Ventured out for a rare away game with an invitation from a high school buddy to join him at SJH at 130pm on Monday, 4/6/26. It was a sunny, breezy day with a steady SW wind of 10-15 mph. We went out ... Continue »

Ventured out for a rare away game with an invitation from a high school buddy to join him at SJH at 130pm on Monday, 4/6/26. It was a sunny, breezy day with a steady SW wind of 10-15 mph. We went out on time as a twosome bracketed by foursomes. Conditions were standard SJH – tight fairways with good coverage and mostly good lies, benign rough, flat tee boxes with not too much divot damage. I wasn’t in any sand but no complaints from my playing partner. Greens were fairly firm and turf depth was thin, with ballmarks (many on all greens) exposing a damp, fine-grained muddy soil beneath. Greens rolled well at medium-fast speed – many greens had substantial breaks right around the hole. Speeds were consistent across the course. Over the past few years several of the greens have been rebuilt/relocated, holes abandoned to development or flooding and rebuilt elsewhere. The triangle of holes at the far point of the back nine (holes 13-15) are some of the newer holes and have the best turfgrass of any part of the course. Driving range is across a busy street, reachable by car but make time allowances for the logistics. Small snack shop at the turn was out of many menu items by the time we came through. We saw the cart girl a couple times on the front and back. We didn’t push the group ahead and weren’t pushed by those behind us, finishing the round in just over 5 hours. Clubhouse restaurant area was very busy and this appears to be quite a local social hub. They remodeled the old clubhouse several years ago with more emphasis on community appeal and local event venues. The kikuyu is not my favorite, but today it was cut fairly tight and very playable.

Despite being relatively close to my home, I do not play this course very often. Just never had much success here. It's not that I dislike the course, and it generally is in decent condition, just don... Continue »

Despite being relatively close to my home, I do not play this course very often. Just never had much success here. It's not that I dislike the course, and it generally is in decent condition, just don't seem to think of San Juan Hills when I think about playing.

Conditions were good, particularly the greens. Fairways had good coverage, with a few areas needing attention, but for the most part seemed to end up with a good lie almost every time. Found two bunkers. One was good, the other not so much.

Staff was pleasant and able to get out on time, which is appreciated. All and all, a positive experience and I can recommend this course, which compared to many others in South Orange County is decently priced

Played in a Saturday tournament on 7/16. Initially we were bumped back to 11:30am because the Men's Club was playing before us, but when we arrived we were told the Men's Club finished already and we... Continue »

Played in a Saturday tournament on 7/16. Initially we were bumped back to 11:30am because the Men's Club was playing before us, but when we arrived we were told the Men's Club finished already and we could tee off at our original 11:00am start time. It was a gorgeous day in San Juan Capistrano, with a nice 5-10 mph breeze that felt really refreshing.

I'm most impressed by the greens at San Juan Hills. The ball didn't have the stuttering hop you normally see on public greens. Instead, the ball stayed on the ground and rolled true. And there were definitely a few holes where you wanted to stay below the hole, or the putt would roll by incredibly fast.

There were some white paint delineating some ground under repair on a couple of fairways. On the whole the fairways were pretty nice, the ball sitting up with some tasty lies. There was a little bit of inconsistency to the sand in the bunkers, with a couple being hardpan but with most having decently fluffy sand.

The beverage cart rolled by a couple of times during our round, and there's a snack shop at the range when you cross the street to play the 10th hole. San Juan Hills treated our club very nicely during COVID, so we made a point to schedule the course again this year. I look forward to my next trip there.

Joined a high school buddy for a casual round at 1:22pm on Thursday. 1/10/22. Paired with 2 amiable local friends. We’re in the middle of a bizarre February hot spell – temps were in the high 80s, but... Continue »

Joined a high school buddy for a casual round at 1:22pm on Thursday. 1/10/22. Paired with 2 amiable local friends. We’re in the middle of a bizarre February hot spell – temps were in the high 80s, but luckily we didn’t get too much wind. Course is in pretty good winter condition. Greens are pretty firm with good coverage and will hold high shots. They roll well at medium+ speed and are brutally fast downhill – front pin placements are almost impossible to keep putts near from above the hole. Too silly fast for my taste. Fairways are short and tight but roll out well and lies are good. Rough almost non-existent. Tees were level and wide-set, so no problems (we played White). Bunkers were some of the best I’ve seen in many months with consistent, good quality/quantity sand around the greens. Rakes were out. Saw the cart girl several times. Still need to bring your own water. Out on time, kept pace, and finished in about 4:20, probably a couple groups ahead of darkness.

