Played Carlton Oaks for the first time ever . . . can't really tell you why I haven't played this course until now, but I would say a combination of price, Dye course (I don't like me no Dye courses),... Continue »

Played Carlton Oaks for the first time ever . . . can't really tell you why I haven't played this course until now, but I would say a combination of price, Dye course (I don't like me no Dye courses), bad reviews and it ain't Balboa. Born and raised about ten minutes from "The Oaks", never lived more than 20 minutes from "The Oaks" (except the year and a half I lived in San Clemente (right over the fence from San Clemente muni and never played there either . . . but frequented the "19th Hole" and Big Helens) whilst working at San Onofre), but still never played the place . . . because of the aforementioned reasons.

Anyways, the tee boxes were hard pan, the rough was hard pan, the fairways were hardpan, the bunkers were hardpan, the greens were hardpan (and, some, overly tricked out for the speed they were running at), the cart paths were hardpan, I looked inside the bar ("The Oaks Grill" or whatever) and it looked to be hardpan. It may just be a hardpan time of year . . . but . . .

So any ways . . . the course played really tough today (as per the regulars I played with). The greens were VERY fast and as everything was hardpan (as mentioned, briefly, earlier) the course was playing pretty tough . . . have I mentioned that? Any who, I actually like the course layout, except the fact that a few of the holes are a bit close to each other, and (like other reviews may have mentioned) when and if this course got plush, it would be amazing . . . but right now, it's not.

I will return after we get some rain to, attempt, to get my revenge!

Played Wed. 6th of November 2013 at 7:30 am. Instantly, the course reminded me of several courses I use to play in northern California. Lots of Cottonwood trees. The greens were hard, rolled true and ... Continue »

Played Wed. 6th of November 2013 at 7:30 am. Instantly, the course reminded me of several courses I use to play in northern California. Lots of Cottonwood trees. The greens were hard, rolled true and fairly quick. The fairways were mediocre with a fair amount of dead hard pan areas. The tee boxes were 50/50. The rough was awful. Overall this course was extremely challenging and really could be a hidden gem if they took the time to trim the rough, rake leaves and pull weeds.

played 10/14/13. Tee time was 7:20 & got off right on time. Staff was young and accommodating. $39 is the rate on weekdays in October & this review is in the context of a $39 weekday rate. Tee box... Continue »

played 10/14/13. Tee time was 7:20 & got off right on time. Staff was young and accommodating. $39 is the rate on weekdays in October & this review is in the context of a $39 weekday rate. Tee boxes were inconsistent, but overall average. Fairways were mostly dormant bermuda and thin, okay to hit off. Traps were above average and fairly consistent. Waste bunkers had several muddy areas that added to their difficulty. 17 of the greens were well above average, rolled, hard bent grass greens; they have always had difficulty with the other two and though playable, 5 and 16 don't seem like you're on the same golf course. Pete Dye designed this course with hard greens and it's nice to see the course go back to them. Don't know what happened to the collars, but several of them are well below average, especially considering how nice the greens are. Rough is extremely inconsistent, impossibly thick in a few areas and bare dirt in others. The layout, though, offers challenges you don't get at any other $39 course in SD. From the blues or black you'll use all your clubs, hit a fade, draw, play your 3 and let her rip. I'd say the course is moving in a positive direction in the last three months from the gopher-infested place it was a year ago. Well worth the weekday or twilight rate if you want a test.

I've wanted to play this course for 20+ years but never made it out there until today. Sixpez and I were a little fearful due to the last few reviews on here, but the voucher was expiring at the end o... Continue »

I've wanted to play this course for 20+ years but never made it out there until today. Sixpez and I were a little fearful due to the last few reviews on here, but the voucher was expiring at the end of the month, so we had no choice to go use it. Well, there was nothing to fear. The course is obviously in much better condition than the reviews from earlier in the year. The greens were in excellent condition, although a just a tad slow for how incredibly smooth they are.

There were a few burned out patches in the fairways and we found some hardpan in the rough, but overall, I thought the course was in fine condition. My biggest complaint would probably be the bunkers. Like sixpez said, they could use more sand.

I really, really loved the layout. Challenging but playable. There was quite a breeze at times today, and it really impacted a lot of the holes. It made a 575-yd par 5 reachable and nearly turned a 430-yd par 4 into a three-shotter.

I would love to return here, but the normal rates run a little higher than I typically spend on golf. If I can get a good rate or a deal like we had today, I'll be back in an instant. Here's hoping whatever plagued the conditions earlier in the year is behind them and it only gets better from here.

Played here today with Itslikeimsayin. We had an Underpar voucher to use ($74 for two players with a same-day replay after 11am on weekends). For $37 a player, it was a heck of a deal. We were there a... Continue »

Played here today with Itslikeimsayin. We had an Underpar voucher to use ($74 for two players with a same-day replay after 11am on weekends). For $37 a player, it was a heck of a deal. We were there a bit early for our 11am tee time, but it wasn't crowded so they let us off a little early. We could see a few scattered groups on the course, but never ran into anyone the first time through, which was awesome. We were able to head right out to the first tee again for our replay round, but then caught a bunch of groups (mostly just other twosomes, which was interesting) by the 7th hole and then it was slow going after that. By the 12th, we ran out of patience and energy and decided to call it a day. Hard to come to a grinding halt after enjoying your own pace all day, but for the price we paid we more than got our money's worth today!

The course was in decent playable shape. This was our first time here, so I can't speak to what it might have looked like in its heyday. I can imagine this being a really really stunning course if everything were perfectly lush, green and manicured. What I can say today was the greens were in great shape and were definitely the highlight condition-wise. Medium speeds, but super true and smooth on putts. The fairways and rough were decent but inconsistent with mix of brown and green areas (thin in some places, nice and fluffy in others). Everything plenty playable, though, so no major complaints. The greenside bunkers could use a little extra sand given how challenging they are. The sand in them was good quality, but the top layer just felt a little thin for the delicate shots required to get out of some of them.

