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COEUR D'ALENE
Golf Resort
PAR 3 175 YARDS
Coeur d'Alene, ID
208.667.4653
www.cdaresort.com
For those who have played there and those who haven't but yearn to, the 14th at
Coeur d'Alene Golf Resort remains one of the world's most photographed and best-
known golf holes. Picture them: the 16th at Cypress Point, the 18th at Pebble Beach,
the 13th at Augusta National, the 18th at St. Andrews, the 17th at TPC Sawgrass, all
upholding the icon definition as "an object of uncritical devotion." And the 14th at
Coeur d'Alene.
It began with a sudden fit of inspiration; the owner of the industrial property walking
his dog, gazing out at a tugboat towing a nearly round raft of logs on Lake Coeur
d'Alene. He asked himself, and his dog, "Why couldn't that be a green?" Duane
Hagadone spent three times what any other green has cost to build the floating
green, but most difficult was convincing his architect, Scott Miller, to even attempt
it. The green, engineered with foam-filled concrete beams and an electronically
controlled cable system, can be moved to or away from shore, less than 100 yards
and more than 200 yards, but in any event the hole requires a respectable shot to
the massive, 15,000-square-foot green replete with bunkers fore and aft. A small
boat named Putter takes you to the green. Those who make par get a certificate
celebrating the fact, while those who end up in the water—more than half the first
tries do—get to do it again.
The floating green isn't the only extravaganza at Coeur d'Alene. A mahogany boat
brings you to the course where there is a complimentary massage before you
play. And there's more: forecaddies who take on-course service to an entirely new
level, luxurious custom carts, views of the lake from nearly every hole, and finely
manicured bent grass tees and fairways. Indeed, the posh course ensures that you
feel thoroughly pampered, utterly spoiled, and simply lucky to enjoy such a unique
golf experience.
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Photograph by Joel Riner, Quicksilver Studios
