Headed back out to Eagle Springs for a chilly but fun morning round of golf. Winter conditions have set in but the track is still in decent shape. Greens were smooth, but much slower. My guess is it's a combination of the recent rains and the fact that the course closes on Tuesday for maintenance so the greens probably were due for full mow and roll.

Fairway grass has started to go dormant. A lot of brown mixed in with the occasional green grass. Still, most of the fairway was lush and enjoyable to hit from. There were a number of thin and wet areas throughout the course.

The one sand trap I was in was decent, and no issues with the tee boxes. Cart gal was out making rounds on the cold day with few players so that was nice. Customer service is great. Everyone is very friendly.

Definitely a recommended track if in the area. It's a bit more expensive than some of the other courses in the valley but well worth it.

The last couple times out I haven't been able to complete the full course due to various reasons. I always enjoy the layout here at Laguna Seca. With all the elevations changes its a blast to play.

Right now the Greens are in the best condition I've ever seen them. Extremely smooth and void of pitch marks. They're rolling at a medium-slow speed which is average for this track. The greens at Laguna Seca are sneaky. They don't look very intimidating but can bite you in a hurry if you're not careful.

Fairways were average. Decent coverage throughout but certainly a notch or two below the last few (high end) courses I played. Tee boxes were in nice shape as well. I was only on one sand trap and it was ok. I was right at the bottom flat spot of the bunker so it was a bit damp and hardback from all the recent rain. Still, it was it was playable.

As for POP I'll post a separate thread on that topic. Once I broke free of the people I was paired with, I zipped around the back 9 in an hour and some change.

Overall, Laguna Seca is an absolute blast of a track. Conditions are as good as ever right now, but still, it's on par with muni courses. Full rack rates are steep but the online rates aren't too bad.

WOW what a fantastic course! My buddy hurt his back and had to skip out so hit up MPisarski01 who was more than happy to join me for an awesome round.


Conditions were a solid 9 all around. This place is absolutely awesome! Kevbig summed up the initial experience perfectly in That you go through a private gate, get your car parked by the valet who also takes care of your clubs. The entrance is the best bar none. There's a waterfall that comes off the mountain and down into, through then under the clubhouse.

After checking in, I headed to the locker room where I had a locker with my own name plate on it. It's a good thing I was decked out in my Ryder Cup outfit to look the part. Lol. Locker room has full amenities ( TV's, shower, razors, waters, etc). Our caddie was decent. He had his hands full keeping track of 3 of us and did a decent job. When there's three players it's hard for him to take care of everyone's clubs so the single player got more of that service than we did.

Course is so fun you forget how challenging it actually is. Uphill tee shots are into the wind but downhill tee shots are with the wind and oh so FUN!

Greens were nice and fast with minimal undulations.

Definitely a top notch facility well worth playing!

After taking a rest day yesterday I was itching to get out and play today. Mpisarski01 coordinated with Kevbig to get us an early tee time at Reflection Bay. I showed up in my best Tiger Woods impersonation outfit but Kevbig came prepared and was rocking some cool golf themed socks that were a tribute to Jack Nicklaus who I believed designed the course. Well played Kevin!

The course layout is great with a number of the holes being right on the water of Lake Las Vegas. The course also has a number of elevation changes throughout the journey to add to the fun factor.

If I remember right only the 1st and 10th holes parallel each other. All others are either separated by rock inlets or the natural terrain of the hillside. Thankfully Kevbig was with us to give us the inside knowledge of the course as there are a lot of doglegs and strategic layup shots mixed in with the grip it and rip it holes.

To me the greens were rolling a tad bit on the slow side, but this might of just been because the last two courses I played on had fast and lightning fast greens. Greens at Reflection Bay rolled smooth and easily held well struck approach shots. There were a number of pitch marks in the greens but most had been repaired properly so they didn't effect putts.

Tee boxes, fairways, and sand traps were all in nice shape (above average). Customer service was excellent with the cart gal coming around several times throughout the round.

Pro shop has a nice selection of soft goods. There is a bar/restaurant that overlooks the 18th hole and the lake.

