Got out for a round in before work Wednesday, 8/3...teeing off at 7:04am as a twosome. POP was great, we finished in about 3.5 hrs. and waited on maybe two shots all day. Love that!

Overall, the... Continue »

Got out for a round in before work Wednesday, 8/3...teeing off at 7:04am as a twosome. POP was great, we finished in about 3.5 hrs. and waited on maybe two shots all day. Love that!

Overall, the course is in very nice shape right now. They're putting a lot of water on the fairways and greens. In some places, maybe a bit too much because we encountered some standing water.
The greens were the best part of the course...very soft and a bit slow, probably 8.5-9 on the stimp. They rolled very true with minimal bumpiness...I rolled in 5 putts over 10 ft, so they definitely were holding lines.
The tee boxes were in pretty good shape, mostly level with nice coverage. Obviously, the par 3's were more beat up than others.
The rough was pretty consistent, about 2-3 inches and thick, and penal. I had gotten out the night before on Balboa for a quick 9, and the rough was almost 5 inches. It was insane. I was happy they had cut the rough down Wednesday morning, because 5 inch rough is way too long for a muni...too much time spent looking for balls just off the fairway.
Sand traps weren't in the best of shape. Mostly fine, loose dirt that had a crust on top. Playable, but not ideal. My partner had to pull his ball out of the trap in front of hole 8...it looked like a small lake.

I was pretty impressed with the conditions for the middle of summer. Most of my golf this time of year is played in Ventura county, but if you can get out early or late to beat the heat, Encino/Balboa is in a good place.

Played 7/18/17 at 8 am and finished in 3:45.

Course was in the best shape I have seen it in a while. Tee boxes were well taken care of, the fairways had good coverage-- only a few dead spots, rough... Continue »

Played 7/18/17 at 8 am and finished in 3:45.

Course was in the best shape I have seen it in a while. Tee boxes were well taken care of, the fairways had good coverage-- only a few dead spots, rough was what you expect from a city course, and the greens rolled well but very very slow. As usual there were ball marks on the greens but not too many, and always took some time to repair stray marks. We didn't wait on a single shot and didn't see another group until we got to the 18th tee. There was a tournament behind us and they were a good 3-4 holes behind us when we finished. Make sure you're not teeing it up behind a tournament if you want an enjoyable round.

Played as part of the match play qualifier. It was hot. The course are really in some of the best shape I have seen in years. The tees are full and have minimal divot damage. They are firm but soft en... Continue »

Played as part of the match play qualifier. It was hot. The course are really in some of the best shape I have seen in years. The tees are full and have minimal divot damage. They are firm but soft enough to get a tee into with ease. The fairways are firm and have good coverage. The ball is sitting up well but you can take a divot and not hurt your wrist. There is some fuzz around the greens but it is well taken care of for the most part. The rough is hit and miss and can be very thick in some of the shady spots. It will usually cost you to be in the rough bu then again that is what is supposed to happen.

The greens were full and lush. They ran medium to a bit slow and were especially slow uphill (as expected). The greens were on the soft side but not squishy. They held a shot well.
The bunkers were VERY dry and powdery is some places and d%mn and packed in others. The biggest issue was the lack of manicuring. I had one lie in a bunker where the ball was sitting in the middle of a big tuft of grass right below the lip. very frustrating.

It was in good shape for a Muni and play kept moving even if it wasn't that fast. If it was always like this I would play here more often.

Met three buddies to play Encino Wednesday, 3/2, for a 2:40 tee time. Starter let us out about 10 minutes early, ahead of the high school players. GK'er "chipper28" posted a review just two days ago s... Continue »

Met three buddies to play Encino Wednesday, 3/2, for a 2:40 tee time. Starter let us out about 10 minutes early, ahead of the high school players. GK'er "chipper28" posted a review just two days ago so I'm pointing you there for a full review (about five back in the thread.). I'm only adding a couple of comments. Since his review they must have cut the greens because I found them medium/quick and not especially bumpy —pretty decent really. Otherwise, what was really noteworthy was that, after letting a single tee off ahead of us on the first tee, we seemed to have the course to ourselves. High schoolers receded in the distance behind us as the round went on, and nobody in sight ahead after the single pulled away from us. We got done in just about four hours, pretty much as we were losing the ability to track the ball in the deep gloom. In summary, greens were decent and the rest was adequate to the task at hand. A muni in winter.

Played an early afternoon round on 3/1/16. The drought conditions persist but was surprised by the courses ability to maintain it greenery. I just walked on and was paired with a regular who said th... Continue »

Played an early afternoon round on 3/1/16. The drought conditions persist but was surprised by the courses ability to maintain it greenery. I just walked on and was paired with a regular who said that the last time he played Encino, the greens were lightning fast. Today...not so much. Greens were much slower than I'm used too, and bumpy to boot. They were in much need of a mow. The fairways continue to be fast and firm, but patchy as you drift off the fairways towards the rough. The bunkers weren't an issue, if a little on the thin side. Fairways are wide open with large welcoming greens, which falsely lures me into believing I'm decent at this crazy game..ha! We could have finished in about 3 hours but were caught behind a sluggardly foursome. But my playing partner Charlie, kept me entertained with his stories as a cameraman during the Oscars. So good times. Come out and play it before they punch the greens next month.

