No reviews for this course for several years, I'm surprised as it gets a ton of play.

Played yesterday, Monda... » More

No reviews for this course for several years, I'm surprised as it gets a ton of play.

Played yesterday, Monday, 6-22-2026. 2:40pm teetime and off on time. Slow start the first few holes but then things picked up. We were done around 6pm, so POP just over 3hrs. Waited on most tee boxes for just a minute or two, but not bad. Played with my buddy and our wives, so the ladies tend to like a nice slow pace. $25 to walk was well worth it.

Blue tees are pretty chewed up and not level. Big crowns or slopes in most all the tee boxes, they should really put some work into them. Nonetheless, take an extra few seconds to find a decent spot to tee it up.

Fairways were nice on the two par 4's. No complaints.

Bunkers were fairly fluffy but that's not a good thing when nobody rakes them!!! Tons of foot prints that were deep. I found two of them and they were very difficult to get out of, basically grip it and rip it out of the sand just to make sure you got out of the bunker.

Greens were fairly quick but were bumpy late in the day. They held shots very well, but were difficult to read. The cups were cut on some severe slopes and with the bumps, it was hit and pray.

No frills customer service, no beverage cart, but we BYOB, so not a big deal. Marshal was around a few times which was nice.

I recommend the course expecially for a casual game with beginners. It's fun and easy to walk. It has some elevation change and keeps your attention. Get on out there and have some fun.
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Range and practice greens both upper level quality wise. Nice GPS on carts. Restaurant good for a golf course with a goo... » More

Range and practice greens both upper level quality wise. Nice GPS on carts. Restaurant good for a golf course with a good selection. POP excellent with few golfers out braving the 100+ degree temps even early in the day. Course beginning to get "summer scruffy" around the edges. With temps frequently above 100 and fewer golfers, my observation is that they do not mow the rough very often this time of year. Rough is hit/miss and you cannot count on it stopping balls hit around the edges of fairways. Areas getting overspray from the fairways can be lush/deep. But areas 5' away can be low/thin. Fairways and tees still mostly lush but showing the effects of the heat. Sand traps almost always nicely maintained here. Greens back to outstanding again a month out from sanding/punching. This time of year they are firm and quick, downhill putts can be treacherous. So you need to plan and execute your approach shots accordingly. Highly recommended.
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Course beginning to get "summer scruffy" around the edges with temps frequently above 100. Rough is hit/miss and you can... » More

Course beginning to get "summer scruffy" around the edges with temps frequently above 100. Rough is hit/miss and you cannot count on it stopping balls hit around the edges of fairways. Normally you can see your ball in the rough from 50 yards away here. I had to almost step on my ball yesterday to find it right beside the fairway where it was lush/deep. Fairways and tees still mostly lush but showing the effects of the heat with thinner spots. Sand traps almost always nicely maintained here. Greens back to outstanding again a month out from sanding/punching. This time of year they are firm and quick and downhill putts can be treacherous. So you better plan and execute your approach shots accordingly. Range and practice greens quality wise are upper tier. Nice GPS on carts. Restaurant good selection for a golf course. Highly recommended.
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Monday 6/22/26. Got to the course at 6:15AM for a 7:00AM tee time. Not a sole awake, waited for 15 minutes before checki... » More

Monday 6/22/26. Got to the course at 6:15AM for a 7:00AM tee time. Not a sole awake, waited for 15 minutes before checking in, only to find out that I would be playing alone, and the next tee time behind me was at least 1 hour behind. To be able to have this course entirely to yourself was truly a gift. Normally, I enjoy being with a group, but this round was about as therapeutic a day as I could have asked for.

The Mauna Kea golf course and resort is a special place, if you have been there, you understand. Not a blade of grass was out of place today. The wind was basically dead, and the sun was shining. I didn't rush and still finished in just under 2.5 hours. Everyone is friendly, and the amenities are top-notch.

