Located in Verona, NY, half an hour east of Syracuse, Atunyote (the Oneida Nation word for Eagle) is a Tom Fazio design. It is also conveniently located just 2 1/2 miles from Turning Stone, a splendid world-class gaming enterprise, having been in operations since 1993. Even before you get to the course, as you drive up the 1 1/2-mile laneway, through the beautifully carved front gates, you get the feeling it'll be a special experience. And you aren't disappointed.
Atunyote, with its gently rolling hills, stream and waterfalls, is a magnificent layout. The largest body of water on the course cascades through three fairways, including the dramatic finishing hole.
The course, which has been selected as one of Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Courses You Can Play and is always listed among Best Casino Courses along with several other accolades, measures 7,315 from the tips, down to 6,998 from the blues, 6,561 from the whites and 6,069 from the golds. The reds play at 5,120 yards.
Getting an experience that the PGA stars have just tasted isn't cheap. Resort guests can tee it up for $175 US or $200 US for non-resort guests. Either way, you'll get plenty pampered by the friendly folks at the course.
And after you've finished your round, perhaps feeling a little beaten up by the rough if you've strayed off the fairway ... you'll find out that Turning Stone has what could very well be an even more challenging course - Kaluhyat.
Kaluhyat (meaning The Other Side of the Sky), features dramatic elevation changes - measuring as high as 50 feet in some areas - is a shotmaker's course. Firing rockets off the tee doesn't always pay off, especially if you stray from the narrow fairways on a course that’s got many awards of its own, including being among the Top Casino Courses and Top Public Courses in New York.
Strategy is rewarded as much as length. Some of the holes are tree-lined, while others have an open links style. There are also six lakes to worry about. The course plays 7,105 from the tips (and if you haven't the length, consider an alternate). A more manageable 6,724 from the blues is still extremely tough and is best left for lower handicappers. If your handicap falls within the double digits, you may want to settle for the whites at 6,183 yards...or if it's all about pencilling in a better score, hang your head in shame and play the golds at 5,690 yards. The ladies' tees play at 5,293 yards.
And if you can tear yourself away from the casino, wonderful restaurants and the hotel and lodge, there's yet more golf.
Shenendoah, a Rick Smith
design, may lack the sinister
elements of its sister courses,
but is none the less enjoyable
by its simple, yet beautiful
layout. But don’t be fooled by
the serene setting, it is still a
challenging test of golf. An
example of that is the
427-yard, par 4, 16th, to which
the leader at a recent PGA
sectional tournament can
testify to. The leader, having
a four-stroke cushion heading
into the hole, carded a
regrettable eight, all but
sabotaging an enjoyable
conclusion to their round. The
difficulty lies with a water
hazard and bunker guarding
opposing sides of the fairway, which squeezes an already narrow landing area even further.
There are not a lot of bells and whistles, but the trip through the natural landscape, with wooded parkland holes, open pastures that provide a links feel and splendid country holes, takes you back to golf's roots.
The course plays at 7,129 yards from the tips, 6,685 from the blues, 6,328 from the whites, 5,839 from the golds and 5,185 from the reds.
Shenendoah has its share of awards, including Top 100 Courses You Can Play and it’s listed among the top casino course, right near the top along with the other Turning Stone treats.
What’s extra special about Shenendoah and Kaluhyat is that they’re walking distance (as in a couple of hundred steps) from the hotel and lodge. You’re out the door and on the course as quick as you can say birdie (or in some cases, double bogey).
There's also Pleasant Knolls, a nine-hole, par-36 course that plays 3,393 from the blues and 2,710 from the whites, and Sandstone Hollow, a par-3 course that is anything but easy as you try to navigate your way through woods and wetlands and then try to avoid the fescue that can be found greenside.
To book your golf reservations on any of the courses, call 1 877 748 GOLF.
"For these people, it's not
about making money," said
Turning Stone’s Director of Golf
Services Robert Todd. "It's
about keeping their heritage
going. And that translates
into customer service. Every
day is so hectic for us. But
they're so relaxed. They want
you
outdoors. They want you to
relax. They want you to
recognize the birds in the trees.”
If you want to take a couple of
days, check out these fall golf
packages:
From Oct. 1-Nov. 31, you can
get overnight accommodations
at either The Hotel or The
Tower at Turning Stone with unlimited one-day golf at the Shenendoah and Kaluhyat Golf Clubs, Pleasant Knolls Golf Course and Sandstone Hollow Executive Golf. Midweek rates (Sunday-Thursday) start at $299 US , while Friday or Saturday rates start at $349 US .
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Through Oct. 15, starting at $1,049 US per person, you can get four nights in a luxurious suite at The Lodge, with one round of golf per day at award-winning Shenendoah, Kaluhyat, and Atunyote golf courses, along with breakfast daily at the Shenendoah or Atunyote Clubhouses; unlimited range balls; round-trip airport transfers from Syracuse NY; and taxes.
For more information and reservations, call 1 800 771 7711, or check out www.turningstone.com.
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