Silvies Hankins Course

[Portions of this post are repeated in the other courses making up the Silvies Valley Ranch complex: Craddock, Chief Egan, and McVeigh’s]

General Course Description

The Hankins Course is the counter-clockwise 18-hole public course that is part of the reversible courses at the Silvies Valley Ranch. Located in the high-desert plateau between John Day and Burns in Eastern Oregon, these beautiful and very-well-maintained courses rove around in the desert and in the pine-covered hills. The Hankins Course is played everyother day (exchanging with Craddock), where the fairway for the 18th hole at Hankins serves as the fairway for the 1st hole of Craddock (there are 36 holes, 27 greens, and 16 fairways for the two courses). The reverible nature of the courses provide for wide, undulating fescue fairways that are uniform, in excellent shape, and roll out well. The good-sized, undulating fescue greens are also in excellent shape, are difficult to hold, but are true and roll nicely. The theme of the Ranch is to not only provide you with a challenging golf experience, but to also let you enjoy nature and to have fun (note the black tees are the forward tees). There are no buildings to interrupt your views of the course and the scenic high desert mountains. The 18th hole, a downhill, downwind,  very open par 5, invites you to hit your Lifetime Longest Drive (with yardage markers on the side of the fairway). Forward tees provide shorter distances and better angles. The Hankins Course is rolling and is at a high altitude — take a cart.

Course History

Opened in 2017, Hankins was the first course completed at Silvies and is named for a local family who homesteaded on the property. The area became a homesteaded ranch in 1883 and was basically a ranch after that except for a period in the 1960s when Harry Pon made the ranches into a safari park, with buffalo, zebra, and yaks.  The ranches were purchased by Dr. Scott Campbell, a fourth generation Oregonian, who grew up in Burns and was the owner and CEO of Banfield Pet Hospitals.  Construction started in 2010.  In 2018, Golf Digest named both Craddock and Hankins in the top four new golf courses in the United States (the first time that any property has had two courses in the top five at the same time). In 2025, Golf Digest named the course the 14th Best Course in Oregon.

Why It Is There

Dr. Campbell wanted to restore jobs to an area that has seen many companies leave. So he built a resort with some golf courses, among other distractions.

I Wish I Would Have Known Before I Played

Because of the reversible nature of the courses, there is no yardage information on the fairways (you would have to cram twice as much information on a sprinkler).  Take a range finder (you can rent them at the pro shop). There are “Goat Tees” behind the back (or white) tees that may or may not be “official.” If you have the time, find them (and maybe play a second drive). The Goat Tee on the short, uphill, par-4 11th hole is particularly useful because it is a blind shot from the lower tees and the Goat Tee gives you a good view of the entire hole (and a scenic vista of the mountains beyond). Also, if you are playing the Craddock course the following day, look backward off and on to see how those holes run.

Did You Know

As you approach the 9th green there is a marsh, just off to the left. The old timbers piled next to the marsh is the old McVeigh home. The marsh is an area reclaimed by the Oregon Natural Desert Association. And the par-3 7th hole is the highest hole in Oregon (see Articles and Interviews for more).

Good For Them

There is a deep respect for nature at Silvies. The reversible nature of the courses allows only a fraction of normal water use. The use of fescue provides for drought tolerance, and they allow browning of the fairways (thereby conserving water and giving the ball a better roll). Formerly rutted water courses have been dammed (or filled with rocks) to allow water to percolate more at the surface, promoting natural grasses. Partnered with Oregon Natural Desert Association to bring back wetlands. Have installed over 5000 bird boxes, to encourage birdlife and naturally reduce insects. And the pro shop, The Hideout, which also has a cafe, is off the grid, relying on solar and propane.

Why Play This Course

Standing alone, the Hankins course is a stunning course in a beautiful setting (without any manmade structures) that is very well maintained. With good practice facilities, a focus on having fun, and a warm and accommodating staff, that should be enough to bring you to this remote and scenic area of Oregon. But the unique, reversible nature of the courses (that is carried out wonderfully) increases the mandate of why you should play here, and play both courses. It is a challenging, fun, and unique experience.

General

• • Type: 18-hole public course
  • Price: $$$$
  • Phone/webpage: (541)573-5150/www.silvies.us
  • Address: 10000 Rendezvous Lane, Seneca, Oregon 97873
  • Owner: Silvies Valley Ranch, LLC
  • Designer: Dan Hixson
  • Pros: Dave Lewis (PGA)
  • Practice Facilities: Driving range on grass, pitching and sand practice area,  putting green
  • Pro Shop: A good amount of clothing
  • Food: A cafe in the pro shop (the building is called The Hideout) serves breakfast and lunch and has a full bar and a deck with a wonderful view of the course and valley below
  • Bathrooms: Improved in clubhouse and on course
  • Yardage Markers: None, study the yardage book or rent a range finder (if you don’t have one)
  • Clothing: Proper golf attire suggested (I was told you can wear denim if you wear a cowboy hat)
  • Walkable: Hilly and high – take a cart
  • Spikes: Soft only
  • Shoe Cleaning:  None
  • Rentals: All
  • Closed in winter