Help with courses in California and Palm springs

[walliams8]

I am going out to Cali this summer and looking for the best courses in the general area .... However due to the huge amount I am struggling to pin point many .
Anywhere between LA and San Diego is my first point of call , I am looking at torrey pines , but the reviews are not great .... However it is torrey pines .
My next point of call is Palm Springs . There are hundreds of courses to choose from , the only one I have put down as a cert so far is TPC stadium at pga west .

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated , cheers !

 

[Canary_Yellow]

Pelican Hill is decent. It's between Laguna Beach and Newport Beach. Not sure how easy it is to get on the course if you're not a guest and also likely to be pricey, but it's a good course.

There's a chap on here that moved to Westminster, CA (is it MadAdey? Rude of me not to remember really) and will be able to help you but he's unlikely to be online at this time of day!

 

[walliams8]

Cheers ...

I looked at pelican hill but it is a little pricey at over $300 a round , however it does look a great course . Torrey pines comes in a little cheaper at $170 .

I'm driving through pebble but will be struggling for time and don't want to pay $500 for a round of golf the day after an 11 hour flight !

 

[russo]

I played two courses in Carlsbad, roughly half way in between LA and San Diego. The Crossings was very nice, but very long. very, very long. After 5.5 hours we only finished 17 holes and the last was played in virtual darkness. You need to get out early there, we teed off at 12:30ish...Cost was about $80 which is expensive for a muni, even though I got a deal with my brother being a So Cal resident. The chaps we played with recommended a couple of real nice tracks not too far away which i'm struggling to remember for you, at about half the price. The second was St Marks, also in Carlsbad, not too bad but its in a residential resort and wayward shots will break windows...FYI Our PPs from the Crossings warned us away from Torrey Pines.... We looked to play there but our they said there are much better courses around the state..

 

[walliams8]

Yeah that's what I've heard about torrey pines , I'm just wondering how many chances will I get to play a us open venue for the best part of £120

 

[Canary_Yellow]

MadAdey is your man.

 

[Ethan]

Have played a lot in SoCal. Great place for golf. LA down to SD is not great. Trump LA in Long Beach is terrible, Pelican Hill is very good but expensive, Monarch Beach is pleasant but expensive (do you see a theme emerging?), Aviara is pretty good and expensive. There are a few others in the Orange County area that are supposed to be good but I haven't played, such as Oak Creek and Arroyo Trabuco.

In SD, there is a lot of good golf. In my book, Maderas, Barona Creek, Steel Canyon, Grand del Mar are all very good indeed and not Orange County prices. Torrey Pines is a funny one, a bit of a Marmite place. The scenery is fantastic, but the course is often packed, as aslow as evolution and a bit of a slog. It can also be expensive for out of towners. Coronado is a muni, and has great views, and is often a lot cheaper than Torrey. Riverwalk is a relatively inexpensive OK course downtown. There are a few others, but none that jump onto the A list, imo.

Try the Golf Now website for late availability and discounts.

 

[MadAdey]

OK, best tip I have been given is to forget most of the big Tournament courses. From what I've heard they are not in the best of condition when there is not a Tour event there, so for the money can be an expensive mistake.

You need to know what area of SoCal you are going to be in too. It may not look it on the map, but this is a big god damn area of land. Imagine Drawing a line from Nottingham to London then across through East Anglia, that is the size of area you are talking. If you stay in LA and play a course near Diego, it will take you a good 3 hours to get back in the afternoon.

So negativity out of the way you need to think what your budget is going to be. Here are some good options for the LA area that do not stretch a budget too much.

Goose Creek: Played it with CheefiO a few weeks ago and loved it. Course was in amazing condition and at about $60 a round with cart offers good value for money.
Strawberry Farms: not played it but been told plenty of good things about it and is definitely somewhere I want to get round to playing someday. at around the $110 mark with buggy it is a bit more expensive but looks worth it.
Oak Quarry: Heard lots of good things about this place, been told it is definitely somewhere I need to visit. Very good value too at around $65 with cart.
Rustic Canyon: another one well worth looking into. At around $60 including cart is yet more value for money for what looks like an amazing course.

 

[Ethan]

Rustic Canyon: another one well worth looking into. At around $60 including cart is yet more value for money for what looks like an amazing course.

Good call if you are staying near LA.

 

[walliams8]

Thanks chaps . Appreciate all replys !

I was in California a few years ago and appreciate the size /travel involved . However I'm going with family /friends for 3 weeks so just want to squeeze in 4/5 games at the crack of dawn and still have the day to play with .



My first stop is oxnard which doesn't seem too far away from rustic canyon..... Can't seem to find much else in that area and don't know if I want to travel through la for a game ......

Next is temecula ... I've stayed here before and played a couple of courses ... Pachanga and cross creek .... Both were ok nothing special , hence why this time I'm looking for courses that will be a bit further out .

Next is Palm Springs ..... Hundreds of courses there . Tpc stadium has to be a must? Been recommended Indian wells as heard that it's one of the best conditioned courses in California ....

Next is Vegas....... Handful of courses id love to play but not sure I'll get the chance given were there for 3 nights and could be suffering in the mornings!

Doesn't seen to be much info on rustic canyon on there website ....have you played it Ethan ?

 

[MadAdey]

The few pictures they have make it look like its worth the trip to Rustic Canyon. Ones of the old boys i work with lives up that way and keeps trying to get me up for a games sometime. He says it is by far the best course in the area.

 

[Ethan]

Doesn't seen to be much info on rustic canyon on there website ....have you played it Ethan ?

Haven't played it myself, but some people I know, who really know their golf, highly rate it.

http://golfclubatlas.com/courses-by-country/usa/rustic-canyon-golf-course/

This one is worth a look too:

http://www.lostcanyons.com