I really enjoyed the layout. I'm a big Pete Dye fan and this was designed by Perry Dye, so it has all the Dye family hallmarks. Nice mounding everywhere for great visual contour, a ton of railroad-tie edged bunkers and water hazards for visual intimidation. Plenty challenging. The 11th/12th signature holes are fantastic and the 13th is a beast of a par-5 that's also fun. For the price we paid, it was a great experience. However, it seems their normal rates are a bit inflated from what I've seen. If this course can get back into really great condition, I'd have no problem shelling out a little extra to play here. Right now, finding a good deal will help the enjoyment factor.

I do think this course could benefit from a combo set of tees between blue/white. The blues played a tad too long for my liking at 6700, but the whites seemed like a bit too short at 6101. One pleasant surprise was the food prices (at least what I got). $5.75 for a really good hot dog and a Gatorade was a good deal at a golf course.

Played here Monday (4-29-13).

I Hadn't been here since this time last year. What a difference a year makes. In the 10 years or so that I have been coming here, always at this time of year, I have n... Continue »

Played here Monday (4-29-13).

I Hadn't been here since this time last year. What a difference a year makes. In the 10 years or so that I have been coming here, always at this time of year, I have never seen the course in worse shape. To me it looked as if the owners have cut way back on the needed maintenance required to keep the facility in proper playing condition. The whole place just had a shoddy look about it.

One explanation might be that they have been spending a lot of money to renovate the hotel, Club House and restaurant the last couple of years, and with the weak economy maybe there just isn't enough income being generated to properly maintain the golf course.

This is really a shame, because this used to be a beautiful place to play.

Hope they can turn this situation around soon.

Played 1/12 12:30 4:15 round. It's been 6 months since I played here last. This was right when they killed their greens. I had heard that they had replaced them all and was curious to see how the ... Continue »

Played 1/12 12:30 4:15 round. It's been 6 months since I played here last. This was right when they killed their greens. I had heard that they had replaced them all and was curious to see how the course was shaping up. They last review someone left for here about 2 months ago did not leave much promise.
With the freezing temps. the fairway & rough grass is 99.9% brown & dormant with lots of roll. With the recent rains they played pretty soft to hit from. Even though they looked completely dead they were easy to hit off.
The greens have a way's to go. They look fine from a far, but when your on them they look very bumpy and rough. Many of our putts reacted the same as they bounced there way to the hole. The front nine and back nine greens were amazingly different. The front were fairly receptive and rolled at a med. fast pace. The back were hard as rock and rolled very fast. It took us at least three holes to realize that it wasn't just one hole being different, but all of them. You could feel it under foot. It felt like you were walking on the cart path.
I understand golf courses are expensive operations and this course needs to spend some money to get itself back in shape, but with the rates they are charging, it's difficult to see any reason to go back?? Even at the GN rate of $50, there other course's in better shape for less money. I really do enjoy the layout of this course and do hope they can get their greens back in shape some day.

The previous posts all have it right, don't waste your money here. This course is a complete makeover from being a decent course, but it's years away from that. There is little to praise about the cou... Continue »

The previous posts all have it right, don't waste your money here. This course is a complete makeover from being a decent course, but it's years away from that. There is little to praise about the course short of the staff. First of all, the property is outdated. I've golfed here 3 different times in the span of over 10 years and absolutely nothing has changed. The lodge and clubhouse have the aesthetics of a 1970's municipal course. At least the restaurant/bar was cleaned up a bit. The course itself looks terrible, not pleasing to the eyes at all. There is little green throughout the course and as you look around, it looks as though they are in the middle of remodeling (I don't think they are). The tee-boxes were uneven. The fairway had some good areas but for reason was muddy everywhere and honestly in San Diego, that's saying something about course management. I was pleased to see marshals around the course, however our round was still almost 5 hours long. The greens are what really got me. The grass was growing in every direction but never uniform. The color wasn't even that of a typical green. The roll was not true and putt speed varied everywhere on the course. The sand could really use some "fluff". The sad part is this course is not that cheap to play (even with a GolfNow special) and it has the potential to be a real gem (the layout has some interesting holes), they just need to invest some serious money and make it happen. Do yourself a favor and spend less money for a better value at Mt. Woodson or The Crossings.

Carlton Oaks Country Club Course Review
San Diego Golf Course Reviews

What a disappointment! This once excellent course has now officially reached sub-muni condition. We played on October 6 in the early morning. My playing partner that booked the tee time did not consul... Continue »

What a disappointment! This once excellent course has now officially reached sub-muni condition. We played on October 6 in the early morning. My playing partner that booked the tee time did not consult Greenskeeper and was not told by the course about the green aeration. I took one look at the practice green and went back into the pro shop to ask if the greens out on the course looked like the practice green. I was told the greens were punched that Monday but there seemed to be no embarrassment about the fact that 6 days later the greens had half the sand from South Mission Beach all over them. There also was no discount on the green fee, nor any offer to refund our green fees once we saw the horrible condition of the practice green. The green had so much sand that after every practice putt, your putter face was covered with damp sand. I have never seen that much sand on any green one day after aeration much less 6 days later. The majority of the greens, out on the course were just as bad and sadly they also had many bare spots in addition to the aeration and sanding.
Unfortunately, the greens were not the only problem with the course. There are large areas of hardpan where grass has obviously not grown for months. Most of these were in areas of the rough near the greens. The rough is made up from several types of grass. On the brighter side the fairways were pretty decent. I will avoid this course until major changes are made.

Carlton Oaks Country Club Course Review
San Diego Golf Course Reviews