cuts across the fairway about 280 yards from the tee, forcing a club selection choice on the tee shot, and the largest lake on the course runs down the right side of the fairway, starting about 100 yards out from the green.
Los Lagos has excellent practice facilities, with a driving range, putting and chipping greens and bunkers. A 9,000-square-foot clubhouse, built in 2010, includes a full-service restaurant, outdoor patio and banquet facilities.
The Arizona Golf Authority AZGA “Local Hang” for Los Lagos includes their spacious patio, as well as the complete menu of food, drink, fun and frolic available along Laughlin’s casino hotel row.
Read the Arizona Golf Course Directory AZGA Buzz for every golf course in Arizona at www.arizonagolfauthority.com/coursedirectory/; it’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.