The Ranch Club

Getting To Know: The Ranch Club

An Insightful Interview With Andrew Flikkema, Head Golf Professional

By Brian Weis

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Andrew Flikkema who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
At The Ranch Club, we offer a traditional links-style, Championship 18-hole course with plenty of panoramic views of Missoula valley. There are multiple tee boxes on each hole offering yardages from 5,096 to 7,020, and the course includes curving-and-tumbling terrain with creative design elements and risk/reward shots that are a strong challenge for scratch players, but also accommodating for novices. The course was designed by Les Furber, whose philosophy is influenced in part through his long association with Robert Trent Jones Sr., recognized as the "father" of modern golf course architecture.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
According to Golfweek magazine, The Ranch Club is the top course you can play in Missoula. We're located just six miles northwest of downtown and the main University of Montana campus, but because this land was part of a sprawling cattle ranch settled over 125 years ago, we offer the calm of the countryside.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
Keep it in play! The front nine can be played by only using a driver off the tee one or two times. The slopes surrounding the fairways and greens make it difficult to shoot a good score if you are out of position off the tee. The back nine offers a few more chances from the tee with the driver but ultimately keeping the ball short and straight will benefit you throughout the round.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
I am most proud of the fact that Golfweek magazine has ranked The Ranch Club as third best course you can play in Montana and the top course in Missoula since 2014. Golf Digest has also given the course a 4.5-star rating.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
The most talked about hole is certainly number 7. It is a par 5 with two large ponds that come into play on the tee shot, the layup, and the approach to the green. There is no clear 'best' way to play the hole. Shot choices are usually dictated by how aggressive you are off the tee.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
My favorite hole is #18. It's similar to several other holes here where you must make a decision on the tee box. You might decide to be aggressive and bring bunkers into play or lay back and have a long iron into a green with water directly to the left and bunker front and right. The second shot is elevated with the clubhouse as the back-drop and a large pond and the practice range in view. They way I play this hole is to be aggressive and take on the bunkers from the tee. When executed properly a short wedge is in your hand and maybe a birdie to finish your round!

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
Our Ranch Club Burger has been a very popular item. It's a ½ lbs., local beef patty combined with fresh toppings. Our drinks vary depending on the season but some local favorites include Kettlehouse ColdSmoke, Eddy Out or Double Haul IPA.

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
The course record was shot in July of 2015 by Tom Swanson, a local Missoulian who was 20 at the time. He shot a round of 64 from the Black tees during a U.S. Am Qualifier event.

Back Tee Stats
Par: 72
Yardage: 7200
Slope: 129
Rating: 73

More Information
The Ranch Club
8501 Ranch Club Road
Missoula, MT, 59808
(406) 532-1000
http://www.ranchclub.com/

Revised: 11/16/2016 - Article Viewed 18,866 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.