Wellshire Golf Course

Denver, CO

website: https://www.cityofdenvergolf.com/wellshire/

• Playability: ⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️
• Difficulty: ⛳️⛳️⛳️
• Views: ⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️
• Course Conditions: ⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️
• Value: ⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️
• Facility: ⛳️⛳️⛳️

Just south of Denver off of highway 285 sits a hidden gem of the metro area, and the only public Donald Ross design west of the Mississippi river. The daily fee facility built in 1926 has a true old fashioned country club feel without the normal exclusive price tag. This property is rich with history as Ben Hogan won the Denver Open Invitational here in 1948.

The playability of Wellshire earned the full 5 flag rating. This is a great regulation 18 hole golf course without a lot of tricks or deception- just all around good golf. The former country club purchased in the 1950’s by the city and county of Denver has a real country club vibe surrounded by mature trees hiding the layout from the surrounding city area. There aren’t any forced carries and most of the holes are right in your face- there isn’t too much guessing out here or ridiculous slopes on the putting surfaces, something that can easily kill the playability ranking in our eyes.

Wellshire plays as short as 4800 yards and tips out just around 6,650 yards- a very gettable length for any player. But length isn’t what will help you succeed at Wellshire- it’s being accurate off the tee and on approach shots. The course is fairly narrow- and longer hitters will be better off leaving the big stick in the bag and using an iron from the teeing ground. The greens are larger in size, but require some precision as they are somewhat sectioned off. Really long putts put you at more of a disadvantage at Wellshire than other courses as the greens are broken up into quadrants and will present multiple breaks the further away you are. In the height of the season the rough can be fairly penal, so hitting the fairway to set yourself up for a solid approach shot is a must. The difficulty sits at an average 3 flags.

Wellshire is like just about any other Colorado course in the fact you’re going to sneak in a few mountain views. For this track, having as many mature large trees, the rockies aren’t quite in plain sight from every angle of the course- but you’ll get some great glimpses. One of our personal favorite views that you do get at Wellshire is a view of our beloved city of Denver. Most courses in the centennial state will feature mountain views, but not all of them can also throw in the city skyline-a true beauty to behold.

The course conditions earned an above average 4 flag review. The rough is on the thicker side and most of the course is usually pretty lush and green. The greens aren’t quick by any means and are usually very soft and roll true. Nothing really to complain about here- especially for a smaller city owned property.

Wellshire won’t be known for it’s practice facility-which other than the Hogan’s Alley Junior Course is not much to write home (or DNVR family) about. The driving range is a 100% turf area with limited flight floating balls that are hit into a pond. This can be really fun to do, but is not great if you’re trying to get quality practice in. When we last played it the putting green was immaculate but much quicker than the greens on the course- something that is really annoying to most players. The brownie points for this facility lie in the clubhouse, pub, and pro shop. It has a real old fashioned country club feel and is home to a self proclaimed “gourmet restaurant.” We played in a scramble here with a great buffet afterwards with high quality food. The proshop is very well stocked with merchandise for any golfer.

Wellshire is a great place to start your fledgling golf career if you reside in the Denver area- and the value is what plays a big part of that. Getting to play from the same fairways (or rough) as greats like Ben Hogan on a weekend for under $50 is an absolute steal. Value gets full 5 flag review for the value- a course you can afford to play weekly if you have the time.

Overall, if you’re looking for a fun little metro area track to play without reaching too deep into your pockets Wellshire is definitely recommended by the Golf Bros.