Went over to DeBell as a single this Sunday morning, 2/16, using the GK voucher for a 10:28, teeing off with another single. The greens throughout the course were in pretty good shape: fairly quick, g... Continue »

Went over to DeBell as a single this Sunday morning, 2/16, using the GK voucher for a 10:28, teeing off with another single. The greens throughout the course were in pretty good shape: fairly quick, generally smooth, firm with minimal marks. Other aspects of the course were mixed with the back nine conditions overall pretty decent while much of the front nine worse for wear. While teeing grounds throughout were pretty level, they were a mix of mainly sandy dirt and, to a lesser degree, grass patches. Sometimes that grass was thin and the overall surface was relatively even, other times the grass patches were lumpy relative to the sandy dirt and felt less stable under foot when taking a stance. I would say the majority of the holes on the front nine were chewed up from the tees through the tight fairways, with the greenside grass lumpy and frequently offering difficult lies. The eighth and ninth holes were OK, and the back nine better as to the general shape of the fairways and green side grass. The net impression I came away with was that the portions of the course that are beat up need a time out and more water than they probably will get. The course is still playable and the majority of it is in decent or good shape. The minority that needs TLC is still significant, and it really needs that TLC.

The single I was paired with was a pleasant older gent, the course was busy to the tune of a 4.75 hr round and, walking the course, I came away enjoyably worn out. I actually scored better early though the more beat up holes and took the beating on the nicer back nine. I like this course occasionally for the nasty little challenge it can be, and I want to support it. But after today, I have to be honest and say I'll be taking out of the rotation for a while.

Played 11-12-19 with JohnnyGK and t8fish teeing off around 9:45 and finishing in a little under four hours with some minor waiting throughout the day. Tee boxes were mostly decent with some divot dama... Continue »

Played 11-12-19 with JohnnyGK and t8fish teeing off around 9:45 and finishing in a little under four hours with some minor waiting throughout the day. Tee boxes were mostly decent with some divot damage on most par threes and on some of the short par fours. Fairways were mostly in good condition with some brown and thin spots here and there. Rough was a mix of long, short, thin and bare. There were a lot of thin and muddy spots around some of the greens making chipping more difficult. Was in three greenside bunkers, front right side bunker on first hole had very nice sand and in good condition, the other two that I was in were thin, firm and had a lot of rocks in them. Greens still need a little more time to recover from being punched, they were on the soft side, rolling medium/fast and a little bumpy. Probably one of the tougher 5600 yard courses you will ever play.

A few days late, but here's my wrap up of DeBell with Johnny and rgm2525 on Tuesday, 11/12. In general, DeBell is the little guy in the bar you end up in a scrap with, thinking it will be an easy conc... Continue »

A few days late, but here's my wrap up of DeBell with Johnny and rgm2525 on Tuesday, 11/12. In general, DeBell is the little guy in the bar you end up in a scrap with, thinking it will be an easy conclusion in your favor until you realize your first swing missed, you've been hit twice, you are now on one knee and the room is spinning. The first few holes in particular are teasingly short, but unforgiving if you get off line. They demand you execute strategically and precisely or you can get behind quickly and early. In the bigger picture, discounting the par threes leaves you 14 holes, on only three of which you can see the green from the tee — very few grip-and-rip opportunities here. As far as actual conditions, in the interests of efficiency I'm going to build off Johnny's report, which you should all read first. His report on the conditions is pretty much spot on. I would subtly differ from him in that I think the greens were just about as quick as one would want (my opinion) relative to the slopes and shapes of the greens there. There are already some greens that are virtually impossible to stop your ball from above the hole. I really enjoyed them on the day, but if improvement means getting quicker, they might end up inappropriately quick for the topography (again, IMHO). I've been at outings with Johnny but had never played with him directly, so I finally got to see his prowess with the putter, with which he is an assassin. He made a bunch and when it didn't go in, it never missed by much, so his threshold for putting challenge would exceed mine. All the rest was as reported. I was in enough bunkers and quickly found they were firm enough to partially deflect my sand wedge. I eventually found my gap wedge had a more appropriate bite. While some bunkers were pretty clean, many had conspicuous pebbles, and one in particular was like a mini-quarry, heavily strewn with pebbles and small stones. That was the exception to the overall very enjoyable conditions. The additional charms of DeBell are the dramatic, aforementioned topography and the views they provide, the relative isolation of the canyon setting and resident wildlife, and the nice upstairs bar and restaurant that has a large outdoor deck with views in three directions — one of the cooler places to hang out post-round. I was fortunate to have excellent company in Johnny and Ron. Watching Ron is always a clinic. He makes it look easy — for him, at least. DeBell is quirky and challenging enough that I wouldn't want a steady diet of it, but it is a good course with unique charms that draw me back periodically. Every once in a while I have to see if I can still take a punch.

Teed it up Tuesday with GKers t8fish and rgm2525. Great time!

This is a shotmaker’s golf course with diabolical small greens. If you want to enjoy this golf course you take what it gives you. Unles... Continue »

Teed it up Tuesday with GKers t8fish and rgm2525. Great time!

This is a shotmaker’s golf course with diabolical small greens. If you want to enjoy this golf course you take what it gives you. Unless you are laser precise off the tee you will rarely hit driver. Don’t let the yardage fool you into thinking this golf course is a push over. I think there are 4 holes that are straight and the rest doglegs winding up/down the Burbank hills. You can lose a lot of golf ball out there if your accuracy is off. NEVER be above the hole on a putting green – LOL. All said this is very unique fun track with a lot of character. After the round the Hilltop Restaurant above the proshop is a great call. Affordably priced tasty food and relaxed sport bar type atmosphere. One of my favorite places to eat after a round.

