I played here yesterday for the first time. I have been very intrigued by all the recent reviews. I hadn’t played it as Moreno Valley Ranch- in fact ... » More

I played here yesterday for the first time. I have been very intrigued by all the recent reviews. I hadn’t played it as Moreno Valley Ranch- in fact I don’t even remember ever hearing of it. With a rare Saturday off and some other plans in the general area, I thought it would be a good time to check it out.

I arrived very early for my 7:51 am tee time. The place was already buzzing with activity. People and golf bags everywhere! My first thought was ‘uh oh, this is going to be a long day.’ After a fast and friendly check in, I headed up to the putting green to kill some time. The starter was there and I could see that he was keeping things running very smoothly. My playing partners then arrived and we headed out.

As soon as we started, I just knew I would really like this course. The view from the slightly elevated first tee box was of a very undulating fairway heading towards water near the green. I was filled with excited anticipation. Such a change from the usual first tee nerves! The rest of the front nine was just as much fun. There were lots of trees, mounds and dips, and one really deep drop that, thankfully, my partner was able to warn me about.

The back (Mountain) nine was so awesome, especially holes 12-16, which are so different than the rest of the course. There are very few trees here and some extreme elevation changes. The views from 15 and 16 seem endless. Never having seen Moreno Valley from any higher than the 60 fwy, it was stunning to say the least.

Course conditions were very good overall. There are some brownish areas in the fairways, but the coverage is good. The rough varied from short grass to deep clover. The mounds along the sides of the fairways had lots of thin to bare areas, but hopefully those don’t come into play. The tee boxes (red) had a lot of divots. I was surprised figuring they don’t get as much play as the others. The bunkers had very nice sand. The one I was in was clean and raked. The greens were fast (much more so than the practice green) and many times hard to read. They were a challenge for sure!

The beverage cart came by several times. POP was 4 hours. I played well but having some familiarity with the course could really help me score better. I am excited to play here again, hopefully very soon.
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This is a review of the nine-hole par 3 Little Wick course. I played it today just to take a break after a long morning of driving.

This is an ... » More

This is a review of the nine-hole par 3 Little Wick course. I played it today just to take a break after a long morning of driving.

This is an unusual, beautiful, and challenging par three course. It is a long cart ride from the clubhouse down a road and over a hill to the course. The routing was very confusing but I finally made my way there. In the center of the course is the Watering Hole food & drink spot. It is surrounded by three golf holes with water features. There is a very large patio seating area which I hear is usually very crowded. There weren't too many people out there today, though, I'm sure due to the 106° temperature.

The course is very interesting. Each hole has three sets of tees. I played the middle set making the longest hole being 145 yards. The shortest was about 88. The layout was very fun with lots of mounds and swales. The fourth hole has a very high drop from the tee box. That was my favorite and my only birdie of the day. The conditions were wonderful. Tee boxes and fairways were completely green and lush. I was not in any bunkers but they looked good. The greens were a surprise. They were so fast it was like putting on glass. I was excited to try out my putter with the new grip I just put on but that wasn't enough to help. Only familiarity with the greens will help me score better there.
There are several areas throughout the course with signs marked "chill zone" with chairs and even hammocks hanging from the trees!

Getting a glimpse of the Big Wick made me sure I'm going to come out here again to play that. The courses will be closed October 5- 27th for overseeding and will be cart path only until November 9th.
Really looking forward to a return visit
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Casta del Sol golf course is now the Oso Creek Golf Course. On Sept 8, the Mission Viejo City Council voted to officially change the name after the ... » More

Casta del Sol golf course is now the Oso Creek Golf Course. On Sept 8, the Mission Viejo City Council voted to officially change the name after the city held a renaming contest. The course is still under the management of American Golf corp.

There is some remodeling being done on the clubhouse. All pro shop business and dining is on out the patio. They have it set up very attractively and the exterior of the club house is already looking so much better. On the downside, though, the only current bathroom facilities are parking lot porta-potties.

I’m so glad that I played early – and not just because of the warm weather. By the time I teed off at 6:30am, the place was packed with the check-in line going back to the parking lot. I know there was a men’s club playing as I ran into a friend making the turn as I came off the 18th (which I birdied for the first time!) I was paired with a family threesome and we finished in 3 hours. I can only imagine how long those later rounds would take.

The course conditions were pretty much the same as always. The fairways were a colorful mix of many different grasses. Other than several muddy areas, the coverage was good. The tee boxes were shaggy but had less damage than expected. I wasn’t in any bunkers but one of my playing partners was. I saw a large amount of sand fly when he hit, so at least that one trap was in good shape. The greens were very soft, rolled medium speed but had way too many scars from badly repaired marks -such a shame. There was a sign saying the course will be closed for a couple days the first week of October for fairway aerification, but I don’t remember exactly which days.
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In the mood for any course shorter than yesterday’s Los Lagos, I decided on one of my favorites. I’ve played here many times, both before and after t... » More

In the mood for any course shorter than yesterday’s Los Lagos, I decided on one of my favorites. I’ve played here many times, both before and after the renovation, and just realized I’ve never posted a review – oops! . I was paired with another single and we started on time at 7:15. There didn’t seem to be many people around. We realized later that there were players all over the course but the spacing was good. No waiting anywhere.

This course has everything - good customer service, a very fun layout, is (almost) always in really good shape, and is fun to walk. It’s short with only four par 4s but there are some good hills. There is a nice variety of holes with either tees or greens elevated and dog legs on two of the par 4s. There are huge trees everywhere and water on the first hole.

Conditions today were in the ‘almost really good’ category. The tee boxes were badly chewed up. It didn’t affect play but it’s just not so nice to look at. The bunkers were filled with dark brown soft dirt that was very nice to hit from. Visually, I really liked the contrast in colors against the beautifully green fairways. The greens were soft, smooth and rolled true. The bad part was the course was so wet! The rough, in parts, was suck-your shoes-off marshland. There were a lot of areas marked GUR and a lot more that should have been. The tenth fairway was spongy wet but still played nicely. We just couldn’t figure out why there were two maintenance guys out watering on the back nine.

POP was perfect at 3 hours. I always enjoy it here and will keep it as one of my go-to courses.
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I enjoyed an early morning round today with Ringworld. I frequently play Mesa Linda but hadn’t played Los Lagos for about 10 years. Wanting a change... » More

I enjoyed an early morning round today with Ringworld. I frequently play Mesa Linda but hadn’t played Los Lagos for about 10 years. Wanting a change of scenery and a good walking course, I decided to give it a try. The weather was overcast and cool. There were very few people out that early. After a fast and friendly check in we teed off on time at 7am, paired with another twosome.

Other than a few overly wet spots, the tee boxes and fairways were in great shape- green and lush. The rough was short and even. I was in a couple of bunkers, both of which were very damp but playable. The greens were very nice- soft, rolled medium speed , and had few marks.

The layout is nice with wide fairways and enough trees to be attractive but not trouble-making. At 5925 yards from the forward tees, though, this course is just too long for me to score well. There was little hope of reaching the par 3s in one without using my driver, which does reduce the fun factor a bit.

POP was great. We never waited and there was no one behind us. I recommend this course for others but I will stick to playing Mesa Linda.
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