A Web site screen shot shows some of the terrain at Wolf Creek golf course in Mesquite, rated No. 31 on Golf Digest's list of the 50 toughest courses. The full list will be in the magazine's March issue.

A town that hopes to turn itself into a golf destination might not want to have many of its courses regarded as among the toughest in the country.

But as Ron Whitten pointed out, difficulty -- like beauty -- is in the eye of the beholder.

Whitten, Golf Digest's senior editor for architecture, and the rest of the magazine's editors chose their 50 toughest courses in the March issue and included Mesquite's Wolf Creek on the list, at No. 31. It is the only Nevada course on the list.

Whitten said the task was supposed to be a fun discussion among golf-loving editors and not a definitive list, but he conceded there are some six-hour rounds out there.

Whitten hasn't played Wolf Creek but knows of the course. He said part of its reputation for difficulty is because of the wind.

"It's like your playing over a moonscape up there, and if it's windy, it's going to seem otherworldly," he said.

Wolf Creek isn't even 7,000 yards -- its back tees check in at 6,994 -- but Whitten said length is overrated in determining course difficulty.

He said most players play the wrong set of tees for their handicap and that few golfers are capable of playing a course well from 7,000 yards.

The conditions that most affect the difficulty of a course, he said, are small greens, deep fairway bunkering and contoured fairways.

"Most new courses now are built with fairways that are 80 yards wide that nobody could miss," he said.

But by putting slope onto the fairways and not always giving a flat lie -- exactly what a player encounters frequently at Wolf Creek -- the difficulty increases immensely. If the fairways are surrounded by deep bunkers, it can take a long time to reach the green.

And if the greens are closer to 4,000 square feet instead of 7,000, hitting them in regulation will frustrate even the best players in the world.

"You look at the (PGA) Tour players, and when they get to the (U.S.) Open and see greens around 3,500 square feet, they're missing them left and right," Whitten said.

Pine Valley, which annually ranks as the best course in the country, rated No. 9 on Golf Digest's top 50 toughest list. Its top five is the Ocean course at the Kiawah Island Resort in South Carolina; The International in Bolton, Mass.; Ko'Oalau Golf Club in Hawaii; the Stadium course at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif.; and Oakmont Country Club in suburban Pittsburgh.

• BOWERS HONORED -- U.S. Kids Golf, which manufactures golf equipment for children, selected Pam Bowers of Desert Willow Golf Club in Henderson as one of the country's top 50 instructors for children.

The company chose professionals who focus their instruction on developing junior golfers.

• GOOD START -- Las Vegas entertainer Danny Gans played in the 3M Celebrity Challenge at Pebble Beach Golf Club in Pebble Beach, Calif., Wednesday and stole the show with a booming 300-yard drive on the opening hole.

It was the longest shot hit by a celebrity during the event, which raised money for various charities. Gans and teammate George Lopez finished second by a shot to Kevin Costner and Carson Daly.

Kevin Iole's golf notes are published Thursday. He can be reached at 396-4428 or kiole@reviewjournal.com.