Once again a great outing organized by JGK- finding a terrific course for us to enjoy coordinated with first-rate hospitality. From the moment we pulled in, the support and consideration the Black Gold staff showed was unrivaled.
I agree with all previous reviewers. Best to bring your ‘A’ game to this course- esp on the greens- few if any of the holes were cut on a flat spot- a lot of movement around the hole+ miss on the wrong side [downhill] and you’re facing a longer putt coming back up. For me, the layout may have been the best aspect: every hole presented a different challenge and many provided genuine risk/reward shots from the tee box. I personally enjoy the test of an undulating course- Black Gold uses the environment creatively- but beware- as mentioned the course is cut into a hillside facing west. When a strong on shore flow raises up, a number of holes play much harder.
BTW- check out BG’s website: it features a hole by hole ‘helicopter tour’ of the course- and the carts have a GPS system that offers green slope and direction around the pin [being more of a hardcopy type of person, I will purchase a yardage book next time].
It was a long haul from the VC to get down there- however this course is worth it. Thank you again to JGK, staff, and Black Gold for hosting this event.

Out in the windstorm [4-club straight into it] Friday STL. The rains have been very kind to Sterling- now is the time to play there. Fairways are the best they’ve been in a long time. The usual ‘Astroturf’ is more fluffy than ever before. Greens were hard enough [wind blown] to break a plastic divot tool…but rolled true. Speed was hard to figure- felt inconsistent from green to green. The STL rate/walking remains a steal- $23 and was able to finish in 3hrs- the course was wide open. Only wish the course was better marked- still the sprinkler heads are barren…
Final note- if you play in the wind as Sterling, it seemed to influence ball flight much more than what I’ve experienced before [and I’ve played in some desert whoppers]. I assume the wind ‘funnels’ through the streets causing this+ the course is set near foothills. Also, the houses along many of the holes will block the wind- watch what is going at the landing point. By the 8th hole I realized this was for real and ended up having fun playing along with the wind.

Out Dec 31st early. Finished before the wind started to blow and at RRidge, glad for that. Ridge regulars will find the early winter conditions much better than last year- fairways not nearly as dry+ greens holding. I still enjoy the new layout, beware the new hole fairways are the poorest on the course- punched, and completely dormant. Unlike the Lakes, they will not yield a fluffy lie under these circumstances. Also, beginning to appreciate the green slope up there- pin placement[s] in ‘bowl’ spot[s] makes for an interesting approach shot.
It’s not realistic to compare courses like this to what we see on the PGA tour. I look for consistent conditions- and the Ridge does deliver that. The areas on the course that are good [greens, most sand, most tee boxes] are consistent in that condition. The areas on the course that are not so good [certain fairways in certain spots, few tee boxes/sand] remain. Only a good rainy season can truly elevate the entire course- the conditions are not suffering because the staff is not working or paying attention to detail. I am looking forward to the new track/18 and possible re-routing of both [in order to make the clubhouse more accessible during play].

Played for the second time since end October in a very nice 2-man tourney. This is another one of those places where the beauty of the track can distract me from the actual conditions- which were not that great. Bumpy, bumpy greens, inconsistent speed [this was much different in end-October. The greens were immaculate back then]. Several bunkers with wet sand [my partner visited a few]. Fairways+ tee boxes were nice, rough fine. The facility is fantastic- a real dreamland and so is the track. I’m not certain the value is there- at least based on course conditions. Regardless, the layout is a lot of fun and will confront your course management skills- few holes can be simply overpowered.

At times I’ll wonder at the differences in perception. In a small way, rating a golf course fair/good/great/immaculate falls into that category. Oak Quarry is an exception. No question about this one- it is a great course.
Often when I play, I end up focusing on the places I’m hitting from- at times making it difficult to really evaluate an entire course. Sure the was some of that going on last Friday- but the consistent quality of QC is obvious.
Visually very challenging [target golf] in a unique setting. Absolutely top notch customer service. Would put it in the ‘must play’ category.

Out December 2nd with club tourney. First time played, never played before the renovation. Course is a gem. All aspects are as good as can be found outside a country club or public course charging 4x$. Heard it best described as a canyon course; the other twosome in our group had played it often before the renovation and felt SP has been toughen up. I would imagine with Ojai heat the course will deteriorate in the summertime. Right now, the course is in terrific shape. There are some great playing tips to be found on site here- my input: all golf courses offer something different but some are more special than others. Soule Park is something special and absolutely worth the effort to get there.

Lucked out and had a chance to play this nice course ‘customer golf’.
The layout overcomes anything you might want to complain about. No wind off the ocean this day but imagine if the course raised up would play 5-10 strokes tougher.
Biggest challenge are the greens- fast fast + a lot of break. Can spray it around a bit and not get hurt.
Customer service top notch and if there is a way you can get out to play this course- do it.

