Played 12-3. Rams Hill re-grassed the fairways using a summer grass that is dormant in the winter. The also re-grassed the greens (and modified a few of them). We played the course twice yesterday. We... Continue »

Played 12-3. Rams Hill re-grassed the fairways using a summer grass that is dormant in the winter. The also re-grassed the greens (and modified a few of them). We played the course twice yesterday. Weather was great. Staff was great. Pace of play was ok. Course conditions were decent. The greens firm and quick. The fairways are also firm. There are some spots with only patchy grass. Years ago, the conditioning here was pristine. Now, it looks more like a nice public course. No one is going to compare the course conditioning here to places like the Madison club or other top-tier desert courses. But the layout and scenic views at Ram’s Hill are solid. The green complexes are interesting and invite some creative shots. It’s a fun course. And perhaps in time, the conditioning will improve as the new grasses have another season to take hold.

Pleased to report that Rams Hill has regained its former luster. Times two! Played three rounds last week and had a blast. The new turf is virtually all in, and it’s the best turf I ever have played... Continue »

Pleased to report that Rams Hill has regained its former luster. Times two! Played three rounds last week and had a blast. The new turf is virtually all in, and it’s the best turf I ever have played, ball sits up nicely, took wonderful divots, rough was lush but not too penal. Bunkers in great shape. Greens still new and very firm and can glimpse the last aeration holes, but they roll true and very fast. Staff is first rate all around. Still free tacos (but tip the girl!) at 11/14 and warm cookie at the end of the round. Excellent range with scopes at each station, two terrific short game areas, one with bunkers (it’s at the far end of the main range). Layout hasn’t changed, this is a forgiving course off the tee but as you learn the course you find there are really good angles that reward a smart drive. The approaches are the challenge, especially with the firm greens, really fun when you learn the rewarding angles— several greens will kill you with a shot at the pin, there are several you actually must hit well away from the green to get the good bounce and roll down to the hole. The greens are fast and subtle, play with less break than you think standing over the ball. The par threes are fairly ordinary, 11 being the most challenging downhill with water on the left and a big right to left green. For a normal length hitter from the correct tee, one par five is truly in reach, others can get you close for a fun pitch or short iron to the pin. Good variety of par fours, couple short ones that aren’t Drive able but close. It’s playable for a 15 handicap from the correct tees—four sets of tees and three combinations on the card—and challenging for a low handicapper.

Borrego Springs can get a LOT of wind; the first day was calm, the second a three to four club wind consistently on the final 7 holes, one to three club wind on those holes the third day, but while really windy on the range, the first 11 holes are a bit insulated and were not bad at all. I was worried on day two on the range, but even the final holes played fun in the wind.

This is back to being my first choice three or four day getaway, happy to play that course over and over again, as you learn its angles it can really reward smart shots, lots of overall distances to play from, great practice areas, great food, really nice people. I don’t know what is or isn’t a “fair” price for golf anymore, but I have to say I do t feel like I paid too much, I feel like I got what I should for the price in every respect.

RH has even more “stay and play” lodgings on the property now, and I am sure they all are good; La Casa Del Zorro down the road is a rustic La Quinta-like resort I li,e a lot and with a truly exceptional restaurant, and Stanlund’s Inn & Suites a little closer to town is a great budget option. The little town is a blast, several decent restaurants, no chains or fast food options, pretty rustic. Getting there is not an easy drive, but really pretty. If you are into camping or have an RV, you have many options, including in the surrounding desert park with its incredible metal sculptures all around.

Played 10/13/24 7:30. First time playing with new Fairways and greens. Leisurely pace of just under 4 hrs with no one behind and one group ahead Everything is firm. Fairways have great coverage. Very ... Continue »

Played 10/13/24 7:30. First time playing with new Fairways and greens. Leisurely pace of just under 4 hrs with no one behind and one group ahead Everything is firm. Fairways have great coverage. Very good roll out and played fantastic. There are some very small and minor spots with thin coverage where grass hasn't filled completely filled in. Greens were very firm. They rolled smooth and true at medium fast pace. Very fast down grain and down hill. Traps and tees in great shape. New carts with GPS. Even a over head view of the greens with color coded topo showing slopes. Great warm up areas with Titleist balls and range finders at each station. Over all the course was back how it originally played. Even with a hot deal it's still very pricey but in fantastic shape. Was told by fellow player that for the rest of this month it is free replay, but did not confirm.

Extremely disappointed with the conditions for a course charging $165 a round. Tee boxes were in good shape and course layout was very good; however the fairways were in brutal shape with lots of bare... Continue »

Extremely disappointed with the conditions for a course charging $165 a round. Tee boxes were in good shape and course layout was very good; however the fairways were in brutal shape with lots of bare spots and very thin grass. The greens did not receive a ball at all. They were extremely hard and would not accept a well struck ball with spin. I would not complain for $65, but making a trek out to the middle of the desert for a course in this shape was a major disappointment. Play in San Diego or Coachella Valley.

