For my second round of the day, I ended up playing at Mission Trails. Found a decent GolfNow rate for $35 at noon, so it seemed like a decent option. I had absolutely no expectations coming into this ... Continue »

For my second round of the day, I ended up playing at Mission Trails. Found a decent GolfNow rate for $35 at noon, so it seemed like a decent option. I had absolutely no expectations coming into this round as I knew nothing about this course.

The front nine is fairly underwhelming. There's a few fun and funky holes with some tricky angles and odd landing areas in the fairways. Visually, it kind of looks wide open here, but it's much tighter than it appears. Fairways are cut tight and trees are placed in awkward positions that can definitely mess with your angles of attack. Also, on the front, you have to be aware that there are small cement drainage ditches running across almost every hole. They are marked as lateral hazards, but are hard to see from the tee boxes, so really pay attention.

The back nine perks up quite a bit with some more enjoyable holes that are much more scenic along the edge of a lake. A number of blind tee shots and even trickier angles than the front. Overall, the greens are very forgiving, though. They don't have much slope or undulation and aren't protected by too many hills or bunkers. So there are plenty of scoring opportunities if you play it straight and safe off the tees. It's not a long course, so some big hitters may just leave the driver in the bag on all but a few holes.

As far as conditions, I would say it's in "average" muni shape. Nothing too spectacular, but most fairways and rough was good to hit from. Plenty of brown patches and thin areas, but not bad. Only in one trap and the sand seemed OK. The greens were in really nice shape. Very quick, but still soft enough to be receptive on approaches and chip shots.

I played with another single and we later joined with a twosome. It seemed a bit slow-going at points (especially at the turn because 10 is a par-3 and there were two groups waiting on the tee when we got there), but it still worked out to a 4.5 hour round. Cart girl came around 3-4 times and they have a guy barbecuing at the clubhouse/turn if you want a fresh dog or burger.

The layout may be a bit too funky and/or short for some, but I enjoyed it overall. I won't be rushing to play here again, but I would come back. For under $40 on a Saturday, it's a decent option. The back nine is definitely enjoyable, especially with perfect San Diego weather and a nice coastal breeze all afternoon!

Mission Trail Golf Course Review
San Diego California Golf Course Reviews

Played Friday 4/6/12 with a $33, 10:30 tee time with my buddy and joined up with a couple singles to complete the foursome, playing in about 4.5 hours shooting a 77.

The course was mostly playing e... Continue »

Played Friday 4/6/12 with a $33, 10:30 tee time with my buddy and joined up with a couple singles to complete the foursome, playing in about 4.5 hours shooting a 77.

The course was mostly playing easy until the wind began to pick up providing a challenge for the upwind holes.

The largest factor that changed the normal style of play were the slow greens. Normally rolling about a 10 on the stimp, Trails' greens were uncut, rolling about an 8.5-9.

Mission Trail Golf Course Review
San Diego California Golf Course Reviews

Fairways, rough, and tee boxes were all average.
- The fairways were clean cut but have about 10-15% bare/brown spots
- The rough had an average length of 4 inches but some spots were similar to hitting off am uncut fairway making some rough shot rather simple.
- The tee boxes were in solid shape, always allowing for a great shot setup especially on the par 3's.

I have always wanted to play a track in Southern California and finally got my chance this past Sunday morning, teeing off with my grandson and son-in-law before 8am. I had read about this course here... Continue »

