Carmel Valley Ranch Resort

Golf Course Review Carmel Valley Ranch Resort Carmel California

Reviewed by: Alex326, Monterey, Ca
During last weeks round at Quail the topic of Carmel Valley Ranch (CVR) came up. I realized I hadn’t played it in several months so I headed out there today for a round in the SUN! It was still cart path only due to rain most of the week last week and this weekend.

Quail and Carmel Valley Ranch are very similar in that they are both high end resort courses with prime tee times going to private members then guests and finally a handful to the public.

Since it looks like I’ve done the last few reviews at CVR, I’ll do a head to head comparison between Quail and Carmel Valley Ranch as they are both inland on the Monterey Peninsula and only a few miles a part.

The Review

Conditions are great at both courses, but Quail gets the nod. Whereas CVR is an 8-9 overall, Quail is a 9.5-10. Greens at Quail are more tame as CVR greens all have several sublte undulations. In a way it makes them harder to read than a place like Spanish Bay or Blackhorse which have several severe undulations throughout.

Fairway conditions again goes to Quail just because the fairways there seem to drain better. I had a few drives plug in the fairway upon landing at CVR.

Tee box prize goes to CVR. Easily a 9.5 to Quail’s 9. Sand trap is hands down Quail. The only reason I didn’t rate Quail’s blunkers a 10 is because I played Spanish right after two days in a row and those bunkers definitely were a 10!

Carmel Valley Ranch also gets the nod for better layout. In addition to the 6 holes up in the mountainside which have some fun elevation changes, CVR does a fantastic job with water features on the flat holes.

Parting Thoughts

Customer service award goes to Quail without a doubt. Customer service is good at CVR but Quail has the best CS north of San Diego. Aviara is the only other course/resort that matches (and maybe even exceeds) Quail when it comes to Customer Service.

Both CVR and Quail offer full grass driving ranges with range balls includes with green fees. Both have GPS on the carts and a quality restaurant/bar.

One other thing to mention about the course. CVR is a par 70 with only two par 5’s. The Par 3 holes range from a short 110 yards to 200+ and seem to be evenly spaced in distances between the four par 3’s.

Both courses are highly recommended and definitely worth a visit while here in the Monterey Peninsula. Especially during the summer when the Pebble courses are fogged in. CVR and Quail will be 20 degrees warmer.