The Orchard Course is the second act at Lincoln Hills Golf Club. After the original Hills Course opened in 1999, the Billy Casper and Greg Nash design team added nine more holes in 2004 and the final nine in the summer of 2005, weaving the new ground into the existing property to create two complete 18-hole layouts, each with a traditional out-and-back routing.

On the course

Of the two, the Orchard is unmistakably the championship test. It stretches to 7,009 yards from the back tees and carries a 73.3 rating and 127 slope — noticeably stouter than the Hills Course next door. The character is more open, with wide fairways that invite the driver, but the defense sits at the greens: large, undulating bentgrass surfaces whose subtle breaks are notoriously difficult to read on a first visit. Length plus green complexity makes it the layout better players choose when they want their full game examined.

Who it suits

Like its sibling, the Orchard sits inside the Sun City Lincoln Hills active-adult community in Lincoln, about 30 miles northeast of Sacramento, but the club is not residents-only — public play is welcome on both courses, and tee times are open to anyone. That arrangement gives visiting golfers access to community-standard conditioning, with bentgrass greens and rye/bermuda fairways maintained for year-round play.

The practical package matches the Hills Course: green fees include a cart with GPS, and the shared facility offers a driving range, putting and chipping areas, a teaching academy with PGA instruction, club rentals, and a full clubhouse restaurant. Golfers planning a 36-hole day can play both layouts from the same parking spot — Orchard in the morning while the greens are fresh is the popular order.

Architect: Billy Casper & Greg Nash · Opened: 2005