Got out today at 11:40 (GN hot deal, $15 @ 11:53, plus $3+ surcharge). Hardly anybody out today as it was hot and there is football on tv. I was a single, but caught another GN Hotdealer on the 2nd ho... Continue »

Got out today at 11:40 (GN hot deal, $15 @ 11:53, plus $3+ surcharge). Hardly anybody out today as it was hot and there is football on tv. I was a single, but caught another GN Hotdealer on the 2nd hole and we paired up. Great pace of play as we were able to pass two foursomes in the front nine, finishing in about 2 hours and 40 minutes. No drink cart today or the players assistance guy with the jug of ice water; kind of sucked there as it was over 100 degrees. The front nine greens have a little hydraulic leak staining greens 2 through 7; hopefully, it won't be an issue in the coming weeks. Greens were soft, but rolled fairly fast. There was some noticeable bumpiness on several of my playing partner's putts. A few unrepaired ball marks; not as many as in the past couple of rounds here. Decent grass coverage in the fairways and rough. I was not in the sand today, but it looked okay. We played the middle tees and they seemed to be chewed up a bit, but not too difficult to find a good place to stand. All in all, not a bad way to spend a few hours on a Sunday.

It appears that Tony and I are the only ones reviewing this popular course for the past couple of years; anyway, here is my latest report. The good: POP was less than 3 hours. The sand in the bunkers ... Continue »

It appears that Tony and I are the only ones reviewing this popular course for the past couple of years; anyway, here is my latest report. The good: POP was less than 3 hours. The sand in the bunkers around the greens appeared clean, light, and plentiful. Fairways were mowed nicely and had good grass coverage. Tee boxes were mostly level. Greens rolled nicely. The bad: Rough gets real scrappy as you get further from the center of the fairway; it is not mowed consistently, nor is it watered evenly. Fairway bunkers have firm packed, dark brown, and thin sand. The ugly: Greens have a lot of ball marks, some not fixed at all and others not fixed properly. There are numerous eucalyptus trees that have been shedding bark and leaves all over the rough and you can lose a ball in some places. A little maintenance in these areas could help a lot. Overall, the course is decent and it is the only viable course for the average Joe here in Santa Clarita.

I played on Father's Day in 105 degree heat, starting at 1:00 p.m. for their afternoon rate of 21.50 to ride, including a drink. It was crowded despite the heat. The pace of play was about 3 hours and... Continue »

I played on Father's Day in 105 degree heat, starting at 1:00 p.m. for their afternoon rate of 21.50 to ride, including a drink. It was crowded despite the heat. The pace of play was about 3 hours and 45 minutes with a small wait on the tenth tee. The greens were fairly nice; soft and medium fast. They rolled fairly true with nice, little breaks. There were a lot of ball marks and several poorly repaired ones. The signature hole 17 island green was literally a minefield of ball marks, though. The fairways and rough were in decent shape. Some areas under the eucalyptus trees were littered with bark and leaves, so it could be hard to locate a ball in those areas. Keep the ball near the middle for the best turf to hit from. There are only 7 par 4 holes, and they are not long. As you stray away from the center, expect tight lies and dry turf. Fairway bunkers were mostly hard packed; greenside bunkers looked better. The tees were a little chewed up, but mostly level. It was good to get out and play a little golf, but this course always leaves one wanting more.

I'm not sure why I rated this lower this week over last week, but conditions are about the same. I played here again today after work. I got to the course at about 4:50 p.m. and teed off seven minutes... Continue »

I'm not sure why I rated this lower this week over last week, but conditions are about the same. I played here again today after work. I got to the course at about 4:50 p.m. and teed off seven minutes later by myself, riding for $14.50, plus a $5 key deposit (really). The price also included a beer from the snack shop. They have been spot watering with hoses many fairways and despite drought restrictions, the course is looking fairly good. I moved up to the white tees today to patch up my bruised ego from the last GK event at the Greg Norman Course at PGA West. You would have thought a shark took several bites from my a$$ after that round. Today at Vista, a couple of tees were all bunched together to get the rest of the tee box recovered from over use. It was interesting to play either all the way up or all the way back on those holes. The greens were medium fast and rolled true. There were a few ball marks to fix, but not as many as in the past. A little poa late in the day gave the slow rollers a nice wiggle, but mostly I found putts to stay on line. Tees, fairways, and rough all had pretty good grass coverage. Bunker sand was nice except for the fairway bunkers, which tended to be thin and hard packed plaster sand. After jumping past a slow threesome on hole 5, I finished the round in 2:45, joining another single on hole 8. We followed the pack all the way home to 18, finishing at dusk.

