Manito Golf and Country Club
Designed by A. V. Macan
History
Manito Golf and Country Club traces its lineage back to 1922, when Spokane’s growing appetite for private club life found its answer on the South Hill. The club itself predates that year, having organized earlier and played on other grounds, but it was the 1922 opening of the Hatch Road property that gave Manito its permanent home and its enduring identity. The membership sought a club that could match the ambitions of a city coming into its own, and they turned to a designer already well known throughout the Pacific Northwest.
That designer was A. V. Macan, the Irish-born architect who had settled in Victoria, British Columbia, and built a reputation across Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia for laying courses over demanding terrain without disguising the land’s natural character. Macan came to golf architecture by way of a law career and a war injury that cost him a leg, yet he walked and shaped more courses in the region than nearly any of his contemporaries. At Manito, he was given a site that rewarded a patient hand, and his routing there became one of the defining examples of his Northwest work.
In the decades since, Manito has remained in continuous private operation, hosting regional amateur and state championship events over the years as one of Spokane’s established clubs. The course has seen the incremental maintenance and updates typical of a century-old private layout, but its identity has stayed anchored to Macan’s original routing rather than any wholesale redesign.
Playing Notes
Manito sits on rolling South Hill terrain, so expect uneven stances and a fair number of blind approaches where the fairway crests or dips away from you. Tree lines pinch several holes tight enough that off-line tee shots find trouble fast, putting a premium on keeping the ball in play rather than swinging for extra yardage. The greens carry noticeable slope and speed that punishes lag putts hit without reading the grain, so give yourself extra time on the practice green before you start. Walking the course is manageable but the elevation changes will test your legs by the back nine, particularly if Spokane's summer heat is up — bring water and sun protection. Club selection matters more here than raw power; you'll want a full range in the bag to handle uphill and downhill approaches that play differently than the yardage suggests.