EXCURSION: VICTORIA LAKES FINE AT 9, READY TO GROW.Byline: Dave Shelburne Staff Writer OXNARD - It will be longer, eventually, but the nine-month-old Victoria Lakes course at River Ridge River Ridge is the name of more than one location.
The first stage in plans to extend 20-year-old River Ridge Golf Club into a 36-hole facility, the Victoria Lakes layout makes seven turns in a nine-hole progression that carries it past or around four lakes Four Lakes, chain of canalized lakes in S Wis.: Waubesa, Kegonsa, Mendota, and Monona. Between the last two lies Madison, the state capital. Largest of the four is Mendota, c.6 mi (9.7 km) long, on which the Univ. of Wisconsin campus is located. . The largest of those lakes is surrounded by holes 3-6 on the most wide-open section of the new course. Wind - always a factor in this seaside community - comes into play on these holes but can be most challenging on No. 7, a 424-yard par-4 that plays into the wind and easily is the toughest hole on the course. Trees are few and far between and seldom come into play at Victoria Lakes, with most of them flanking flanking method of restraint in calves. The animal is thrown by the operator reaching across the animal's back, grasping the loose flank and lifting it off its feet. the par-5 second hole that forms the current northern, rural boundary of a course bordered south by housing. No. 2 abuts a ridge that overlooks Victoria Lakes and the original course, now called Vineyard vineyard, land on which cultivation of the grape—known as viticulture—takes place. As many as 40 varieties of grape, Vitis vinifera, are known. , and which eventually will be the site of the final nine holes. When complete, the 36-hole River Ridge venue will be a combination of the Vineyard and Victoria Lakes courses, rather than the existing Vineyard and a new Victoria Lakes. Until then, the flatter Victoria Lakes course, notable for its excellent fairways, a distinctive but small bunching of towering eucalyptus eucalyptus (y  'kəlĭp`təs): see myrtle. eucalyptus trees and, of course, lakes, holds up just fine on its own. The greens are large, roll consistently and are in good condition, with the exception of some dried-out portions under repair on the eighth and ninth holes. They are surrounded by the same kind of wide putting apron apron, n a piece of clothing worn in front of the body for protection. apron band, n a labioincisal or gingival extension of an orthodontic band that aids in retention of the band and in proper positioning of the bracket. that has helped make 3-year-old Rustic Canyon Golf Club in Moorpark so popular. The Victoria Lakes course, which includes three par-3 holes and two par-5 holes, puts plenty of length and tightness into the par-5s, which stretch 569 yards (No. 2) and 552 yards (No. 8), both flanked left by out-of-bounds tee through green. The most difficult of the par-3 holes is the 178-yard sixth, which sits next to the largest lake on the course and can present an intimidating in·tim·i·date tr.v. in·tim·i·dat·ed, in·tim·i·dat·ing, in·tim·i·dates 1. To make timid; fill with fear. 2. To coerce or inhibit by or as if by threats. tee shot when the flagstick flag·stick n. A removable pole with a flag marking the placement of each hole on the putting greens of a golf course. is tucked right and the typically left-to-right wind is gusting. Another intimidating shot is the approach to the 383-yard, par-4 fifth hole, especially if made from the right side of the fairway. Like the tee shot on No. 6, water is in play down the entire right side. EXCURSION excursion /ex·cur·sion/ (eks-kur´zhun) a range of movement regularly repeated in performance of a function, e.g., excursion of the jaws in mastication. Destination: Oxnard. Course: Victoria Lakes at River Ridge. Vital stats: Nine holes, par-35, four sets of tees. Blue tees: 3,265 yards, 36.3 rating/131 slope; white tees: 3,005 yards, 35.4/127; gold tees: 2,728 yards, 34.7/124; red tees: 2,491 yards, 33.5/118. Rates: Green fees for 18-hole play are $29 weekdays, $42 weekends; twilight rate (after 2 p.m.) is $18 weekdays, $21 weekends; senior rate (60 and over) is $20, Monday-Friday only; 9-hole rate is half the 18-hole rate; carts $12 per person. Access: Open to the public. Phone: (805) 983-4653. Directions: Exit Ventura freeway The Ventura Freeway is a freeway in southern California running from Ventura to Pasadena. It is the principal east-west route through Ventura County and in the southern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County. at Victoria Avenue, south past Olivas Park Drive to Victoria Lakes entrance on left, just north of Gonzalez Road. Notable: Victoria Lakes is planned to become an 18-hole course as part of a 36-hole River Ridge facility and will incorporate some of the holes on the existing, 20-year-old River Ridge course now called Vineyard. CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: The Victoria Lakes course at River Ridge, to be expanded beyond nine holes, features wide fairways and four lakes. Dave Shelburne/Daily News Box: EXCURSION (see text) |
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