I played La Costa Champions today, 5/22...

What to say? The course is a first rate experience, good service, good golf and expensive!

I always play pretty well at this course which is weird beca... Continue »

I played La Costa Champions today, 5/22...

What to say? The course is a first rate experience, good service, good golf and expensive!

I always play pretty well at this course which is weird because it's tough target golf. Maybe it makes me focus more?

The course was recently aerated but I have to say everything played pretty well and true.

Tees: The tees were all very level and smooth, no bare spots and lush. The only complaint, and I'm being picky because it's a 5 star joint, the grasses on some of the tee boxes were of mixed varieties. I know that's lame, but it stood out to me.

Fairways: The fairways were like carpet, they weren't "desert green" but they were really nice.

Greens: The greens were recently aerated but they rolled very true. The aeration didnt seem to affect the ball roll at all. If the greens weren't aerated, it would have been a 10/10.

Bunkers: The bunkers have ugly brown sand, but at least they were consistent depth and texture throughout the round.

Overall, the course is awesome. If the rough was slightly deeper and the areas around the greens were kept a little bit better this place would be fantastic. I got a deal on my round but I don't think that I would pay full price at $150+...at least I think that is the going rate? Someone correct me if I'm wrong on that...great course though if you get the chance to play it for under $75, give it a whirl!

Played The Champions Course on 10/18.
First time for me at La Costa Resort and I had great expectation after their 2011 renovation of the course.
Well, my expectation were met. The Champions cours... Continue »

Played The Champions Course on 10/18.
First time for me at La Costa Resort and I had great expectation after their 2011 renovation of the course.
Well, my expectation were met. The Champions course is a great course, fantastic and never boring layout with several interesting and challenging holes.
Overall conditions where great. Tee Boxes, Fairways, Greens and Bunkers were in pristine conditions.
Course was packed, due to a morning tournament. I played on threesome and it took us to complete 18 almost 5 hours, but had a very slow foursome in front of us.
Marshall are often visible and help to speed up the pace of play of the slower groups by helping with raking the bunker, find some balls, hold the pin.

Cart are not equipped with GPS but a detailed yardage book is available at the pro shop.

Even if the day on the course has been long I really enjoyed it.
Entering La Costa is like entering a World apart. A resort course where you can feel the relaxed and vacation atmosphere of the place and of the people, being them guests, golfers or just visitors.
And don't miss the view from the pool above the 18th green.

Played La Costa's Champions course on 8/5. We got out at 2:36 and the POP was around 4:45. The rack rate at this course is defiantly way over priced even at twilight. The course was in very good condi... Continue »

Played La Costa's Champions course on 8/5. We got out at 2:36 and the POP was around 4:45. The rack rate at this course is defiantly way over priced even at twilight. The course was in very good condition. Tee boxes and the fairways were lush but in some areas it seem unlevel and bumpy. The greens were very good and held shots well. In some places there was moderate divot damage to the greens though. Rough was good and lush. Bunkers weren't great but pretty good. In all from the food at the turn to the large driving range to the overall great layout of this course if you don't mind forking over a little more money for good resort golf La Costa is worth visiting.

Well, what to say? I played this great course on July 3rd. I played this course as a guest, part of a men's group. Our scheduled tee time was 3:30, and after warming up we were all ready to go. At ... Continue »

Well, what to say? I played this great course on July 3rd. I played this course as a guest, part of a men's group. Our scheduled tee time was 3:30, and after warming up we were all ready to go. At 3:30, we were told to wait because a member wanted to jump ahead of us, so we waited...and waited...and waited. We werent able to tee off until almost 4:00PM! This delay caused us to rush the end of our round due to declining sunlight. It was a disappointing way to start the round to say the least.

On to the course!

Tees: These bad boys were in good shape with few divots and nice and level. All of the boxes had great views of this resort style course.

Fairways: Fairways were slightly green but not perfect and were VERY tightly cut. Some players had a tough time. FW bunkers were in good shape and there are many of these on the course. You really had to place your tee shots and get creative off of the tee with your club choice.

Rough: Nice and not too much mixed grasses. Not too long not too short, just right.

