Played 1.3.07 - What a beautiful golf course! Well maintained and staff is what you expect at a place like this. The layout is not going to fit everyones eye, but this is a must play if just once. The... Continue »

Played 1.3.07 - What a beautiful golf course! Well maintained and staff is what you expect at a place like this. The layout is not going to fit everyones eye, but this is a must play if just once. The cost will keep me away, but I'm glad for the experience.

Played here on Thursday, December 21, 2006. What a treat. A buddy of mine got married here a few months ago and he invited me to play. Valet service was excellent and Manny the starter took care of... Continue »

Played here on Thursday, December 21, 2006. What a treat. A buddy of mine got married here a few months ago and he invited me to play. Valet service was excellent and Manny the starter took care of us on the driving range prior to playing. The driving range was mats but the balls were decent (Titleist practice). After a few shots, it was our turn to play.

I didn't like the fact that they had different carts for the range and different ones for the course. The cart boys had to switch our bags from one cart to another before starting the round.

Sidenote: One thing about playing high end courses- It's not entirely about the course but the background of the players playing the high end courses. Here, my buddy and I were teamed up with a twosome that turned out to be some of the nicest people you will ever meet. We were paired with Heins-a major golf course builder in Europe. We got to know him and Elga a little better and by the end of the round were invited to play at his many courses in Europe next time we were out there.

Back to course feedback: The course overall is not a very easy course to play. It is really narrow. The tee boxes were a 8, the fairways another 8, and the greens were a 7. Coming off a pretty easy day at Los Serranos where I shot a decent score, any drive that even slightly deviates from the fairways is a ball donation to the course. One thing, the GPS system is by far the best I've ever encountered. Kudos to the Donald on this one.

Note: Because I play Top Flites, I found myself trading Top Flites for ProV1x's pretty regularly in the bush.

Here are some comments on a few of the holes: Hole 1: Short par 4. Elevated green with the waterfall makes for some interesting scenery. Driving to the green reminds me of the Matehorn at Disneyland. I think they got a deal on the same rock structures from the same vendor.

Hole 2: Par 5. Keep to the right as the hole straddles PCH on the left. Easy birdie hole.

Hole 4: Par 3 with great views. Same views on Hole 5.

Hole 7: Encounted the cart girl on this hole. Paid $2 for chips and another $2 for one granola bar (plus tip).

Hole 9: The golf cart screen asks you if you want to order some food from the outdoor grill prior to beginning this hole. One thing, it doesn't give you the price on the food you order. Be prepared to pay up.

Holes 10-12 are on the other side of the clubhouse. I was surprised by how crowded it was to start the back nine.

Be sure to bring your camera and take tons of pictures with your friends on this course. That's about the only thing that this course has going for itself.

You're better off playing Oak Valley in Beaumont (same type of environmentally sensitive bush surrounding the course) for much cheaper. It also is a lot close in length when playing from the tips.

In short, unless you are playing this course on someone elses dime, OR if you are visiting from inland Europe and have money to play a high end course, you are better off playing somewhere else for the money.

Course in wonderful condition from tee boxes, fairways, bunkers and greens! Not a very easy course for the beginner .......in fact you should play from your true tees. Played with two guys who thought... Continue »

Course in wonderful condition from tee boxes, fairways, bunkers and greens! Not a very easy course for the beginner .......in fact you should play from your true tees. Played with two guys who thought they were better than they were, started at the black tees and after a few holes moved up to the blue tees. A few holes require some long straight drives from the tee box to even land the fairway....like almost 180-200yards. Tough greens but they do roll true. Probably the hardest thing on this course is...if you are not straight, you will be off into the enviromentally sensitive brush or the thick thick rough and bunkers that line many holes. This is a beautiful course, but not a very fun course. Forget keeping your score, but just enjoy each hole for its beauty and surrounding views of the Pacific Ocean. Was surprised how crowded this course was considering how much $$$$....in fact the back 9 was slow and backed up on the final 3 holes. Would I go back.....well if someone else paid for me!

