Posted on October 24, 2018October 20, 2018 by Vic Flores

Golf Course Review Dos Lagos Golf Club Corona California

Dos Lagos Golf Club

Golf Course Review Dos Lagos Golf Club Corona California

Reviewed by: 24hourgolf, Monterey Park

OK time flies. It has been 7 years since I played here last. (Why? – maybe traffic coming home).

Played this morning in 3 H. We took advantage of the weekend Sr deal ($29).

Greens were punched on 8/9 of this month and are still healing. Some of them are better than others and those had good putting speed, but I think at least another week? But overall, they were all playable. We found the tee boxes all clean and playable. No issues with any fairways, as they had roll out and great lies, all round. In one trap and no issues and heard none from others. Did not find much rough, but there are enough OB areas to compensate, should you get way off the fairway.

Customer service was excellent at all levels. Glad to revisit here, as I totally enjoyed the course and the layout. Recommended and we will be going back, before 7 years, for sure.

Posted on October 23, 2018October 22, 2018 by Vic Flores

GK Guru Visit Black Gold Golf Club Yorba Linda California

Black Gold Golf Club

Golf Course Review Black Gold Golf Club Yorba Linda California

Reviewed by: JohnnyGK, Thousand Oaks

Good times out at Black Gold Golf Club Sunday with GK’ers Mattias, roarksown1 and kassper7.

Sunday was a great testament of how much I like this layout even when I was looking for my tee shot on the majority of holes. My driver was as bad as I can remember as far as accuracy and let me tell you this course will eat you up on a day like that. However, take a drop, or two (lol) and play out the holes, enjoy the great views. I still had fun with the approach shots, be it many different angles than I am used to. The challenging green complexes and putting greens.

The Review

As for the conditions, very nice for October. Like roarksown1 I was expecting the golf course to be a little on the brown side but rather it was green. Good lies when I found the fairway. The rough was hit and miss as far as lush long or thin in areas. We played after the big rain on Saturday so it was still damp in places. Damp + Kikuyu grass is a tough combo! Noticed many green-side bunkers with new sand. Played a couple shots from them. Very nice. Tee boxes in good shape. Some were closed for what appeared to be nothing more than just giving them a break to grow in more. Last but not least the greens. They were in very good shape BUT very soft for Black Gold standards and consequently a bit bumpy and slower than I’ve experience in the past. I’m sure it has to do with the fact the greens were softer due to aeration 4 weeks ago combined with heavy rain the night before. Add to that we played in the afternoon on full tee sheet of players before us. You put all that together and still get very good greens, you know these greens are going to be rolling fast and smooth again likely by the time you read this review.

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Black Gold Golf Club Yorba Linda California GK Guru Visit-Hole-13-Bunker

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Black Gold Golf Club Yorba Linda California GK Guru Visit -Holes-10 & 18

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Final Thought

Service was excellent all day. Check-in, starter and on-course beverage service. After our round there was a wedding taking the whole clubhouse but normally I always enjoy their food/drink on the patio. I might try to get back out here again this fall/winter. Need to redeem myself for my poor play but more so just love this place.

Posted on October 22, 2018October 10, 2018 by Vic Flores

Golf Course Review Aliante Golf Club North Las Vegas Nevada

Aliante Golf Club

Golf Course Review Aliante Golf Club North Las Vegas, NV

Reviewed by: rob1563, Las Vegas

Played on Friday, 10/5, with John_T around 9:15. Paid $38 city resident rate. Paired up with some retired locals, one being a guy who was casino manager at 2 different places I worked because Vegas is a small town. Pace was a bit slow, finishing in 4:45, even with the group ahead dropping out after 9.

Course came out of reseeding in great shape. Full access with a 90 degree rule. Tee boxes a bit shaggy but mostly level. The Bermuda rough is starting to go dormant, with some areas really thick and others a little more manageable. Fairways are spectacular. Full coverage and lush. I had heard the greens were really bad before they closed for maintenance. It shows they put a lot of work into them. Greens were smooth and medium speed, however, #2 and #3 are playing temp greens and #15 has Ground Under Repair (GUR) marked off at the far back. The bunkers have also improved since the last time I played and are more consistent with most Las Vegas courses.

Customer service was good. Drink cart around about 5 times. The grill after the round was small but great food and service.

