black jack's crossing

This course is not easy to get to but totally worth it once you are there. Very good design, incredible views just a cool experience I highly recommend for any golfer. This is a top 5 public course in Texas.

I would like to return to this course when the bermuda fairways, greens and rough is green (greens up by early March, sometimes sooner) and not dormant. In late January, the browns of the grass are not that distinguishable from the surrounding desert and mountains. However, the condition of the course was still very good and the greens were running fast and pure. And the golf holes that go up into the foothills are, indeed, spectacular.

While staying at the Maverick RV Park with a Casita Rally group we were offered the opportunity to rent carts for a tour of the golf course. The scenery was fabulous. The course layout is amazing. Unfortunately I didn't bring clubs - would love to return and play a round. This one should be on every player's list of "Gotta Do".

My wife and I travel to the Big Bend area twice a year. Each time we play this course it gets better and we start talking about playing it again while we're still playing it. Spectacular and different views from every hole. Be careful getting up to #14 tee box, your ears will pop! Top 5 course in America hands down. Noone will play this course and not love it.

We visited during spring break. The service and food were excellent. The resort is off the beaten path and secluded but worth the extra effort to get there. Access to Big Bend is a real asset.

Mr. Pershing would be proud of what Lanny Watkins has done here! Black Jack is one of the most senic courses I have ever played. Not only is it beautiful but the condition of the course is outstanding with lots of challenges. It is a must before you leave this planet.

Lajitas Resort's Black Jack's Crossing is an upscale bar with snacks and big city prices. It's worth it. Weekends feature local musicians and vocalists, all good to great. Locals, adventurers, tourists hang out after dinner at the restaurant next door. Super hotel accomodations.

I'm only able to review the back 9 since we picked a weekend to travel to Lajitas when the greens were being reseeded thus preventing me from being able to play the front 9 holes that snake their way through the mountains. Instead I got to play the 9 nestled along the banks of the Rio Grande and it was a fantastic experience. First off , bring bug spray - I know it might seem obvious, but I forgot which made my first trip round the 9 holes almost unbearable until I made the turn, grabbed the OFF from my car and dosed myself from head to foot - the next 9 holes were played mozzy free. From what I gather, the back 9 was washed away during the floods of 2007, so the holes were rebuilt on higher ground further away from the river, but still within range of a bad slice/hook. The par 3 13th takes you up into the mountains for an elevated tee shot that is only surpassed by the view of Lajitas, the mountains, the river and Mexcio on the 14th. Lush fairways and beautifully manicured greens provided the perfect golf experience. I can not recommend a round of golf at this course highly enough, we'll be back in Lajitas in November and I can't wait to play the entire course. Fantastic staff, wonderful practise facility..and a beautifully maintained course with breathtaking views...golfing perfection.

I could not believe the views on this course situated in the hills at Lajitas. The fairways, greens and tee boxes were lush and well maintained. The staff were most helpful providing a cart with an ice chest filled with bottled water, towel and tees. Driving range balls were included with green fees. I have played a lot of great golf courses, but this has to be the highlight of them all. What a great golfing experience. Even the clubhouse had a great long horn museum. I'll be back for sure.

We had such a great weekend. Golf course was in great shape, especially considering a recent rise in the Rio Grande! Staff was great friendly and took great care of us. We will definitely go again!

(TA.com - you do not list this as a destination/attraction in Big Bend National Park. It is part of the Lajitas resort found at http://www.lajitas.com/Golf.html if you want to start a new entry)The Ambush at Lajitas is a gold-mine resort golf course right on the Rio Grande River. It is a championship golf course with 5 sets of tees, playing 7200 yards from the back tees (El Jefe) and 6255 from the middle tees (Caballero). One little crinkle is that you have to be a member or a guest of the Lajitas resort in order to play. We actually stayed in the Lajitas RV park, not in the resort proper, but were still allowed to play.It was steep - $135 for green fees, cart and ... all you can drink. That's bottled water, soda, Gatorade, and beer! And with beers going for almost $5 a piece, it was worth it for us having 3 or 4 each. The area has been getting above-average rainfall lately (the annual rainfall for the central Chihuahua Desert region is about 8 inches per year - which they had already surpassed in mid-July), so the course was in phenomenal shape. We teed off close to 9am and the greens were cushiony-soft. Fairways were in excellent shape as well.There is a novelty hole which has to be one of the most unique in the United States. The tee box at #11 actually has two different holes. There is Hole 11, which is a par-4 playing 399 yards from the middle tees, 436 from the back (#8 handicap hole). HOWEVER ... there is also Hole 11A, an "Optional Par 1". The tee box is spitting distance from the bank of the Rio Grande River. On the other side of the river in Mexico, 99 yards away, is a green that funnels down to a hole. The property is owned by a private rancher who maintains the hole himself. Basically, it's a one-shot hole-in-one opportunity. We both grabbed a ball we wouldn't mind not seeing again, took a swing and one of us landed on the green - still 20 yards from the pin. But, it was the conversation piece of the whole weekend. Very unique.Another little par-3, hole #13, has tee boxes set up on a mountain side. It was a little scary riding up the cart path on such a steep slope, but it was great once we got up there. We actually played the 2nd-longest tee (The Gambler tees) to get a little further up. Elevation drop of at least 75 feet at only 145 yards distance.Only gripe was that they didn't have anything with hole descriptions or layout. There's nothing printed on the scorecard and no yardage books. Nothing even on the tee markers. So, we went into each hole completely blind of how to play it. Not that we were going to play too far below our 15-20 handicaps, but we need all the help we can get. When we started to complain, we just reminded ourselves that the beers were already paid for and included in our deal. Clubhouse is currently just a trailer, but we heard several people at the resort talking about the new clubhouse that is about to be constructed.There are very few golf options in this remote corner of the state, and it is a high-quality desert track. A true destination-must for an avid golfer in Texas.