Golden Legend
Photography: Courtesy of Red Ledges Resort
PCM: Red Ledges is the third golf course you’ve designed in the Park City area (along with Promontory and Park Meadows). What makes Utah such a great golfing environment?
JN: For one, you have terrific weather during the summer golf months. And the atmosphere in general has this fresh, clean nature to it. An area that many people equate with skiing has become one of the great golf destinations, which has enhanced Park City’s reputation as a four-season destination.
Do you have any insider tips for players to be successful at Red Ledges?
Red Ledges is a strong golf course, but the more you play it, the more you learn its subtle nuances. My tip for playing Red Ledges would be no different from my advice for playing any other course. You need to look at what the challenges are, play within your game to stay away from the trouble areas and take advantage of what the course’s assets are. For example, you will find there are many places at Red Ledges where you can feed the ball into the green. You have to learn what the land will do for you at Red Ledges.
What’s your favorite hole at Red Ledges?
That’s like asking me to name a favorite child. I don’t have a favorite hole; I have 18 favorites. And if we did our job well, the members and guests who play Red Ledges will say the same. I will never forget after I designed Muirfield Village Golf Club in Ohio, we polled the membership and asked them to name their favorite hole. When the survey came back, 14 different holes were named. What did that tell me? That told me I needed to go to work on the other four holes. That also told me that within a good golf course, there is a little something for everyone.
Do you have a favorite view from the Promontory, Park Meadows or Red Ledges courses?
They all have tremendous views, and that’s what makes golf in the Park City area so special. Most of the time, the quality of golf is matched only by the quality of dramatic views from the course, whether it’s of the Heber Valley, the Wasatch Mountain range or the red rock outcroppings that give Red Ledges its unique personality and character.
Do you own a residence in Utah or vacation here frequently? If so, what’s your favorite pastime in Park City other than golfing?
Although I don’t have a residence here now, I have had homes here in the past, and I have vacationed here many times. I have enjoyed a number of activities in and around Park City. I have skied Deer Valley and Snowbird, and I have fly-fished everywhere from the Provo River to the Green River to a number of the spring creeks that run through the area. Fly-fishing is perhaps my greatest passion right now, and Utah has many terrific areas to fish.
Are there any other Park City memories you’d like to share with the readers of Park City Magazine?
I have simply had a lot of fun here. My family and I have been here several times at Christmas. I have gone from skiing here in December to walking the mountains in a golf shirt because it was so warm. And as I said before, I have enjoyed many a fly-fishing trip to Utah and the Park City area. I hope to return soon.
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