Have played the highlands course twice in tournaments, not having to pay for play and have not experienced the Lake course. Course has quite a view of the Houston skyscape due to some extremely elevated tee boxes. It’s been said a few Houston athletes prefer this course, not sure why.......I would recommend only if you are low handicap and can navigate around one hell of a confusing layout. Allow yourself two rounds to get the lay of the land if you want a challenging golf experience.

Just a quick update from the other reviews. Have played Madera the last couple weekends. First weekend greens were still a little slow with sand and needed a mower. Last weekend, the course was were it usually is!! Two things to be aware of, first thing is the rough! The rough is thick in places and makes for fairways to be hit! It's not a bad thing about the rough but most courses have thin rough and can be easily played out of, but Madera you've gotta be in the fairway on most of the holes and not just rip it and not worry about where it goes. Second, bunkers, which are always a hot button topic it seems. Too many hard pan lies. But also you think you have a good solid layer under the ball but it's not what you may think. Too often than not, its a thin layer and then hard pan.
All in all, Madera is a good solid course. Golf Moose and GolfNow, always have deals. I walk, and it's a simple and easy walk.

Walked the Blues (1361/30.0/97) in 1.5H on their Sr. rate of $11. The weather was around 65, clear and breezy.

This is a unique 10 hole Executive course, par 32. You start with two short par 4's, and end with 8 straight short par 3's. The par 3's range from 89 - 144 yards, so this is not a course you are likely to utilize your entire bag on.

The tees were chewed up and in poor condition overall, lots of unfixed divots. No divot repair mix provided on the course.

Both the fairways and rough were okay, mowed down close.

The one sand trap was not maintained very well. Lots of footprints and weeds in it.

The small poa annua greens would rank in the bottom dozen out of the hundreds of courses I have ever played. Spongy, medium slow to slow speed and BUMPY. I have putted on smoother greens immediately after aerification.

Customer service was good, and their 11th Hole Restaurant had good burgers. This would be a good course for seniors, beginners and novices to play. Short, easy to walk with little trouble other than a couple of forced carries over ravines. Typical short course layout with small greens and a lack of major obstacles. However, with the playing conditions being well below average, not one I would recommend otherwise. The equivalent of over $20 for 18 holes is overpriced to walk this course.

Walked the Blues (2002/29.7/95.0) in 1.5H on a GN "Hot Deal" for $14.49 after fees. The weather was clear, breezy and around 65.

Par 31 Executive nine hole course. one medium length par 4, three short par 4's and a good combination of par 3's ranging from 102 - 203 yards along with a couple of lakes make this a fun layout.

Tees were pretty chewed up, good coverage but well below average overall. Lots of unfixed divots, and there was no divot mix provided to repair anything.

Fairways and Rough had good coverage and were mowed down. Both were decent to play from.

There are no sand traps on this course.

The smallish greens were mediocre. Medium speed, firm and fairly bumpy.

Small pro shop, the course is partnered with a lodge/resort. Flat, easy to walk. While no holes play right at the water, you go have some nice ancillary views of Morro Bay and Morro rock. Decent layout with some fun holes, just a little rough around the edges from a maintenance perspective. Not a destination course, but if you are already close by, worth a play if you desire a shorter course. However, $14.49 is a bit high to walk this short 9 hole course.

Played on 4/21 @ 0702 in an attempt to beat the heat. No worries. In the mid 80s during play, and it was near perfect. Not much more you can say about the course except, “Perfect”. From the moment you arrive you know you’re not in Kansas anymore Toto.

Upon arrival we were met by an associate from the cart barn to take our bags and set up our cart. Standard style carts, didn’t notice the presence of a USB charging port, luckily it wasent needed. No GPS, but not really a problem since everybody has a smart phone these days. Cart was stocked with ice and also 2 clear plastic cups for use at the water stations on the course.

Checked in using out $79 UnderPar greens ticket. What a deal. Online rates were set $139 a player. We got a two player special for $79. Love those discounts, especially when a course like this affords the casual player to come out and enjoy an occasional round on a highly rated facility.

