Finally got around to playing this course. $32 mid day rate from golfnow. 4hrs for 18 holes. Typical LA muni conditions. Most fairways browned and patchy. Not the worst, not the best. Playable. Good v... Continue »

Finally got around to playing this course. $32 mid day rate from golfnow. 4hrs for 18 holes. Typical LA muni conditions. Most fairways browned and patchy. Not the worst, not the best. Playable. Good value for price paid. Paired with two nice guys. Ok layout. Starter was kind of robotic. Easy recommend if you score cheap rate.

After San Dimas Canyon, sixpez and I played Santa Anita. It was my first time here, at a course I'd heard great things about. Those expectations were not really met on any level. Conditions are not ve... Continue »

After San Dimas Canyon, sixpez and I played Santa Anita. It was my first time here, at a course I'd heard great things about. Those expectations were not really met on any level. Conditions are not very good. The greens accepted full shots well and rolled smoothly, but were medium slow. The fairways were very thin and oftentimes balls in the "fairway" were not rewarded with a good lie. The rough is also thin and has lots of bare spots. The bunkers were pretty good. Tee boxes were decent except a few that were lumpy.

After hearing a lot about the nice ground movement out here, I guess I was expecting something more dramatic. Yes, the lumps and bumps in some of the fairways are cool, but with current conditions including many dry and hardpan areas, there is no definition to the course and nothing is aesthetically pleasing. Other than the rolling fairways and a few elevated greens, the layout was very reminiscent of any run-of-the-mill muni to me, and the setting is pretty terrible surrounded by city streets.

I should begin by saying I really love this old style traditional golf course. This course is visually appealing to anyone who grew up playing these type courses. The rolling fairways, the absence o... Continue »

I should begin by saying I really love this old style traditional golf course. This course is visually appealing to anyone who grew up playing these type courses. The rolling fairways, the absence of housing, greens well protected by bunkers, etc.

That said, Santa Anita is unquestionably in the worst condition I have even seen it in. The greens were decent, the greenside bunkers were great!. EVERYTHING else was in dire need of attention. I've never seen so many bare areas on this course. There were a few spots of each hole where there was grass, but not much.

The course was not crowded (Conditioning???) so we were able to finish in just under 4 hours, which for this course isn't too bad. I sure hope they can turn this course around, because it deserves better.

After San Dimas in the morning, Itslikeimsayin and I had a second round scheduled at 12:30 at Santa Anita. He booked a GN hot deal for $29 a player. We got there early and it wasn't super busy out (at... Continue »

After San Dimas in the morning, Itslikeimsayin and I had a second round scheduled at 12:30 at Santa Anita. He booked a GN hot deal for $29 a player. We got there early and it wasn't super busy out (at least by this course's standards), so we teed off around 12:00 and played as a twosome. We had to wait on most shots, but the pace was pretty nice at 4 hours on the nose. This course was also in pretty mediocre shape. The tee boxes were fine enough, but the ground was firm underneath. The fairways and rough have a lot of dead spots. In the sections where there is grass (some holes better than others), the grass was very nice. However, it seemed our balls always ended up in hardpan or patchy areas with not-so-desirable lies. The rough was pretty ugly. Like San Dimas, things did also get nicer here around the greens. The collars and rough around the greens is much better kept than the fairways. The bunkers here were pretty nice. The greens were slower San Dimas and didn't look nearly as pure. They rolled okay enough, I guess. It has been many years since I last played here. I used to play here a lot (at least a couple times a month with a regular weekend group), but it's probably been almost 10 years since those days. Either way, I still have a soft spot for it. I think it's an enjoyable course and all the mounding in the fairway makes things interesting. Fairly forgiving off the tee and a good mix of hole lengths that allows you to use most clubs in your bag. Good course where I have a lot of positive memories, but just so/so conditions right now.

Well, I finally gave in and played here today. Not really a fan of the LA County courses so I try to avoid them as much as possible. I tend to find the people rude, the day of golf long and dangerous ... Continue »

Well, I finally gave in and played here today. Not really a fan of the LA County courses so I try to avoid them as much as possible. I tend to find the people rude, the day of golf long and dangerous with typical fairways going back-and-forth and people hitting in and out of your fairway. However, I was pleasantly surprised today with Santa Anita. Shocked with a very acceptable just under 4 1/2 hour round on a busy day with many foursomes and a clientele that is famous for six hour rounds. Pro shop cordial enough, started on time.
Teeboxes average, some crowned a little, some divots, grasses varied, but all playable enough.
Fairways pretty typical of LA courses with some varying types of grass throughout but on a whole actually really nice and plush here today. That was a big surprise to me as I went in with low expectations.
Rough basically like the fairway just a little longer in some spots but again most lies were pretty solid minus a couple occasional holes that I was in.
Sand was actually pretty decent. A little hard underneath on a couple of the flat greenside bunkers but there was definitely sand in them and better than most courses in the SoCal area.
Have to say, this was another pleasant surprise.
Greens were a big surprise. Really nice, almost no divots whatsoever. Medium slow I would say and definitely slower than the practice green though which was definitely medium fast. Took a little while to get used to and believe that they really weren't as fast as the practice green was. You know how that goes.
Carts are basic with no amenities on them and no cart girl on course. But there are plenty of bathrooms, water stations and good food at the turn with very polite girls cooking.
Two reviews previous to mine definitely give a great idea of the courses conditions. It is not a premium course. But it is definitely one of the nicer if not the nicest LA County course I have played. Additionally, unlike most of the county courses, it does not rely on length to be the difficult factor. While no holes are overly memorable, they are definitely challenging with sightlines to the greens, undulation, bunkering and just general good layout. I pretty much used every club in the bag and was never bored throughout the round.
I hear rounds can be very long here, and I can see how that could happen, but that wasn't the case today and we had a real good time.

