You won't weep at this willow

OK, let's get the pedigree and award stuff out of the way:

* Best Executive Golf Course 2005 -- Vegas Golfer Magazine

* Best Executive Golf Course 2006 -- Vegas Golfer Magazine

* Top 50 Executive Golf Courses in America 2006 -- Golf Range Magazine

* Top 50 Executive Golf Courses in America 2007 -- Golf Range Magazine

The day I ventured out to Desert Willow, 2020 W. Horizon Ridge Parkway in Henderson, even the weather cooperated.

Following a period of inclement weather, the day dawned sunny and warm as we headed to the southeast side of town to play the course in Henderson. I was really looking forward to Desert Willow because after reviewing several other E-courses in town, the loudest response was from the residents of Sun City MacDonald Ranch, who urged me to play "the best in town" -- their own Desert Willow course.

Terry Boyle, general manager at Desert Willow, greeted me and proceeded to give me the home course tips of the course: Hit it to the right on the 10th; look out for the 18th, you might drive the water, etc. He also told me to refer to the course as "The Willows," just like many of the regulars do.

The Willows is a par-60 executive course located in the shadows of the Black Mountain range. The course features 12 par 3s and six par 4s that allow you to practice all facets of your game while challenging your overall game through all 18 holes.

PGA Tour great Billy Casper and architect Greg Nash designed the course. It covers 3,811 yards from the blues, with a 59.9 rating and a slope of 91.

But the real appeal of The Willows is the ambiance of the clubhouse facility, as well as the course itself. The clubhouse and pro shop have an upscale feel that carries over to the practice greens and driving range. You get the sense that The Willows is something special.

On the course, the layout is wide open and there appears to be a lot of open space between holes. In fact, you might tend to forget that you're playing an E-course because of the spaciousness.

Water comes into play on three of the holes, and traps and trees add to the challenge. The traps have soft sand, which adds to your confidence when exploding from them.

On top of all that, there is not a flat green on the course. And the groundskeepers are not gun shy by placing holes on slopes and just steps from the fringe. One of my playing partners likened them to the 2002 U.S. Open at Bethpage -- the Black Course, where the pros couldn't keep an approach shot on the green. A comparison more apropos of his game than the golf course, I think.

Hole 4 is an interesting one. The home-course advantage to this par 3, 157-yard shot from an elevated tee says to hit left of the hole and let the slope feed the ball to the pin. There's even a visual preview of hole 5 from the tee, which is a delicate 95-yard wedge with a huge water hazard waiting to penalize a long shot.

Two of us scored par 3 here, while the third, who did not use the hillside strategy, settled for a bogey. Only one of us found water on No. 5, while two of three putted on a tricky green.

The 18th hole is the signature hole. A 323-yard par 4, where a good drive will leave you with a wedge over water to a green surrounded by a trap and several grassy pot buckers.

Two of us found the water, and the third player took two to get out of the trap, not a great way for each of us to end the round.

All accounted for, we were within 3 shots of each other, around bogey golf, which is to say we were just south of 80.

For some reason, we high-fived.

The Desert Willow Restaurant is a great place to recap the day. With surprisingly nice ambiance, a full bar and a bar full of video poker machines, a friendly staff, and a menu with full breakfast, lunch and dinner, it would be a nice place to visit whether you're playing or not.

The Sun City MacDonald Ranch Community Association owns Desert Willows and has done a great job in involving the community with the course. There are golf leagues on Monday, Wednesday and Friday that bring out the competitor. The practice facilities are top notch, with the largest driving range in Henderson, featuring grass tee areas Friday through Sunday and mats Monday through Thursday. A 9,500-square-foot putting green with undulations and a short game practice area with 75 yards also is available for shots.

The Junior Golf Academy at Desert Willows features Pam Bowers, rated one of the Top 50 kids instructors in the United States by by USKids 2007. For the old ones, Bruce Heller, a Natural Golf Certified Instructor, can get our game back on track.

The Willows is an impressive setup. Yeah, it's on the other side of town from some of us, but worth the time to give it a try. You'll be glad you did.

John Asay is a longtime resident and local golfer. Contact him at jasay@reviewjournal.com.