I thought it had been longer since I played DeBell Golf Club but actually last time was Spring 2017 following the heavy winter rain season. Playing it two years later in the Fall following a very dry summer presented different conditions. I think the golf course was about one week away from a full green aeration recovery. However I thought the golf course played well and was in fair shape. The greens were the highlight rolling mostly smooth and holding shots. I think over the next few weeks it will get progressively in better shape as the greens get smoother and faster. But don’t wish for them to get too much faster as in some cases it is already difficult to control distance from behind the pin. I found the fairways to be mostly lush with occasional thin to bare areas. Browning is evident in areas where irrigation coverage is not adequate but it’s my understanding sometime next year improvements are going to be made to the entire irrigation system. Bunkers are definitely the sore spot with many small rocks littering most. After the round I spoke with the GM with the new management company and there are plans to replenish every bunker on the course. In fact they have plans to improve just about every aspect of the course.

I recommend playing here for those that want to test their game and enjoy a very unique golf experience.

Played 9-16-19 early morning walking as a single for $15(senior 55) and getting around the course in a little over 2 hours. Tee boxes were in okay shape mostly level with decent coverage (except 16) w... Continue »

Played 9-16-19 early morning walking as a single for $15(senior 55) and getting around the course in a little over 2 hours. Tee boxes were in okay shape mostly level with decent coverage (except 16) with some divot damage on par threes and short par fours. Fairways for the most part were in good shape with good lies but did have some brown and bare areas. Rough was a little thick and wet this morning, with some bare spots here and there. Was in one greenside bunker on 11 that was a little thin with some small rocks in it. Greens were mostly in good shape with a few having some issues around the edges. They were a little on the soft side and rolling medium/slow with an occasional bump. Overall course conditions were just okay but hard to beat the price.

bought a time from golf now for 11:20. arrived at 10:45 and the starter (Ethan) told me i was too early to check in. came back at 11:00 and finally at 11:10 he checked me in. Ethan must be related to... Continue »

bought a time from golf now for 11:20. arrived at 10:45 and the starter (Ethan) told me i was too early to check in. came back at 11:00 and finally at 11:10 he checked me in. Ethan must be related to management or a council person because he has no business interacting with customers as he has no customer service skills. no one had teed off while i was waiting, than we had three groups on the first tee (we being third). a threesome, a foursome and our threesome. the two groups in front of us had no concept of golf etiquette. the foursome became a threesome because the single that joined them was fed up before he reached the first hole. we were able to get by this group, due to them forgetting clubs on the first hole. we arrived at the sixth hole with the now foursome just leaving the tee box, but would not allow us to play through (no marshals on the course). by the ninth hole we decided to bypass the hole and we saw no one the rest of the round.
as for the course, this is a target course as there is little need for a driver. tee boxes weren't in the best of shape, especially #16 as it was all dirt. fairway were pretty good, some unfilled divots and wet areas. greens were soft with nearly all greens having unrepaired divots. traps were terrible from have no sand, a lot of rocks or water run off damage.
i hadn't played this course in about seven years and don't plan on returning.
good luck if you choose to play this course

Bought a voucher for Debell a few months back that expires in a few weeks so thought it would be a great place to take my son to play. Course was 5300 from whites so it won't be too long for a junior... Continue »

Bought a voucher for Debell a few months back that expires in a few weeks so thought it would be a great place to take my son to play. Course was 5300 from whites so it won't be too long for a junior. But then I just realized it has been over 2 years since my last play here and now I remember why. Check in was slow. Only 1 person in the proshop and he was not very friendly. Processed my voucher. And then sent me off. I walked to the cart and realized there is no key so I had to go back to the proshop and was told you have to sign in. Why he didn't say that in the first place, I don't know. POP was about 5 hours 20 mins. Given that I have read somewhere on their website that tee times after 10:00am will be monitored for a 4:30 pace but never saw a marshall all day. Not sure how they monitor the POP.... Saw the bev cart 3 x during our round though. Spoke to a few members in the front group and they say it is pretty open during weekdays but horrendous on weekends. Conditions. Tee box mostly level although some are pretty chewed up. Greens are decent - good roll, some bare and damaged spots but pins were away so did not affect play. Fairways were hit or miss but still lush in most areas. Bunker I was in was well stocked although not the nice sand. Some of the holes are pretty nice and certainly is a course that will test your skills. I enjoyed playing the course on a regular outing but the POP for a short course is just too much to bear. I wouldn't be back for awhile.

Played here on Aug 3rd early in the morning and the course is in great shape. The bunker renovation on 1 and 18 is going to be awesome once it's finished. Tee boxes are in pretty bad shape since you... Continue »

Played here on Aug 3rd early in the morning and the course is in great shape. The bunker renovation on 1 and 18 is going to be awesome once it's finished. Tee boxes are in pretty bad shape since you are hitting irons off of most of them. Hard to keep them in pristine shape with so many players every day going through. Greens are in great shape and are the true protector of this course... get above the hole on some of these holes and you're praying for a two putt. Fairways are great for the most part with the exception of 5 which is a hot mess but is coming back, albeit slowly. Pace of play can be a bit brutal in the afternoons.

Played today in a nice POP of 3 H. Course was very quite? Found the tee boxes to be hit/miss, depending upon which hole. Fairways had good coverage in some areas, browned out areas in some and GUR in ... Continue »

Played today in a nice POP of 3 H. Course was very quite? Found the tee boxes to be hit/miss, depending upon which hole. Fairways had good coverage in some areas, browned out areas in some and GUR in some. Some decent roll and acceptable lies. Rough was about 1/2 inch on the outside of fairways. Having avoided the bunkers, all I can say, is they appeared fine and heard no complaints from anyone. Greens were in good shape. They were a little soft (void of divots +) but putted/chipped well. Customer service was excellent at all levels.