Maybe Call it "Sahallway?"
"I think the best way to prepare for this course would have to be to go to a big city, like New York, and maybe play down Fifth Avenue. With the trees being so large and so close to the fairway, you immediately see the only shot you can possibly hit. And that's straight down the middle."
A Course for Champions
Envisioned from the start as a course that would play host to champions of the game, Sahalee was carved from a forest of towering cedars, hemlocks and Douglas firs under the design of renowned golf course architect Ted Robinson. Later, Rees Jones would lend his hand at renovations and improvements that would put Sahalee on center stage in the golfing world.
The course utilizes the natural topography and soil conditions of
the Sammamish plateau it is sited on and is embellished with native
plants including large stands of rhododendrons. Sahalee provides an
all-weather, year round golfing facility on completely separate, tree
lined fairways.
Its 27 holes consist of three 9-hole courses of equal caliber (the North, South and East courses), any two of which can be combined to a standard 18-hole course. It is on the South-North course that some of the greatest names in golf have been tested.
Professional Tournaments at Sahalee
Reflecting its status as the Northwest's premier golf course, Sahalee has hosted three major championship events.
1998 PGA Championship
The 80th annual PGA Championship was held at Sahalee August 13-16th.
It was the first major event to be hosted in the Northwest since
1944. Vijay Singh of Fiji out dueled Steve Stricker by two strokes
to capture his first major championship. Read more about the '98
PGA Championship.
2002
World Golf Championship NEC Invitational
The fourth WGC-NEC Invitational tournament was contested from August
22-24th at Sahalee. Craig Parry won the tournament, breaking Tiger
Woods' dominance of the event. It was the Australian's first World
Golf Championships victory.
2010
US Senior Open Championship
Sahalee hosted the 31st annual US Senior Open Championship from July
26-August 1st. This prestigious tournament conducted by the United
States Golf Association (USGA) is THE major championship event on
the senior tour. The tournament attracted more than 150,000 spectators,
500 worldwide media and over 3,000 volunteers resulting in a $30
million local economic impact. The coverage was broadcast to more
than 50 countries including 15 hours of live coverage on ESPN and
NBC Sports.
Bernhard Langer of Germany shot eight under par and won by three strokes over local favorite Fred Couples. Learn more about the '10 US Senior Open Championship.
Amateur Tournaments at Sahalee
Sahalee annually hosts the Sahalee Players Championship (SPC) for top men amateurs in July. Inaugurated in 1992, the tournament was initially intended to showcase the best amateur golfers in the Pacific Northwest. However, as the stature of Sahalee has steadily grown, the SPC's founders decided to make it a truly international event by extending invitations to the finest amateur players worldwide. Those asked to participate face the same competitive challenges faced by some of golf's greatest—72 holes at stroke play over Sahalee's demanding South and North nines. For the latest information, visit Sahalee Players Championship.
In the fall, Sahalee also plays host to the annual University of Washington's Edean Ihlanfeldt Invitational. Begun in 1981 and named in honor of the woman who launched women's golf at UW, this 54-hole event is one of the longest running tournaments in women's college golf.