Played 1/4 at 10:30 with fellow GKer dconnally from the blue tees.

The recent rains have not done the course many favors. Lots of soft areas underfoot and more than a few sloppy tire tracks. Surpri... Continue »

Played 1/4 at 10:30 with fellow GKer dconnally from the blue tees.

The recent rains have not done the course many favors. Lots of soft areas underfoot and more than a few sloppy tire tracks. Surprising drainage issues for a course built on a hillside.

Current overall conditioning reminds me of Black Gold back when they were undergoing their turf change to kikuyu. Most fairways where a mosaic of different grass-types/mud in average to poor shape but the few that were all or most kikuyu (#12 comes to mind the most) were in quite good shape. Rough was much the same with a hodgepodge of thin, muddy rye, lush rye, and spots of kikuyu. It was really a coin flip on what kind of lie you were going to receive.
I was in one bunker and it was fine. Unsurprisingly damp and dense underneath with about a 1/4 of finer stuff on top. It looked like all bunkers were raked by the crews and they were probably the best part about the course (not high praise unfortunately).
Greens had recently been lightly sanded, were receptive, but were very bumpy and inconsistent. Tee boxes were... to put it lightly... horrible. Tiny, wet, unlevel, HEAVY divot damage. They have many tee boxes per hole so they really should do a better job at moving them around to keep the playing surfaces reasonable. POP was 4:40 and we were on the 4-some in front of us the entire time. Saw the beverage cart on hole 2 then never saw it again. All the water stations on the course were missing the "water" portion of the station. The $35 rate we paid via the course website felt like an overpay.

12/21 830 tee off using $30 costco voucher got to #8 before the rain really set in--so much for 70' and the chance of a passing shower--finished 9 -tried to wait it out a bit but just getting worse an... Continue »

12/21 830 tee off using $30 costco voucher got to #8 before the rain really set in--so much for 70' and the chance of a passing shower--finished 9 -tried to wait it out a bit but just getting worse and radar reported rain for 2 hours--gave it up. POP for 9--2 15hr.
Fairways had generally ok cover looked kind of patchy with different colored grasses but ok lies. Some areas of rough sometime guarding fairway bunkers like on #3 and #7 and protecting the green #5 and #6.
Bunkers looked ok but #4 was a little firm and thin. Tees level ok grass, some worn spots.
Greens were somewhat grainy medium speed--many had areas of light fine sand in the surface--still smooth but speeds were slower and breaks were influenced as the ball slowed--really needed to putt through the hole.
Sadly missed being able to play the back as there are more character holes in that 9 in my opinion. Friendly staff.

Played Friday 12/9 @10:50am.... Really enjoyed this course, for the money ($39 booked via HV website 2 days prior) and views just cant be beat. **For first timers, think Black Gold meets Oak Quarry**... Continue »

Played Friday 12/9 @10:50am.... Really enjoyed this course, for the money ($39 booked via HV website 2 days prior) and views just cant be beat. **For first timers, think Black Gold meets Oak Quarry** This was the first time playing it in years, if we play off the 15 via orange county we typically play Goose Creek. Conditions for winter i would rate it very good. Greens: Very Good, lush and receptive (first few holes were sprayed with green fert, looking to preserve it for the winter) Should be solid all winter. Fairways: Good, with a few winter thin spots but overall soft with good divots from good iron play. Tee Box: Also good, with good coverage even from heavy play. Rough: Thin in areas, however this type of course the rough is minimal (against the rocks and hills). Sand: Thin but even, brownish type sand. Pace of Play: Med - Slow even for a Friday, but the course did move.

Played an early morning (2nd group out) round on 11/5/16. My first time playing this course but I'd heard a lot of positive things so I finally got around to checking it out. Was not disappointed at... Continue »

Played an early morning (2nd group out) round on 11/5/16. My first time playing this course but I'd heard a lot of positive things so I finally got around to checking it out. Was not disappointed at all but wasn't overly blown away either. Course is in very good condition compared to a lot of other places at this time of the year. Greens were very nice and the fairways were in great shape (again, comparatively). My only, very minor, gripe would be that too many of the fairways had completely slanted lies which isn't my cup of tea. Biggest selling point I guess would be that Hidden Valley definitely has some impressive views and they keep the course in great shape so it really stands out as the only green areas amidst the rocks. Course has got some visual "wow" factor to it. Pace of play was excellent but like I said we were 2nd out so it wasn't ever going to really be an issue. Overall, it's a good course that is reasonably and competitively priced with the other courses in the area.

