Played a Saturday round this weekend at Encino with a friend and got paired up with a nice Asian couple who were great fun. We played from the blue tees and I got a push cart for around $50 or so. Was... Continue »

Played a Saturday round this weekend at Encino with a friend and got paired up with a nice Asian couple who were great fun. We played from the blue tees and I got a push cart for around $50 or so. Was it worth that?

Well, in the past two visits to Encino, I've had nothing really but good things to say about this often dissed course that many simply don't hold in such high regard. Is it pretty straight forward and easy? Sure. Are there exciting green complexes? Not really. Are there lush conditions and beautiful surroundings? Not particularly. But if you're looking to really build some confidence back into your game, especially off the tee, it's a good call.

But right now, it's not in the same good shape as it had been on my two prior visits. The greens continue to be above average for a track that gets this much traffic, but there were definitely a few more ball marks and goose remnants on the greens than I remember from prior visits. But overall they remain quite good and run at nice speeds, hold lines and are very receptive to approach shots. They do a good job here on the greens and that should be recognized.

Unfortunately, the dry start to the fall and winter has been testing on the fairways and rough. So many thin lies, so many burned out areas, so many dirt sections - it's a shame because the overall aesthetic really suffers and it's already not a pristine piece of property to begin with. The rough is okay but also plenty of hodge-podge in overall quality.

Bunkers are okay - nothing too good, but nothing too bad either. And the tee boxes were mostly just okay, but a few really were a bit ragged and beaten up. Some attention should be given to them as soon as possible.

POP was quite slow, clocking in at around 5:15. There were some good-sized pile-ups at the par 3s, and just the overall pace of the place was languid. Luckily though there was a cart around at the 8th hole to get some drinks and snacks and they drove around throughout the round.

I still like Encino and think it's a good place to work on your game, but it's currently not in optimal shape with the exception of the greens as usual.

Played Encino golf course Monday morning 12/11 at 9am. Over the past few weeks this course has really dried out. The fairways are thin with quite a few bare areas. There are some good areas also, but ... Continue »

Played Encino golf course Monday morning 12/11 at 9am. Over the past few weeks this course has really dried out. The fairways are thin with quite a few bare areas. There are some good areas also, but the fairways are quite thin and dried out. The rough is blotchy, with bare areas and hard dirt. Although many of the areas surrounding the greens are decent, some of them were mostly dirt, and hard as a rock. I was in two greenside bunkers. One was very hard with little sand, and the other had adequate sand and was quite firm. The greens are the best part of the course. They were medium fast, rolling smoothly, and holding well hit shots. Overall, I rate this course as only fair.

Friday twilight round at Encino this week, and happy to see that the greens at this heavy traffic course are still in great shape like the only other time I played here like six months ago. It's reall... Continue »

Friday twilight round at Encino this week, and happy to see that the greens at this heavy traffic course are still in great shape like the only other time I played here like six months ago. It's really refreshing to play a Muni like this that has greens as good as many higher end or even private courses right now. Absolute top marks to the staff for that.

Played the black tees (6900 yards) walking with a push cart for $25, so that's a great deal. Apart from the greens, obviously the standard is going to drop a little bit, but I've definitely played worse this year. The fairways certainly have many dried out areas but the lies were still mostly good all afternoon. The rough is actually pretty lush and nice and easy to hit from in most areas. But the fairways themselves are hardly lush, but perfectly playable.

Tee boxes are a little beat up for sure and could be a bit better, but that's always the least of any golfer's worry on a course. The sand that I was in was actually pretty good, much to my surprise. It wasn't exactly of the fluffy variety, but ample and very easy to hit your ball out of if you find yourself there.

A few doglegs here and there, but it's mostly a straight-ahead golf course with very little trouble to get into. But again, from the black tees the defense is its length, including some very long par 3s, including one at 230 yards. POP was really good today as well as we finished in under four hours.

Encino does the job right now so go get your fix.

Immediately after finishing my round on Balboa, was able to get out on Encino without any delay what-so-ever. In fact I was able to tee off as a single, which is crazy. There were a number of grou... Continue »

Immediately after finishing my round on Balboa, was able to get out on Encino without any delay what-so-ever. In fact I was able to tee off as a single, which is crazy. There were a number of groups in front of me, so I played two balls to slow me down. Although it felt like forever, I actually finished in under four hours.

Encino is in a little better condition than was Balboa. Fairways had better coverage and the greens seemed to roll more true. I marvel at their overall condition. Playing these two courses for $20 each is a true value. (Sure wish ANY of the cities in Orange County would provide some affordable golf) As I am a big fan of traditional golf and also a "walker" these course meet the criteria perfectly.

