Balboa Park Golf Course is a San Diego Municipal Course located just east of downtown San Diego. It consists of one 18 hole course and one 9 hole course. Balboa 18 is very short. From the back tees, it only plays 6281 yards. But don't let that deceive you into thinking that it easy to score well here. One thing this course doesn't have is forgiveness for making errant shots. If you are wild off the tee, bring extra balls! The fairways are narrow and there isn't much rough between them and the canyon areas that wind through the parts of the course. Balboa Park GC is a dream for short and straight hitters. Accuracy off the tee is key. Especially on holes like the number one handicap par-4 4th hole and the number two handicap par-5 16th. Both holes leave no room for error and bogey is considered a very good score. One thing to consider when playing here is to watch out for golf balls heading your way. A fair number of holes are spaced very close together.
Balboa Park normally plays pretty slow, especially on weekends. A weekend round of 5 hours is about normal. It seems like they try to fit in as many golfers as possible. If you have limited time to play, you may want to try the 9 hole course. The warm-up facilities are mediocre at best. The driving range is very unimpressive with the limited number of mats and their downhill/sidehill lies. There is a putting green and a chipping area near the clubhouse. There is no food cart at this course. Only a snack stand at the turn.
Overall, Balboa Park is in fair condition. The greens and the bunkers are currently the best features on the course. The putting surfaces are smooth, soft and fairly fast. The sand is nice and fluffy. The fairways are good unless you end up in a bare spot or the occasional mud pit. They must be having problems with some of their sprinklers. The rough is thin and not long at 1-3 inches. The tee boxes are a little beat up from all the traffic and some are not as level as one would like. Balboa Park isn't a bad deal since it is inexpensive to play. Just don't expect too much and be patient.