I got out and played the Canyon Crest/Ridgeline course on 6/18. I can't say enough nice things about this coourse. It's in immaculate shape, the people and service are top notch, the greens crews are respectful and invisible and there's no one on it. As a twosome we didn't see anyone in front or behind us until the 15th hole when we let a noisy and less than courteous twosome play through. This is a fantastic track that is worth the drive from anywhere. Considering that it's less money to play than Lost Canyons or Tierra Rejada, and the same cost as Malibu Country Club, it is head and shoulders above any other high end course in the area.

Played 12/27. We have put this course on our "no play" list until they add some practice facilities. We paid a jacked up $125 to play on a weekday. There is no range, not even nets. So you basically spend the front 9 getting loose. That is criminal based on what they are charging. The course itself is nonetheless interesting in great shape, except for the greens. LOTS of spike marks and too many unfixed divots and unraked bunkers for a course that costs so much. They should put up a couple of net-driving stalls until they get the range built (spring of '06 is the rumor, but no one we talked to who works there seemed to believe it).

River Ridge continues to be one of the great, affordable, consistent courses in SoCal. Interesting layout, great staff and good conditions. The only negative is that some of the bunkers have only a dusting of sand and then it's hardpan underneath. Makes it hard to dig it out and get it over the lip. Other than that it's a great track. I don't know why I don't play it more often.

- Played yesterday for the first time in just over a year. The course is far from the "Immaculate" rating it currently has. Much of the grass on the 10th tee is dead, and the fairways are also not great. There are many brown areas in the fairways as well as some areas where grass is growing back so it is clumped and hard, often resulting in a poor lie in the fairway. They should rule them ground under repair IMHO. The greens roll very nicely, although some inconsiderate golfers refuse to fix ball marks so there are many of them on the green. The changes to #15 made it a much better hole than the last time we played last summer. The biggest issue for us yesterday was that a company outing went off as a shotgun on the back, and since a PGA player was also there, they started us off the back. I assume this was to accomodate the Pro. Needless to say, we caught the tournament on what was our 3rd hole and we waited on every shot for the remainder of the round. For $110 on a weekday, I expect to not wait behind a tournament. On a positive note, the practice facilities are the best in SoCal and the people could not have been nicer. One word of advice for those of you who plan golf outings for your company: If you have a llot people who have never golfed before, or are extremely poor golfers, please book a municipal course, not a difficult, high dollar course.

(A Southern Californian's review). Played 7/8. Based on everything you hear about how nice Pebble Beach is to play, we were expecting a great round. We weren't prepared for what happened. Words simply do not exist for the experience you get when you play Pebble. I was with a few buddies, and the whole time we were there, we were grinning like idiots. We couldn;t believe we were actually there and playing the course. It was far more than we could have ever expected. The course speaks for itself, and TV doesn't do it justice. It is a magical place. Almost unreal. We walked it and hired 2 caddies (Tom and 'Sticks') who were both awesome. They had our games pegged after a few holes and were of enormous help. They really added to the experience. The course itself is undergoing some changes in preparation for the '10 US Open. Trees are being added to discourage corner cutting and to narrow approaches on par 5's. On 16 they have added several bunkers to really make people think twice about pulling the driver. There is talk of re-doing the greens altogether. It shouldn't cost them much because the greens are tiny tiny tiny. It costs an arm, leg and most of a torso to play there, as you have to stay 2 nights at one of the Pebble Beach properties for 2 nights in order to get an advanced teetime at Pebble Beach. But it is an experience that will stay with you for the rest of your life.

(A Southern Californian's review). We played 7/7 on the most perfect afternoon imaginable. The course is so beautiful, it's like it's not real. It looks like a movie set from a golfers best dream. Immaculate conditioning in every possible way. But she is a beauty with a dark side. This is one of, if not the all-time, hardest tracks I've ever played. If your game is even slightly off, you are in for a tough day. There is very little margin for error playing into most of the (extremely beautiful) green complexes. Missing the green by just a couple of feet exacts a very heavy penalty. Deep bunkers and deep rough. My game was off that afternoon and I shot the highest score I've had in close to 20 years, with the best score on any hole being bogey. And we played rom the middle tees. The course never lets up, and it's hard to find an easy hole where you can take a breath and recover. If I had one complaint, it's that the course is cart-path only all the time. Had we known, we'd have booked caddies. Even with a caddie it would be a long, tiring, hilly walk. It is still an absolutely drop-dead beautiful course, but it's like being beat senseless by Miss Universe.

(A Southern Californian's review). We played 7/6 in the afternoon. This is an amazing course. It's beautiful, even through the fog. Gorgeous layout, challenging but fair greens and layout. Immaculate conditions. We played for $85, which the course (NCGA) extends as a reciprocal courtesy rate to SCGA members. Absolutely worth it, and and the best Pro Shop I've ever seen. I'd play this course again before I'd play Spyglass again...It's in my top 5 ever.

(A Southern Californian's review). We played on 7/7 and enjoyed the round. It's basically a higher-end muni, which isn't surprising considering that it used to be the local military course there at the now-decommisioned Fort Ord. The green fees were reasonable and the course was interesting as well. Especially the back 9. Lots of doglegs and hazards. Anything missing the fairway ends up in some of 48 gazillion trees that line the course and costs at least 1 shot. All in all a good morning. Nice people.

I got out as a single on Friday morning and ended up playing by myself, as it seems to be up to the single to find a group to play with. Other than that, the course is immaculate. I played the "new" 9 (Canyon Crest) and it is my favorite of the 3 nines. When I did catch up to a foursome, the player services person (marshal) facilitated my playing through. The greens on Creekside course appear to have been cross-cut, but it had no effect on how they played. This is an awesome course, and there was nobody on it. Highly, highly recommended.

I can't remeber when I've seen the course in as good a shape as it's in now. The fairways are really green and nice, and they actually are mowing some shape into them. The tee boxes could use a little TLC but all in all not too bad. The greens are half Poa now are very bumpy. Lots of putts left short due to the bumpy ride. If only they would roll them...It's a fun track in great shape with some great people.

I played there today for the first time since the washout. As others have said, the course is in great shape. The aprons were punched recently, so they are bumpy to putt through. It was quite windy and there was no marshalling so play came to a stop on the 10th hole and was a wait for the rest of the back 9. Tried to get out to play 3 more but we would have been the 4th group off the front so we packed it in...all in all it's a great $35 worth of golf.

I played HD today for the first time. I was able to get on immediately as a single. Good driving range. No putting green open. The fairways are at best fair. The greens are beautiful for a muni, and are really soft so the ball sticks where it hits for the most part. The front nine is straightforward, and the back nine has 2 mickey-mouse holes with huge straight uphill shots. The clubhouse staff was great. All-in-all it's worth it, except for one thing: The greenskeeping staff are incredibly disrespectful. Not by saying things, but on several occasions all through the day the crew would be in the way. Hole 1, we're on the tee and 2 if them drive out into the middle of the landing are and start working without even paying attention to the fact that we were getting ready to hit. Hole 2, a guy is up there fixing pitch marks on the green and we can't even get his attention to let him know we're hitting. Hole 4, we get ready to play to our approach shots, and a guy hooks up a hose and starts watering the green as if no one is even on the course. They would drive right by you while you're putting and basically had no sense of courtesy. It was a huge distraction. Otherwise it is a fun little course.