Golf Course Reviews
Golf Course Reviews: California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Utah, Florida, Hawaii!Greens are outstanding—some of the best in the county. Fast, smooth, and fun. (A couple have some issues of fungus or something around the edges, but it rarely comes into play.). The bunkers are great. Most fairways are in decent shape. Pace of play was sluggish until the threesome in front of us let our foursome play through. After we played through, the Marshal thanked us for asking them to let us play through because—according to him—they were backing up the whole course. I’m not sure how our playing through helped those behind us or why he wouldn’t directly address the problem, but after passing the three sole on hole 12, we never saw another golfer. Love the layout here. Lots of fun.
Played March 4: Fairways and tee boxes are beat up, the greens are slow, the pace of play was good, the sand traps are in good shape, and there are some flowers blooming.
Played Jan 16.
The good: the bunkers were outstanding and the greens were in very good shape. They laid new sod in a large portion of the 6th fairway. The marshal eventually asked the slow-playing groups ahead of us to pick up the pace. We ended up finishing in 4 hours and 20 minutes after a front 9 that took 2.5 hours. I put this in the “good” category because we could tell they were working to push the slow-playing groups.
The not-so-good: the 3rd, 6th, 7th, and a few other fairways still have large areas that have no grass and/or ground under repair. I don’t see this improving unless they lay new sod in these areas. If the grass won’t grow with all the rain we’ve received, there’s something wrong (disease, pests, something…) Overall, the course is in much better shape than last year—but still several steps below what it used to be.
The good: the bunkers were outstanding and the greens were in very good shape. They laid new sod in a large portion of the 6th fairway. The marshal eventually asked the slow-playing groups ahead of us to pick up the pace. We ended up finishing in 4 hours and 20 minutes after a front 9 that took 2.5 hours. I put this in the “good” category because we could tell they were working to push the slow-playing groups.
The not-so-good: the 3rd, 6th, 7th, and a few other fairways still have large areas that have no grass and/or ground under repair. I don’t see this improving unless they lay new sod in these areas. If the grass won’t grow with all the rain we’ve received, there’s something wrong (disease, pests, something…) Overall, the course is in much better shape than last year—but still several steps below what it used to be.
The greens are still not back to where you’d expect them to be for a course of this caliber. But they’re heading in the right direction. The rest of the course is in very good shape. The customer service (free valet parking) and gourmet food and beverage options (plus free ice cream and other goodies in the comfort stations) really makes it a treat to play here. Lots of other clubs could learn a thing or two from the Bridges and Discovery Land Company golf courses. (Bridges isn’t a Discovery Land Company course, but they do some similar things that make the experience exceptional.)
Greens are running fast and smooth—maybe the best greens in the county at the moment. Fairways are dormant Bermuda (dyed green) and the rough is generally short. Course is busy—but pace of play is generally acceptable given the volume of play.
Fairways are in better shape than last year—but a few are still struggling and splotchy. The greens are mostly healthy, but relatively slow. The bunkers are outstanding. Pace of play was sluggish. Conditioning is about average, but the layout and location are outstanding. Would really like to see them do more to reduce slow play.
Except for a few tee boxes that were a little beat up, everything is in excellent condition. Greens were outstanding. Pace of play was 4 hours.
Cart path restrictions have been lifted on both courses. Course is in excellent shape from tee to green. Pace of play was slow. One of the few courses in this part of town that isn’t surrounded by houses. Pro shop guys and attendants were friendly and helpful. Recommended.
Greens are still recovering, but heading in the right direction. They’ve already announced that they will keep the greens slower in the heat of the next summer and will move some of the tournaments to different times of the year to minimize or avoid the problems they had with the greens this fall. The rest of the course is in very nice shape. Great course!!
Rams Hill used to be a course that was worth a 2-hour drive. The conditioning was outstanding, the pace of play brisk, and the layout memorable. Unfortunately, while the layout is still fun, the course conditioning is subpar and the pace of play is sluggish. Greens are slow with dead spots, and there are problems around some of the collars. The fairways are okay, but still have areas of patchy growth. Frankly, the conditions pale in comparison to the better courses in the Palm Desert that get just as much (or more) play. I understand they did a lot of work this summer in an attempt to fix the problems from last year—but if you’re expecting the type of course conditions that Ram’s Hill used to be famous for, you’ll be sadly disappointed. I wish it wasn’t so.
Greens have healed nicely from the recent aeration. They are overseeding the tee boxes on the par 3s and the par 5 18th. All of the par 3’s (and no 18) are playing from either the red or (in the case of 18) the white tee box. Course conditions are very good.
The greens have been aerated (large holes) and HEAVILY sanded. Recovery time is probably no less than 20 days.
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