Greens and fairways were punched last week so the course was a little beat up. Even if it was in immaculate condition it's not worth the high green fee. Great views, great service and great food. K... Continue »

Greens and fairways were punched last week so the course was a little beat up. Even if it was in immaculate condition it's not worth the high green fee. Great views, great service and great food. Kind of like playing golf at Disneyland with the manmade waterfalls. Go play it -- if it's on someone else's dime

Let's just say if you can get somebody else to flip the $195 midweek green fee, then it's okay to play. I wasn't overly impressed with the overall facility. You would think for that kind of money th... Continue »

Let's just say if you can get somebody else to flip the $195 midweek green fee, then it's okay to play. I wasn't overly impressed with the overall facility. You would think for that kind of money they would at least have a grass driving range. Nope, mats!. My impression is that The Don might be kind of cheap. No bag tags, ya you can buy one for $12 bucks. I've played courses for around $60 that gave you tees, divots tools, yardage books. Not here. About the course. It was okay. Beautiful views of the ocean. At first the waterfalls seem kind of cool, but then they have about 3 of them that all look the same. The coures isn't increadibly tough. You just need to hit a pretty straight tee shot. The greens are what will kill you. It's hard to predict the break due to the ocean influence. Some greens break hard towards it, some barely move. It's kind of a guessing game. Overall it was just an okay experience. I was pretty pumped about playing it, but I know I will never play it again.

There is both good and bad about this course.

The good is that there are the most beautiful views of the California Coastline, better than Torrey Pines or Pebble Beach.

The bad is that on a Thur... Continue »

There is both good and bad about this course.

The good is that there are the most beautiful views of the California Coastline, better than Torrey Pines or Pebble Beach.

The bad is that on a Thursday morning the round took over six hours. The golf course superintendent informed me that Rory Sabatinni and Lee Westwood played there the day before and it took them six rounds to play 18 also. I asked the course marshall why its so slow and he said it's slow all over and drove away.

The design is very poor. One guy behind us got hit two times by errant tee shots. There are a lot of parallel fairways at different elevations when your ball drifts into another fairway you can't tell if you are going to hit someone.

Although a guest, I wish I had known the above before as i would not play the course again even if it was free.

Great condition but a mickey mouse layout. On many holes ball rolls off slanted fairways and into hazard areas. Some of the grees have hazard areas about 3 feet behind the edge of the green. Waterf... Continue »

Great condition but a mickey mouse layout. On many holes ball rolls off slanted fairways and into hazard areas. Some of the grees have hazard areas about 3 feet behind the edge of the green. Waterfalls are unnecessary and don't come into play. Play it once - I'm sure very few people will return .... unless someone else is paying.

Great Views. Graet condition. Worst layout and playability I have ever experienced. It's not fair and its not fun.

Great Views. Graet condition. Worst layout and playability I have ever experienced. It's not fair and its not fun.

If you want to play a course with spectacular ocean vistas, then Trump would be it. The 1 and only negative thing I would say about this course is it's price ($195/round). Other than that, if you ha... Continue »

If you want to play a course with spectacular ocean vistas, then Trump would be it. The 1 and only negative thing I would say about this course is it's price ($195/round). Other than that, if you have friends from out of town wanting to play a course with an ocean view (every holes but the 1st have an ocean view), Trump beats all the other courses in the immediate LA/Orange County area. The course is immaculate. The rough is almost US Open quality. I would say the rough is as tough to get out of as Torrey Pines. For example, I was able to advance the ball 75yds with a CPR 24 hybrid from a uphill lie; after I hit my ball, two other balls (dislodged from the same area of the rough) came rolling down to my feet. The fact that they were both Pro-Vs meant that their owners probably spent a lot of efforts looking for these guys. In the course of the round, I ended up finding 6 Pro-Vs in the rough (not OB or enviromental areas; but in play) while in the process of looking my own ball in the rough. My suggestion is to bring wide sole irons and plenty of hybrids; and keep your eyes on the ball when it goes into the rough (it's in there ...somewhere). The greens have lots of undulation and hard breaks (and not necessarily toward the ocean). The speed on the green is not as fast as you think, other than the obvious downhiller. Play your approach shots like a link style course. There is no "1 hop and stop" on these greens, even on the par 3s. And finally, play 1 tee forward from what you use to, especially if it's your 1st time there. Having to carry over 200 yards over a ravine and into a 20-30mph head wind after 16 holes on a par 3 seems to take the fun out a beautiful course.