Played Monarch Sunday Morning, great weather except for last 2 holes. Marine layer moved in and visibility went away. Greens were nice, Sand is perfect, the customer service here is well above the c... Continue »

Played Monarch Sunday Morning, great weather except for last 2 holes. Marine layer moved in and visibility went away. Greens were nice, Sand is perfect, the customer service here is well above the competition. Only Issue was the fairways are not where they need to be but will be nice in a month. Challenging layout and fun to play even if you have 20 putts on the front as I did. If you have not played here before and require a warm up on a driving range, beware only nets here to hit into.

Monarch Beach Golf Links Review
Dana Point Golf Course Reviews

Played 10/21/2011. First time here and look forward to getting back to understand layout a little better. Course is in pretty good condition. Greens punched about 30 days ago, ahve healed well, some b... Continue »

Played 10/21/2011. First time here and look forward to getting back to understand layout a little better. Course is in pretty good condition. Greens punched about 30 days ago, ahve healed well, some better than others. Most were smooth and rolling well. I noticed a number of tee boxes were not level, but more of a nit than anything else. Fairways good, sand bunkers (and there are many) were in very good shape. The layout is a little trick. A couple of 90 degree doglegs, and although not long from the second to longest set of tees, the course does requires some very precise shots from the tee, with a variety of clubs. A few blind shots, if you don't get on the proper side of fairway. Water in play around the green on several holes. This is a course that will require more than one trip to completely understand. Premium for accuracy, and several multi tiered greens. Very good customer service, however, only 3 or 4 warm up nets...No driving range. Large chipping and putting green right next to first tee. Give it a try, and try to find a discount as typical rack rate is too high. Enjoy.

Monarch Beach Golf Links Golf Course Review
Orange County Golf Course Reviews

Nice course - but no way it's 200 bucks worth. Not too much "beach" in it either as only one hole plays to/along the waterfront (one plays away from it).

Small to medium greens with severe undulati... Continue »

Nice course - but no way it's 200 bucks worth. Not too much "beach" in it either as only one hole plays to/along the waterfront (one plays away from it).

Small to medium greens with severe undulations - breaks are both extreme or subtle and tricky to read at times.

Maybe they are going to overseed because many fairways were dying out and soft. Fair amount of re-sodded areas too. Rough was inconsistent. A few tees were lumpy or crowned. Greens were disappointing after the practice green which was firm, smooth and good speed - most were depressingly slow, spongy and soft. Sand traps were excellent with high quality sand throughout.

Played here on Memorial Day for my birthday after finding out that Monarch Beach offers a complimentary round right here on GK! As soon as I could find some buddies that were willing to pay to play, ... Continue »

Played here on Memorial Day for my birthday after finding out that Monarch Beach offers a complimentary round right here on GK! As soon as I could find some buddies that were willing to pay to play, it was all set.

This was my first time playing here and it was definitely 5-star from the moment you drive into the facility. Valet porters come out to the car and unload the clubs and take them to your cart. The valet porters were extremely friendly and eager to make sure they "spoiled you."

The scenery is fantastic and a definitely change of pace - especially, if you are like me and play at courses built on sides of mountains! First glance walking into the club house was the Pacific Ocean. Already, I had a kool aid smile and knew it was going to be a nice day.

To my surprise, there is no driving range on the property. However, they had a hitting cage with mats, plenty of range balls and a net about 10-feet away. You can get yourself loosened up in here but, you will not be able to gauge any distances or shot shaping. I guess the purpose is to stretch out and make sure you aren't hitting the balls fat!

The first hole is very nice parallel to the ocean and the giant club house. The St. Regis hotel is located here and there are people out walking on the paths. After snap hooking my drive, I decided to leave the ball in the planters and take a drop. This course looks like one of those places where you really can't just go looking for errant shots! LOL.

The fairways were well manicured and mowed tight. The ball just ran forever. There are plenty of bunkers and a few holes with split fairways. Pin placement was challenging on more than a few holes and the greens were well guarded with false fronts and more bunkers. The sand in the bunkers was in real good condition.

Hole #3 is their signature hole and is the closest to the beach. You can hear the waves crashing and the folks on the sand. Unfortunately, not all of the holes are close to the ocean. You can see the ocean but, nothing like Hole #3. There are plenty of holes lined with what appeared to be million-dollar homes. Again, very nice eye candy.

Overall, with a slope rating close to 140 this course was challenging. Especially for someone who has never played here. But, being that the round was complimentary I have absolutely no gripes at all. My three buddies shot well for their first time there and had a great time as well.

Thanks GK for having an ongoing list of the courses that participate with birthday rounds. This course and a few others actually honor the "birthday round" one week before or after your actual birthday. How cool is that?

Played 5/25/11 at 1:40p. Always a wonderful experience! I played this course when it first opened and it's starting to show a little wear and tear. I wouldn't pay the rack rate of $175 though. The... Continue »

Played 5/25/11 at 1:40p. Always a wonderful experience! I played this course when it first opened and it's starting to show a little wear and tear. I wouldn't pay the rack rate of $175 though. The skinny -- Greens are really good to almost great (stimp is on the high side), sand nice and fluffy, fairways nice for the most part some with GUR, rough on the short side (probably to speed up play), tee boxes only uneven for a couple of holes. Take time to enjoy hole 3 when you're on the green, the beach is right there! If you have a chance to play this course with a decent price - DO IT!!!

Played early this morning. Course is in very good shape. The fairways and rough werent fantastic but were in above average condition. The greens are a touch bumpy but still roll fast and true. Cus... Continue »

Played early this morning. Course is in very good shape. The fairways and rough werent fantastic but were in above average condition. The greens are a touch bumpy but still roll fast and true. Customer Service was really great. One of my favorite overall courses.

Played on sat. the 16th. Could'nt ask for a better day.The fairways were average,the rough were average, but the bunkers are perfect the purest and whitest sand ever.The greens are firm very smooth a... Continue »

Played on sat. the 16th. Could'nt ask for a better day.The fairways were average,the rough were average, but the bunkers are perfect the purest and whitest sand ever.The greens are firm very smooth and fast.the layout is quite intresting and not very long.But for the money their asking to play here not again,when you have palm springs in your back yard with world class courses and conditions I'll go there

Beautiful course! The course layout is hard enough to challenge. Overall, the course is in a ok condition. However, the fairway condition is not so great as I expected. With the high green fee, they s... Continue »

Beautiful course! The course layout is hard enough to challenge. Overall, the course is in a ok condition. However, the fairway condition is not so great as I expected. With the high green fee, they should have spend more time to maintain the fairway. There is no pratice range, but they have a small pratice net. Once time experience is enough with that high price unless they improve the fairway condition.

Played here in a tournament today. It was my first time here. Service right off the bat was noticeable. Tee Boxes were descent, but the fairways were very dry along with the fairways. Bunkers were pe... Continue »

Played here in a tournament today. It was my first time here. Service right off the bat was noticeable. Tee Boxes were descent, but the fairways were very dry along with the fairways. Bunkers were perfect. The greens were running pretty true and were in good condition. The weather was awesome for mid November. It reminded me of Spanish Bay. This Course was in NO WAY any part of a links course. If I was not playing in a special tournament I do not see myself playing here for the price. Great experience and challenge. Thanks for a great day! Can't complain it was a beautiful day!