Even though I had 8 penalty strokes on the front 9 alone (0 on the back) the course was a blast to play.

Finally got to play Southern Highlands after trying to coordinate the trip for almost two years now. Course was well worth the wait. Layout and visual aesthetics are just absolutely awesome. Numerous elevation changes coupled with several water features and forced carries make the course a blast to play. The water features include some huge waterfalls along with forced carries over ponds and even a creek that splits the 18th fairway into two. A few of the holes have views of the strip as well.

Customer service is top notch from the moment you pull up and the valet takes care of your car and clubs to the finish green when the forecaddie takes care of your cart and clubs.

Our caddie, Brad was phenomenal. His knowledge of the course was not only excellent but he impressed us the most with his hustle running from one player to the other to make sure we were both attended to properly.

Course was in great shape as expected. Tee boxes and sand traps were perfect 10's. Fairway and rough were a notch below rated in the 8.5-9 range. Greens were a solid 8. They rolled smooth at a medium fast pace. Greens were fun with modest undulations that were challenging but manageable.

Course is a definite must play if you get the chance.

Played Tehama on a picture perfect day (sans some smoke in the air). In fact the weather was so nice I was upset that after the third swing on the range I had to ditch my Ryder cup sweater. I've been waiting two months to wear it! we did a little holiday shopping in the pro shop (couldn't pass up $25 "The Clint" polos), then headed off to the range. Even the range at Tehama has perfect hitting surface and beautiful views of the Monterey peninsula and bay down below.

Maintenance workers were in the process of doing a lot of work on the fairways. Many had been verticut and top dressed and others had a light dusting of sand throughout. Obviously in order to keep conditions over the top as they usually are at Tehama, this is needed from time to time, so it was not big deal. Even with the fairways being attended to, I never had a bad lie. The surface was still lush and a pleasure to hit from. Fairways are narrow at Tehama and if you're lucky enough to escape the trees, you're usually off a cliff somewhere.

Greens were excellent and super fast. Even uphill putts were lightning fast. Because the entire course sits on top of a mountain ridge, the greens were tough to read. There's no prominent one direction putts will gravitate towards such as towards the ocean, the valley etc.

Tee boxes were level and lush. I was in numerous sand traps throughout the day and all but one (downhill lie) were fantastic.

The clubhouse is phenomenal. see previous review for details on the locker room and parking garage. Customer service is excellent. My game was off but nothing a post round beer with Mr. Eastwood didn't take care of! And to think I almost went back down to the range to work on my game after the round instead of going to the clubhouse with the others. At least that part of the course management I got right !

Tehama is as tough as Dirty Harry!

What is usually a favorite valley course, I was dissapointed in the conditions yesterday. Greens remain a strong point in that they were smooth and rolling at a medium-fast pace. Greens held approach shots well and had few pitch marks. Greens were ratted at a 7.5-8. The fairways however were a huge dissapointment. 50/50 green/brown with numerous thin and bare spots throughout.

Tee boxes ranged from just ok to horrendous. All were level (the entire course is flat) but all had thin spots and severe divot damage. Numerous bare dirt areas in the skirt areas surrounding the greens.

Sand traps were actually fairly nice. I was surprised at how nice the sand traps were actually. POP was a bit on the slow side but to be expected as this is their anniversary week and are holding $20 w/ cart specials.

I still love the layout and challange of this track with the dozen water features that come into play including the island 18th green. However conditions are below average right now.

Fig Garden is closing down at the end of the year. I've never been a fan of this course but we decided to play it one last time before it shuts down. The track is pretty boring sans about 2 holes. The 18th which used to be a short par 5 is now a long Par 4 with water on the entire left side and part of the front of the green. That's about as fun/interesting as it gets as far as layout. The rest of the track is completely flat with no water hazards. Almost all of the holes are dead straight so there's not much excitement or imagination out on the course.

The challenge of the track comes from the super narrow fairways which are heavily lined with trees. Even being on the edge of the fairway will often result in a blocked approach shot from overhanging branches. The rough outside of the fairway is almost identical to the lie from the fairway so no real punishment there and there's no such thing as a lost ball (except for the lake on 18).