I really enjoy playing Aliante. While it does play through a boring residential area, the course is fun and no 2 holes are the same (outside of 7 and 12). The houses don’t really come into play but anything rolling into the brush on either side of the fairway or the arroyo crossing a few fairways is lost. Good course to have a great time on.

Posted on October 21, 2018October 10, 2018 by Vic Flores

Golf Course Review Monarch Beach Golf Links Dana Point California

Monarch Beach Golf Links

Golf Course Review Monarch Beach Golf Links Dana Point, CA

Reviewed by: gguerrero44, Griffith Park

ALERT: Aeration
Will be aerating the greens 10/29 & 10/30.
* Although Greenskeeper.org researches all alerts before posting, we ask that you please contact the golf course for confirmation.

Played Monarch 9/24 on the Underpar all you can play deal.

Service was 10 from the moment we drove up for bag drop off and valet. Teed-off as the first Tee time at 7:40am. Could have gone out sooner but we were a two-some and had to wait for a single to join us. Course has a rule, first group out must be a threesome or more.

Course is in amazing condition. The starter told us the greens had been punched about a month prior, and were in excellent condition and rolling @ 11 on Stimp meter. More on this in a moment. Tee boxes were in terrific condition as well , all fairly level with no bare spots. Fairways were also in excellent condition with good green coverage. The rough was well maintained too. Sand Traps (and there plenty) were also fluffy and in great condition. The course is not very long but where it defends itself is with the well placed fairway bunkers and abundant green-side bunkers. The greens are also have lots of undulations were when I missed made recovery difficult. The greens were not only fast , they were extremely difficult to gauge speed and line therefore making 3 putts more common than 1 putts.

One of my favorite holes was Hole #3 the short par 4 facing the ocean right off the beach. A well struck 5 iron leaves a mere 100 yard shot in. But with the pin tucked back-left it was tough to keep the ball hole high. There is a large drop off left middle than can bring your approach shot back to front of green. Plus going long leaves you in a grassy bowl area. Lots of fun. POP on first 18 was 3.5 hours and on second 18 was closer to 4.5 hours.

All said, great day of fun with 2 rounds at a very amazing and well maintained golf course. Thanks Underpar.com.

Posted on October 20, 2018October 9, 2018 by Vic Flores

Golf Course Review Bayonet Black Horse Golf Club Seaside California

Bayonet Black Horse GC (Black Horse)

Golf Course Review Bayonet Black Horse Golf Club Seaside, CA

Reviewed by: Alex326, Monterey, Ca

What a beautiful day for golf on the peninsula. I hadn’t played Black Horse in a while and I forgot how much I love this course. I also forgot how tough it is. Numerous elevation changes along with plenty of views of the ocean make for a great afternoon of golf.

Track was in great shape tee to green. Tee boxes were easily a 9. Perfectly level, divot free and lush. Fairways were fairly lush throughout with an occasional thin area here and there.

I was in three sand traps and two were excellent but the third was a bit thin. The area around the greens offers some very tight lies. As for the greens…. Think of it as putting on a frozen diamond!! Severe undulations throughout and very fast. Most have a false front and landing a shot 1-2 feet on usually will end up 20+ feet back off the green.

Full on approach shots will generally hold but short pitch shots are a nightmare and a true test of your short game.

Sundays mid morning are a perfect time to play on the peninsula during football season so POP was just under 4 hours. Cart gal was around a few times.

Black Horse is an all around great course that will test your short game all day long!

Posted on October 19, 2018October 9, 2018 by Vic Flores

Golf Course Review PGA WEST Greg Norman Course La Quinta California

PGA WEST (Greg Norman Course)

Golf Course Review PGA WEST Greg Norman Course La Quinta, CA

FORELINX: The Country Club Alternative. Click HERE for more.

Reviewed by: Nickesquire, Rancho Mirage, CA
Rode the Blues (6671/72.8/133) with Dave in 3H, 45M using Forelinx. The weather was clear, fairly calm and around 85.

The difficulty factor is deceptive and I like the visuals that the layout presents. Almost every hole has a forced carry over desert-scape, but the fairways are very generous in size. Unique layout that plays like a quasi links style course encouraging bump/runs or putting from well off the green.

The tee boxes are lush, level and very nicely maintained.

The fairways were lush & well maintained. Few unfixed divots.

Not much rough as the fairways go immediately to desert-scape on this course. The only grass maintained higher than the fairways is a strip around the sand traps.

