RPGC played this weekend's tournament at Simi Hills ... always a pleasure to return to this consistently solid 18 and even better on a perfect late spring afternoon. Our group had a 12:10 tee time and played from the gold tees. Recommendation: Epic breakfast burrito at the cafe bar.

Good practice/warm-up facilities ... nice carts but no GPS. Off we went. Fairways have seen better days for sure but still very playable - just too many thin and brown lies in comparison to past visits, but confident it will be back to its best in the future. Plenty of mulch/hillside areas to force some unwanted shots, but the rough is good if you find it ... varies by hole. Tee boxes were mostly fine with a few exceptions, while the bunkers were a bit on the crunchy side ... not a hint of fluffy, but the club does what it's supposed to down there.

Greens are really good right now. Very speedy, nice surfaces and real consistent from one to 18. In truth, they're tougher than they look and with their current pace, I had forgotten how tricky they can be to the tune of an awful 37 putts on the day. Subtle slopes and tiers make you earn it but you can still score well if you're putting better than I was today.

We had cart service swing by twice during the round, and POP wasn't much of an issue as the group ahead of us moved quickly and we had to do a good job of keeping up ... not pushed much from behind though, either. We had a pretty good slot all in all.

I always enjoy trips to Simi Hills and today's experience won't make that change anytime soon.