Had the first time at twilight for Balboa Park but saw a 6:50 tee time come up last night for South (I didn't even know they did times that early, and we were second off after the 6:40!) so jumped on ... Continue »

Had the first time at twilight for Balboa Park but saw a 6:50 tee time come up last night for South (I didn't even know they did times that early, and we were second off after the 6:40!) so jumped on it. It was foggy for all but the 9 through 12 stretch then it came in again on our approach shots to 13. Makes for tough sledding when you have no reference to aim for. Luckily we were all locals and knew pretty much where to aim. 16 was fun, couldn't see a thing.
Course is in very nice shape right now, rough mown down to a reasonable level (where you can actually find your ball), fairways mown tight, greens quick rolling well with remnants of a sanding of some sort? Only thing was the bunkers, they were thin, well maintained but thin. After a green side bunker shot on 11 I had black stains from hitting the liner on the bottom of my wedge . . . but overall nice conditions.
POP was just 4 hours (we were second off) as we were all walking
Snack cart came by a couple times a nine.
Everything went well except the fog which a damper on an otherwise fine mornings walk ruined!

played 3/15, as part of dawn patrol. arrived at 4:40am, next guy arrived ~455am. by 530am there were 8 bags in line. First group off was 640am, about 10 min before official dawn (we probably could ... Continue »

played 3/15, as part of dawn patrol. arrived at 4:40am, next guy arrived ~455am. by 530am there were 8 bags in line. First group off was 640am, about 10 min before official dawn (we probably could have seen #1 green but for some clearing fog). I was told by pro shop day prior that only 2 foursomes would go off before scheduled times.

Course is in solid shape, tee boxes, greens, fairways all in good conditions. Bunkers were mixed, definitely sparse sand in #4 left greenside bunker for example. Greens had just been cut that morning, so they were rolling nice. Receptive (big pitch marks from approach shots) but running pretty fast for TP.

Never love paying the out-of-towner rate for a "muni," but when conditions are good, it's definitely worth the cost IMO compared to other high-end daily fee resorts in the SD area.

Played yesterday at about 8 and the pace for a Tuesday to me was really slow. It was a tick over 5 hours. The starter got the group 2 ahead of us out late so they were behind most of the day until a... Continue »

Played yesterday at about 8 and the pace for a Tuesday to me was really slow. It was a tick over 5 hours. The starter got the group 2 ahead of us out late so they were behind most of the day until about hole 14 or so but the group ahead of us didn't get the memo and fell behind a hole behind them so that was frustrating.

Greens are pretty good. Certainly not as firm and fast as the North but still good speed to them. They are definitely softer but they do get firmer as the day goes on. The overnight watering and morning moisture do dry out.

Fairways are very nice. I thought #1 was a little shaggy but there were mowers out there so most of them had been cut that morning. Like the North there seemed to be workers out there filling in divots.

Rough is not the thickest but it is penalizing. I found quite a few balls that not go as I had planned. I even clubbed up a few times. There are some areas where you can get a hybrid or wood but generally good luck. Even though it may not seem thick there is something about this rough that just kills the club as it comes through.

Sand is a tale of 2 different 9s. The sand on the front appears to be ok. Some have been raked and some have not. The back 9 though yikes. Looks like most of them have been washed out during the rain. They did have crews working on these as we were playing so I'm not sure how long that will take.

Overall its was enjoyable even if I didn't play that great. I didn't see a marshal out there so that would be my only gripe. It could have helped the pace of play.

Played in the men's club today and teed off right on time and finished in 4:45. I thought the pins were in tough positions contributing to the slower pace.

Greens are still pretty soft and with ... Continue »

Played in the men's club today and teed off right on time and finished in 4:45. I thought the pins were in tough positions contributing to the slower pace.

Greens are still pretty soft and with all the traffic I thought were a little too wobbly. They still had some good speed to them but it was just tough to putt not knowing if your ball would get knocked off line. I think if they can dry out so they can be fooled and cut consistnely then they would be fantastic to putt on. Never really noticed and dead spots and ball marks seemed to have been fixed too.

Fairways were great. Mowed nice and tight and still soft to hit from. No evidence of any wet spots.

Rough has been cut down but make but make no mistake it could still be trouble. It was really a crap shoot.

Found the sand a few times and it's fine. It's more on the firm side rather than soft but that is the norm here. I say both green side and fairway bunkers were the same consistency.

Saw the marshal and cart girl several times.

Played both Friday and Saturday. The non course conditions couldn't be more polar opposites. Friday was perfect, mid 70s and Saturday was low 60s overcast windy. Pace of play was the same. We had ... Continue »

Played both Friday and Saturday. The non course conditions couldn't be more polar opposites. Friday was perfect, mid 70s and Saturday was low 60s overcast windy. Pace of play was the same. We had the same tee time both days and Friday we teed off 10 minutes late and finished in 5 hours and Saturday we teed off 10 minutes early and finished in a little less than 4 1/2 hours.