I would recommend this course to anyone who comes to play on the Big Island. It will always be one of my favorite places to play. I first played here when I was 10, and again when I graduated college. I cherish those memories. An experience you will not forget.
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Played here on Monday in group 1B of the Golf Moose / Vivid Golf / GK event. Great times with Johnny, Ron, and Steve. Se... » More

Played here on Monday in group 1B of the Golf Moose / Vivid Golf / GK event. Great times with Johnny, Ron, and Steve. Seemed like a large contingent of people from the Southern California Golf Community FB group were in attendance, who all brought a great energy. Overall it feels like five years in, Johnny’s Golf Moose events have fostered a joyous, grateful community of their own – much like GK has – and it’s really nice to see so many familiar faces at each outing! POP was pretty good for an event like this at just under 5 hours. Enjoyed a tasty hot dog special at the turn that included chips, a soda, and a banana.

Course conditions were very nice! Greens were smooth, medium-fast, and accepting of full shots. Fairways and rough were both very healthy with the fairways providing great lies and the rough potentially presenting difficulties in some spots, and sitting up in others. Black tee boxes were fantastic. I was in one bunker and it was very good – a thin crusty layer on top of a soft sand base.

I had played here once about two years ago. The course begins with two straightforward holes somewhat out of character with the rest of the design. Overall, I much prefer the back nine to the front. Holes 10-14 are excellent, with 14 being my favorite on the course. Nice facilities with the range and large practice green all conveniently located right outside the clubhouse. Beautiful weather, great people, and a fun day on the course! Thank you Johnny for organizing these events, and thanks to Alta Vista for hosting for their first time.
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Had a super time walking the blues this afternoon 6/21/26 with my buddy Mark joined by a couple of his work colleagues w... » More

Had a super time walking the blues this afternoon 6/21/26 with my buddy Mark joined by a couple of his work colleagues who were a pleasure to play with. Our Pop was 4 hrs 45 minutes under beautiful golf weather. Swirling 1-2 club wind on the front dying down on the back nine and around 78 degrees as a high. Met by friendly staff this afternoon in the shop. Had dinner at the course after the round..Great food.

The course just finished green maintenance and the greens were in great shape with the perfect combination of being soft and receptive on approach shots and rolling medium speed on putts. Green rating 8.5/10

The fringes were soft and were just about done completely with a topsand project. Fringes were in great shape. Best I have ever seen them.

Fairways had been plugged recently and I must say they looked and played fabulous[13 fairway still has mini irrigation plugs]. Very lush with not alot of rollout on drives and very well manicured. Great shape close to a 9/10.

Rough lining the fairways was cut just a bit higher than the lush Fairways and was in great shape. Rustic has really improved their fairway rough and fringes in the last year or so. Rough rating 9/10

Tees were all level and in great shape. Rated 9/10

Was only in greenside bunker on 13 after a nice drive and 3 metal. It was compact and firm and contained just enough sand to splash out of. Most bunkers here are on the firmer side. Rated 6.5/10

Always great to be out at Rustic. This is lush city? What was built as a links bump and run course is now lush city which makes iron ball striking and chipping easier but adds extra length with limited roll on drives, whether you like the former or the present get out and play Rustic if you can get a tee time as it's in fabulous shape!!!

Highly recommended!
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Played 6/22/26 2:15 POP 3:20. Course is still in really good shape. Greens great, receptive w/ good roll. Not too many... » More

Played 6/22/26 2:15 POP 3:20. Course is still in really good shape. Greens great, receptive w/ good roll. Not too many afternoon foot prints. Fairways have great coverage, green and very good to great shape. They have fixed one of their weak spots. The traps. They all have new sand and are in really good shape and consistent. Now they need to work on their tees.
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Played early this AM to beat the heat and the Mon crowds. Nice living so close to a course.

Found the course in ... » More

Played early this AM to beat the heat and the Mon crowds. Nice living so close to a course.

Found the course in somewhat different shape then previous rounds.

Tee boxes good.

Fairways wide and giving "decent" roll but not as good as past weeks. Seems like a lot of water has been put on the course with past and coming heat. But the lies were excellent.

