Played Spanish Bay this morning after a bit of schedule change due to heavy rain the last few days and a tournament at Spyglass today. Soooo, off to Spanish I go. used the range up at Pebble (Spanish Bay doesn't have it's own range but you can use either Pebble's or The Glass). Range was on mats and will be until after the US Open. They do offer choice of TP5's or Project (a) balls for the range.

On to Spanish Bay on a sunny and delightful morning. Wind free for the first 8-10 holes then a bit of wind on the finishing holes. Tee boxes were excellent. An easy 9+ and that includes the par 3 tees. Fairways were also in great shape ranging between 8-9. I was in two greenside bunkers and both had excellent white semi-fluffy sand. A bit damp from all the recent rain but still excellent to hit out of.

The greens..... After the first semi easy green the rest have severe undulations. They are in the process of doing a light sanding of the greens. We had the front nine clear and they rolled smooth at a medium fast pace. The back nine had already been hit with the sand but still rolled at a medium slow speed. They were in the process of dusting the front greens as we were finishing. It probably won't take more than a week or two for them to fully recover.

I walked but for May and June they are allowing carts out on the fairways for the first time. Just not this week (due to rain).

All in all the course is in great shape and worth playing. With all the great views it's easy to forget about all (4) three putts.

déjà vu - Exactly the same as my last review. Skipped my ride so wanted a course to walk. Started as a single, joined one other and course conditions are the same. A little less than what I would expect given the wet winter and spring conditions we are having. Fairways had several thin spots throughout. Greens were decent but rolling slower than normal. Tee boxes were OK, I suppose. I was in several traps throughout the day. All are just hard pan with a very very thin layer of loose dirt on top.

I normally don't mind getting out to Madera a few times a year, but I think I've hit my quota on this course for a while until conditions improve a bit.

Copper River CC is one of the new private country clubs in Fresno. I have a couple of connections here and have played it a few times now. As with most nice country clubs, customer service and pro shop/ clubhouse amenities are excellent.

The course layout is basically flat in a heart shape in that each nine is in a oval shape so that no two holes are right next to each other. There are a number of lakes on the course to add to the aesthetics of the track but most are lateral hazards with no forced carries sans one of the par 3's.

Copper River is under new management and there is some serious maintenance occurring right now. Right now only fairway bunkers are GUR with other maintenance being on the side of the fairways. The did just aerate their greens so they were still heavily sanded.

Fairways were in nice shape. Green and lush. Not quite as nice as dragonfly but close to it. The two bunkers I was in had very nice soft white fluffy sand.

Overall it's a nice track with a decent layout and solid conditions. I'll make sure to take some pictures next time to add it to review.

After a couple of days of playing courses with some great ocean views, it was back to the valley today. Outside of the Palm Springs area, Dragonfly is probably my favorite "flat" course. Yes, the track is flat but they keep things interesting with a mix of left and right dog legs, a handful of water hazards that all come into play, some "waste" areas that divide the fairways and some strategic tree placement that require specific shot shapes.

Add in solid conditions all around, and you have the making of a good course. Greens were in their usual top condition. Easily holding approach shots and rolling smooth at a medium fast pace. Compared to Sandpiper and Bodega, the greens were very modest in slope.

Whereas the fairways aren't the greenest in color they are definitely very lush and a pleasure to hit from. Tee boxes are level with only the par 3's having some divots (but plenty of nice areas to hit from). I was in two greenside bunkers and one had nice brown soft dirt and the other was excellent with great soft white sand.

Dragonfly has a few different price point tiers and I timed it perfectly opting to pay the higher price instead of waiting 10 minutes and going off with the afternoon masses. I jumped out in front of a few people getting ready to head to the first tee. I never had anyone in front of me until my second shot on the 17th!!! That was so worth the extra $10

After a couple days up north, it was time to make the trek down south for one last great day of golf with some fellow GK'ers. I've been dying to get back to Sandpiper so there was no twisting my arm to join the others when asked if I wanted to join. I'm not sure how the folks managed to get a golf course right on the ocean without any hotels or houses surrounding it but it's just wonderful. You get out and there is nothing but a great golf course and the pacific ocean. Oh and a Hawk that buzzed us a couple of times! very peaceful and easy to just get lost in the moment.

