Red Sky Ranch (Fazio)

Red Sky’s Norman and Fazio courses opened within a couple of years of each other at the start of new millennium. More than a decade later, it’s clear from the prominent positions they occupy in the Colorado rankings that they’re two of the best layouts in the Centennial State.

The Fazio course debuted in 2002, a year before the Norman course appeared, and even though the fairways weave across a mountain landscape, they’ve been designed to hug the contours in such a way that golfers never face an excessive incline or decline during the course of a round.

To demonstrate how well the holes fit the land, the first par three is not encountered until the 7th hole, a wonderful heroic carry of 237 yards from the back markers across an intimidating gully to the green.

When you discover that the next two short holes then appear back-to-back at holes 9 and 10 it surely tells you that even Tom Fazio recognises a formulaic configuration of properly spaced out par threes and par fives doesn’t always work when the terrain dictates otherwise.

Completing the quartet of par three holes on the Fazio layout, the 168-yard 17th might just be the best of the bunch, playing downhill to an angled green that lies to the back of a small pond.

Much of the indigenous vegetation was relocated into nurseries during construction then re-planted to preserve the natural habitat.