Had an 8:40 AM tee time Saturday 2/20. Weather was absolutely perfect.

The driving range project is done and it is sweet! They have it on grass Monday-Thursday and then mats on the weekends. The fi... Continue »

Had an 8:40 AM tee time Saturday 2/20. Weather was absolutely perfect.

The driving range project is done and it is sweet! They have it on grass Monday-Thursday and then mats on the weekends. The final buildout of the Foresight Monitors/Simulators still pending but should be done soon. Will be a cool touch.

The course is in great shape right now with the greens absolutely pure. They just did a light verticut, double cut and rolled so they were just quick and perfect. Bunker project on 7 and 10 are complete and the sod faced, British Open style bunkers look super cool. Not sure how much they come into play on 7, but 10 is really cool.

Tees have grown in a little coverage over the past couple weeks so that's good. STill a little bare in spots (#3 is rough) but more than fine finding a spot. Fairways are pretty good. A lot of people walk the Goat so you get some divot damage in popular spots but the staff and volunteers do a good job going around and filling them as well as they can.

Most of my impression of golf courses center on the greens and green complexes when it comes to where I want to play and spend my money and the Goats are fantastic and tricky right now. Never a dull moment out there but good time to go out for a good challenge

Every time I play the Goat I enjoy it more and more. Despite the fact this little course kicks my butt, it is just pure fun to play. Sounds crazy, but some times I think it plays more difficult than... Continue »

Every time I play the Goat I enjoy it more and more. Despite the fact this little course kicks my butt, it is just pure fun to play. Sounds crazy, but some times I think it plays more difficult than many of the "big" courses, certainly around the greens, which by the way are very nice right now. These small sloppy greens are just tough !

Fairways are good, but not as good as the prior time playing here. Same with the tee boxes. As Andrew suggests, maybe too much play for them to handle all the iron shots? Staff is great as always, and never an issue with pace of play. Wonderful way to spend a winter morning !

Played Saturday morning, 1/9, teeing off at 9:00. POP is always pretty good here but with the increased crowds it took us about 3:45 which is great but typically it's a bit less.

Right now the gree... Continue »

Played Saturday morning, 1/9, teeing off at 9:00. POP is always pretty good here but with the increased crowds it took us about 3:45 which is great but typically it's a bit less.

Right now the greens at the Goat are really good. If you've played here you know how small and tricky they are, and when they get a bit firm and fast it makes for a crazy experience, both putting and chipping.

The fairways in general are pretty solid. #8 and #16 are always a bit rough (I think because of where they sit in some lower areas) but the rest provide good lies all around.

The tees are not as good as they normally are. I think it's the crazy amount of play every course is getting coupled with the fact that it's a shorter course and most tee boxes have people hitting irons. They're level and I guess you get to use a tee so you still get a good lie, just some are a bit bare.

No one course construction going on but the massive range overhaul is coming along nicely. The grass area was made much bigger, there are new targets/greens to aim at and then in the back there's going to be siting areas, some mats when the grass needs a break and a few stalls with Foresight monitors, which is cool.

All in all, conditions are solid and the course never ceases to require your best stuff.

I played the Goat on back to back days this past weekend. First on Friday for MGF Skins and then in our Goat Hill Park Masters Tourney on Saturday morning.

Friday Skins is a regular event and alway... Continue »

I played the Goat on back to back days this past weekend. First on Friday for MGF Skins and then in our Goat Hill Park Masters Tourney on Saturday morning.

Friday Skins is a regular event and always a good time. This one was a little different in there were some added prizes with Matt Ginella in town. It's a pretty good deal and there's always a $1000 ace pot ($1500 on the last Friday of the month, and also a $250 starter pot). With the amount of par 3's there's a few chances :)

All of the construction on the course has been done and the place is looking really good. The greens have completely healed from punching and are running great. I thought they were good on Friday but then were cut and rolled before we played on Saturday and they were pretty tricky. The held shots great but when these get a little fast you can have some seriously wicked shots around the greens.

Fairways were pretty good for the Goat. There's a mix of kikuyu and new bermuda but I'd say overall coverage is solid. If you miss the fairways here it's a crap shoot of what you'll end up on. Accuracy is a big advantage over distance. There's a handful of new tee boxes and those are still great, but a couple par 4 tee boxes are a little wonky. There are plans to add a few additional "hidden/tourney" tees on a few of the holes which will make already tough par 3's even more so (not sure I'm excited to add another 20 yards to #5).

The range is shut down for a major overhaul until the end of the year. When it's all said and done it's going to be pretty epic.

I'd say right now with the greens the way they are, the Goat is a great place to play for a challenging and fun round. Recommended

Played here today in a special Friday afternoon Skins Game to celebrate Golf Channel's Matt Ginella moving from Florida to San Diego. I was in the 2:50 group, paired with three fun guys who seem to pl... Continue »

Played here today in a special Friday afternoon Skins Game to celebrate Golf Channel's Matt Ginella moving from Florida to San Diego. I was in the 2:50 group, paired with three fun guys who seem to play the Friday Skins games semi-frequently. (This was my first time.) $15 for the green fees (9 holes) and $20 cash for the Skins game. Super fun! Three of us walked and one guy rode. Pace was ok; we had a 7-some in front of us! Everybody in the Skins game finished nine, so it all worked out. Afterward Matt Ginella gave away a bunch of Linksoul gear (I got a hat and a tee) and awarded CTP winners with True Linkswear gift cards. Ginella had the only skin of the night and took home all the cash! Good to see AndrewZ28 out there!