I have always wanted to play a track in Southern California and finally got my chance this past Sunday morning, teeing off with my grandson and son-in-law before 8am. I had read about this course here on Greenskeeper but what I found was not expected at all. First I want to talk about the course it self, a public 18 hole Championship layout only minutes East of San Diego. It could be the time of season we played here but we found it a little difficult at times locating where the fairway boundaries were, it seemed the rough they have here just blended into the fairway. Because of this issue if you never had played here before locating the green could be a little awkward at first. I am used to a distinctive seperation of the fairway and rough.Many elevation changes between tee box and greens are also very strong on this course along with a lot of hidden shots. On the fourth hole you play a short par 4 but all you see is the green making it look much shorter than it really is. Mission Trails is a course that demands the best course management you have. Many of the shots here require you to put your ego into the bag and play smart. I found that most of the tee boxes could have used a little more grooming and that the greens over all were very hard and fast. Again this could all be due to the time of season I played here, as everything was very green. I also found this is a track you must carry your own water because I never saw any drinking water after I left the club house. Also missing on this course (except after hole 11) are any rest rooms or porta potties. I will tell you however that when you reach the tee box on 11 the whole area has a aweful stench from golfers using the bushes. Please what is up here California? I general the layout of this course is very playable and you can have a fun round and score well. However there was a problem I found here that really disturbed us. Starting off was the employee working the counter, when I informed him we had never been here and was asking questions of the course he just blew me off and said just follow that trail there. Next up was the starter who sitting only 30 feet away from golfers teeing off never wanted to be quiet. Several times I nudged him to let him know to be quiet this I never saw before. It usually the starter letting other golfers to stay still and quiet. But the best was this range marshall. When we set up our tee time we informed them that my grandson who has never played before would be there with us, and they gave us a tee time right in front of a local golf tournament. Every 15 minutes this guy would come up to us and inform us to pick up the pace of play even though we were playing on time. When we finished fifth hole he again says he does not want to seem pushy but asks me if we would skip a few holes because of the tournament. I looked at him and politely inform him for some one not seeming pushy he was doing a d%mn good job at it, and that NO we were not skipping any holes. They were the ones that gave us the tee time and they knew about this tournament. Yes we were using a cart so that was not an issue and we finished the from nine only 4 minutes off pace. I hope this was only an isolated indecent. Wow my first sub par review and it comes here.

Mission Trail Golf Course Review
San Diego California Golf Course Reviews

This is a great, cheap course, but it can be slow at times. Alot of senior men play and it does slow down play. Plus, it isn't the hardest of courses but it isn't the easiest either. A few very challe... Continue »

This is a great, cheap course, but it can be slow at times. Alot of senior men play and it does slow down play. Plus, it isn't the hardest of courses but it isn't the easiest either. A few very challenging holes - blind tee shots and sharp dog legs that really require good club management. You get more than you pay for here - if you complain about this course, you need to pack up the attitude and go somewhere else. The reason for its slow play is because it is cheap, in decent shape and gets alot of play - it wouldn't get alot of play if it wasn't a decent place to shoot. Walking the course can be a little long, but do-able. I would definitely give Mission Trails a shot before you let bad reviews sway your opinion. I've played Torrey South and it can be just as slow.

Mission Trails Golf Course Review
San Diego California Golf Course Reviews

The course was in fair condition considering the recent storms. Greens were not all that smooth, but soft due to the rain. My biggest complaint was that the course let a fivesome and a group of six ... Continue »

The course was in fair condition considering the recent storms. Greens were not all that smooth, but soft due to the rain. My biggest complaint was that the course let a fivesome and a group of six out on the course ahead of my group during prime time. Decent lay out, but would not pay more than $40 to play this track.

Mission Trail Golf Course Review
San Diego Golf Course Reviews

All 18 holes are now open. Over the years, I've seen this course in very poor condition and despite the sod being recently laid and not quite grown in, I was pleasantly surprised to see it in its cur... Continue »

All 18 holes are now open. Over the years, I've seen this course in very poor condition and despite the sod being recently laid and not quite grown in, I was pleasantly surprised to see it in its current condition. Don't get me wrong, it is nowhere near immaculate but the greens are rolling true...with some of the greens really good. .The fairways and rough are inconsistent but not bad. I paid $25 which included cart and it definitely was well worth that price. All of the employees provided first rate service.

I didn't notice the six hole issue before I showed up, but it ended up being great because it's $25 for all-day play. The green were in much better condition than expected as well is much of the cours... Continue »

I didn't notice the six hole issue before I showed up, but it ended up being great because it's $25 for all-day play. The green were in much better condition than expected as well is much of the course. I expect to take advantage of the great rates before they open in a week.

NOTE---Only 6 of 18 holes are open at this time due to construction!!! Call ahead!

NOTE---Only 6 of 18 holes are open at this time due to construction!!! Call ahead!

I just move from San Diego to Minneapolis, Minnesota this past winter and I use to play at Mission Trails Golf Course, it's cheap and within driving distance. The golf course is ok by my standard. L... Continue »

I just move from San Diego to Minneapolis, Minnesota this past winter and I use to play at Mission Trails Golf Course, it's cheap and within driving distance. The golf course is ok by my standard. Like I've said, it's cheap.