Rode the Golds (6401/71.0/130) early morning with Steve and Chris on a GN Hot Deal. CPO, which contributed to the almost... » More

Rode the Golds (6401/71.0/130) early morning with Steve and Chris on a GN Hot Deal. CPO, which contributed to the almost 4.5H POP. The weather was partly cloudy, breezy and in the 60's.

The tees were nice. Lush and almost none needed divot repair.

The over seeded fairways were good to play from, mostly lush.

The rough around the fairways was a combination of lush/thin. Okay coverage but you could end up with a poor lie or be in as good of shape as in the middle of the fairway a foot apart.

Several sand traps were lakes after yesterdays downpour. The ones that were not under water were in remarkably good condition considering the amount of rain yesterday.

The greens were EXCELLENT. Firm and medium fast with few ball marks. Many undulations on the greens and large swells around the green complexes make for challenging chipping.

This course would be difficult to walk as numerous tees are a long ways from the last green. Good all grass driving range with a couple of practice holes is a +. GPS on the carts. The customer service was good from all encountered.

Enjoy this Schmidt/Curley layout, challenging yet still fun. Recommended.
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I wasn't sure what to expect when I arrived at 6am, was not certain the course would even be open for play, but it was. ... » More

I wasn't sure what to expect when I arrived at 6am, was not certain the course would even be open for play, but it was. In fact, other than carts on path, there were no obstructions at all. Actually very little casual water. Many of the bunkers still were flooded, but otherwise the course was very playable.

The few greens I had cut were very smooth and fairly quick. Fairways were good, although very wet and in areas, thin. Lots of clean up needed after the storms, but that's to be expected.

Staff in the shop was late arriving and was not at all friendly. Some people should not be doing jobs which interact with the public !
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Was looking for a place to play on Wed 2/13 before the rains came and chose Green River since it is relatively close and... » More

Was looking for a place to play on Wed 2/13 before the rains came and chose Green River since it is relatively close and has been a while since I had played. Got to the course and checked in around 10:00. Nice guy in the clubhouse but he wanted to charge me $33 to walk? Told him last time I was here it was $23. Rate increase? He hit his keyboard several times and said ok, $25. Never can figure what the rate is here. With nobody out there, I figured I had about 3 hours before the rain hit. Finished most of the course rain free. Played 17 and 18 in light rain but had rain gear so no problem.

This course is struggling. The County is doing river maintenance and therefore a lot of construction happening on the east side of the course. Muddy conditions on the walk between holes #2 to #3 and then between #11 and #12. Fairways are winter brown as was expected but there are way too many bare spots out there. Tee boxes are beat up as well. The rough is dormant kikuyu and really not a factor. Bunkers were damp but not hard with relatively good lies.

The greens on the front were beat up. Holes 1-5 were not good. Many burnt areas and very slow. The rest of the greens however were in good shape and some were really nice, smooth and rolled true. Can’t figure out why the first 5 greens are just not recovering.

GR has always been a nice course for me. Challenging layout, a bit scenic and the local pro Art Guevara, is one on the nicest guys. Just so disappointed it is struggling to come back. Will be back out here late spring to hope it will come back to the GR we always knew.
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Got to take out a client in Vegas this week and played with another local who managed to get us a very sweet deal at the... » More

Got to take out a client in Vegas this week and played with another local who managed to get us a very sweet deal at the usually very high-cost Bali Hai resort course. I believe the normal rack rate here is around $300, so having only paid a third of that was pretty outstanding. I've wanted to play this track so many times and it finally came together, and luckily the weather played along as well. It was cold, but the rain didn't start until just after finishing with a sweet POP of just 3.5 hours.

The course itself is very fun and has a surprising amount of elevations in the fairways, creeks and water. Not too much in the way of long carries, but there are definitely a good variety of hole lengths here and the par 3s gave me a tough time all day. The island green is pretty cool too but not too tricky as it's only around 130 yards or so, but you still have to stick it.