Played today 1/18 with mid-morning tee time on a holiday. It took us about 4 1/2 hours to play 18. Not bad. I wish it was this fast on the weekends.

Course conditions were just fair today. Weat... Continue »

Played today 1/18 with mid-morning tee time on a holiday. It took us about 4 1/2 hours to play 18. Not bad. I wish it was this fast on the weekends.

Course conditions were just fair today. Weather was overcast all day. Course is still dealing with drought conditions. The fairways were very firm/hard. Grass was mostly yellow, some green grass and a lot of bare spots or just hard packed dirt. There was good coverage of the grass so you can still play. Your balls will get a lot more roll with the ground being so hard. There was plenty of green grass on the tee boxes. Sand was just ok or more like loose dirt/sand in the bunkers. Most of the greens were very firm/hard. Hardly had to fix ball marks on the greens today. Greens were a little fast with it being so hard.

Like playing here. Fairways are a lot more wider than Balboa. Will be back again. Noticed today that there were workers on the course cutting down or clearing away some of the trees that had died or fallen down.

Played Wednesday, 10/28, at 7:15am and finished in 3hrs 40min. The greens had recently been verticut but it did not affect play. The greens rolled smooth at medium/fast pace and held shots. The fairwa... Continue »

Played Wednesday, 10/28, at 7:15am and finished in 3hrs 40min. The greens had recently been verticut but it did not affect play. The greens rolled smooth at medium/fast pace and held shots. The fairways are fair to good due to some thin spots but playable. The rough had mostly good coverage with some thin/bare spots. The tee boxes are fair to good due to mild unlevelness. The bunkers for the most part are good with a fair amount of sand in them. I was in three greenside bunkers and the first two had good sand. The third had good sand, bunker left of 17 green, but there were plenty of rocks and pebbles in it. Not good when a rock gets between the club face and the ball.

The course layout is flat and mostly straight forward with mild doglegs with the exception of one short par 4. There is plenty of room off the tee but mature trees line the fairways. The greens typically pitch back to front. The course isn't the most challenging but it provides plenty of length and long par 3's from the blue and black tee markers. Overall it was an enjoyable course to play. The staff was friendly.

It's been a few years since I last played here. We played here on Labor Day with a mid-morning tee time. Pace of play was a little slow on the front 9. It took us about 3 hours to play 9. Back 9 w... Continue »

It's been a few years since I last played here. We played here on Labor Day with a mid-morning tee time. Pace of play was a little slow on the front 9. It took us about 3 hours to play 9. Back 9 was a little faster about 2 1/2 hours to play 9. It was a hot day playing at Encino.

First time playing here with the new yellow (front) tees. I hated them. Most of the time it was just a spot on the ground. No tee box. Some of the yellow tees were way to the right. When teeing off you are looking straight into the trees on the right.

Course conditions were very good with this on-going drought. Signs show that they are using reclaimed water. Fairways, tee boxes and greens have very good coverage. Tho' some of the fairways were bare in spots and mushy in other spots. Greens were in great shape. But there were several greens with unrepaired ball marks. Didn't care for the bunkers. It felt more like a mixture of dirt and sand. Not very soft and fluffy. Tee boxes had good coverage. Like the layout for Encino. Some of the par 3's were very long. It's always fun to play here. Lots of trees here and some entertainment from the nearby radio controlled airplanes on some of the holes on the front 9.

Driving range was pretty much all dirt. There is a chipping/pitching area and putting area. Plenty of parking nearby. No GPS in electric carts. Clubhouse on day we played had no A/C. Not good on a hot day. Staff at clubhouse was very friendly.

Played here for the first time since the 1990's and had a very good time! The course is in "pretty good" shape considering that we're experiencing a drought. The pace of play was brisk and good, whic... Continue »

Played here for the first time since the 1990's and had a very good time! The course is in "pretty good" shape considering that we're experiencing a drought. The pace of play was brisk and good, which is unusual for an LA Muni, and I was very pleased overall. Many holes clearly lay out a risk/reward scenario and call for a certain shape of tee shot which is also great for a muni. About 1/2 the holes are straight/flat par 4's that only require that you hit the fairway in order to score. Encino is a bit longer than all the other city courses in LA and you get to use your whole bag. This is a welcome change from most of the courses that driver-wedge holes. It seems like the better players in the LA City League hang out there and like to play good golf. So if your game is a bit beyond beginner, you'll find it very fun and exciting. The bad parts, there were a few areas of serious disrepair on the course but that is understandable since the course is busy and we are in a drought so I don't hold that against them at all. The club house at the Encino/Balboa complex is nice but not luxurious. The staff is VERY friendly and accommodating. Lots of TV's and decent food in comfy chairs to relax after the round. The practice area is also nice with a few putting greens, chipping green, practice trap, and a field that allows you hit wedges to warm up with your own balls. Overall a good time and look forward to going back soon!