Capped off the trip at Desert Pines. I knew going in it would be tough since it was a Pete Dye course but compared to Lost Canyons and some of Mr. Dye’s other creations I've played Desert Pines seemed pretty tame. I was hitting the ball mostly straight that day so that helped since the fairways are rather narrow. Greens were in excellent condition rolling fast and challenging. Pretty small although with lots of intimating approaches due to water and of course Pete Dye signature bunkers. Fairways were lush but more divot damage than I expected. Service was excellent and Pace of Play 4 ½ on a weekday. I enjoyed this course.

Played Rio Secco and Tuscany over the break. Tuscany Golf Club was an obvious step down from a layout and experience standpoint but its playing conditions were relatively comparable. Greens were moderately fast and smooth, Fairways lush (though shaggy), Rough lush, Tee Boxes lush, Bunkers well maintained. The layout is fairly open off the tee with most of the challenge coming on the greens. Homes line most of the course but they are well off the fairways. I enjoyed the elevation changes and felt $85 was a fair price. Favorite hole was 18 (even though I doubled it). My biggest gripe was it took us about 5 hours to finish on weekday. Also, it was farther then I expected from the Excalibur where we were staying. I've experienced it once and not sure if I’ll return but overall enjoyed the day.

Played Strawberry Farms today. Great course, good service, not in the pristine shape I expected. Still needs some time to recover from recent maintenance. The greens were a little bumpy and not rolling as nice as I remember. It was cart path only but that’s not too big of a deal because the fairways are very narrow so you don’t have to walk far. Accuracy is essential to score well and a good putting stroke helps. Oh bring your sand game too. It’s a flat course for the most part with slightly elevated well guarded greens. I would give the course another two weeks and it’s going to be perfect.

Came back to PGA of Southern California but this time to play the Legends course. Last time I played the Champions course I was very disappointed with the wet conditions. Today on the Legends course, it was a different story. Course conditions were rather good with exception to some bunkers. Greens were rolling true, fairways were lush and not too wet, rough spotting in some place but good, tee boxes a little shaggy but good, and pace of play just under 4 ½ hours. My guess it they are jazzing the place up for the coming Champions Tour Q-School next week. Hope they continue the excellent up keep when the event is over. Either way, I’ll be coming back. The layouts on the Legends & Champions are outstanding and the price is an excellent value.

After reading some of the posted comments, I was pleasantly surprised by the playing conditions this weekend. Greens were in good shape, fairways a bit thin but playable. Back nine is one of the best in Orange County. Worth the green fee in my opinion.

Played last month. Lot’s of soggy, re-soded, and dead areas in the fairways. Many of the resoded areas were right in your landing area which was frustrating. Noticed spotty areas in the rough too. Greens had many unfixed ball marks but rolled decent. Bunkers were in good shape. I have played PGA of SoCal many times in the past and the conditions of the course last month were by far the worst I had ever seen it. They normally keep the courses in outstanding condition so needless to say it was a let down. Still a great layout at a great price. Wait while for them to get back on track.