Off today at 8:36a with DrinkSmokeGolf (new-ish to LA - great guy) and two buddies of mine. Finished in about four and a half hours. Not bad for a Saturday morning. Tee boxes and fairways were above a... Continue »

Off today at 8:36a with DrinkSmokeGolf (new-ish to LA - great guy) and two buddies of mine. Finished in about four and a half hours. Not bad for a Saturday morning. Tee boxes and fairways were above average for a city course. Having played Angeles National and Sand Canyon in the past two weeks I'd definitely rather hit off the fairways at Santa Anita than either of the other two right now. Found three traps and all had plenty of sand; not necessarily consistent but there was always enough under the ball. Had some minor issues with the greens. I don't blame my poor putting on the greens but they were very much on the slow and bumpy side. SAGC has, in not too distant the past, had lightning greens and falloff areas; not the case today. It was tough to get uphill putts to the hole or have downhill putts run out. All in all, it's a somewhat minor criticism. Had a good time with good company. Never saw a drink cart (I don't remember them having one on prior visits) and didn't eat (from recollection the food is ok). Will probably wait another month or two before coming back out.

Since I had another doctor’s appointment over in Duarte today, I decided to give SA another try. I was here about 2.5 months ago and was not impressed. Got there just before 10:00 and the starter got ... Continue »

Since I had another doctor’s appointment over in Duarte today, I decided to give SA another try. I was here about 2.5 months ago and was not impressed. Got there just before 10:00 and the starter got me right out with a twosome and another single. Pace of play was just about 4 hours so we were moving ok.

The course is still nice. Fairways were in good condition. Plenty of grass so lies in the fairways were great. Rough was thicker than I have seen in the past but in good shape. Sand traps were hit and miss. One that I was in was very hard. Another one I was in was just fine with nice, firm sand.

And now to the greens. Slightly improved over the last time I was here but still not very good. Very grainy, bumpy and very slow. Would not hold their lines. Why can’t they get the greens right? Noticed there are a number of improvements to the club house and restaurant but the greens continue to get a poor rating. Kind of sad really as I really like playing here. Hope they can work it out.

I should have gone to play earlier today. I might have met up with Weber? I won't beat a dead horse (even if the racetrack is across the street LOL) but my take on this course mirrors his. After not p... Continue »

I should have gone to play earlier today. I might have met up with Weber? I won't beat a dead horse (even if the racetrack is across the street LOL) but my take on this course mirrors his. After not playing here since Dec, I thought with the great rains we had and the improvements that were planned here, the course would be in nicer shape. Sad to say, that was not the case. The only enjoyment I got, was a nice walk on a nice day and a great green fee. I will plan on venturing back in a month, unless I see a few decent reviews.

There is something about this golf course I find oh so appealing! The rolling fairways, the backdrop of the Sierra Madre Mountains, the types of trees, etc. The setting is so beautiful, so park-like... Continue »

There is something about this golf course I find oh so appealing! The rolling fairways, the backdrop of the Sierra Madre Mountains, the types of trees, etc. The setting is so beautiful, so park-like in a traditional fashion.

We had a 6:44 tee time and got out a few minutes early, following a walking fivesome, yet the pace was not bad. We played in about 3:45 which isn't too slow. It allowed us to enjoy a near perfect spring morning and enjoy the ambiance.

The fairways were green with plenty of grass. Rough was hit or miss, The sand was totally inconsistent. Some bunkers had sand, some were hardpan - thin with almost no sand. The worst part of the course were the greens ! They were horrible ! They were bumpy. The were hard ! They were slow, I mean slow ! It ruined what was otherwise a wonderful golf experience. I would suggest you allow a few more weeks before you venture out here, unless you would rather watch your ball bounce it's way along the green surface.

Despite the greens, still enjoyed the day.

Played Santa Anita on February 19, two days after very heavy rain storms throughout the week. Almost canceled our tournament scheduled for that day, but since the predicted rain moved out of the area... Continue »

Played Santa Anita on February 19, two days after very heavy rain storms throughout the week. Almost canceled our tournament scheduled for that day, but since the predicted rain moved out of the area, we went ahead and played. It was very cold, but believe it or not, the course played very well. Not one bit of mud, no standing water, truly amazing after all the rain that we had. This is the course to play in the midst of our winter weather. Due to change in management, the pro shop was almost empty as they were getting ready for new merchandise to arrive. Much kudos to Daniel in the pro shop -- in spite of all the interruptions, he was so pleasant, so patient, wonderful customer service!

Had a mid-day doctor’s appointment today (3/1) over in Duarte and decided to play a very early round on one of my favorite muni’s. This was my second time here since they turned over the management t... Continue »

Had a mid-day doctor’s appointment today (3/1) over in Duarte and decided to play a very early round on one of my favorite muni’s. This was my second time here since they turned over the management to another vendor. The clubhouse house has changed. It’s pretty much empty of items for sale. Creepy actually compared to the way it used to be. Not crowded at all. My God, I remember SA always having a crowd waiting to tee off. Regardless, the starter got me out with a twosome around 6:25. Nice guys but they seemed to keep to themselves talking as they were walking along. Was also hoping to have a nice breakfast but the restaurant was closed and had a termite tent over it. Not what I wanted to see. The rain has really helped this course. Very lush. Even the rough which was bone dry the last time I was here, was thick and lush. The tee boxes have improved. The fairways however needed to be cut. Lush and thick and coupled with the morning dew, we got very little roll out. Sand traps were hit and miss. I was in a couple on the front 9 and they were great. Back 9 a different story. Rock hard underneath a very thin layer of soft sand. The greens, aye yai, yai! What in the world has happened to these greens?? Very chewed up, bumpy and not very green. Some were blotchy (is that a word for greens?). Bumpy rolls, balls never staying on line, terrible! Also, not holding any shots. SA has never been noted for their greens but this is not very good at all. Too bad because the rest of the course is coming back real nicely. I hope they get this under control because I would still like to call this one of my favorite muni's! :-)

