Horseshoe Bay, Texas, is a famously target–rich environment for the golfer; the richest target there is Escondido Golf & Lake Club.
Rich in terms of the overall offering, I mean.
Escondido’s fact sheet gets to the point pretty well, and pretty quickly: it’s where “the private club experience and unprecedented level of concierge service creates a prestigious lifestyle community in the heart of the Texas Hill Country.”
The word to the right of the ampersand is key. For those who’ve got to entertain people who like water but don’t get golf, the lake part is a big deal. The “unprecedented level” applies to the Lake Club, too; merely listing the components of pool, marina, bar, restaurant and so on doesn’t do it justice. The website helps you picture it.
Everyone’s nice from the gatehouse to the locker room to the golf shop, but a visitor really feels the love if the head wrangler of the Escondido welcome wagon is in town and about to tee off, because he wants to meet you. His name is William Taylor Dykes. Nickname Spike. The former Texas Tech football coach was and remains a master recruiter; he made me feel like I was 17, and had a good time in the forty.
“Never a problem finding a game, and you never need a starting time. Everyone knows your name, and how much gin to mix with the tonic. I love it here,” the old ball coach said, or words to that effect.
In combination with picturesque Hill Country limestone outcroppings, superb maintenance, and design by the estimable Tom Fazio, Escondido golf hits the right note eighteen times. The delicious halfway house cuisine may make you take your next swing with your mouth full.
They’re foodies at Escondido, big time.
For ladies and gentlemen of taste and means who know to let faster golfers play through, Escondido wants you—a few of you. EG&LC desires a few more members to reach its self-imposed maximum of 560, a pleasingly low number for a club whose members live mostly out of town.
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