Played last evening in a great 3H POP.

Course is in good shape as the expected warm weather has not arrived yet so course had some firmness to it. However it is expected this week so no doubt the watering will begin.

Tee boxes good and playable.

Fairways good coverage, lies and rollout.

Traps (in one) played fine but noticed some needed raking as I ... » More

Played last evening in a great 3H POP.

Course is in good shape as the expected warm weather has not arrived yet so course had some firmness to it. However it is expected this week so no doubt the watering will begin.

Tee boxes good and playable.

Fairways good coverage, lies and rollout.

Traps (in one) played fine but noticed some needed raking as I went by.

Rough was dry and able to advance ball quite well.

Greens were all in good shape and chipped/putted well but slower than usual but thats OK given the size of them and where the pins are sometimes. Only had 2 three putt greens this round.

It's a great public course and the rates are still very reasonable.
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Got a chance to play Western Hills on Monday with Johnny GK’s group and had a fantastic time seeing some dear friends so I enjoyed catching up. The course I thought was in great shape greens were quite quick and fairways were great. Bunkers were I felt hit and miss some had good lies while others there was very little sand to speak of. However at the end of day, it was a g... » More

Got a chance to play Western Hills on Monday with Johnny GK’s group and had a fantastic time seeing some dear friends so I enjoyed catching up. The course I thought was in great shape greens were quite quick and fairways were great. Bunkers were I felt hit and miss some had good lies while others there was very little sand to speak of. However at the end of day, it was a great time and hopefully looking forward to seeing the group again…
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Back to Rancho Park, one of my favorite old-style courses. Robert's review last month was spot on. I have seen Rancho in better condition, but because the greens were so good, I tried not to focus on the negatives. If you did not "play the ball down" you could find decent lies in the fairways, so it all worked out for me. A rather warm day and taking over four hours to play is ... » More

Back to Rancho Park, one of my favorite old-style courses. Robert's review last month was spot on. I have seen Rancho in better condition, but because the greens were so good, I tried not to focus on the negatives. If you did not "play the ball down" you could find decent lies in the fairways, so it all worked out for me. A rather warm day and taking over four hours to play is not my norm and then having to fight traffic all the way to South Orange County, makes for a long day, but I love Rancho, so I bite the bullet and endure. While not in the greatest shape, the course makes it worth playing.
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Played San Clemente for the first time this morning. Walked 18 in 3.5 hours with a 6:27 tee time. Super impressed with the layout, condition and pace of play. Fairways and tee boxes are in excellent shape. Greens are also excellent and look pretty straight forward until you putt them and encounter subtle breaks that may not be easy to see at first glance. And they are fast... » More

Played San Clemente for the first time this morning. Walked 18 in 3.5 hours with a 6:27 tee time. Super impressed with the layout, condition and pace of play. Fairways and tee boxes are in excellent shape. Greens are also excellent and look pretty straight forward until you putt them and encounter subtle breaks that may not be easy to see at first glance. And they are fast. Fast, but fair. Amazingly, I avoided the sand for all 18 holes so can't comment on the traps condition. Pro shop staff and Marshall were top shelf, professional and personable. I have lived in San Diego area for 25 plus years and can't believe today was the first time I played this gem. I'll be back!
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My buddy and I played Friday 7/3 teeing off@12:020 and joining another twosome. They played blues and we the whites. I hadn't played this course in years and I think the overall conditions are pretty solid by most muni standards. Generally good coverage on the tees and fairways with good lies. Rough could get thicker and costly at times but was generally green and maintained. ... » More

My buddy and I played Friday 7/3 teeing off@12:020 and joining another twosome. They played blues and we the whites. I hadn't played this course in years and I think the overall conditions are pretty solid by most muni standards. Generally good coverage on the tees and fairways with good lies. Rough could get thicker and costly at times but was generally green and maintained. Bunkers were pretty clean, firm-ish, and rakes were being used. The greens were pretty clean and running a quick medium but not too quick. Minimal pitch marks. Pace varied but wasn't too bad overall — a little over 4.5 if I recall. If you like the course or want to try it out, I can recommend it.

On a totally personal note, I have only played it a very few times over the years and I find it tediously long for my game, even from the whites. A lot of long, mostly straight, fours that seem like short fives to me and frequently narrow windows in the tree lined fairways to make offline shots that much more costly. Too often I needed to hit perfect drive and long second shots to have chance at par and I'm not that consistent. It wore on me at some point. I think it is noteworthy that in roarksown1's review, being required to play from the reds seemed to make it a more enjoyable experience. If I go back, I will have to try that. But conditions are good, mine is a subjective opinion, and it is worth judging for yourself. It is the more popular of the two courses so that says something about me and the course. Enjoy.
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