Played 10/23, 12:00 tee time, $31. Got out about 15 minutes early as a single, cruised around the front nine in one hour, then caught up to some groups...joined another single and took 2 more hours to... Continue »

Played 10/23, 12:00 tee time, $31. Got out about 15 minutes early as a single, cruised around the front nine in one hour, then caught up to some groups...joined another single and took 2 more hours to finish the back. Loved the pace.

The course is currently under maintenance. The greens looked to have been punched about 2-3 weeks ago, and were slow as molasses. Tee boxes were all dirt and small pebbles, with occasional blades of grass poking through. However, they were all level. Bunkers were wet and firm, more pebble than sand. Fairways were ok, there were good lies to be had but plenty of bad ones too. Rough was patchy. This review may seem harsh, but take it for what it is...it was still a good time, the price was right, the pace was great, and if you can deal with imperfections then you'll have fun out here. My biggest knock is that there are too many similar holes out there, but that's kind of unavoidable due to the riverbed location of the course.

Not for beginners. You need to watch your surroundings due to course layout. Golf balls could be flying from anywhere. Would not golf there again.

Not for beginners. You need to watch your surroundings due to course layout. Golf balls could be flying from anywhere. Would not golf there again.

We all have known for a long time River View has been voted the OC best value golf course. It is a little hidden jewel. Just because it is affordable, doesn't mean you should skip playing here. Greens... Continue »

We all have known for a long time River View has been voted the OC best value golf course. It is a little hidden jewel. Just because it is affordable, doesn't mean you should skip playing here. Greens are small but a lush, fairways and course just over seeded and looks awesome, plays great. Great owner, friendly staff and don't pass up the cheeseburger.

My work buddy dragged me out here last night. He and his friends needed a last-minute replacement for their foursome, so we headed out right after work. The guy working the pro shop was a bit distract... Continue »

My work buddy dragged me out here last night. He and his friends needed a last-minute replacement for their foursome, so we headed out right after work. The guy working the pro shop was a bit distracted because a window was broken on his truck (either golf ball or one of the many sketchy teenagers hanging around the course, not sure) and he was trying to deal with that. He told us just to head out and pay at the turn. It worked out because when we came around he only charged us the super twilight rate of $20 with cart, so that was cool. We teed off at 4:30 and the place was pretty empty, which surprised me. We never caught up to any groups ahead and nobody ever came up behind us, so we played at our own pace. We could have easily finished 18, but my buddy and his friends are neither good players nor fast players, so we only got 15 in. The course was actually in pretty nice shape. Definitely the greenest I've ever seen it, so it was an unexpected surprise. The tee boxes and fairways were good, with the only bad parts being down in the riverbed as always. The rough was a bit more inconsistent, but still pretty good. Wasn't in a bunker, but they did look a little crusty. The greens had great grass. Very spongy and soft, so fun to be aggressive on chips and approaches. There are still minor remnants of aeration and a lot of unrepaired ballmarks, which isn't surprising given the softness of the greens and the level of players this course generally attracts. Plus it was late in the day, so they were definitely bumpy. I'll never claim to be a huge fan of River View and I'm never in any rush to play there, but I don't look down on it as much as most people. It serves its purpose as a cheap and convenient option in the middle of OC. It's definitely a super funky layout and the level of challenge often depends on how much water is in the riverbed. Either way, there are a lot of tight shots, semi-blind uphill approaches and awkward angles. If you play a fade like me, this course can give you fits because it makes the course even tougher. Still, it's a short target layout, so if you can hit safe solid shots in good positions off the tee, it's easy to post a good score. The carts here do have a nice GPS system, which you wouldn't expect here, and it comes in really handy with such a quirky layout.

River View is fairly close to the house, but a course that I rarely play. Getting a good deal on a fee and not having any other weekend plans pushed my buddy and I to play here, not long after some r... Continue »

River View is fairly close to the house, but a course that I rarely play. Getting a good deal on a fee and not having any other weekend plans pushed my buddy and I to play here, not long after some rainy weather.