Rough was much higher as well and needs cutting so fairly difficult to advance w/o a powerful swing.

Traps were all ok and had been raked so not an issue.

Greens were the big mistery. In the past they have been firm and fast. But no doubt they too have been heavily watered as they were soft w/o much release and did not putt with there normal speed. Even downhill putts were not as dangerous.

Always good customer service from the Monday AM pro shop. You can tell they like their work.
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Played with Rob1563 on Sat at 7:30 AM for the nice local rate of $115, which they complain about, but it's much better t... » More

Played with Rob1563 on Sat at 7:30 AM for the nice local rate of $115, which they complain about, but it's much better than the $220 for visitors. I have played here once before and remember that the layout is all over the place, which we believe was because they picked the best holes for the members' course, which left the arroyo all over the place.

The course was in great shape for early summer. I think the fairways were some of the best I have ever played on. Very good cushion and green, they did have a few soggy areas from overwatering, but I be they were fine by the afternoon in 105° heat. Greens were firm and medium pace for about an hour, then fast after the sun dried them out. I had my worst putting day in a while there. Sand traps need some help as they were in poor shape in the fairways and a little better around the greens.

Nice carts with GPS and a cool one with no free water. I would like to see more water coolers on the course, especially with the heat, but they did have some every 4 holes. Staff were friendly, and I would play here again given a deal can be found.
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Review from over a month ago, but I wanted to post it anyway. I was fortunate to be able to play here while on vacation.... » More

Review from over a month ago, but I wanted to post it anyway. I was fortunate to be able to play here while on vacation. I was not planning on it due to the major storms that had just happened, but I am sure glad I did. Everyone said you have to play the emerald course for the elevation, views, and layout. They were not wrong. The Views are worth it alone.

Conditions were very good despite them losing 2 dozen trees, but you could hardly tell. There are a lot of trees, bushes, and nature on the course. Conditions were mostly in the 10s across the board, and there is not much more a golfer could ask for. Fairways were carpet-like, rough was not long but very thick, greens ran smooth at a medium pace with no issues at all. Sand was wet but seemed to play fine.

The rack rate is very high, and that is the only downside. I was able to snag a deal, but after renting clubs, it was still 300+, but we could easily spend that on drinks at the hotel pool so I wasn't going to skip treating myself.
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Played in the Clash at Rams Hill two weeks ago. It was a two-day, two-man tournament run by Rams Hill. Friday we were in... » More

Played in the Clash at Rams Hill two weeks ago. It was a two-day, two-man tournament run by Rams Hill. Friday we were invited to the very exclusive Borrego Springs yacht club for opening drinks. They hat the TGL LAGC simulator truck running a closest to the pin competition as well as drinks and snacks.

This is the first time I have played the course since they decided to be year-round, and man, the course still looked great. Temps were in the 100s, but the course was still lush and playing great.

Tees, Fairways, Rough, and sand were in great condition with only a small amount of browning locations scattered across the course, but those were few and far between. Greens were the highlight as usual, firm and fast yet healthy. Good roll with no bumps or divots despite having two full days of competition.

It's still a drive to play out here, but given the cheaper rate in the summmer its worth playing if you can handle the heat.

PS - The free tacos and Carmel Apple Cookie are the bomb.
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RPGC event this weekend at Rancho Park and it hurts to say it but the course is not in its best shape. The greens are ac... » More

RPGC event this weekend at Rancho Park and it hurts to say it but the course is not in its best shape. The greens are actually great right now and rolling true and medium-fast, but the rest of the property is feeling the heat.

The fairways have far too many thin or burned out/dirt areas for my liking, but the rough is good in most spots. The tee boxes are a bit beat up for sure (we played from the white tees this round), and the bunkers are just okay. There's just an overall 'meh' feeling about course conditions right now, with the notable exception of the greens.

Still no end in sight for the clubhouse remodel, either. So if you want to play some very fun and challenging greens right now, Rancho Park is a great choice. But if every other aspect of golf is also important to you, then give them a few weeks to somehow get this sorted out.
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