Played Sunday December 8th as part of the GK Event. It's always a good group and today was no exception. Course was beautiful! Very stunning and varied layout. However I believe it to be a difficult course for women with little thought given to the forward tee placement -except forward more, and includes some long reaches to carry sand, water, and other terrain challenges.

Fairways are lush and pretty! The greens were tough and had some diabolical breaks that really made sure each and every stroke counted. Surprisingly some of the greens had quite a bit of ball mark damage. Not sure why as the rest of the course is very nicely kept. Sand was soft and deep and EVERYWHERE!!! If you aren't a sand player beware!! :-) Cart was well stocked and by all the time! We were never left wondering how long until we saw it. We appreciated that a LOT! Very nice clubhouse too!

What is puzzling about this course is the driving range. There's a putting challenge course that is fun and well maintained. And then there's this sad little hitting area with overused mats, all very close to each other, and a few flags thrown onto a poorly maintained hilly area for a driving range. It's not just a space thing- the area COULD be made to look as nice as the rest of the course. Like I said- puzzling. Not that it wasn't perfectly sufficient for warm-up, it was, but it certainly doesn't get you ready to appreciate the beauty ahead of you!

All in all a great day of golf with good weather on a beautiful course with good people! A very nice day!

Played on 12/7 with 7 other GK members as a prelude to the Indian Wells event. As usually Eagle Falls was in darn near perfect condition! Greens, fairways, tees all lush and well tended. Since I rarely see a mower it makes me wonder if they have elves coming out at night to clip the grass with scissors! The only negative was some of the sand was wet and heavy but it had rained recently and didn't have time to dry out. I LOVE this course- the beauty, the layout, the fantastic customer service! It's well suited to a woman's game. There are two sets of forward tees but both of them still maintain the challenge of the hole while making it reachable for those with more finesse than power. Each hole is different and the layout makes sure you are never bored.

Cart girl came around frequently enough. Rain threatened all day but it was blue skies and sunshine right over the course. :-) Everyone at this course is friendly and focused on you as the golfer- from curbside club service to the helpful starter and including actual marshal's doing their job with a smile!

Sadly my game stayed home ....but I still had a fantastic time. I would play this course every day if I lived closer!!! This is truly just a fantastic golfing experience all the way around. HUGE thanks to Willie for making sure this jewel just keeps getting shinier!!

Another little perk this course offers (just to round out the experience of playing a course where it IS all about the golfer!)- if you use the GPS system to keep score you have the choice at the end of the round for them to email you your score card. We've used this several times and it is simple and SO SO convenient!

Played on 8/8 with another GKer. Course was in great shape!! I was a little concerned as when I booked the tee time I was told that they had been thinking of closing it and reworking it. I asked at the pro shop and was told that the extreme heat had really cooked the grass and that they had over-watered in an attempt to keep more from frying. Yes, there were numerous soggy and boggy spots but nothing that really detracted from playability. Surprisingly, with all the water, the sand was actually nice and light for the most part. The rough near the fairway is perfect- lush and thick. The rough a little further away is desert mostly! :-) The greens were ideal! Smooth and FAST. They held decently but allowed some roll too. The only negative here was the staff. Usually the staff here is fantastic but not so much today. Nothing terrible - just not overly helpful or concerned. (except the starter who was fabulous!) The cart girl....appeared to have some shady place to be. We saw her ONCE on the front....and that was it! A marshal (YES, a MARSHAL!!) approached us on the 13th to tell us it was jammed up in front of us, beginners, and he was trying to move them along. We asked him about a cart girl and he said he'd send her. Nope. The funny thing is that after we saw him the pace picked right up, fastest all day, and never jammed up! Still, both these courses are well maintained, have a good variety of holes, provide the right amount of challenge for all levels except beginner, and are definitely worth playing. I always come back!! Special in August- Thursdays are $35 for 18 w/ cart and range balls!

Played 8/11 with another GKer. Our tee time was at 12:04 but they got us out at 11!! I have to say the entire staff was absolutely wonderful today: smiling, friendly, helpful- perhaps the best overall of anywhere I've played! The course is in great condition esp for August! There are a few troubled spots on the fringe of some fairways where the grass is clumpy and a few other spots where it was downright soggy but overall the fairways were really nice with no bad lies. The greens were well cared for and held very well but were a bit on the slow side. Some of the rough was so thick and dense as to be brutal!! The sand could have used a good fluffing and was pretty wet overall. Saw the cart girl Britney twice on the front and three times on the back. She was super! They didn't have any veggie sandwiches on the cart. She told us to stop on the turn and she'd have them make me one. There wasn't one in the clubhouse at the turn either so I forgot about it. She caught up with us on the 11th, found out I didn't get a sandwich, and immediately went back to the clubhouse and brought me one out! Now THAT is service!! Used their course site and got a great deal - $29 at noon on a Sunday with a cart.

