Getting to know new PGA Tour Fall Series hotshot CordeValle Golf Club and Resort

CordeValle Golf Club in California certainly shined in its debut on the big stage.

Opened in 1999, the course and resort hosted its first PGA Tour event after the Frys.com Open moved from Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale up to NoCal for 2010. I caught the last hour of the replay on Golf Channel last night, which served up Rocco Mediate’s hole-out on 17, just minutes after his playing partner Alex Prugh’s nearly holed out with a driver from the tee.

With some great vistas and high drama, CordeValle delivered a a phenomenal tournament for the PGA Tour’s Fall Series. It culminated brilliantly, with fan favorite Mediate outlasting Ricky Fowler and some other desperate pros trying to earn their card and major invitations for 2010 to earn a two-year exemption on Tour.

This was a big week for CordeValle, and a coming-out party so to speak. The resort’s place among California’s most talked-about golf properties sits a step below the state’s highest profile properties, given its location isn’t in Monterey, Palm Springs or around Lake Tahoe.

The Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed course is the centerpiece of a Rosewood-operated resort located just south of San Jose in San Martin. It’s also 22 miles east as the crow flies of Pasatiempo Golf Club in Santa Cruz and about an hour’s drive from Pebble Beach. The course ranks as California’s 7th best golf course in Golfweek’s ranking and 60th in Golf Digest’s Top 100 You Can Play list. According to Wikipedia, CordeValle’s permit requires 60% of play at the course to be public and the course is home to a junior golf program. Nancy Pelosi also reportedly has $1 million invested in the club.

Its market was probably more regional and corporate than national leading up to the Frys.com Open given its location south of San Jose, but that may very well change now after highlights of this finish are going to be shown for a long time.

To play semi-private CordeValle, you must be a guest of a member or the resort. Currently, the resort’s website is promoting a one-night, two-round golf package and breakfast for $495. Other packages include both golf and spa treatments.

I’ve you’ve had the chance to play CordeValle, click here to leave us your comments or click here for William K. Wolfrum’s CordeValle Resort review from 2006.