This is a really hard review to give. I wanted to like this course. I wanted to so bad. I'm a pretty big hitter, and my buddy has been getting on me about how he wanted to see me play a ridiculously long course, and Los Serranos South is definitely the longest around these parts. We played yesterday afternoon, and were very surprised at how nice the facilities are. The pro shop is excellent, and their staff was very helpful. GolfNow charged us more than their regular rate, so (I forget his name, best pro shop attendant I've dealt with) gave us an even better discount. At that point, I was certain this was going to be a memorable experience. They have six (I think) well cared for putting greens, and the range wasn't bad, especially because it was playing off the grass.

Then, we get on the course. I'd been hearing about their famous black tees, but couldn't find it on the first hole. That's because there were no markers. The greens are relatively slow, and the fairways are okay at best. Most of my local munis have better fairways and greens. And rough. Once I found the black placard on the second hole, I felt a little better, but the box is over grown and extremely un-level. On every black tee box. I understand that most players should never play from the tips, so it is a waste of time and money for a course to focus on those, but most of their advertising is about these tees, so I can't cut them much slack for this.

I love the idea of the layout. If you've never played it, it doesn't look intimidating, but you can definitely put yourself in a world of hurt if you pick the wrong shot. I played my six month record high score on the front nine, which I don't hold against them, I'm actually giving them extra credit for the challenge. I used every club in my bag, which hasn't happened in quite a while.

I only hit one bunker, which I'm pretty happy about because they had some truly bunker frenzy holes, and that bunker was in fantastic shape. My buddy complained about a few of them that he was in, and I have to say those were in crummy shape. Bunkers are meant to be hazards, so I don't feel they should be fantastic, but I know most people would be unhappy with the quality of some of them.

So, all that being said, if you want an inexpensive round of golf on a challenging layout, and you can hit a decently long ball, you'll probably enjoy the south course. It's not pretty, and you'll hit off hard pan around the fairway more than should be expected, but when I got off the 18th green knowing I'd just conquered 7600 yards, there was a sense of accomplishment. I have faith they'll get their course back in shape, and when they do, I'll add them to my rotation. Hell, I'd volunteer my services if it would help them any, that's how much I want to like the course.

The first time I played Hidden Valley, I HATED it. I told my buddy I would never go back. Honestly, I never wanted to go back because it can be an almost brutal test of shot placement and putting. Thankfully, I reneged, and have gone back several times since, and absolutely love it. After a lot of range time, that is.

I last played there April 8th. You may recall it was brutally windy. Brutally. Don't waste your money on their range, and their pro shop is comically stocked, but the service is always excellent. Take some time on their putting and chipping green. Pace is everything out here! The tee boxes aren't all that level, but I know they're working on it. Pick your tee wisely, even if you have to be a few yards further back than you would like. Too often, playing out here, (as with most courses) the golfers around me are always on the wrong tee box. The black tees are scenic and make you feel pretty masculine, but you'd better have a big game under your britches to back it up. I always play them, and often regret it as soon as the first hole. I hate seeing fellows have such a miserable time on such a solid course. You really have to place fantastic approach shots to give yourself even a chance of 1 or 2 putting.

Bunkers. What can I say? They've definitely turned south. I don't like complaining about things like this, especially as I know the maintenance there knows they need to be fixed. A lot. This is just a friendly warning. It's a huge undertaking, cut them a little slack and take a drop. I should have when I found the back left bunker on the 4th hole, picked out all the visible rocks around my ball, hit a well struck thump near the hole... to find out a hidden rock took a little gouge off the face of my new lob wedge (a cast Ping, so it's still very playable) and peeled the cover off a brand new Callaway Hex Black Tour ball. It must have been one hell of a rock I hit. I steered away from the bunkers the rest of the day (usually a smart plan in any situation) but would definitely have taken a drop if that plan didn't work out.

Don't throw the baby out with the bath water just yet...The greens are ALWAYS AMAZING. They roll so true, play with a lot of slope (God help you if you land on the wrong tier on some of these holes), so respect the break.

They always have some sort of good online deals, pace of play is generally very good, and there are some awe inspiring views from tee to green. Bring a rangefinder if you have one and hit 'em straight!

Okay, I'm totally biased here, I grew up a few blocks from here, and have played this course since I was wearing Keds and had trouble with all the snot in my nose. I caddied there at the 1995 Long Beach match play, and my swing coach started working with me in the back of the driving range that same year. I was in the pro shop during Tiger's first Masters victory. The memories go on and on. If you want a more impartial review, scroll on, but I know every contour, branch, and trick to this track.

All that being said, Skylinks is the best value/quality (certainly not the cheapest, but I'll get to that in a few) in the Long Beach area. After they spent a fortune remodeling it a decade ago, they turned a bland course under the flight path of an airport into a course that was vying for the attention of mini tour events.

I played there this afternoon, booking on GolfZing. If you are going to play an American Golf golf course, do yourself a favor and book through that site, it'll save you a bundle. Their putting green rolls very true, comparable to the greens on the course, but their bunker/chipping areas are not up to snuff. The pro shop is always decently stocked and staffed well. Weekend rounds are going to play incredibly slow, but if you're lucky enough to have some weekday time, it's usually smooth sailing. The tee boxes are pretty decent, the fairways are uncommonly good, every bunker is excellent sand, and if the greenskeeper is having trouble with the ball and chain, you might be in for some brutal pin positions. As with ALL muni courses, no one seems to ever fix their ball marks on the green, but they still roll well, and if you don't know the course, don't expect to get too close to the pin on your approach shots.

If you are a good putter, prefer a fade off the tee, are aggressive off the tee but not so aggressive that you have the big stick out every hole, and want the best beverage cart service around (say hi to my friend Claire, leave her a tip, it'll keep the golf gods happy... you'll need that for hole 11), Skylinks is where you should be tomorrow.

I tend to go out to the Inland Empire a whole lot for golf, and I am shocked it's taken me this long to head out to this real solid track. I booked the time on their website for $45 a person, which seemed pretty reasonable for 11 am on a weekday. When we pulled up, the staff was eager to help, they offered a free yardage book and tees (I know the yardage book is because they've held out on GPS so far, but I use a Bushnell anyways, and having a pretty solid yardage book was nice) and had us ready to go quickly.

Note: one of the poorer driving ranges I've ever seen, just ahead of Hidden Valley, so I took a pass on that.

The starter was nice, there was an older guy walking a couple of dogs and relaxing, I don't know why it stuck out, but it had a relaxing feel to the start of my round. I played from the black tees- the boxes aren't all that good (but that's common, their money is better spent improving the other tees), the tee grass was a little too long, and not all that even. Don't cry for me, Argentina.

The front nine is fairly straightforward, there's a good sense of risk/reward with each shot, but not all that demanding. The greens roll true, are very firm but really receptive to spin. I mean REALLY receptive. The 10th hole is a bomber's dream (if they can keep it relatively straight), from there you gradually transition to an entirely different course. Luckily, I was playing with someone who knows the course when we got to 16, he told me to rip a mean fade starting down the center of the fairway. OK, I didn't heed the advice, I just decided to cut the corner straightaway, with a baby fade. I had no idea how that fairway funnels down, and got awful close to the water, but that put me basically on the fringe of the green. I'm playing there this weekend, 16 and 18 will be fairway metal holes this time.

18 is a 200-foot drop with un-playable lies on the right, and water on the left. It was fun playing a 425-yard drive, but if you're a bigger hitter, do yourself a favor and keep the big dog in the bag. Or hulk out, and hope for a good break from the golf gods.

All this in 4 hours, it went by too quick!