Ocean Dunes, Sandpines make for a double golf treat as you drive along the Oregon Coast

By Steve Turcotte, Inside Golf Editor
As you work your way along the Oregon Coast – there is plenty of golf to be found. But a perfect doubleheader of golf is just minutes apart in Florence. Ocean Dunes and Sandpines are a pair of courses that are different in style but close in proximity and a great way to spend a day.

Ocean Dunes is the older of the two with its front nine opening in 1959 and the back nine in 1990. Sandpines opened in 1993 and won the “Best New Public Course In America” from Golf Digest at the same time. Both have big name designers – Bill Robinson created Ocean Dunes and Rees Jones handled Sandpines.

Same city, has two different courses.

• Sandpines opened with a lot of fanfare, not only because of the Rees Jones name but because of the location and the vast layout. It won awards from regional and national publications when it first opened and for good reason. There are dunes, there are bunkers and there is water.

The course can play as long as 7,190 yards, and when the wind blows along the Oregon Coast, Sandpines plays even longer.

Sandpines uses a lot of land for its golf course. Over 175 acres is used for the course which has a Scottish-style theme throughout its 18 holes.

The 9,000 square foot clubhouse is majestic and sits on a bluff overlooking the 18th holes and much of the course.

Sandpines was recently purchased by SPG Properties LLC and they brought in OB Sports to manage the facility. OB Sports has a long history in the Pacific Northwest as founder Orrin Vincent grew up in the Northwest. OB Sports manages 56 golf courses across the country and has four others in the state of Oregon. Rick Reed is the General Manager and knows what kind of treat Sandpines is for golfers.

• Ocean Dunes has been a part of Florence for nearly 60 years. The first nine came in 1959, the back nine in 1990. The Bill Robinson-designed course plays 6,200 yards and offers some holes through the dunes.

One of the biggest changes came recently when the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw bought the course to go along with its Three Rivers Casino. Terrific changes have been made to the course. Golfers on GolfAdvisor have noticed the changes and made some complimentary comments as well.

Director of Golf Bob Rannow knows he has a gem on his hands and with the backing of the Three Rivers Casino, more improvements are definitely on the way at Ocean Dunes.

The course is filled with challenging holes, including a short par-3 with a tee shot over a ravine and a par-5 with an S-shaped fairway that gets your attention from the tee.