Played Tuesday morning with a 10:30am tee time. Course was still wet from the rain on Monday and quite a few plugged balls in the fairway. Fairways, rough and greens had good coverage. Greens were on ... Continue »

Played Tuesday morning with a 10:30am tee time. Course was still wet from the rain on Monday and quite a few plugged balls in the fairway. Fairways, rough and greens had good coverage. Greens were on the slow side even on the downhill putts and our group left quite a few putts short. Tee boxes had been scraped recently but were level. Traps had compacted sand from the rain and a couple had standing water.
Course is target golf with many blind shots. POP was close to five hours and many groups had the music blaring. Course looks very nice with the green grass against the brown landscape.

Played 10-9-16. Course is in great shape. Fairways are fuzzy but roll well. Very nice to hit from. Rough was thick but not bad to hit from unless the ball sat down in it. Greens were perfect. Soft eno... Continue »

Played 10-9-16. Course is in great shape. Fairways are fuzzy but roll well. Very nice to hit from. Rough was thick but not bad to hit from unless the ball sat down in it. Greens were perfect. Soft enough to hold well but smooth and rolling excellent. The biggest question mark were the sand traps. They have red dirt in them. Many were still wet and hard packed. Played OK but took some getting used to. It cost me 2 shots on 6 that lead to my first double. After that I got used to them and managed to only find 1 other. Over all a fun course with a mix of very easy simple holes and a couple blind tee shots and a few with large gully's to carry. Not a must play but worth checking out.

Played Hidden Valley Friday Sept 30th, Had a 7:46 tee time, didn't tee off until 8:05. It was a slow day. Course was in good shape, no issues with the tee boxes or fairways. Was not in any traps so ca... Continue »

Played Hidden Valley Friday Sept 30th, Had a 7:46 tee time, didn't tee off until 8:05. It was a slow day. Course was in good shape, no issues with the tee boxes or fairways. Was not in any traps so can't comment there. The greens recovered nicely but were a bit slower than usual for this place. I was able to get the speed of the down hill putts but was short on most of the uphill ones. POP was over 4:30 so not real good. There was next to no wind so the course played different on the back nine. After 11am wind usually comes into play.

I played here on Thursday 9/29. Course was very green and almost over watered in many areas. Lots of mud even at 11am when I teed off. They had sprinklers running almost the entire round throughout th... Continue »

I played here on Thursday 9/29. Course was very green and almost over watered in many areas. Lots of mud even at 11am when I teed off. They had sprinklers running almost the entire round throughout the course. Seemed like the back nine had the most greens with healing aeration marks, front nine was pretty much healed up. The greens did play slow and soft but it wasn't too bad. Most of the tee boxes were in good shape and fairways were great when not muddy. All in all a quick round at only 4 hours. Groups were spread out and playing a good pace. I really enjoy this course and always enjoy the challenges it provides. Only lost 2 balls which is a record for me there! At $35 this is a great buy even with the punched greens healing.

9/28 underpar $59 2some from the whites 5826 68.5/125 on a warm sunny am little to no wind 840 tee off following a 2 some and a very slow 4some for a POP of right at 5hrs with waiting on most every h... Continue »

9/28 underpar $59 2some from the whites 5826 68.5/125 on a warm sunny am little to no wind 840 tee off following a 2 some and a very slow 4some for a POP of right at 5hrs with waiting on most every hole.
Noticed that the greens looked less healed than a week ago with small punches and on the back there were many hanging small plugs and sandy soil on about half the holes. After the round pro shop staff reported that with no real notice the greens were in fact punched Mon. and Tue. again--no sanding just the punches--staff seemed rather bewildered as maintenance had been performed i a staggered manner over the course of 4-6 weeks and was supposedly finished about 3 weeks ago. So the greens were bumpy and at times quite slow--less evident ball marks than a week ago which is a good thing. Soft and held ok. Even with the conditions had one of my best putting rounds--ups and downs with impunity.
Never in a bunker but they looked to have been groomed--some evidently wet and a couple with standing water. Tees lush and level.
Fairways have good cover--green, nice lies some wet areas to the point of casual water mostly closer to the greens. Rough 1-2 inches had more effect on slowing the ball than effecting shots out of it.
Overall course in good shape and in about 3 weeks will be even better. Quite a few up hill shots making for longer play than yardage indicates and with the soft conditions just played longer. Interesting layout--scenic quite the views from atop the hills green grass blue sky white fluffy clouds not a bad way to spend 5 hrs.