The sand traps are plentiful and decently maintained with good quality sand. Numerous holes have 6-8 fairway bunkers that are more severe that the average golfer is used to navigating through. Green side bunkers are deep and large.

The large, firm greens putted medium slow.

The customer service is always good here. Nice grass range with complimentary balls, nice sand/chipping and practice putting areas that closely resembled the on course conditions. Good GPS on carts. Complementary bottled water in the ice chest, and the cart gal was out making the rounds. Recommended.

Posted on October 18, 2018October 9, 2018 by Vic Flores

Golf Course Review Sandpiper Golf Course Goleta California

Sandpiper Golf Course

Golf Course Review Sandpiper Golf Course Goleta, CA

Reviewed by: JohnnyGK, Thousand Oaks

Found myself in Santa Barbara late afternoon yesterday, 10/8, so decided to swing by Sandpiper Golf Club for a late Twilight round. Beautiful weather, clear day, played as a single. Teed it up at 3:45pm. Hardly anyone out there that late. It was a surreal experience. Fabulous views. Peaceful sounds. I can’t recommend a late Twilight round at Sandpiper enough.

The Review

Golf Course conditions are very good despite very dry Summer/Fall weather the region has had. Greens in super shape despite some tiny hole venting aeration (no sand). The tiny holes did not affect the putts whatsoever. Fast, holding approach shots, running out on pitch shots and smooth. Fairways in very good shape. Firm with a good padding to the hit the ball from. Light green with occasional light brown areas. Primary rough is cut low just above fairway height. There in no longer tall secondary fescue rough, likely to conserve water so they can focus resources on the fairways, so if want to cut the corner a little bit on hole 15 go for it. Bunkers in good shape, firm but decent sand. Light brown coloring in most traps. Tee boxes in good shape. Lush, groomed with some tee boxes (played the gold tees) needing to be more level.

Finished in 3 hours. I only had to skip one hole to play through a foursome. I also had to stop playing to take a couple phone calls which resulted in 20 minute delay. Add to that I took a ton of photos which I will post some on GK this week.

Final Thoughts

Some might feel like for a golf course that expansive, and actually if you are a tri-county resident (live in Ventura, Santa Barbara or San Louis Obispo County) it’s a significant price break, that conditions should always be fantastic. I disagree. The high green fee is 100% justified by the experience of playing a very fun layout with some of the most beautiful golf course ocean views anywhere I’ve played. In addition the peaceful unique ambiance of the place is special. The stretch of holes 10 – 14 on the cliffs of the ocean is simply spectacular. Holes 5 & 6 on the front nine are also excellent ocean golf holes. You can see the ocean from almost everywhere on the golf course if you look in its direction. Just a handful of holes that are mediocre in my opinion such as 8, 9 and 15. Some might not like that 18 is par 3 but its an fantastic par 3 IMO with one the toughest greens on the golf course. I love this golf course. It’s one of my very favorites. I highly recommend it.

Posted on October 17, 2018October 9, 2018 by Vic Flores

Golf Course Review Soule Park Golf Course Ojai California

Soule Park Golf Course

Golf Course Review Soule Park Golf Course Ojai, CA

Reviewed by: GDR23, Thousand Oaks

Walked the Oak Tees this morning 10/8/2018 with a 7:12am tee time with my buddy RGM2525. What a great and fun round! Weather was nice at tee off low 50’s with no wind today and warming up on the back nine. We paid $28.00 walking and our POP was 3 hours 35 minutes following a nice three-some.

This is the nicest I have seen Soule Park ever. I have not played here since February and am just so impressed. They have new ownership and if you have not checked this place out you should. Right now its wall to wall green and lush with new sand in all the bunkers.

The greens are firm and mostly putting quick and smooth with just a few old ball marks present that really did not effect putting. Would say rolling close to a 10 on the stimp and in great shape. I believe they can have up to 7 different hole locations on these huge undulating Gil Hanse surfaces.

The fairways were so lush they were Palm Springs quality. Thick, lush and green with great lies.

The tees were super lush, green and mostly all level.

The only bunker I was in was fairway bunker on 9 that had perfect raked sand. All bunkers contain new sand.

Rough was mostly all lush, very few dry spots. They were mowing some of the rough down.

I heard they just had a senior qualifier tournament up here and I can see why.

Highly recommended in great shape! Wish I lived a tad closer. I will return for sure.