Played San Juan Hills for the first time ever on Memorial Day and it was a pleasant little unique course. I was surprised when I got there to see the course only reaches 6300 yards from the tips, but ... Continue »

Played San Juan Hills for the first time ever on Memorial Day and it was a pleasant little unique course. I was surprised when I got there to see the course only reaches 6300 yards from the tips, but the elevations and angles do still make it a challenging track. There are quite a few different courses all rolled into one here. The front nine is very hilly and almost every hole plays shots from uneven lies. A lot of short par 4s but you have to be very safe with club selection. The first two holes on the back nine are a bit of a mess right now as they're doing some kind of work on the old lake there but they're very flat and dull, and then you move to the back nine where the course serpentines through homes and gets quite narrow but still fun until the last two holes where it opens up again, including the rare par 3 closing hole for any course. Very wild ride. Course conditions are quite nice right now with super greens that vary in size greatly but are in very good shape, roll true and run maybe around 10 on the stimp. No crazy tiers but some smooth slopes that will require your best efforts. Fairways are nice and green and the rough is very playable, while the bunkers have a nice layer of sand but are far from fluffy. Tee boxes were good enough (we played the blues). Food was available from the bar in the morning and the range was open but we were not allowed to drive our carts over there. We had the option of riding two per cart but everyone rode in their own and that made the POP very good at just four hours. So while all of this review is quite positive and I would not hesitate to play SJH again, the $94 fee + cart I found to be a little steep for the experience, but not by too much. It's definitely worth playing and quite fun but I would like to find a better deal next time ... maybe it was just holiday pricing?

Played 2/24 with an 11:10 tee time. Proshop was mildly welcoming, starter a bit better. Played behind 4 locals who took their time to say the least. We were a twosome so expected to wait but it got fr... Continue »

Played 2/24 with an 11:10 tee time. Proshop was mildly welcoming, starter a bit better. Played behind 4 locals who took their time to say the least. We were a twosome so expected to wait but it got frustrating at times, mind you the local foursome behind us were rarely in sight. Took almost 4 and 3/4 hours to play.
The front nine is up and down hills mainly, hence the name I guess. Back nine is strange, 10 and 11 across the road are just straight away holes, then you head into the homes area with some different holes, then 17 is back to straight away. Tees appeared to have been recently resodded, some were hard. Fairways and rough semi dormant, greens were disappointing with a number of badly fixed pitch marks leading to lots of little holes!
Overall not a bad course but could have been a lot better with a little TLC on the greens and a Marshall.

Played an afternoon round here. First time out, decided to give it chance per a family member recommendation. $45 for non-member round with cart included. Friendly staff and accommodating starter. I b... Continue »

Played an afternoon round here. First time out, decided to give it chance per a family member recommendation. $45 for non-member round with cart included. Friendly staff and accommodating starter. I booked as a single and Armando offered to get me out 10 minutes early if I played with a twosome. Hit a medium bucket before hand $9. Range needs an upgrade but overall is not indicative of the on course conditions. This course is fairly short but the elevation changes, relatively small greens(some of them are enormous), and the lightning speed and firmness of the greens makes this track a challenge for anyone’s short game. The tee boxes were in good not great condition. The fairways were about the same on most holes. Looks like they may have had some disease, drainage, and pest issues. Green side bunkers are pretty good filled with medium soft sand, fairway bunkers are hard as rocks and I actually love that(just play it as if it’s hard short grass). Golf carts are country club level Yamaha with gps and gps features like flyover shot tracker etc. The pace of play wasn’t too bad, we finished 5 minutes ahead while waiting on each of the last 5 holes. Some very interesting holes out at SJH, 4, 6, 13(play to the stick in the fairway anything left will be bunker bound and you’ll be hitting uphill to a two tiered green from the sand), 15(solid tee shot with mid to long iron is key), 18(I feel like 18 could be improved on, it should be more challenging as the final hole). Overall I loved this place the greens are next level and I will most definitely make the drive from north county SD anytime.

Played here today for my first time. I actually really loved the course and layout. Although it's not a long course the hilly terrain make it play longer. We teed off at 7:10 and pace was not a proble... Continue »

Played here today for my first time. I actually really loved the course and layout. Although it's not a long course the hilly terrain make it play longer. We teed off at 7:10 and pace was not a problem at all. Nobody caught us and the group ahead moved along so we finished in just under 4 hours. The greens were the highlight with smooth semi fast surfaces that held shots very well. Tee boxes were fine and so was everything else. I would love to add this course to my rotation when heading to the OC. Next time we will definetly stay for lunch on the cool patio. Recommend yes!

A little bias as this is basically my home course. Cons.....can be slow pace sometimes, and it's pretty random when you may catch a slow or quick round. Tee boxes are usually their weakest detail, b... Continue »

A little bias as this is basically my home course. Cons.....can be slow pace sometimes, and it's pretty random when you may catch a slow or quick round. Tee boxes are usually their weakest detail, but I'll sacrifice that for their nice greens! Pros ......greens are usually in good shape and faster than most munis! Offers many a challenging hole where course management are key! Great 19th hole and sports bar! Great place to watch Sunday morning football or catch a live band!