Got to SA early today and Ed sent me right to the tee to play solo. Very surprised to see no one out there but had a very enjoyable day. The greens were very good. Don't think I have ever said this... Continue »

Got to SA early today and Ed sent me right to the tee to play solo. Very surprised to see no one out there but had a very enjoyable day. The greens were very good. Don't think I have ever said this about SA. Not real fast but the heavy poa annua rolled true. Fairways were in very good shape. Tee boxes the same. Sand traps however were a different story. Hard as rocks! Very wet and very hard under the surface. Wish this could be addressed. You could easily skull a sand shot across the green.

This is about as good as SA gets and if in the area, go play!

Went out Friday, 4/22, around 12:45 with a buddy, paired up with a husband wife couple who were very competent golfers and pleasant company. Going through the list, tee boxes are mostly nice and flat ... Continue »

Went out Friday, 4/22, around 12:45 with a buddy, paired up with a husband wife couple who were very competent golfers and pleasant company. Going through the list, tee boxes are mostly nice and flat with good coverage. Fairways generally had decent coverage but with some mixed grass areas and the occasional dried out spot. A good amount of roll out, I don't think I would describe the fairways as thin, but only occasionally really lush, and sometimes a shade tight — bottom line quite playable overall. Rough is a mixed bag, but I would say that where there was grass, it was not really punitive. The three bunkers I was in ranged from clean to a bit uneven, and all a bit more on the firm side versus soft. The ball was generally going to sit up in them, so they were fair to play out of. Greens were not showing the recent aeration. They were on the quicker side of medium. The fastest the greens ever seem to get here is a brisk medium fast pace and I'd say they were about three quarters of that. A good speed, actually. The surface seemed less than than totally smooth, but putts tracked pretty well. Pace was perfect for our group at a little under 4.5 hours. This is a county course, not a "premium" course. As such, it is one of the nicer ones and it's in generally good shape. There was a nice breeze and it was a beautiful day to be out. Really enjoyed it.

Went to SA as a walk on today and got hooked up with an older twosome. A couple of great guys and had a great time. SA has always been a favorite muni of mine. Ed Howard is the head pro there and ... Continue »

Went to SA as a walk on today and got hooked up with an older twosome. A couple of great guys and had a great time. SA has always been a favorite muni of mine. Ed Howard is the head pro there and if you are ever there, say hello to Ed. A really great guy. If you walk on, he always does his best to get you out without having to wait forever. Also say hello to Patty in the restaurant. One of the nicest people you will ever meet.

The course is actually in ok shape. Pre drought, SA has always been known to have lush fairways and thick rough. Well now, there really isn’t any rough anymore but the fairways are in ok shape. There are some bare spots out there but not as many. The brief rain we had must have really helped. Sand traps were in good shape also (I should know. I hit 7 of them today! :-(. Tee boxes are a bit ragged.

No one ever goes to SA because of their greens. At best but they are only good but today they were very slow, bumpy, did not roll true at all and it looks like they had some “stuff” growing in them. Some of them were also a bit beat up. Hope they get this issue resolved soon.

This course is not difficult but it is fun. With the exception of #4, the par 3’s are lengthy. Easy to walk and is usually backed up but today we got around in 3:45. Nice pace.

Played here Saturday morning, 1/16/16, at 9:20am with my monthly club. We generally play here every winter, and I should score better here, but I don’t. Course is very flat and an easy walk, and most ... Continue »

Played here Saturday morning, 1/16/16, at 9:20am with my monthly club. We generally play here every winter, and I should score better here, but I don’t. Course is very flat and an easy walk, and most holes play pretty straight. Some scattered fairway bunkers but most are easily avoided – most of the sand is around the greens. No water. And not that much length even from the blue tees. But I don’t.

Lies everywhere on the course right now are thin verging on bare. Grass is dormant and it’s easy to have a thin/no grass lie in the middle of the fairway. Rough is thin and benign. Tees are fairly wide, mostly level, and in reasonable condition. Sand in the one bunker I was in was damp and fairly firm, but with an adequate depth. Greens are overly firm and very thin, not even holding full wedge shots, and in some cases shots trampoline off the impact. Greens have many subtle movements that defy the eye and apparent slope and gravity.

Minimal carts; range on mats; adequate bathrooms; adequate water available; no ranger. POP was ~5 hours, usual here for a weekend. On-course greens were faster than the more lush practice putting green.