Didn’t have enough time to warm up on the range, (my bad, I overslept) but free range balls were provided. We head out to number 1 and we knew this was going to be a good day. Tee box, level and lush green turf, almost spongy as you step on to spike your tee. Generous fairways lined by trees and the Rancho Mirage community it winds through. Beautiful homes that only add the scenery. The fairways looked like carpeting. Strategic bunkers and water hazards abound on the course, again just adding to the beauty of the course. The greens were mostly level and not very challenging, but very receptive you your approach shots. Good roll, I couldn’t state an accurate rating but they were consistent. The bunkers were filled with damp heavy sand but very playable. I found a few along the way. I’m sure as the day wears on the sand because dry and fluffy.

Finished the round right at 4 hrs, never having to wait at a tee box or on the fairway. The marshalls do a good job keeping the flow moving. The cart gal was seen about 3 times during the round, she was quick and efficient so as not to disrupt the flow. Good job!!

One other important bit of info. The facility has two courses. The Pete Dye is part of the main resort. The resort shows aa address on Dihna Shore Bl, however the Gary Player course is located “off property” a few blocks away. Closer to the intersection at Los Alamos and Ramon Rd. It saves a few minutes and in case you oversleep this might save you from being late at check in.

South Course bunker renovation is finally complete and I have to admit they have done a great job. Despite the fact that almost two acres of sand was removed, the overall appearance and playability of the course has actually improved. Most of the sand which was removed never really came into play anyway (Except for horrible missed shots) and the bunkers which were reduced in size are more playable now.

Greens, fairways looking good, Bunkers are perfect! Still could use some attention to the tee boxes and a few areas in the rough, but overall, course is in nice shape.

With the earlier sunrise, able to tee off now even before 6am, so finishing before 8:30 (walking) is a real treat and allows so much more time in the day for other things.

Attention fellow Arizonians, Bear Creek is in terrible condition, every green is in horrible condition, I have never played on worse greens in my 25 years in Arizona. No warning from the pro shop on green conditions, every one complaining when they finished the round. I will never play this course again, sad to say because it is a fun track.

PLayed saturday 4/21. teed of at 1:30, used underpar deal for our group, 2 players for $79. Overall a good value for a Saturday afternoon, can't complain.

The course is in playable shape, but it's definitely not perfect.

Teeboxes were nice and level with good coverage and nicely mown grass, no complaints.

Fairways were just ok. they were kinda brown and had some aerating marks from perhaps a couple of weeks ago. I usually had good lies, but they just weren't super pretty to look at.
They plugged a lot of the rough areas.

Rough was very difficult in some places, long and lush, ball sat down and very difficult to hit from. Other places it wasn't existent and could easily advance the ball. I got in some trouble here a couple of times, be careful and stay in the fairway.

Traps were ok. They looked and felt a little hard pan, but they were ok underneath. Found two of them, the fairway bunker was a little harder, which was fine, I was able to hit the green from the fairway bunker. The greenside was a little softer and not a problem to hit from, just trust its a little soft underneath and take your normal shot.

Greens were definitely the highlight, they held shots fairly well and putted somewhat true. I had a couple that bumped offline, but oh well, that's golf.

POP wasn't an issue, we moved along in 4.5hrs, not bad for a busy Saturday.

Overall, I like the layout and enjoy this tight course with some great water features and plenty of OB if you're not straight, didn't lose a ball today, so can't complain. Use the underpar deal, as the rack rates definitely aren't worth it.

My husband and I enjoyed many rounds at Diamond Valley and would drive an hour just to play there but it has really gone down hill. It now looks like it used to be a golf course. Really sad because it was beautiful at one time. Plus the woman at the front desk told me if we damage their golf cart, we'll owe $300. I found that offensive. The course looks like it will be closing soon because they sure don't care about maintaining it anymore.

Played 4/21. First time playing Arrowood, here’s a quick breakdown.

There was a junior tournament today. Everyone got pushed back 30 minutes. It didn’t bother me, but the other players were grumbling. The greens are in TERRIFIC CONDITION. Ball rolled true on every hole. Tee boxes are flat, and lush. Fairways are really good too, and very tight on a few holes. I found a few greenside bunkers, and they were full of nice fluffy sand.

