Here is a description of this new course for Golden Tee 2012: “Built along Route 66, Dusty Bend Golf Course seems like a step back in time. You’ll never know what roadside attractions you’ll encounter as you golf along “the mother road” in Sayre, Oklahoma. Trees are scarce, but the farm buildings and tourist traps […]

Don’t forget about the fence guarding the front of the green here — you absolutely cannot be short!  Make sure you have plenty of carry and use bite or backspin to hold the green.  Here is a nice use of bite from the back box. VIDEO DEMO

Distance off the tee shouldn’t be an issue here — anywhere right of the sand is fine for your approach.  You actually don’t want to hit too far off the tee and bring some of the brush into play just past the fairway, so lay back a bit from the end of that first fairway. […]

This one can be a bit tricky, so always play it safe.  The green basically has a front and back section, so play your tee shot to the middle of whatever section contains the pin.  Bite may be a good option here to get the ball to stick when it lands.  It’s often a 7-wood […]

This hole is tough to eagle, and an errant tee shot can turn your round in the wrong direction.  Everything slopes towards the water in the front right of the green, so you need to aim well left to avoid the water and a devastating re-tee.  Stay dry, and accept that birdie is a fine […]

This hole is fun — you’ll have all kinds of different shots here depending on your tee box and the wind.  The green is deceptively huge, so it’s important to get your shot close to the pin for a manageable putt. From the back left box, here is a high-teed 5-wood from the back left […]

The safest play is something like a high-teed 4-wood to the left side of the left fairway.  This fairway slopes right, so don’t be careless and let one trickle into the water!  At the same time, there’s a semi-hidden building behind what you’re hitting over.  Sometimes it’s directly in your line.  If you play a […]

You will be aiming over the barn to get to the second fairway here.  A high-teed 3-wood clears the barn easily.  If the wind is in your face, high tee a driver and take it just right of the tree between the barn and the house to land safely in the fairway ahead.  Even if […]

Normally you’ll just hit your drive out to the right over the water and into the fairway.  Here’s a hole-out from the right side of the fairway after a nice drive.  If you go too far, you could find yourself in between clubs, so you may want to use backspin and lay back just over […]

A clever change from the beta version is the addition of a sign over the two buildings on your way to the green.  Now you have to think about elevation control.  Usually, you can take a 3-wood through the gap over the building and under the sign — a driver will not clear the building […]

Elevation is almost never an issue here if you hit your shot hard with the highest lofted club that you think can get there.  It can be anywhere from a 3-wood to a driver.  It carries well too, as the green is downhill from the tee box.  Long is water — you cannot be there, […]

You CAN go left around the house to cut some distance off your approach shot, but it’s usually not worth the risk unless you’re sure it’s an easy shot.  Sometimes it is if your tee box puts you in line with that gap, so take advantage of it if it’s there.  Here’s a hole-out from […]

Two options here off the tee — in the demo, he goes over the top of the right tower with a high-teed 3-wood.  I haven’t confirmed this still works, but if it does, there you go! Another option is to rotate right once or twice and play a big, high-teed C3 driver over the building […]

Just aim for the end of the first fairway — you’ll have plenty of club to get there in two, and you won’t bring any danger into play.  Here’s a nice 5-wood hole-out to a front pin.  A 7 or 9-wood will be used often as well.  Make sure you carry the green, and better […]

There are two greens here — one has you coming straight into the downslope, and one has you hitting into the green sloped hard to the left.  From the front, you’ve got water long (can’t be there), and dirt and road short (the better place to miss).  Also be careful not to miss on the […]

Don’t hit your drive in the blacktop — it’s all out of bounds!  Instead, you’ll have to hit your drive straight out in the fairway, avoiding the sand.  Don’t get it too close to the fence either or your approach won’t clear it!  So the middle of the fairway, quite a ways down, is pretty […]

Here is a shorter par 3 that may test your skills curving a short iron into the wind.  There’s a lot of green to the right, and that’s the safe place to be.  Sometimes you’ll get a really favorable setup, so if you do, try to take advantage — here is a hole-out to a […]

From the back box, there’s no need to cut the corner much here — you don’t want to bring anything but fairway into play!  Poke it out right in a fat part of the fairway and hit a long wood into the green.  Here’s a nice driver hole-out. From the front box, you can curve […]

Lay up towards the end of the first fairway and bring it in for birdie.  Here’s an example 9-wood hole-out.  Don’t take this one for granted — you’ll need to nail your distance with sand short and long. VIDEO DEMO

The following grid breaks down the best and worst you should be able to shoot on Dusty Bend relative to the possible setups you could get on each hole: Hole Par GT Par Total Min Max Min Max 1 4 3 3 -1 -1 2 4 3 3 -2 -2 3 3 2 2 -3 […]