{"id":539,"date":"2011-09-15T22:33:14","date_gmt":"2011-09-15T22:33:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jaystuller.com\/?p=539"},"modified":"2011-09-16T18:16:45","modified_gmt":"2011-09-16T18:16:45","slug":"schaffers-mill-an-overlooked-sierra-jewel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/golf\/539\/schaffers-mill-an-overlooked-sierra-jewel","title":{"rendered":"Schaffer\u2019s Mill An Overlooked Sierra Jewel"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

The view from the tenth tee at Schaffer's Mill.<\/p><\/div>\n

From South Lake Tahoe north into Plumas County, California\u2019s High Sierra<\/a> is draped with a motherload of exceptional golf courses.\u00a0 As host of a much publicized celebrity tournament, Edgewood-Tahoe<\/a> commands the greatest attention, while vertigo-inducing elevation changes makes Coyote Moon<\/a> one of the most memorable public tracks in the region.\u00a0 Between these two, \u00a0in the Martis Valley just outside of Truckee, is Schaffer\u2019s Mill<\/a>, a somewhat overlooked course that offers one of the more pleasing golf experiences in the mountains.<\/p>\n

Designed by Johnny Miller<\/a> and John Harbottle <\/a>and originally known as the Timilick Club, Schaffer\u2019s Mill opened in 2008, and was ranked by Golfweek as that year\u2019s best new private course in California.\u00a0 The anchor of a 475-acre master planned community that was to have 218 single-family houses and 188 mountain lodges, the course and project came online at a rather unfortunate point in time, and the real estate business and the entire economy went into a free fall collapse. \u00a0 When new ownership took over within the past year and rebranded the development as Schaffer\u2019s Mill – – named after George Schaffer, the so-called \u201cFather of Truckee,\u201d who in 1871 opened a large saw mill in the Martis Valley – – the private club had only 42 members and had not added a new one since the spring of 2009.<\/p>\n

At the start of the summer there was only one completed home in the Schaffer\u2019s Mill project, although a number of town homes – – which range in price from $700,000 to $900,000 – – are available across the property.\u00a0 Developed lots are also for sale, from between $230,000 and $330,000.\u00a0 Plans for the future include community swimming pools, tennis courts, a fitness center, a golf course clubhouse and a 47-foot yacht on Lake Tahoe, available for the use of members.\u00a0 For now, however, the course is the development\u2019s primary attraction.<\/p>\n

(In a counterpoint that demonstrates how the uber-wealthy have gone largely unscathed by the recession, the nearby Martis Camp<\/a> development – – with a Tom Fazio designed course, 8,000-square-foot “legacy homes” that are occupied only a few weeks during any year, and a private ski lift to Northstar<\/a>, among other luxuries – – continues to grow steadily and even thrive.)<\/p>\n

Meadows and Mountains<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although Schaffer\u2019s Mill has doubled its membership under the new ownership and hopes to one day re-establish itself as a private course, public play is now encouraged.\u00a0 It is open to non-members from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. seven days a week, with rates ranging from $60 to $180, and with specials offered to members of the Northern Nevada Golf Association<\/a>, the Northern California<\/a> and Southern California Golf<\/a> Associations. \u00a0Given what\u2019s charged at other premium courses in the region, the quality of the course makes Schaffer\u2019s Mill a relative deal.<\/p>\n

Weaving its way through fragrant Ponderosa pines, firs and spruce trees, the course\u2019s front nine is largely set upon a meadow.\u00a0 The back nine threads through more uneven terrain and has more elevation changes, offering views of Lookout Mountain and the Carson Range.\u00a0 Playing from more than 7000 yards at the tips, the par 71 course also has a series of increasingly friendly teeing areas, some of which take nearly all forced carries out of play.<\/p>\n

From an architectural perspective there is likely more Harbottle here than Miller, although the latter\u2019s diabolical hand is evident on the green of the par 3 16th<\/sup> hole, which has little landing area and features cants that shoot the slightest mishit rolling off the back and into big trouble.\u00a0 The bunkers on the meadow side are fairly conventional in appearance, but many on the back are framed with tall fescue, a dramatic look that Harbottle has put into other courses.\u00a0 Some of fescue use could be aesthetic, but it may also be a strain of grass that better protects the bunker\u2019s structural integrity from the burrowing voles that live in the hills above the meadow.<\/p>\n

There are two relatively short par 4s, drivable for 300 plus yard hitters, but extremely well defended by bunkers.\u00a0 The 15th<\/sup>, for example, is spectacular, with the green sitting on a ledge above a couple of deep bunkers.\u00a0 Stay out; you\u2019ll need to get a sand shot ten to 12 feet into the air to get up and onto the green.\u00a0 Otherwise, this is a course that is pleasing to the eye, challenging from the back tees and yet easy on the game if you move up.<\/p>\n

Grand Plans<\/strong><\/p>\n

New Martis Partners<\/a>, the group that rebranded Timilick into Schaffer\u2019s Mill, is a Dallas-based real estate development firm that specializes in creating family oriented communities.\u00a0 Just as George Schaffer\u2019s Mill benefited the local community in the 1800s, the developers hope to patronize local businesses.\u00a0 Says\u00a0New Martis Partners Managing Partner John Marlin: \u00a0\u201cMuch like its namesake, Schaffer’s Mill will work for the betterment of the Truckee and Tahoe communities. Whenever possible we will look to support local businesses, such as bakers, builders, florists and artists.\u201d<\/p>\n

Much like Martis Camp and yet on a much more affordable scale, the ultimate concept for Schaffer’s Mill is to build a community where families can enjoy spending time together with a round of golf, trout fishing in one of the stocked ponds or sharing a milkshake on the clubhouse patio.\u00a0 The vision is to have a community concierge who develops a year-round schedule of activities for entire families, including skiing, boating, hiking and, of course, golf. \u00a0And, of course, there is always a nod to historical roots. \u00a0The gate to the development is located on\u00a0Old Schaffer Mill Road,which\u00a0leads to the site of George Schaffer\u2019s old saw mill. In the town of Truckee, the historic Schaffer House, built in 1895, is still located on Church Street and is available for touring.<\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From South Lake Tahoe north into Plumas County, California\u2019s High Sierra is draped with a motherload of exceptional golf courses.\u00a0… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":540,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,3603,6127,17],"tags":[89841,18273,89842,89832,2468,2354,89844,5484,89845,89835,89846,2168,4403,10030,89838,6553,89840,10725],"class_list":["post-539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-golf","category-golf-the-high-sierra","category-so-cal-golf-assoc","category-courses-and-travel","tag-northern-nevada-golf-association","tag-johnnymiller","tag-northern-california-golf-association","tag-golf-the-high-sierra-2","tag-lookout-mountain","tag-edgewood-tahoe","tag-carson-range","tag-coyote-moon","tag-new-martis-partners","tag-schaffers-mill","tag-john-marlin","tag-john-harbottle","tag-lake-tahoe","tag-truckee","tag-george-schaffer","tag-martis-camp","tag-northstar","tag-southerncaliforniagolfassociation"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2011\/09\/timilick2.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/48"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=539"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":544,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539\/revisions\/544"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/540"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jaystuller\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}