Condition wise, it's on par with your average muni course. Greens were in decent shape with the fairways being ok (some thin/brown areas but overall decent lies). Sand traps were actually nice.

Again, I've never been a fan of the layout at Fig Garden but I still hate to see a course shutting down. From what I heard, they are keeping the driving range and practice green open for awhile.

First off I have to get this out of my system. They were having some type of kids tournament (ages 5-10) at Laguna Seca so every kid and their parent was out on the course practicing. Often taking 2-4 shots from each spot and dropping balls around the green to pitch and putt from different angles. I'm all for big tournaments and growing the game with the kids. Just close the course to the rest of us. Let them have it to themselves all day. charge the organization an extra day of facility rental and I'll be happy to go play somewhere else for the afternoon.

What turned out painfully slow but fun to watch some of the little kids who were impressively good, turned out to be downright miserable. Even being at one of my favorite (low key) venues couldn't stop me from wanting

Condition wise, the greens were smooth, but slow. All Fairways had a few thin areas throughout but otherwise were lush. Tee boxes were in good shape as were the Sand traps.

No Beverage cart out which was a shame because I would have emptied it!! And I rarely drink.

Laguna Seca is a fun track... Just not this weekend.

Tee'd off at 7:45 am on a brisk morning. Waked the course to keep warm as its that time of year again. Course is in real nice shape. Greens were excellent easily an 8.5. They rolled very smooth with hardly a pitch mark. Greens were soft and receptive to approach shots. The greens were rolling a tad slow (medium-slow speed), but other than that they were excellent.

Skirt area around the greens were also in excellent conditions. Fairways offered a good hitting surface throughout. There were a few cosmetic brown spots but still easy to play from. Tee boxes for the most part were level and very lush.

Sand traps were also great. Being mostly flat the course is easily walkable with most transfers being super short. There are a couple transfers that have young across the street but nothing too major. Water comes into play on 6 holes to make the track interesting and not just a flat boring back and forth trot.

For those who don't like houses on a golf course, there's Hunter Ranch up the road a couple miles. If you don't mind some houses then Paso Robles GC offers conditions just as good as Hunter but at $25 cheaper.

Conditions remain steady at Ridge Creek. Fairways are starting to show some weathering from the summer heat in that they are 50/50 green/brown. However, even the brown areas still offer a great platform to hit from. Greens were rolling medium/fast with a bit more pitch marks than the last time but not nearly as many as from a few months ago.

Tee boxes are a solid 8, nice level and lush with very few divots. Rough is always nasty at Ridge Creek. Anything outside the first cut is game over. Same goes for the long grass around the lips of the bunkers. I lost two balls in bunkers today.

POP was ok. Given it was a weekend, I suppose it wasn't too bad. Ridge Creek is all about keeping it in the fairway and out of the bunkers. Do that and you can set a PR. Start going wide even to the point of hitting the fairway and rolling into rough and your score balloons like crazy.

Customer service is great and I always enjoy when I have the time to eat at the restaurant afterwards.

My previous review back in June covers the layout fairly well so I'll go straight to the course conditions. Greens were fantastic. They rolled smooth and true at a fast pace. Hardly a pitch mark to be found on any green. Most greens have modest slope with predictable breaks. Having said that, there were some tough pin locations today that made putting a challenge.

Fairways were green and lush for the most part. A few had some thin brown areas but nothing too bad. bunkers were nice. They offered a thick heavy sand but definitely predictable and playable.

Tee boxes were level and fairly lush. A few divots here and there (mainly on the par 3's) but nothing major.

First cut of rough was nice. Mainly lush but a bit thin in places. After the first cut, it's hardpan dirt.

As I've mentioned before, Hunter Ranch offers a little of everything; elevation changes, water hazards, tight tree lined fairways, grip it and rip it holes, forced carries and most importantly solid conditions.

Also, the bathrooms throughout the course are real bathrooms in good clean condition.