First things first the rough is getting nasty. With this rain it was going to be thicker and longer. I can't count how many times I've seen players try and get a wood or something out of there and not advance the ball more than 10 yards. There are areas where you can do this but generally right of the fairway is thick so keep an eye out too. You could walk past it and not know too.

Fairways are good. There is more divot damage than I would like to see after the maintenance some are filled but there were more unfilled than I expected. I'd also like to see it mowed a little tighter.

Tee boxes are good generally. Par 3s have a little more damage and I'd like to seem them mowed a little more too. Course seems soft so maybe they can't mow this and the fairways as much as they would like.

Sand, just not a fan of. I'd like to see more sand on the bunkers. Bottomed out too many times. Sand is heavy and seems wet which is fine but I just don't like hitting the hard part.

It was pretty easy to get out. With the north open everyone is trying to get on there. There was a 3some behind us both days. Yesterday the 3some had 2 holes between them and the group behind them. Plus there were a bunch of other gaps I could see but maybe that was yesterday's rain scaring people away.

Third twilight group off at 2:20 finished at around 6:45 in the semi-dark, maybe one group finished behind us with a wee bit of light. We never waited and should have finished a bit faster as we were ... Continue »

Third twilight group off at 2:20 finished at around 6:45 in the semi-dark, maybe one group finished behind us with a wee bit of light. We never waited and should have finished a bit faster as we were consistently a hole behind the group ahead due to a member of our group being a bit too 'deliberate' in his style of play. The course was in good to very good condition all around with a few rough spots here and there but mostly in areas that aren't that much in play. Greens were nice, but rolling a touch slower than I'd like. Bunkers were the usually norm at courses these days, firm with just a touch of loose stuff on the surface. Worth the resident rate ($37 to walk), but considering the range (hitting off mats), chipping area (just a sorta mown down area with a few cups to aim for), tiny practice bunker, not a great overall experience for those who have to pay the full visitors rate.

* On a side note the North course is starting to look like a golf course and may yet make a debut in 2016!

Played 9/20 walking at twilight with Greg, Neil and Bella, accompanied by her dad, Bud. Neil is leaving for Indiana at the end of the month and even though he is an SD native he had played Torrey but ... Continue »

Played 9/20 walking at twilight with Greg, Neil and Bella, accompanied by her dad, Bud. Neil is leaving for Indiana at the end of the month and even though he is an SD native he had played Torrey but a handful of times. Of course, it rained, but a SD rain, not an Indiana rain. Play on. Tees were lush and well kept. Kikuyu fairways were a tightly mowed carpet of well-fed grass. Wet Kikuyu rough definitely added more than a few strokes. Greens were a mottled blend of greens in coloring, but putted well and held well-struck shots. Traps were first class with ample fluffy white sand, slightly compacted due to the rain. Pace of play was okay. It seems few back out of their tee times because of the rain. We finished in the dark, about 7:10, for an four hour 10 minute round. I've played Torrey hundreds of times throughout the years, though not much lately. And I'm still not sure it's worth the out-of-town rates they charge. But it is a US Open track, and the smiles on my two long-time SD resident friends' faces as we trudged through the intermittent rain helped me appreciate how much fun it can be. Though the greens may be slightly discolored, personally I'm not going to wait until Candice comes back before I return for a twilight round.

This course is struggling with much needed TLC. Hasn't been the same since they moved Candice the old GK to Balboa. Although this is a great course I couldn't recommend it to any visitor paying the bi... Continue »

This course is struggling with much needed TLC. Hasn't been the same since they moved Candice the old GK to Balboa. Although this is a great course I couldn't recommend it to any visitor paying the big bucks. Maybe these people will come to their senses and bring back Candice to get it back on track.

Played here a couple of times over the last few weeks and I'm summarizing all the reviews in one. Generally pace of play is really good. Today was 3 1/2 and longest was 4 1/2. Customer service is v... Continue »

Played here a couple of times over the last few weeks and I'm summarizing all the reviews in one. Generally pace of play is really good. Today was 3 1/2 and longest was 4 1/2. Customer service is very good too. Starter is always efficient and a marshal was always out patrolling.

As far as condition wise I would sum everything up as just ok right now. Greens are good and rolled at an expected pace. Not fast but not slow either. I don't recall any putts getting away from me and if they did it was because I was probably a little more aggressive.

Tee boxes are generally ok. I thought I notice I thought they were a tad long but really not bad considering. Par 3s had a little more damage than other tee boxes as you think but they do seem to move them around well.

Fairways are good. There seems to be more divot damage with the play from over the summer. I've noticed they have been watering and the fairways don't seem as dry as other areas but there are a few bad spots. However in the fairway you usually got a very decent lie.

Rough is really spotty. There are some thick areas and some areas that are just plain dirt. I was in the rough to the left on 13 and could only advance a 6 iron 100 yds. It seems like the heat has taken its toll in this areas the most. Chances are you will find yourself in one of these areas and just have to deal with it.

Sand in one word...terrible. There must be a shortage of sand in San Diego.

Overall not bad but not the best conditon it has been in either.