Greens: The greens were extremely slow and I had a very hard time getting the ball to the hole. The greens were shaggy but rolled true and smooth ironically. The greens were very hard with a soft top layer, this led to a lot of ball marks on every green. The greens were hammered, it was as if noone repaired their divots....ever. I really was disappointed in the greens at this course.

Greenside bunkers: A lot of greenside bunkers but they are in good shape and consistent from hole to hole.

Overall, not a hard course if you can place your shots. Greens rolled true to the read but were very beat up and very slow right now. I was very happy with the overall condition of the course but was extremely disappointed in the greens. The green conditions really affected my score. For the price tag, I dont know if this course is worth it. It was nice to play a resort style course with many bunkers throughout, but due to the really steep price tag, I feel that there are many courses around that play great for a better value.

Got to play 5/4/13 with Gker's Dodontails and Sixpez. Pulled up to a really big and nice resort facility about 3 miles or so off the ocean. No ocean views but the breeze felt great out on the range an... Continue »

Got to play 5/4/13 with Gker's Dodontails and Sixpez. Pulled up to a really big and nice resort facility about 3 miles or so off the ocean. No ocean views but the breeze felt great out on the range and first couple holes and then turned into a pretty steady wind. When I got there I pulled into the self parking and called the pro shop to see how to get to the pro shop and was informed that valet was complimentary for those playing golf (very nice because it would have been a long walk). Staff was all pretty nice but it didn't seem too genuine to me. They pointed out a couple times that we were behind members and members behind us so to keep up the pace but it seems like they need to educate there members on proper pace of play. The South course had just closed so I expected it to be a little slow but considering they had good spacing in between tee times it should have moved along a little quicker. Our round came in just about at 5 hours. The course itself was playing fairly firm and fast with good roll out when you hit the fairways. Rough wasn't long but when the ball was sitting down it was tough to get the club on it good but most of the time the ball would sit up. Rough had a few areas of GUR with either Sod or a couple bare areas that weren't roped or marked off. Fairways were inconsistent with some being lush and tight others being thin and some shaggy and a couple bare areas throughout the course. Tee boxes also varied from tight to shaggy and maybe a little un level but easy to find a spot every time. Bunkers were big, well placed and lots of them. Definitely made the course more intimidating off the tee and in the fairways. I found a few and all were nice plenty of sand but still some little pebbles. Greens were nice but rock solid, not even wedges were holding. They did putt smooth and even though there is a lot of undulation in a few greens they didn't break too much and not too fast but the wind was affecting them. Layout wasn't too challenging or exciting though there were a couple really nice holes but local knowledge definitely helps and even though the bunkers are well placed and visually intimidating there is usually plenty of room to work around them. We got an amazing deal but I can't believe the rack rates here. I would never go back for the regular rates but if you could get on for maybe $70 or less it is worth it.

Played here today with GKers Dodontails and mnehls86. Thanks to Dodontails for letting us join you as guests on the course. It was greatly appreciated! We teed off just before 11:30 as a threesome. We... Continue »

Played here today with GKers Dodontails and mnehls86. Thanks to Dodontails for letting us join you as guests on the course. It was greatly appreciated! We teed off just before 11:30 as a threesome. We were behind some member groups. With the South course just closing for it's own major renovation, all the play was on Champions (formerly North) and was naturally a little slower. We finished in a little under 5 hours.

The service was strong around the clubhouse. Everyone working there was friendly. I was a bit disappointed in the course conditions. It wasn't bad, but not what you'd expect for a $250 course in the middle of spring. If I would have paid the full weekend rate, I would have been much more let down. Seems like early summer out there. Dry conditions throughout. Fairways pretty thin. Greens quite firm. Tee boxes were good. The rough was really shaved down in some areas and average cuts in others, so it was a mixed bag but mostly tight lies. The bunkers were very nice and soft. I did notice plenty of small pebbles, but the sand was great to hit from I thought. The greens were smooth and rolling at medium speeds.

I had never played the course before, so I don't know everything they did in the recent renovation, but by all accounts they made it play significantly tougher than it used to be. Lots of big bunkers out here and many in play off the tee. There are some deceptive angles while standing on the tees, but most fairway landing areas are a bit more forgiving than they look from afar. The green complexes have some tricky undulation and are hard to get at with some false fronts and big bunkers protecting most of them. It's a solid course at a very nice resort, so naturally the prices are inflated, but normal rates seem way too steep for what you get—at least right now.

