Vintner's Golf Club

So nice, you'll play it twice.

Seriously, don't think of Vintner's Golf Club in Yountville as just another executive course. Sure, there's only nine holes, and that may turn some people away.

But the conditions are great, the holes are well-designed and the course can be tough if you want to play from the back tees.

The option to walk, and the chance to play a solid layout on your lunch break make this a wonderful break from your usual round. And if you want to - and you probably will - you can play the layout twice, with a cart, on weekdays for just $36.

And you'll still probably finish in just a little more than three hours.

The 1999 course isn't terribly long - which is either a drawback or a blessing, depending on your point of view - but there are hazards, along with 25 bunkers.

If you play 18 holes, the idea is to play farther back on your first go-around. The course is well-marked, so this isn't a problem.

But you can easily mix and match distances, or just play from the back tees the whole time.

You'll also have some course knowledge on your second trip, which should save you some strokes.

Any way you look at it, you should have a fun time.

The short day begins with the hardest hole on the course, a 357-yard par-4. If you're confused on the tee box, just aim for the right side of the fairway, and remember the hazard you cross is farther away than it appears.

The approach is tough, between two trees across the hazard to a small green.

The rest of the holes are right in front of you.

The second is a solid par-3 with bunkers left and right. In fact, the par-3s are the highlights here. No. 4 is probably the best hole on the course, with a small green guarded by water and a bunker in front and out-of-bounds behind.

No. 8 is a beautiful, downhill par-3 to a big green in front of big redwoods.

There is only one par-5, the sixth hole, which is 530 yards from the back tees with a narrow fairway and three bunkers at the green.

The par-4s are the meat of the course, and can be tough if played from the back tees. There are long carries off the tee at Nos. 5 and 9, which is a 421-yard monster from the tips.

No. 9 is a beauty, a dogleg right around a lake. Take the long way home and tee off across the hazard.

Have lunch in the solid 19th hole before heading back home, or back out.

Positives abound at Vintner's, including the rare chance to play a course twice. Make notes on your first tour, or better yet, print the cheat sheets off the course Web site at vintnersgolfclub.com.

The conditions are great, and the greens may be the best part of a good thing. There even is a driving range with a grass-tee option.

The price is right, particularly if you walk, and walking is easy. There are rolling mounds, but no big hills, and no long distances between holes.

Vintner's also is closer than you might think, just 35 miles from Vacaville.

Drawbacks are minimal, most coming from the stigma of a 9-hole facility. The course takes great lengths to solve this problem with the different tee boxes, but if you can't stand to see the same hole twice, Vintner's isn't for you.

Of course, if you are the type of player who finishes holes just wishing you could play them again, take heart. You can.

Directions - Take Interstate 80 west to Highway 12. Take Highway 29 north to Yountville. Take the Veterans Home exit and turn left under the freeway. Turn left on the Solano Avenue (the frontage road). The course is on the right.