The Reserve at Spanos Park

Beat the heat, avoid the wind ... and get a steal of a deal.

The Reserve at Spanos Park offers a beautiful links-style layout that will challenge any level of golfer, and an early-bird price that's hard to pass up.

The 5-year-old track, located on the north side of Stockton just off Interstate 5, caters to early risers with a $39 rate (with cart) before 8 a.m. during the week.

Other deals are available, but even without a special rate this course is a must play.

The track is located in a booming section of Stockton, but don't be alarmed when you pull off I-5. Almost all the growth is on the south side of Eight Mile Road.

The course itself is free of houses, but full of challenges. There are few hills, but water comes into play on 11 holes, and there are 65 bunkers and wicked rough.

Age has improved this course, since greens that were once rock-hard are now more receptive to approaches. The putting surfaces remain fast but very consistent.

The start is solid, with a short par-4 to whet your appetite. Avoid the fairway bunkers, a common theme, and make birdie here.

You need a good score on the first hole, because the second is the toughest on the track, a long par-5 with bunkers left off the tee and water left at the green. The bunkers and water can be avoided, but the rough on the right side isn't a much better place to be.

On No. 2 and throughout, an accurate driver is more important than a long one on this course. The white-tee yardage is a mere 6,070 with a 69.4 rating, but the slope is a solid 126.

There are four sets of tees, so even huge hitters can be challenged.

No. 3 is another tough hole, a long par-4 with water right off the tee and into the prevailing wind.

Your test isn't over once you get to the greens. No. 4 is a short par-3 that looks tame enough, but the green features a huge mound in the middle and is fronted by a bunker. Most of the greens are large, but the traditional red, white and blue flags ease some confusion on club selection.

There is a huge waste bunker off the tee on No. 5, one of four such long stretches of sand on the course. The longest such small desert is at No. 12, a short par-4 that features a long carry over sand off the tee.

Big water hazards split Nos. 9 and 18, 11 and 17, and 13 and 14.

The finishing holes on the two nines are arguably the best on the track, with water down the entire left side of No. 9 and all the way on the right on 18.

Spanos Park has a huge upside. The conditions are great, and despite the flat terrain, there is enough mounding to keep the layout from being boring. And the great variety of doglegs left and right, with hazards left and right, makes this a genuine test.

Some trees have grown in bordering fairways, but they provide decent targets off some tees and not too much trouble. The big trouble comes from the rough, bunkers and water.

You won't find barber poles or 200-, 150- and 100-yard plates (too much of an eyesore), but don't fret, because sprinkler-head yardage abounds. You may have to do a little pacing if you get too far off track, but take the extra time.

There also are yardage books for $3, but they sell like hotcakes and may not be in stock.

Price is another solid feature. The $51 prime-time weekday price is a little steep, but the $66 weekend price includes range balls, and the early-morning and twilight discounts are solid.

One more great deal worth mentioning ... seniors (60 and older) can play on Tuesdays for $30, with a cart.

The range is all grass, part of Spanos Park's Nike learning center.

The downsides are few. There are two on-course outhouses, but no permanent restrooms. Fortunately, routing takes you by the clubhouse after the front nine.

The biggest challenge is the wind that almost always builds as the day goes on. And in the summer, when it isn't blowing, it gets plenty hot.

All the more reason to play early.

Directions - Take Highway 12 east. Take Interstate 5 south to Stockton. Take the Eight Mile Road exit west. The course is on the right.