Just played a scramble event here on Friday. If the greens were aerified in early April, there is no sign of it now. They rolled smooth, medium fast, and true. Not too many ball marks, but there were ... Continue »

Just played a scramble event here on Friday. If the greens were aerified in early April, there is no sign of it now. They rolled smooth, medium fast, and true. Not too many ball marks, but there were a few to fix from our morning group of occasional golfers. The grounds crew was busy moving around temporary sprinklers that they have attached to hoses to water hot spots throughout the course. This appears to be a necessity due to restricted watering during the ongoing drought. That said, the fairways and rough were in nice condition with good lies if you kept it towards the middle. As you get further away from center, the conditions can get a little spotty, but not terrible. The course is as good as I have seen it in a while. Not in any bunkers today, but they all looked good with clean, light-colored sand that was well raked. I guess it is good to get out early here, because in my experience the later in the day it gets, the more golfers tend to not rake, fill divots, and fix ball marks here. All said, I would golf here again.

Played today, Saturday afternoon. Paid $21.50 to walk. The starter tried to hard sell me on a recurring $29/mo. Players Club membership. That includes 1) Free green fees after 2:00 with an $8 cart ren... Continue »

Played today, Saturday afternoon. Paid $21.50 to walk. The starter tried to hard sell me on a recurring $29/mo. Players Club membership. That includes 1) Free green fees after 2:00 with an $8 cart rental; 2) Green fee/cart fee $15 after 12:00 daily; 3) Free green fees for the Chica course; 4) Free lesson clinics; 5) Free daily large bucket of range balls. Seems like a decent deal if Vista is your course of choice. Just a few buckets of range balls and a couple of discount rounds and you will have made your money back.

That said, I found the course to be in somewhat mediocre condition with many areas of dormant grass. The tees were a little chewed up. Fairways and rough about the same: dormant grass of about 1/2" tall. Greens were nice enough (medium fast, soft) with the exception of number 9, which was damaged: big repair area roped off, bumpy, and many repairs to hit through. Many of the greens had lots of leaves and bird droppings (geese and mud hens) to deal with as well. The sand was good and plentiful; however, there were a lot of footprints that were not raked. I expect things will not improve greatly until spring.

Played Thursday 9/17 in the afternoon. Just wanted to provide a course condition update. Vista has been spot watering their fairways due to drought conditions and the results are fantastic. Fairways h... Continue »

Played Thursday 9/17 in the afternoon. Just wanted to provide a course condition update. Vista has been spot watering their fairways due to drought conditions and the results are fantastic. Fairways have full coverage with only minimal divot imperfections. Best i have seen these fairways in a long time and they are a pleasure to play from. Areas outside the first cut of rough is dry and mostly hard packed. Greens are a little spongy and soft with a fair amount of un repaired ball marks and the only critique that could be found. Hopefully some work on the greens is planned for the near future. Glad to see the work being put into this course as it remains IMHO the best executive course in the LA area.

I played here Sunday, July 19, finishing just in front of another unseasonable tropical downpour. Conditions on the course continue to improve slightly. Fairways are mostly lush to thin, with good lie... Continue »

I played here Sunday, July 19, finishing just in front of another unseasonable tropical downpour. Conditions on the course continue to improve slightly. Fairways are mostly lush to thin, with good lies almost everywhere. The rough is not being watered as far as I can tell, leaving many areas dry, thin, and bare. However, the fairways are wide enough so it should not be too much of an issue. Tees tended to be a little beat up (we played the whites), but were mostly level and lush. The greens ran a little on the slow side and were medium fast and very soft due to all the rain. We rode for $29.50 each; they did offer us a deal: for $9 more, per player, add a medium bucket, two beers, and lunch (which, I assume is a dog or burger). Friendly service in pro shop and at bar. Pace of play was great on the front, but we caught all the groups at 8 tee and it was hit and wait until the last hole. Total pace of play was around 4 1/2 hours. We liked it so much, we jumped back onto the back nine between groups. We played through a slow twosome and finished in approximately one hour. I felt bad about getting another nine, but I did some extra raking, and fixed several more ball marks, so I think we're good. Don't tell the GM, though.

Played 7/10 twilight. Been playing here a lot lately for some reason, figured it was time to update my review. They have been going through a process of spot watering due to drought. Fairways are look... Continue »

Played 7/10 twilight. Been playing here a lot lately for some reason, figured it was time to update my review. They have been going through a process of spot watering due to drought. Fairways are looking and playing pretty well, lush with good coverage. Greens are soft and a little bumpy with a fair amount of ball marks and afternoon spike marks. Overall they are totally playable but appear to need a rolling. Bunkers are hit and miss with some still unraked with numerous footprints. Pace was great at about 3 hrs. Vista is a fun layout and you will use all the clubs in your bag with a variety of holes. You get what you pay for here and at the price of a bucket of balls in the afternoon, i will keep coming back. They also appear to be working on the course and its gets a little better each time I play lately.