Winter conditions were good overall and of course having to take into account the recent rains that certainly affected the bunkers and many of the lower-lying areas. Dark green fairways that looked more lush than they actually played, but provided good lies all morning. The rough has been left dormant so it's a striking contrast with its beige hues against either water, sand or the aforementioned green fairways. Bunkers had mostly very good, playable sand in them but they were probably a bit heavier than normal with the recent precipitation. Tee boxes (we played the gold tees) were fine - no troubles there.

Cart service was around early and often, even with very few people out on the course most of the morning. We did catch a group on 8 and 9 but they let us pass at the turn and it was smooth sailing from there. We also got a lunch voucher for after the round so that worked out great.

Again, the only unfortunate thing was that the weather was quite cold, but not the Arctic temps we were expecting the night before. Still, my idea of playing this course is most definitely in shorts and sweating a lot, so I still will need to come back and do it right later in the year. Hope I can find that great deal again, but I'm guessing during high season that might be a bit more difficult.
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Rode the Golds (6158/69.5/125) in 4H, 15M mid day using Forelinx. Matched up with Steve and Chris, we played at a relaxe... » More

Rode the Golds (6158/69.5/125) in 4H, 15M mid day using Forelinx. Matched up with Steve and Chris, we played at a relaxed pace under partly cloudy, calm conditions in the 60's.

The tees were lush/level and well maintained for divots.

The fairways were lush and well maintained.

The Bermuda rough is the only part of the course not over seeded and is VERY mediocre at this point. Thin with areas of hardpan all the way to a few places that are dormant and fluffy is not a good place to go with lush fairways closeby.

The sand traps were nicely maintained with a decent amount of good quality sand.

The greens putted nice, firm and medium fast. They held irons well, softer than usual after the recent rains.

This course would be difficult to walk as numerous tees are a long way from the last green. GPS to the front/middle/back of the green only. The customer service was excellent as usual here. Plenty of water stations on the course. Drink cart out making the rounds. Good practice facilities with complementary range balls although the range tops out about 220 yards. Fun layout, Recommended.
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I used to play Tijeras Creek quite often because of it's proximately to my home, but ever since they changed the "creek ... » More

I used to play Tijeras Creek quite often because of it's proximately to my home, but ever since they changed the "creek card" which provides very little incentive to purchase other than a $10 reduction in fees, I rarely frequent this course any longer, but when I was offered an invite from a friend which was also a "freebie" how could I refuse. Plus based upon the recent reviews I was excited to return.

The prior reviews are spot on as this course is clearly in the best condition I have ever seen it. Lush, green, well maintained, great bunkers and very nice greens. I may have to reconsider playing here more often again. The recent rains have not appeared to cause any damage, so let's hope the predicted storms are equally as kind.

No issue with pace of play as we had an early time, but I can understand how this place can get bogged down as to pace, given the severity of some of the holes on the back nine, which I consider to be one of the best back nines in Southern California.
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Was it the best idea to play golf in a rainwater catch basin after days of rain? No, not at all. Balboa's strength is ... » More

Was it the best idea to play golf in a rainwater catch basin after days of rain? No, not at all. Balboa's strength is not drainage. Depending on where you hit the ball, your ball could be fine or stuck in a muddy area or puddle. Had to lift clean and search for land 4 times. While this didn't bother me, what brought an Iron Eyes Cody tear to my face was all the golf cart tracks doing governmental shutdown levels or destruction to the course. Sure, a lot of rope was used to keep lazy idiots from doing their worst but thoughtlessness beats rope any day. A pair of strangers in my group made me wince a couple of times with completely unnecessary driving leaving a wake of tracks behind them.

The surprising positives - the two bunkers I was in were in good shape and the greens seemed unnaturally smooth. I would say medium plus speed which is as fast as Balboa goes. I also had some really nice grass to chip out of on some of the holes - others - a bit patchy.