Played two days in a row 3/9/24 & 3/10/24 through the stay and play package. Couldn't have picked a better weekend to be out there as the weather was sunny in the 70's with no wind to speak of. I'll s... Continue »

Played two days in a row 3/9/24 & 3/10/24 through the stay and play package. Couldn't have picked a better weekend to be out there as the weather was sunny in the 70's with no wind to speak of. I'll start with the tee boxes which were all in great shape , level ,plenty of grass coverage, and all the par threes had a bottle of sand mix next to the tee markers so divots were filled in. Fairways were mostly lush with plenty of grass coverage to hit from. There is one hole on the front nine , which is a par 5 ,that is really beat up that appears to have major water damage. Rough was cut to about two inches and was not very penalizing, but still not fun to hit from. Sand bunkers were in great shape with plenty of fluffy white sand to hit from. I wish I could say I didn't have to hit from any of the bunkers, but there are a lot of bunkers on this course. Now for the greens. They have torn out all the greens on the course and replanted them, which they warned us about before we started. To say the greens are very firm is an understatement and made the course very challenging. Approach shots had to be hit to the fringe area to have a chance to stick on the greens. The safe bet was hitting to the front of the green and pitching to the hole. Putting on them was awesome with the speed and breaks though. POP was right at 4 hours both days. The staff say the greens will be perfect after the first year. All that said I would play the course again even before the greens soften up. Very fun place to challenge your game.

Really enjoyed our round at Rams Hill on a very windy day, mostly 2-club wind with 3-club wind on the last 6 holes. The wind didn’t matter, it was still a glorious day on a gorgeous course. The course... Continue »

Really enjoyed our round at Rams Hill on a very windy day, mostly 2-club wind with 3-club wind on the last 6 holes. The wind didn’t matter, it was still a glorious day on a gorgeous course. The course conditions have improved a lot since last year when the fairways were subpar. Way mo better this year.

The 3 opening holes are tough, with the triple whammy of long, uphill and into the wind.

But the course opens up after that, …offering a nice mix of long and short par-4s, and enjoyable par-3s and par-5s.

The layout is engaging and the service by the staff is outstanding as usual. We’ll be back.

Greens are outstanding—some of the best in the county. Fast, smooth, and fun. (A couple have some issues of fungus or something around the edges, but it rarely comes into play.). The bunkers are great... Continue »

Greens are outstanding—some of the best in the county. Fast, smooth, and fun. (A couple have some issues of fungus or something around the edges, but it rarely comes into play.). The bunkers are great. Most fairways are in decent shape. Pace of play was sluggish until the threesome in front of us let our foursome play through. After we played through, the Marshal thanked us for asking them to let us play through because—according to him—they were backing up the whole course. I’m not sure how our playing through helped those behind us or why he wouldn’t directly address the problem, but after passing the three sole on hole 12, we never saw another golfer. Love the layout here. Lots of fun.

Second of our four round tour was here Feb. 15. I like the layout of the course just wish I could play it better!! Generally speaking the course was in good shape. They seem to have a recurring iss... Continue »

Second of our four round tour was here Feb. 15. I like the layout of the course just wish I could play it better!! Generally speaking the course was in good shape. They seem to have a recurring issue with some of the fairways and to a lesser extent the greens. The "new" Bermuda grass on the fairways in quite a few places has not grown in so very bare (and wet) in those areas. Some of the greens weren't great either, but tended to be around the perimeter of the greens and didn't really affect the putting....unless you were putting from the perimeter. Tee boxes were fine, bunkers, although mostly quite deep, were good, lots of sand, no rocks. POP was a tad over 4 hours. Service as always was excellent from bag drop, check in, starter to club cleaning at end of round. Driving range included in rate. One very annoying issue was the GPS on the golf carts. On several holes - 5 that I can remember-the cart would be "locked" with the message that you were in a restricted area return to the cart path....well we WERE ON the cart path !!! extremely annoying and causing slower play. As well from about the 7th hole onward to the 10th hole the GPS would chime-loudly-and the screen would tell you and remind you frequently to stop at the snack shack !!! The condition of the course may be one reason a reduced rate of $165 is in effect. As mentioned I like the layout and hopefully the conditions of the course, which as most of the GK'ers know, has been a bit of an issue for a few years now. Having said that the condition of the course is not bad just not up to their standard, and not a reason to play Rams Hill.

Played Sunday 1/22 in the Malbon tournament. First time making the trek to Borego and it was most definitely worth the drive. Just an incredible setting for a golf course, absolutely nothing but deser... Continue »

Played Sunday 1/22 in the Malbon tournament. First time making the trek to Borego and it was most definitely worth the drive. Just an incredible setting for a golf course, absolutely nothing but desert and beautiful mountainous backdrops. Teed off at 12:20 shotgun with probably a 10-15mph wind that died down later in the round. Playing downwind you can really get some distance off the tee especially if you hit the fairways because you'll get lots of rollout if you hit the slopes just right. Every tee box was perfect and level, just about every fairway was nice and green (there were some GUR areas but honestly I hardly noticed and never hit near them), rough was medium and fairly easy to hit from. If you can keep your ball in play (not spraying it into the desert/brush) you should find yourself with an excellent lie. Lots of bunkers of course but they all had beautiful fluffy sand in them. Greens are super tough. Big with tiers and undulation. Gotta hit approaches to the right spots or else it'll be easy to 3 putt. Some holes also have water which adds another element to the fun. Just an all around wonderful golf experience in a pretty special location. Would definitely head back out there and stay nearby to play multiple times