Once again, a hearty ‘thank you!’ to Greenskeeper.org and the planners of this event. I had a great time and met up with new golfers that made the round most enjoyable. For me, those are the key points in participating in this type of event- the opportunity to play somewhere I probably would not and interact with different golfers in a friendly, competitive, team environment.
I’d play the course again. Sure, the conditions would be better after a nice spring rain rather than end of summer/beginning autumn. This is one of those times the layout of the course, esp the back 9, can override conditions. If you’re an out-of-towner like me: interesting layout/track [ups/downs, doglegs, water]- every hole seemed well thought out and offered something different. Tricky greens, also felt good shots were rewarded. The value for the course is there; cart inconvenience, etc are something I can tolerate and are potential story makers anyhow + the clubhouse was very responsive when ours went kaput.
If you’re tired of your local course/muni, check out Yucaipa- you will be pleased.
Oregonian and Bernie14- thank you for a great time- hope to see you at the next one/Rico

Out 8am October 7th. Second time played since the renovation and not nearly as entertaining as back in July. Wind blew 10-20mph most of the day and hoped that would make the round an enjoyable challenge.
- would stay away from Olivas until the overseed/heavy sanding around the greens settles in. The heavy sanding around the greens acted like a sand trap. Difficult to play a links type course when bump and runs stop on the fringe and then play like a bunker. If we make it out there again soon [unlikely] I will check those conditions.
- The fairways and greens are still aerating.
- My playing partner commented on #14- hey didn’t we already play this hole? No. Really looks like the last par 5 on the front side…. – this echoes a comment on a previous post – some of the holes really did begin to look sort of similar after only the second time out there…
- We finished in just over 4 ½ hours but waited on almost every shot on the back side. Same as previous posts- many marshals running around, but no real action. The group in front of us was not keeping up and we were on their tails most of the day…literally getting to the tee boxes on them…
Again would strongly suggest checking the fringe conditions before booking a tee time. Not certain how often the GKer will need to do this sort of maintenance but it will impact how the course plays a lot. Also, the marshals are very friendly but will not push along pace of play.

Out early September 30th. The new layout is really good and shows it is possible to create a completely new feel to a course with only 4 new holes:
1] pace of play is faster because you will not get to the clubhouse until #14. Blowing past ‘#9’ and starting the back side without that disruption helps maintain a good rhythm.
2] now there are 3 distinct feels to the course: old course/new course 4 holes/#’s 15-18 around the water. The new holes use the same fairways and greens as Victoria Lakes. Up on the highest point of the city, it has a very nice feel to it- surprising what a bit of elevation will do. The layout shape of the holes are very fun.
3] ending on the old #14 is a great idea. Sure, you could take a big number on the ‘final’ hole now that is built for that possibility but that can happen anytime. Before, trudging under Vineyard Blvd, past my car in the parking lot, then back up the old 15/16/17 down 18 always felt a bit strange. It feels much better to finish up on the island and head straight to the parking lot.
Curious how these little changes can make such a big difference in the enjoyment of the game.
As far as conditions – seems golf courses are becoming analogous to restaurants in my book – what I’m looking for is consistency. River Ridge conditions are the most consistent of any course I play. Currently the greens are healing and are bumpy but that will improve by this weekend.
Previously, I played RR often because of proximity and value – with the new layout, the course is very enjoyable and I’ll likely maintain my club membership through 2008 [now] as a result.

Out Aug 17th/STL. I really enjoy this track a lot; undulating, challenging lies, pins were well balanced between fair, testing, and impossible. However, full price rate would seem a bit unreasonable for current conditions. Many bare spots in the fairways – even for end of summer [relative to other courses in the area]. Tee boxes fairly well battered, and many – esp the par 3’s – difficult to find a flat spot – strange wavy feel to them. Odd enough, the rough was in good shape and reasonable to hit out of and the sand is really good.
What the GK’r cannot control is ball marks and raking traps. Hard to get my mind around why people who pay top dollar for a course such as this refuse to do this type of maintenance. The greens were simply hammered – painfully so. I was in at least 4 traps and raked up after minimum of 2 other people each time – there are usually 3 rakes surrounding the traps at Sterling. Anyway, between now and the time change, will try to get out again and enjoy this course.

Out early Aug 9th; been over a year since played. Conditions virtually the same as I remembered. Understand why people enjoy this course and we had fun navigating our way through as well. Greens were extremely receptive, fairways were in very good shape [no GUR, good lies on almost every spot].
For the dew sweepers benefit, here are a few suggestions:
- would be nice to have the greens mowed before we got there [we were the 4th group out]. Probably 50% were untouched.
- a bit more maintanence on the tee boxes would be good, esp with so many short par 4's + par 3's. Shaggy tee boxes not so nice.
- if we book a tee time, book it. I made the time 6 days previous. The proshop had nothing for us when we showed up. It being so early made it OK for us to get out, but there was a point for requesting the time we did.

A reasonable alternative to Mtn View - but in the end I'd take the peace and quiet in Santa Paula [although I've never gone as low over there as I did today at WL].