Coyote Moon is located just 35 miles from Reno, in the historic town of Truckee. I had not played this course before and was very excited to experience Coyote Moon. Everything I had heard about Coyote Moon has been about how beautiful the course is and that it will challenge you. I was expecting a beautiful but difficult course with tight fairways and fast greens, which required accurate shots.

The course offers four sets of tees to accommodate all levels of playing ability (Black, Blue, White and Gold). The recommended tee box for the average golfer is White. Pin placements are in a rotation of three…first hole in middle, second hole in back followed by third hole in front, etc.

The course starts off with a 469-yard par 5. The hole is a slight dogleg right with a fairly open fairway. There is a strategically placed large pine tree and boulder approximately 250 yards out on the right portion of the fairway. You want to aim your tee shot just to the left of this tree. Big hitters might be able to go for the green in two, but will have to carry bunkers on the left side of the fairway and a mound to get to the green. Shots that fall short will find trouble as the fairway really narrows as you approach the green. The safe second shot is to lay up to the middle/right side of the fairway, giving you a nice short approach shot into a big, two-tiered green. Pin placement will play a factor on your ability to score on this hole.

Hole No. 4 is a 408-yard par 4, dogleg left. This is the number one handicap hole on the course. From an elevated tee box, you want to hit your tee shot to the left/center portion of the fairway. If you are less than accurate with your driver, you might want to hit a fairway wood or long iron as the fairway is very narrow. The second shot is to an elevated green. Make sure to hit enough club to get there, but be careful as the green slopes back to front, making for a difficult putt if you are above the hole. This hole definitely tests your club selection and shot making abilities.

The seventh hole is a 478-yard par 5, dogleg left. The fairway is fairly open with water, a bunker down the right and pine trees guarding the left side of the fairway. You need to make sure to hit a good tee shot as there is plenty of rough and wild flowers off the tee box, in addition to the water. The second shot is an uphill blind shot which you want to play toward the middle/right portion of the fairway, setting up a short approach shot into a fairly large green. Once you are over the “hump,” the fairway goes back down toward the green. The green is guarded by a bunker on the front left side, with a large boulder on the right. On this hole you do not want to go long as there is a big drop off on the back side.



Closing out the front nine is a 377-yard par 4, into a fairly open fairway. You want to hit your tee shot toward the right/center portion of the fairway on this slight dogleg right. The fairway goes down after a slightly blind tee shot toward the green. On your approach shot, elevation change comes into play. So be careful on club selection. The green is large and wavy, and is protected by a bunker on the front right side, which wraps around the right side. Pin placement is very important as the green is difficult to navigate.

The back nine starts right where the front nine leaves off with another beautiful and challenging hole. Hole No. 10 is a 389-yard par 4, dogleg right. The fairway is narrow and suggests hitting a fairway wood or long iron off the tee into the middle. Your second shot is a middle iron into a large, well protected green with bunkers on the front left, right, and back sides.

The first of back to back signature holes on the course is Hole 12. This is a 458-yard par 5, dogleg right. The fairway is open, and you want to hit your tee shot to the middle/right side of the fairway. The green is reachable in two but takes a long, accurate uphill shot. The green is large, but well protected. Bunkers line the front right, back and left sides of the green. There are also very large boulders along the left and back sides that play home for a den of coyote cubs. Hit a nice tee shot and “go for the green” with enough safe areas around the green to make the risk/reward shot worth taking.

The second signature hole is No. 13, a 187-yard par 3. This is one of the most intimidating par 3’s you will play due to the huge elevation change. In addition, wind and pin location will play a factor as there is a one-to-three club change on this hole. Enjoy the view and bring an extra golf ball just in case. The green is a wide green (left to right) with a bunker on the front right and back left sides of the green. Still, it is definitely one of the prettiest par 3’s you will ever play.

Hole 15 is the No. 2 handicap hole and is a 541-yard par 5, dogleg right. The fairway is open and needs to be played toward the middle/right side of the fairway to take any wandering pine trees out of play. The second shot is critical and needs to be played just short of Trout Creek, leaving an approach shot into an elevated, two-tiered green. Do not leave yourself too long of a shot on your third shot into the green. The length of the hole and the presence of Trout Creek make this a three shot hole — or four if you do not play your second shot properly. The green is protected by a large bunker on the front left and right sides of the green. Pin placement is critical, as the elevation changes will make putting more difficult if you are on the wrong tier.

On this day, I played from the white tees. I was informed by the staff prior to playing the course that it was in great shape and “what you see is what you get.” Fairways are fairly open, but narrow as you approach the greens. With this, I was glad to be able to hit my driver off the tee and was hoping my iron play was up for the challenge. I highly recommend you warm up on the large practice green, which has plenty of elevation changes to give you a good feel of what the greens are going to be like.

Coyote Moon is a wonderful course set in the Sierra Mountains. The designer did a great job in laying the course out through the pine trees and Trout Creek. The holes are well spaced out and even though there are other holes running along side, you really don’t notice. What you do notice is there is not a single house to be found on the course. The fairways were open off the tee, narrowing as you approach the green, making for accurate approach shots. The greens were in great shape, fast and true.

Unfortunately for me, there didn’t seem to be an easy putt on the course, as the greens were challenging. The course draws its name from a den of coyotes that live on the backside of the 12th green. What I liked most about this course, besides its beauty, is every hole is unique and challenging in its own way. There is not a single hole on the course that was not carefully planned to challenge every aspect of a golfer’s game. Coyote Moon offers a beautiful course that is extremely fair and challenging, that all levels of golfers will enjoy.