Interested to see how the course fares after it's had time to dry out and grow.
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First off, fees are now $50 for seniors and all inclusive is $55. Played in a nice POP of 3 H. Fairways are still wet in... » More

First off, fees are now $50 for seniors and all inclusive is $55. Played in a nice POP of 3 H. Fairways are still wet in some areas (rain tomorrow/Thurs and ? Fr) and some holes should be CPO, but none are. Very little roll on most fairways, but had decent lies for the most part. Tee boxes are all fine. Sand traps are all very hard from the past rains (though dry) and not the best to play out of. Greens were all in very good condition. Held shots well. #15 green is now open and looks terrific. No issues with chipping/putting and greens had some decent speed to them. Customer service excellent at all levels. No rating, as the weather conditions are the true reason for course conditions.
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After the Fresno area has gotten POUNDED with rain the last couple weeks, and after calling around to see what courses w... » More

After the Fresno area has gotten POUNDED with rain the last couple weeks, and after calling around to see what courses were CPO, and even one course was no carts at all. Dragonfly was allowing carts on course, which at first, I thought they were just trying to get more people out playing on a Holiday Monday, but sure enough, the course drains well!

Rates out here are quite interesting, they change by the hour, which we teed off after 1pm. We thought there was a chance of finishing but wouldn't be shocked not to.

Overall, the course is in decent shape, especially with how much water we have gotten in the area lately. The tee boxes weren't cut in a while, and there was some uneven grass areas. The tee markers were in much smaller areas to protect the overall tee boxes. The fairways are dormant right now, but have good coverage, and they were wet, but never had a mud ball or a ball that plugged. The greens were soft, and never plugged either. Only issue was putting, with the greens being so soft there was a ton of spike marks and putts would bounce around, especially around the cup.
Bunkers had a lot of water in them, and you can see that they are trying to reconstruct some and dig into some of the faces that might have started to collapse with all the rain.

Overall, one of the top courses in Fresno. They have bumped their prices since Fig Garden closed down at the end of December, but heard Riverside has done the same.

Make sure you bring water with you, there is nothing on the course for drinking!
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I played here Monday, Feb. 11. Wow, was I disappointed. The course charges a premium but is not up to snuff. Yes, we'... » More

I played here Monday, Feb. 11. Wow, was I disappointed. The course charges a premium but is not up to snuff. Yes, we've had a lot of rain so conditions weren't expected to be pristine, but Monarch Beach and Arrowood are in far superior condition. The greens were generally fine, although a few had dead spots. Plus, they remove circular plugs of grass about 6 or so inches in diameter on the edge of the green, sometimes with a long row of 10 or more on a green. That makes putting through it from the fringe a non-starter. You might expect to see this at a muni, but not at these prices.

The fairways were in very rough shape, with very few spots where grass is growing normally. Fortunately the sample size is small, but the bunkers I were in seemed fine and well drained. Much of the deep rough was in very poor condition. The trees and brush lining the fairways had a lot of trash in it that just sending out the ground screw to clean up would make the course more appealing.

I don't know if the course was just more impacted than all the rain than other course I play, but it was not at all an upscale experience. Very disappointing.
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Got out Monday 10:30 perfect weather after Sunday rain. Course soggy but playable mostly good fairway coverage with untr... » More

Got out Monday 10:30 perfect weather after Sunday rain. Course soggy but playable mostly good fairway coverage with untrimmed rough/weeds. Puddles and mud along cart paths nothing bothersome though. Greens typical good condition medium speed with surprisingly few unrepaired pitch marks. Wetness made course play long so moved we moved up to red tees. Noticed a couple greenside bunkers looking okay but found large pond in fairway one. Let twosome pass on 2nd then a couple singles on backside holes for just over 4 hour pace. With range closed starter gave dad a warmup bucket to hit short irons off grass below clubhouse which was greatly appreciated. If we'd started on red tees dad may have lowered 94 score to beat his age 92. Enjoyable day with clear snowy mountain views.
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Course is in incredible condition. It's Ireland green. Boxes are good, fairways are great, rough is juicy and bunkers ar... » More

Course is in incredible condition. It's Ireland green. Boxes are good, fairways are great, rough is juicy and bunkers are nice with new sand. Great tale of two nines but like always POP is the downer here. Played a 5:20 round last week, couple weeks before that 4:50. The marshalls have this bogus time sheet that doesn't get anyone to play faster. Sad part is the staff seems to fully accepted that 5 hour rounds are the norm. Always say "You have to come out on a Monday/Tuesday morning early to play under 4" ha ha ha.
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