As the others mentioned the course was in excellent shape tee to green. I met my monthly quota of bunkers yesterday so I was only in one greenside trap today and it had great sand. Fairways were near perfect, an easy 9 and greens weren't far behind. Greens are tricky no doubt. Have a downhill putt and you may actually be better off putting up the hill to let it roll back down towards the hole. I'm not joking. Challenging yet still fun.

The layout is a good mix of holes with long and short holes to keep you challenged yet present some scoring opportunities. The course finishes with a par 3 over a pond that somehow adds to the enjoyment. Yes a finishing par 3 is odd but this one doesn't seem that way. The only layout change I would have done was to reverse the tee and green on the 18th so you are hitting over the pond looking onto the ocean instead of having the ocean at your back. But with all the great ocean views throughout the day it's not that big of a deal. Plus with the green next to the restaurant, it gives people the opportunity to watch golfers finish out.

I have to disagree with the others about missing the GPS in the carts. Most of us have range finders or apps on our phones that display the course. Sandpiper even has their own app if you want to bring the layout up on your phone. Not having GPS on the carts helps keep the green fees down, and I'm good with that. Besides, with views this great we should be looking out at the ocean anyway.

I've already planned a trip to come back down next month and play it again with the wife. It helped that I blew up her phone with gorgeous pictures of the course all day long. Marketing is a wonderful tool!! :)

Played Corica Park during the GK outing. It was nice to finally get to play this course as I missed the opportunity last year. Conditions of the course were solid all around. Greens rolled at a nice medium speed with some undulations but nothing too severe. Fairways and tee boxes were nice and the sand traps were excellent. And trust me I would know. I was in at least 10 traps throughout the day. All had beautiful soft deep sand. Some had not been raked but that wasn't a real surprise. There were some serious beginners out on the extremely packed course. To the point were the course marshals were calling for backup to help deal with people who were obviously first timers (unless you count their one game of wii golf).

Pace of play was absolutely BRUTAL. It reminded me why I don't play weekend prime time. We easily waited 5-10 minutes on Every shot from the time we walked onto the first tee box to the approach on the 18. It was so bad I often found myself laying up short of the green on Par 4's just so I could hit. Three groups waiting on the tee box was not uncommon.

Conditions were nice but the slow POP would keep me from coming back. At least on the weekend. Maybe midweek might be different and when the sister North course re-opens that will help things out.

Luckily I was with a great group company wise to help minimize the pain of the slow POP.

Played the 9 hole par three course prior to the GK outing. This a fun little course with some challenging greens for a par three course. Greens were rolling on the slower side which is to be expected but they rolled true. Yardage was between 75 and 145 for the holes and I would recommend using the mats to hit from on the tee boxes. They also have some nice bunkering surrounding the greens to give the course a "big boy" feel. All in all its a fun little par 3 worth the $16 fee.

It's been 4 years since I last played here yet I vividly remembered 16 of the 18 holes. The course leaves that type of lasting memory. Set on an Oceanside mountain every hole has a view of the bay and some type of elevation change. Tee'd it up with a few other GK'ers so I'll let them go more into the course conditions and I'll talk about the experience.

Bodega Harbour is about an hour north of San Francisco and about an hour west of Napa wine country. If you are headed to either of those locations, Bodega is a MUST play. Track is an absolute joy. It's also worthy of its own trip. Rarely crowded POP can be whatever you want. Our group finished in under 3 1/2 hours. Set on the ocean, wind will usually come into play, especially in the afternoon. We didn't have it too bad this time around. Each set of nine start out up hill (with the wind) and then come back down the hill (against the wind) Most holes are pretty straight forward with only a couple having some dog legs in them. The 5th hole par 5 is a bit quirky but still fun.

There are houses around the track but they don't interfere with the gorgeous views of the ocean. There are also a dozen Bobcats roaming the area that are super chill. We saw two throughout the day including one that sat on the tee box while we tee'd off. So cool.

The bar/restaurant overlooks the 18th and the bay. We were torn whether to play another 9 or have a beer while waiting for the other group. The beer won out!

Customer service was excellent. I walked in still wearing my travel clothes and the guy at the pro shop politely and professionally reminded me that they require collared shirts. I mention this because it was nice to see a course actually enforce the dress code. Of course I had my outfit in the car ready to go, just hadn't changed yet.