Played with my monthly group at (supposedly) 9am on Saturday, 1/7/16. I say supposedly because the course was jacking another tournament of 5somes out ahead of us and our first group started about 20 ... Continue »

Played with my monthly group at (supposedly) 9am on Saturday, 1/7/16. I say supposedly because the course was jacking another tournament of 5somes out ahead of us and our first group started about 20 minutes late – then we had the usual 5.5-hour Saturday round. I read that the place changed ownership/management recently and the shop is undergoing renovation (almost totally cleaned out) and they looked short-staffed (no starter, one person in the shop, one overworked cart guy, no marshal). We were worried about the rain, but it stopped sprinkling about the time we teed off, it was so warm that I was shedding clothing as the front nine progressed, and I actually put some sunscreen on as we made the turn! Very little breeze today as well, which probably contributed to the warm conditions.

The course was wet but playable in all aspects. We played LCP everywhere except hazards so I didn’t rate the round. Fairways and rough had a lot of mud throughout as a result of all the worm castings pushed up after the recent rains, so LCP was welcome. There were no cart restrictions, although some small areas were roped off and we tried to stay out of the deeper swales.

Greens were well-drained, very firm, and held only well-struck shots. I didn’t note very many unrepaired ball marks, which were fairly small. They rolled well at medium-fast speeds. Fairway conditions ranged from lush to clumpy to scattered bare spots to large bare areas; there are many unfilled divots in both fairways and rough. Rough was generally short, but wet/long in swale areas. Most players here apparently play the blue tees – with the wet conditions, all the blue teeing areas were very torn up even at 0930, and par 3s were especially damaged. A large number of the tees were sloping to one side, and in some cases I really had to hunt for a level spot.

The course offers plenty of water fountains, but there is no cart girl – there’s a snack bar at the turn. The range is on mats. The carts are basic – no GPS, no cooler, no club cleaner; most holes have small colored markers at 100, 150, and 200 yards COG. The sand bottles on our cart were empty at the start, but all the par 3s had dry sand containers on them (but players had obviously NOT used them on those torn-up tees!).

Played yesterday and POP was a nice 3.5 hours (better than 11/22). Still not much improvement in the course. More and more trees are coming down and being trimmed. Greens seem fast and slow and that's... Continue »

Played yesterday and POP was a nice 3.5 hours (better than 11/22). Still not much improvement in the course. More and more trees are coming down and being trimmed. Greens seem fast and slow and that's because they are not 100% green (still "blotchy"). Also, something I experienced yesterday but not on the 22nd, if you miss some of the greens, you can end up in some pretty ugly locations. This is due (IMO) to the dryness of the course and the many slopes around the greens. Customer service is excellent. Fairways playable with good/bad lies. Bunkers fine. Tee boxes OK. If you need a place to play, then you might find the course acceptable? If you are looking for great conditions, this is not what you are going to find (but for $12 walking I can live with that). Personally, I think I will wait until spring to go back. As I said previously. If the same group who fixed Los Amigos can bring back Santa Anita, after what appears to be years of neglect by previous management, then I support them 100%.

With the recent rain, I decided to try S A as no recent reviews in over a month? As many have said, new management who also run Los Amigos and I believe Eagle Glen (?) have taken over. Customer servi... Continue »

With the recent rain, I decided to try S A as no recent reviews in over a month? As many have said, new management who also run Los Amigos and I believe Eagle Glen (?) have taken over. Customer service young lady was formerly from L Amigos and as efficient here as she was there (nice). Got right out and was a little concerned as it took some time to play # 1. But after that, even while waiting on some holes (mostly the par 3's as they are long) still played in 4 hours. Course seems to be coming along fine. Tee boxes still need some grass, but I had no issues. Fairways, while appearing thin, still provided good lies all afternoon (some patches but no issues) and with some more rain/water and attention, they will be very nice. Rough was between 1/4 and 1/2 inch, depending upon where you looked? But the fairways are really nice (and wide) and hitting the fairway is not that hard (IMO). Greens appeared to be "blotchy" and by that I mean some areas had not fully grown in. But for the most part, the greens were fine, they just putted slow (6-7) and one just needed to adapt (and yes some players do not repair ball marks). But I feel that over time they will be very nice. Sand traps (and I was in 2) all were just fine (and even raked by previous players - wow). I saw a lot of trees, either already down and many more marked for either removal or trimming, so that more light can get into the course (you can see that the trees have been neglected for far too long). As many have commented over the past year Los Amigos has been transformed into a decent and playable golf course. I hope and suspect, such will happen to Santa Anita. It really is a great course, being that the fairways are not totally flat, it has decent length and the greens are elevated (some not all) and they could be really great greens, given the proper attention. I will go back in a few weeks to see if my assessment is correct. I would recommend playing here w/o any reservation.