Conditions are quite good, with the greens far and away the highlight. They are in absolutely phenomenal condition: smooth and slick and accept full shots well. Just can't ask for much more. Fairways are decent; sorta hit or miss if you'll find much cushion under the ball. Most of my lies were pretty thin. Rough is also a mixed bag with lots of clumpy kikuyu, making chipping very difficult (for me anyway). I wasn't in any bunkers. Tee boxes were decent.

The skins game was really fun despite the fact I played pretty poorly. I was lucky to have today off from work when Ginella announced this, but I'd love to make these a Friday afternoon tradition, even though that's unlikely with my job. I'll definitely consider playing in another if/when I have another Friday off.

Played a quick afternoon 18 yesterday, teeing off at 2:00 and finishing about 5:45 PM. Pace of play out here is always fantastic and we could have played faster but had a bit of money on the line so ... Continue »

Played a quick afternoon 18 yesterday, teeing off at 2:00 and finishing about 5:45 PM. Pace of play out here is always fantastic and we could have played faster but had a bit of money on the line so took a little longer over some putts :)

The Goat is in fantastic shape right now. All the improvements to the tees and new sodded areas are complete, grown in and playing great (except for the tee on #10, which looks like it will open any day now). However, the driving range is going through a major overhaul so that won't be open for awhile.

The greens here were punched about two weeks ago and they are basically fully healed. They were a little fuzzy and bumpy late in the day yesterday but Friday mornings they get a good cut so should be great this weekend. The cooler, dryer temperatures are really helping as the course is allowed to dry out a little bit and become a bit firmer. When it was really hot and humid over the past couple months a lot of water was required and you'd get some pretty chewy kikuyu and the greens had to be kept a little longer. Excited for Fall golf on the coast!

Played with someone who was making their first trip around the Goat and like always, they said it was a much harder golf course then they expected looking at the yardage. Don't get fooled into thinking it's a push over.

Also, a few new distance markers scattered around the course. Yardages on felled tree stumps around are a nice addition.

Should be prime condition this weekend, recommended for a fun time.

I always look forward to playing the goat. I can not believe just how much better the course is condition wise from my last time here. Night & Day. And I suspect it will only get better. While the... Continue »

I always look forward to playing the goat. I can not believe just how much better the course is condition wise from my last time here. Night & Day. And I suspect it will only get better. While the greens roll well, they are still too slow for my taste, but I suspect if they were firm and fast, one would never be able to finish a round of golf there. They are small, undulating and just tough !

As i did not bring any kind of game with me, the course absolutely humbled me. This course can humble you when you play well, so when you struggle, it makes for a brutal day, BUT, despite that, still love playing here and will return again soon. For those who have never played the Goat, don't me put off by the short yardage, this course is all you've be able to handle.

Had a 12 noon tee time in Carlsbad Thursday (9/2) so it was an easy decision to grab a quick 18 holes at Goat Hill Park in the morning (7:30am). Thanks AndrewZ28 for setting it up and mpisarski01 for ... Continue »

Had a 12 noon tee time in Carlsbad Thursday (9/2) so it was an easy decision to grab a quick 18 holes at Goat Hill Park in the morning (7:30am). Thanks AndrewZ28 for setting it up and mpisarski01 for joining in! We played in 2.5 hours riding.

Always a great time at a golf course with the coolest vibe around. Fun to wear a t-shirt and shorts enjoying the relaxing Oceanside coastal temps. It’s a unique golf experience on many levels. First and foremost you have to hit the ball straight out there and be on with your iron game/putting. The golf course is vastly, massively, underrated in difficulty. Want some great exercise, walk Goat “Hill”. Want a tasty local craft beer to chill and lick your wounds after the round, they got that too. Anyway, the golf course in the middle of a ton of big improvements as AndrewZ28 describes so please read his review. I remember playing it years ago when LINKSOUL (owner) took on the restoration project and there were so many large bare areas (like over 100 yards large). They had a phrase there called “goated” which meant you just missed the green or fairway and your ball decided it was at a skate park vanishing hundreds of feet wherever the hard pan bare areas would take it. That’s all but gone now. Amazing. So much new turf and more grass being planted. Come Spring 2021 I think the complete facelift of the place will be near complete. But I doubt the improvements will ever stop. Linksoul has so much passion for this place.

Current conditions are spot on with how mpisarski01 and AndrewZ28 describe. Place was very wet although in preparation for the Labor Day heat wave. I posted a bunch of photos. I love this little track. It’s rough around the edges right now for sure but still worth a visit in IMO. Just don’t expect great conditions. I’d say they are fair to good overall right now. Give it another month and it should be much better.

For anyone that thinks that short courses are easy has never played the Goat. This par 65 4400 yard course has a lot of teeth and most of it being the small and undulated greens. A big shout out to A... Continue »

For anyone that thinks that short courses are easy has never played the Goat. This par 65 4400 yard course has a lot of teeth and most of it being the small and undulated greens. A big shout out to Andrewz28 for hooking us up yesterday first thing in the morning as we zipped through 18 in a little under 2.5 hours. Accuracy is key to this course because there is a lot of danger on most holes leaving bad lies or worse.

The course was in good shape tee to green. The boxes need to be moved and were just a tad shaggy but there was plenty of room to find a spot to tee off. Fairwyas were very nice and on hole 10 and 18 there is new sod that was just put down this week so it is GUR. Greens with the exception of 2 that were very shaggy and punched were nice to putt on. They were a little soft for my liking but rolled true. Rough is mostly crab grass around the greens which takes some getting use to but I didnt mind it.

Overall this is a great course run by a great company (Linksoul) and its just a fun layed back time whenever I play. I highly recommend.