Both courses provide good solid basic golf, with enough challenge to keep one's interest, but without having so many hazards and forced carries which create delay and lost balls.

Played on Sunday, 9/10 with a mid morning tee time on a rather warm day. It took us around 4 - 4 1/4 hours to play 18 as the course was not busy due to the heat.

Golf course had decent coverage o... Continue »

Played on Sunday, 9/10 with a mid morning tee time on a rather warm day. It took us around 4 - 4 1/4 hours to play 18 as the course was not busy due to the heat.

Golf course had decent coverage on the fairways. With the weather being so hot, it seemed like they were always watering here and there. There were bare spots and divots on the fairways. There were a few very wet spots on the fairways. You can still play. The tee boxes had good coverage too tho' there were some rather large divots here. I didn't care for the sand as it was mostly hard packed. The rough was rather lush and deep so it can be hard to find your balls if it lands in the rough. Greens were in great shape. It seemed to roll rather slowly as they were watering a lot of greens while we played.

This is one of my favorite golf courses to play in the SFV. The par 3s are fairly long but the fairways are very wide so you can swing away.

I have been playing the Sepulveda courses lately because the city now has replay rates. While its bad for business, I like it that golf courses are not nearly as crowded as they where 20 years ago. I ... Continue »

I have been playing the Sepulveda courses lately because the city now has replay rates. While its bad for business, I like it that golf courses are not nearly as crowded as they where 20 years ago. I can play 36 holes in 7 to 8 hours. Where as in the past it would have been a 10 to 11 hour day. One effect of less revenue is you don't see course marshal's here or almost any other muni on the weekday. So today I saw things I have never seen in my 34 years of golf. A threesome was playing out of one bag. They were driving their carts ON THE GREEN. It is sad when courses become so complacent that fellow golfers have to take the initiative to patrol the ridiculousness of clueless "golfers". Conditions today were overall good. There is nothing here in superb shape and nothing in bad shape either. The greens roll good despite being a bit soft and slow.

Played Encino yesterday with some friends. The greens were the best I've ever experienced there. The course is in pretty good shape for a municipal. They're suppose to aerate at the beginning of ne... Continue »

Played Encino yesterday with some friends. The greens were the best I've ever experienced there. The course is in pretty good shape for a municipal. They're suppose to aerate at the beginning of next month so if you want to play a course that's not to tough with great true running greens, get to it.

Having played Balboa before but never Encino, had the chance to give it a shot and cross it off the list with a 9:52am tee time and hitting from the blue tees. My expectations (especially a day after ... Continue »

Having played Balboa before but never Encino, had the chance to give it a shot and cross it off the list with a 9:52am tee time and hitting from the blue tees. My expectations (especially a day after Rancho San Marcos) were decidedly humble. I know the deal.

I'm not going to say that I was overwhelmed in any way, but we can say that I was pleasantly surprised in a few good ways. The main one was the greens. They are in really great shape. They were not particularly fast at all (but certainly not slow - let's call it medium), but were fantastic surfaces with little to no damage at all, great consistency and coverage, and held shots nicely all the while rolling true. Cheers to the staff for that.

The rest of the course was okay, with some parts not great. There were some good sections of fairway to be found, but mostly a lot was a bit overgrown on the sides and just past the tee boxes, and it was often hard to find the line between fairway and rough. Speaking of the rough, it's rough. There's also a lot of debris around, including many of the fallen trees post storm. Definitely some thin lies to be found as well - not sure how well this course drains.

Tee boxes were what you would expect - a little beat up and in need of attention. And the bunkers were very firm and unforgiving. I was in three bunkers throughout the round and never once needed to take any sand, but instead just picking them clean off the dirt.

But it was a very hot, beautiful day and I was not too disappointed to be there. Having played Balboa before, and despite their obvious similarities, I do think I lean more towards the Encino side as being just a bit more fun and varied from hole to hole - and mind you that's not a big lean, but a lean nonetheless.

Played as a walking threesome on Monday, 2/13. The fairways were quite wet in many areas. The fairway grass is blotchy. You get some decent lies, and some muddy lies. Fairways are in fair winter condi... Continue »

Played as a walking threesome on Monday, 2/13. The fairways were quite wet in many areas. The fairway grass is blotchy. You get some decent lies, and some muddy lies. Fairways are in fair winter condition. We played lift, clean, and place all day. The tee boxes are in decent shape. The two bunkers I was in had good sand. The greens were the best I've seen them. They were lush, green, and rolled medium fast. For a quick Monday round using the walking senior rate of $20, it was OK. There are several very large trees that have been uprooted and have fallen down on a few holes.