With solid conditions all around and spectacular views, Bodega Harbour is a definite must play. We had a blast of a time and I'll definitely be back.

I rarely play Riverside, mainly because it gets super crowded and two because you get punished for being in the fairway. Several of the fairways are a cross between a downhill mogul ski slope and a supercross track! Not sure what the thought process is behind punishing a player for being in the fairway, but it's not my cup of tea. Having said that, the course is in very nice shape for the most part. Holes 1-12 are in great shape tee to green. Greens were rolling on the slow side but were very smooth. Fairways and tee boxes are very lush throughout.

Only one tee box was divot ridden. All others were good to go. There were a few areas on holes 13-15 that were thin and brown on the fairways and the green on #14 was riddled with pitch marks. Not sure what happened there but all others were excellent. A couple of the greens on the back nine are tiny. As in living room throw rug tiny. Seriously, they were about half the size of my backyard putting green.

Customer service: Check in at the pro shop was average. I walked on as a single and he wasn't all that accommodating. just said he'll get me out in about 15 minutes or so. Never said anything else until I heard my name called out with another group for next up on the tee box.

However, the marshal was absolutely excellent. I dropped my phone on one of the fairways and the marshal was very friendly and super accommodating in giving me a ride back to look for it. He then offered to give me a ride back to catch up with my group or let me settle in behind a twosome to continue where I left off.

Prices are very reasonable at Riverside ($26 to walk prime time) and with the nice conditions right now, I can see why the place gets so packed. Layout of the track is average. One lake that comes into play on 2 holes (3 if you muff a drive real bad on #17). Most of the course is flat with only a couple of holes having elevation changes. There is a train track that runs directly next to a few of the holes so you do have to deal with a number of trains going by as you play.


Given the price and conditions at Riverside it's a solid option when in the valley or traveling through on Highway 99.

Just a quick update from my review a couple of weeks ago. Greens are back to being soft and receptive to approach shots. Well struck shots would easily stick and hold on the green. Greens were still rolling a little slower than usual. Especially the front nine. Overall course conditions are great all around right now sans the bunkers. Found myself in two greenside bunkers and they were both hardpan dirt. Bunkers were a 4 (at best) everything else is an 8+.

POP was miserably slow. Where as I caught it perfect a couple of weeks ago, today was just the opposite.

Had to cancel Friday's round at Spanish Bay due to taking the dog to the vet Thursday after he ate a rock. I so thought it was one of the dozen TP5's he destroyed. Friday was a typical cold wet foggy day. With the dog healed and other commitments taken care of I headed out to Crazy Horse with the wife today. It was an absolutely beautiful day. One so nice that the afternoon wind on the back nine was welcomed to cool things off a bit.

I don't play here often but the wife loves it. Crazy Horse is more about the social atmosphere than the golf. Where other clubs in the peninsula don't even allow shorts, it's not uncommon to see people wearing jeans at Crazy Horse. It's a very laid back atmosphere. Having said that. Course is fun and is in excellent shape right now.

Greens are small but rolled smooth at a medium slow speed. Greens were firm with pitch shots very hard to stop.

Fairways and tee boxes were in absolute near perfect condition. Both were definitely in the 9 range. I was in two greenside bunkers. One was decent and the other was excellent.

I've never seen a beverage cart here but the restaurant is always open.

If you're looking for a relaxed round after playing a couple of the big peninsula courses then Crazy Horse fits the bill perfect. I don't think I've ever played here on a weekend so I don't know how crowded it gets but my guess is it's still quieter than most peninsula courses.

Right now Del Monte GC is probably in the best shape I've ever seen it. Conditions are usually above average here but today the track was in excellent shape. Greens are almost (95%) healed from last months aeration. They rolled super smooth and fast. Greens at Del Monte are are on the small side with most being single tiered with back to front slope.

Fairways were a solid 9. Very green and lush throughout. Tee boxes bordered on a 10. Easily a 9.5. Lush, level and divot free. Sand traps were the low point. I was in a number of bunkers and almost all of them were very thin.

Course is Easily walkable with all tee boxes being within 50 yards of the previous green or closer. Some are too close. Beverage cart was out most of the day and customer service is always friendly. POP was 4 hrs 15 mins.

Del Monte is another good peninsula course that can be a bit expensive at the rack rate of $110 but for my $39 w/ cart it's an excellent choice.