Surprisingly, the recent rain was not a big deal. Since the course spans, crosses, and for several holes runs inside the Santa Ana River Channel, bad weather can wreck havoc with the course. Sure, there was flowing water in the center channel, but nothing that was a major impediment to play. Down in the channel the fairways are going to be heavy and thin, it is just the nature of the beast with this construction. The layout is interesting, with several holes running from an elevated tee down to the fairway in the river channel, then back up to an elevated green.

The traps here are very heavy, with a larger grained sand, a river sand versus a nice beach sand.

It had been 3 or so years since I've played this course. On the drive up Sunday morning my buddies reminded my that the last time we played it I walked off saying "I'll never play this course again" ... Continue »

It had been 3 or so years since I've played this course. On the drive up Sunday morning my buddies reminded my that the last time we played it I walked off saying "I'll never play this course again" Guess I have short term memory :-)

The problems I had last time were - crappy fairways, random balls flying over your head on the first couple of holes (put on your helmet..cause they designed this course so you get pelted by hackers hitting into you), and a log jam on Hole 1.

Since it was Sunday morning, we were prepared for the worst. The guy in the clubhouse was hoot...very very friendly and accomodating. The men's club was teeing off so he offered to put us hole 10, but we declined for fear that when we got back to hole #1 it would be brutally log jammed.

So here's the skinny:

- We teed off roughly on time.
- First couple of holes didn't have too many errant balls coming at us...yay.
- Tee boxes were attrocious - little grass, just sand
- We played lift clean and place, and on few fairways there was no grass you could find to put your ball on :-- Really enjoy the design of this course (that's why brings me back). Multiple ops for easy eagle putts. Longish par 3s.
- The river was dry today, so no fear driving the ball.
- Round took 4.45 mins
- Greens were divot free and running great.


As much as bag on this place, I still find it an enjoyable experience. It's nice to add it to the rotation...maybe it's cause I'm golf crackhead and even the low grade crack is good enough on a Sunday :-)

River View Golf Club Review
Anaheim Hills California Golf Course Reviews

Went and layed it on a sunday. Course wasnt too crowded, but got backed up as the day went along. Tee boxes we a bit chewed up, but the fairways were decent and the greens were quite nice.

As a hi... Continue »

Went and layed it on a sunday. Course wasnt too crowded, but got backed up as the day went along. Tee boxes we a bit chewed up, but the fairways were decent and the greens were quite nice.

As a high handicapper, I will state that the layout of this course, which lots of elevation changes and narrow fairways, was VERY challenging. Would certainly play again however.

River View Golf Club Review
Anaheim Hills California Golf Course Reviews

Just finished playing this course. It had been a few years since playing here. I had remembered I didn't like it the last time. This time was way better. My buds were having a hard time finding a time... Continue »

Just finished playing this course. It had been a few years since playing here. I had remembered I didn't like it the last time. This time was way better. My buds were having a hard time finding a time on this day before Mothers day, So that's how we ended up here. This course is kinda corny. It winds thru the Santa Ana river bed up and down the banks of it. Lots of tee's elevated and greens are elevated also. Tee's were OK. Fairways were so so. The thing that is best here are the greens. They punched maybe 3 weeks ago and they are nice IMO. Very smooth and fun breaks. Getting up to them is a good challenge. They are well guarded and are always sloped around them with some bunkers and trees. This course will kick a high handicapper's butt so be warned, It's not that easy. It's pretty cheep tho.

River View Golf Club Review
Anaheim Hills California Golf Course Reviews

I played here a few weeks ago after not having played this course for years, primarily because the greens were so good. Well, things have changed! The greens were bumpy and slow, nothing like they we... Continue »

I played here a few weeks ago after not having played this course for years, primarily because the greens were so good. Well, things have changed! The greens were bumpy and slow, nothing like they were the last time I played. The rest of the course was as I expected, poor to fair. The greens being the only redeeming aspect of this course, so given their deterioration, it will be a while before I return

River View Golf Club Review
Anaheim Hills California Golf Course Reviews