Played Poppy Hills on a twilight rate the afternoon of 9/12/18, walking with an NCGA member. Absolutely loved this course. I never played it prior to the renovation, though I had seen it and it wouldn... Continue »

Played Poppy Hills on a twilight rate the afternoon of 9/12/18, walking with an NCGA member. Absolutely loved this course. I never played it prior to the renovation, though I had seen it and it wouldn't then have been on my radar to play. Now I think it may be better than Spyglass.

The course is in amazing condition. It plays really firm with tons of options around all the greens. Tees are free form and all level. I hit a lot of drivers but the turf was good enough that my companion hit a lot of three woods off the ground. Fairways are firm but well covered. The course essentially has no rough. What passes for rough is native area or, in some places, waste bunkers. This works very well as it makes the course play wide and just feels very natural. Neither of us lost a ball throughout the round despite several shots clattering into the trees and native area.

Greens were quite quick (not quite as quick as Pasa that morning but close!) and I gave them as 9 simply because they were just edging toward that line of being quick and thin, which isn't quite as pleasurable to putt on.

The bunkers were great.

POP was OK, but not great. We teed off at 3:00 and finished at 6:45. My partner said it is typically quicker late in the day but perhaps many people were out enjoying the great weather on the peninsula. Still finished with enough daylight, even if my legs were jello from 36 holes of tough walking.