I typically don’t travel to the San Diego area to play golf, but after today’s experience at Arrowood I’ll definitely put it into the rotation.

Played here this morning (second round after a quick nine at Valley Gardens, but that's not in the database yet). I had booked a 9:30 tee time online, which was a better "bundle" rate of $36 with cart included. I arrived earlier and they got me out right away, putting me in between two threesomes rather than pairing me with either on a busy Saturday morning (perfect weather!). I ended up joining the threesome ahead on the 2nd hole anyway and the front was slow behind a group of hackers. Fortunately, they left after nine and then a few holes later we caught up to a sevensome(!), but they let us play through immediately as apparently they are the regular Saturday morning crew here. Total pace around 3:45.

Course conditions were pretty good overall, especially on the front nine. Everything lush, green and soft with so much rain this year. Tee boxes decent, fairways pretty good (on the fluffy side) and fairly thick rough. The greens on the front side were very nice, rolling at medium speeds. The back nine, however, was a different story. These greens were more burned-out and some had some really damaged sections. The greens on the back were bumpier and slower with some signs of the recent aeration still showing. Overall, the conditions on the back nine were definitely a step down compared to the front. I wasn't in any bunkers, but they looked nice.

This is a really, really fun executive course winding through a hilly redwood grove on the front nine and then opening up a bit on the back as the course goes through the resort villas. Kind of two different nines, but both enjoyable in their own ways with a real "mountain" golf feel that I love. Some very narrow shots and most people will leave the driver in the bag. Total par of 65 with a healthy mix of legit par-3s, some short par-4s and even a few really short par-5s (short, not necessarily easy). Tricky old greens with a lot of slope. Trees everywhere and a truly gorgeous setting for golf, kind of similar to Northwood. Certainly well out of the way for an executive track, but definitely recommended for some diabolical fun and pleasant scenery if you are in beautiful Boulder Creek.

There is not a lot of information on this course... where to park, where to check in. The facility is kind of spread out and parking can be a hassle if you have a later tee time. I thought the layout of where things are could be better, and they have a lot of real estate, still under construction (between 9 and 18)... The staff is accommodating, but I wish they had better information on their website. Also, I really hate hole number 7

I played Ojai Sat 4/21 with GK member BrianH and his buddy Adam. We had an 8:50 tee time that seemed on track and we finished a little after 1pm so pretty good PoP. We had an underpar deal for 89 bucks with replay depending how busy they course was. We were told about an hour and a half so we decided to get grub at Jimmy's (their 19th hole) and it was pretty good. When it was our time for the replay, the PoP was... not so good. The course is worth the 89 bucks we paid through the underpar deal, and I would not say it is worth the full rack rate. I'd rather play Sandpiper for that dollar

I hate hole number 7 with a passion. Other than that hole, the rest of the course is a fun test with tight fairways and penalties/scramble golf when missing. This was my first time playing this course and I was glad I asked for a tip sheet as it helped our group from the very beginning.

We played the white tees and majority of the tee boxes were pretty even and lush and for the ones that weren't, it was not too difficult to find a balanced position. It seemed like they were moved up a little today and with the pin location, a very scorable course.

As the day moved along, I thought the greens were going to get quicker, and for me, that is where the course was most inconsistent. Maybe it was because I had not played since October/November and my putting was off, but I could not seem to find the right speed throughout our round. I missed a couple of birdie opportunities because of this and settled for par, but I will gladly take those pars! Good amount of elevated and tiered greens here.

Rough was a non-factor for the most part as the first and second cuts are not long enough to be penal, however the holes are pretty tight, with OB, bunkers, and tree lines on practically every hole.

Fairways were probably the best part of the course, and I hit a good amount of them with great coverage, providing nice lies with the ball standing up nicely.

I was not in the sand too much (thankfully) but for the sand I encountered was a mix bag between wet and hard pack, and what felt like good playable sand.

For the first time playing in a couple months, and the first time playing this course, I shot an 89, but I could have shot a lot better if I did not blow up on 16,17, and 18 (+10 through that stretch, with a snowman on 16) ugggghhhh :(

Was very fun to get out and play again, and very much enjoyed the company with BrianH and his buddy.

Cheers!