Played in company shotgun on Friday, 8/10. Conditions were great considering the heat. Greens were medium speed @ 9.5. Fairways/rough was lush. Lots of tricky slopes and bumps on the fairways. Sa... Continue »

Played in company shotgun on Friday, 8/10. Conditions were great considering the heat. Greens were medium speed @ 9.5. Fairways/rough was lush. Lots of tricky slopes and bumps on the fairways. Sand trap was in good shape. Also, lots of hazards to watch out for off the tee. Obviously, this is a resort course, so the amenities were excellent from pro shop to snack shop at turn. However, the unusual high heat has diminished otherwise great conditions. Enjoyed it because it was on someone's dime, but I would not pay the rack rates for this course. They do have nice stay and play packages worth considering.
Clubhouse/bar afterwards was very nice and scenic.

La Costa Resort Golf Course Review
Carlsbad California Golf Course Reviews

I played the Championship course on 7/4 and had the first tee time at 7am. While the two courses they have at the resort are very different, overall I really enjoyed the facility. The view from the ed... Continue »

I played the Championship course on 7/4 and had the first tee time at 7am. While the two courses they have at the resort are very different, overall I really enjoyed the facility. The view from the edge pool overlooking both courses is priceless. Championship courses was much tougher than the South course, but overall was a fair and interesting layout with a number of memorable holes and risk/reward scenarios. The greens were a little bumpy, but otherwise the course was in perfect condition with some of the softest bunkers I've seen in So Cal. It's a bit pricey, but you can get a credit if staying at the resort so after that I ended paying a $100 for the round. I really enjoyed the round and definitely would like to play there again.

One last thing, the carts don't have GPS, but do have a QR code so that you could download a full yardage app on your smartphone. We only figured on hole 5, but it came in very handy after that.

Played 3/10 on their 2-for-1 special on the Champions Course (through March). Overall, not impressed and thought it very overpriced, even at 1/2 off.

Conditions: Fairways still like sod just ... Continue »

Played 3/10 on their 2-for-1 special on the Champions Course (through March). Overall, not impressed and thought it very overpriced, even at 1/2 off.

Conditions: Fairways still like sod just laid in and not well smoothed out. Greens were generally pretty good, although they ran fairly slow and were very firm. Tee boxes were generally good, but on several Par 3 holes the blue tee markers are set so far at the back edge that there is literally less than a foot between the marker and the rough on the back edge. This means you had no choice but to play in a line of divots with your back foot in the rough - very strange to give so little room.

Pace, Amenities, and Staff: Check in at the pro shop was efficient, but the pro shop staff weren't real friendly. The carts are not equipped with GPS; they did include a couple tiny bottles of water (I've never seen water bottles that tiny!). Pace of play was quite slow, a little over 5 hours with an 8:30am start time. At the 4th hole we had 4 groups on the hole at one time (2 on the tee box waiting). A marshal was driving around a lot but didn't seem to be addressing the pace issue, and never stopped to ask how we were doing or any of the friendly interaction one would expect from. We picked up snacks at the turn, and I had good hopes when I saw them grilling hot dogs outside on the grill, but it was served on a very stale bun and was very very expensive ($16 for a hot dog, bag of chips, and a diet coke).

New Layout: Overall, we weren't very impressed with the remodel and changes. Most holes were left untouched as far as layout, and the put in a lot of fairway bunkers but many of these seemed added more for aesthetic reasons than strategic. On a couple holes that were significantly changed it didn't really seem that the new arrangement played well strategically, i.e. they moved things around but you couldn't really get a sense for why.

Summary: If one is going to compete in the premium golf segment, you'd better offer the goods. The course at La Costa had the feel of a reasonably nice muni, and if they were charging $75 I'd feel it was a decent price for an average course. But in their price segment they're competing with Aviara down the road, Maderas, and other high end SoCal courses, and they simply aren't even close in service, conditioning, interesting layout, and amenities.

La Costa Resort Golf Club Course Review
Carlsbad California Golf Course Reviews