First, this is a private course, so unless you know a member or play here in a charity event, you won't be able to get on. I am not a member, but one of my best friends just moved into the country cl... Continue »

First, this is a private course, so unless you know a member or play here in a charity event, you won't be able to get on. I am not a member, but one of my best friends just moved into the country club development and became a member automatically. The greens, fairways, sand traps, and tee boxes are all in excellent condition. I would rate the condition of this course as better than any of high end daily fee courses I regularly play in the Bay Area, such as the Bridges, Wente, and Rancho Solano. Also, because it is a private course, the amount of play it gets is less than the others that have to generate greens fee revenues to balance the books. Accordingly, the pace of play is fast, at least during the week, especially on the back nine, where only the hardy dare to venture. I have played the course several times during the week as a twosome, and always finish in about 4:15, but that's because we walk and we're going as fast as we can on the rugged back nine.
The course starts out with a flat, waterless par 4 that doglegs right with a wide lush fairway. This is nothing like the rest of the course. The second hole gives you an idea of what is to come. All you can see off the tee is a fairway bunker as the fairway disappears up the hill to the right. Even with a good tee shot, your second shot will be 100-150 yards to a green that rises about 70-80 feet from the fairway. The third hole (#1 hcp) requires a drive of 225 yards or so to see the green about 70-80 feet below you, with no room for error in any direction. #4 is a short par dogleg right that drops to the hitting area and then rises to the green. #5 is a short par 3 with a large green from an elevated tee. #6 is a relatively flat dogleg left around a beautiful willow tree and enormous fairway bunker put there to deter the bold player. #6 is a flat par 3 (requiring a short to mid-iron depending on the pin position)with a lake (which the scorecard says can be played as a lateral hazard) along the left side. #8 is a short par 4 that is just plain hard. The green is very narrow, only about 30 feet at it's widest on the right side. The left side is narrower, only about 15 feet, and guarded by two traps, one in front and one behind. The right side is guarded by a willow tree, unless you've driven far enough to take it out of play. And the entire front of the green is guarded by a 15 yard wide creek, so don't try to drive your ball too far. And don't hit your second shot too far or you'll be OB in the street. It is, however, one of the few flat holes on the course. #9 is a par 5 dogleg right and uphill to a well-trapped green. #9 has a lake and traps on the right side and a creek on the left side that can come into play on your second and third shots. And this is the easy nine.
#10 is about 150 par 3 across a creek to a wide but narrow green. #11 is a short par 4 but it's all uphill. Take two extra clubs and aim to the left side of the green on your second shot. If you walk, as I do, you'll be huffing a puffing by the time you get to the green. The #12 tee is quite some distance. If you look up and to your left as you're walking on the cart path, you may be able to see where the #12 tee has been established on a shoulder of the hillside. When you're standing on the tee, all you can see is an aiming post stuck in the middle of the fairway about 70-80 feet above your feet. Aim to the left of it. If you can hit your driver around 225-250 yards, you will likely find yourself at or behind the 150 marker on hole that measure just 342 yards from the white tees. From there you can see the green. After the tee shot and the climb to claim your ball, the green looks about the same elevation as your ball. It isn't. You're still going uphill. Take a least one more club and aim to the left. Also, beware the green is long, narrow and has multiple tiers. Everything breaks away from the hill and the speed is very fat going downhill. Hands down, this is the toughest hole on the course. #13 is a relatively easy par 5 that goes downhill and is relatively straight. #14 is another short par 5 that parallels #13. It has a beautiful buckeye tree is the middle of the fairway. Your best bet is to stay to the right all the way to the green, which is well trapped and has two tiers where the upper tier is quite a bit higher than the lower tier. I think it would be difficult to stop the ball on the green if putting from the upper tier to the lower. #15 is a 180 yard par three that drops about 100 feet. Err on right side. The left side is not fun. #16 is a relatively short par 4 dogleg left somewhat downhill. Missing to the left equals OB. Missing your tee shot to the right will mean a second shot where the ball is severely above your feet. The green is probably the
smallest on the course, long and narrow. #17 is a beautiful hole. It's about 170 yards and about 70 feet downhill. But the green is situated on the crown of a hillock, and is well trapped. The green is relatively wide in the front and narrow in the back. Unlike most of the other holes on the course, if the wind is blowing it can affect your shot as well. #18 is the longest par 5 on the course. It has water on both sides of the fairway and a creek in front of the green to dissuade long hitter from trying to reach it in two. The green is also enormous and well-trapped. Although you tee off from an elevated tee, the hole is otherwise flat, one of only two (along with #10) on the back nine.
If you get a chance to play here and you walk, you'll be reaching for the ibuprofen along with your beverage of choice after the round. If you ride a cart, you'll enjoy the great work that the staff does in keeping the course in great shape, the challenge of the holes, and the pace of play. (at least if you play during the week)

Moraga Country Club Review
Northern California Golf Course Reviews