Played in a GK Match play on Sunday 7/7 at 1pm. Goose was EMPTY. The pro shop said every Sunday after a holiday is like that. (good to know for future golfing!) We finished in 3 1/2 hours!! Course is in immaculate condition as always. I couldn't find fault with anything about the course. The bunkers looked hard packed but were actually nice and fluffy. Fairways beautiful Irish green with some roll power to them, rough was just rough enough, tees lush and level, greens rolled fast and true. Nice course in all aspects from the challenge to the conditions! For $49 on a weekend it's a treat (used Goose's own site to get the deal). Biggest down side was the food/drinks situation. Saw the cart girl about 3 times on the front- and NOT AT ALL on the back. Yes, it was a Sunday afternoon and dead and she probably wasn't making any money but still! :-) At least the course has ICE water about every third hole and that kept us hydrated in the heat. After playing we had to wait about 10 min to get anyone to come pull us a beer at the snack bar. When we asked the pro shop guy if he knew what was up his response was "they're around somewhere". Oh well. So go for the great golf and fantastic conditions- but bring your own libations I guess!! LOL I would always play here again- it's consistently great.

Played 4/21 with GKer SBogey. I wish I had some really good stuff to say but I'm beginning to think Billy Casper Golf doesn't really want to put any money into their courses- or doesn't care if their customers are actual golfers! This course has always been very clean and well maintained. It's starting to look a little shaggy and unkempt, ragged around the edges. The fairways should be starting to look great...but they look worse then they did a month ago. Patches of dirt and a weird grass that makes the fairway resemble a lot of little tufts with dirt in between. The sand was not good-it looked dry on top but it was wet and packed solid underneath - and sometimes full of rocks. The greens had been punched (we knew that) and they were healing nicely. Many (most?) of the tee boxes were pretty bad! Surprisingly so because I've never had to worry about the forward tees here being unlevel before. Ok, that's the bad news. The good news is that the course was pretty much wide open on a Sunday- 3 1/2 hr round, and it's CHEAP. This is a very reasonable short course to play. Enough challenge to keep you working at it and usually beautiful. Cart girl came around several times and was very friendly. Would I play it again? Heck yeah. It's a great tune-up course and doesn't break the bank! Hopefully Billy Casper will get their act together soon. They've ruined Green Tree, I'd hate for them to ruin Ashwood too!

Played Sat 4/6, 9AM with SBogey. The course was decent today. It's just your basic no frills, nothing too unusual kind of course. Managed by Billy Casper. The fairways were overall in pretty poor condition- very patchy and lumpy. Hard to find a level lie even in the middle of the fairway! The forward tee boxes were horrendous- very uneven and bumpy. The others looked about the same. The greens were in pretty nice condition- smooth and well groomed. Fast in the morning and slower in the afternoon. Saw the greenskeeper on several greens fixing ball marks- that's a first for me! The sand was interesting- wet and in some cases a little packed but overall very fluffy and decent considering how wet they were. (it was overcast and foggy which contributed to the damp) The layout wanders through neighborhoods and is generally quiet, calm, and pretty. The cart girl, Erika, was very friendly. We only saw her once on the front 9 but many times on the back 9. The course could've used a marshal today- the front 9 were fine but when we pulled up to #10 there were three groups waiting!! Eventually someone called and complained and they sent someone out to try to speed it up. It was only moderately effective. 4 1/2 hour round isn't good for this course. Staff in the pro shop were friendly and helpful! For those who ask- YES there's a driving range- off of mats, up high hitting over a canyon-like setting. Nice large putting area. Small but adequate chipping area.

Played Tues 3/26 with a couple of GKers and a friend. The course is in fantastic shape. The greens were cut a few weeks ago and sanded recently. They were fast in the morning but slowed as they dried out. Because of cutting/sanding they didn't break as true as usual. The forward tee boxes were immaculate and some of the most levels tees I've played this year. THAT was much appreciated! The fairways were lush and I never saw a brown area or any real iron damage. The rough was just deep enough- between 4-6inches and very lush. The sand was the only disappointment today. Wet and hardpacked. But hit it like a chip shot and you'll be fine. The cart girl came around multiple times and the snack shack at the turn was open. Pace of play was good- 4 1/2 hrs. We were a little jammed up on the front 9 due to a fog delay, but only once did the group behind get close enough to grump at us a little- when we explained we were moving at pace they backed off. We WERE moving pretty quickly but this IS a challenging course and takes a little more time then an up and back course! :-) Carts here have GPS which is really nice considering some of the winding holes and hazards. The course is quite scenic and leaves you wanting more! Customer service is always perfect- from picking you up in the parking lot to seeing to your needs elsewhere. Definitely a must play course.

Played 3/9/13 with SBogey. His review says it all. I keep hoping this course will return to it's former glory but it doesn't seem likely. Even the extreme cold the area has had this past month doesn't explain BARE DIRT on the fairways. The tee boxes however were GREAT- level, lush, green. Something is funky in paradise for sure with such a disparity between tee box and fairway. Pace of play was fantastic too due to the cold temps (less than 50F) I'm sure but less than 3 1/2 hours is a big plus. The greens were hard, again probably due to the cold, that most weren't holding anything. But just about the time I'd adjust play to take that into account there'd be a green that held like quicksand. Frustrating. Some greens rolled true, others didn't. No rhyme or reason why. No cart but actually- I'm not sure they have one or have ever had one. No starter, no marshal, no extras but not unusual for this muni. The highlight? The clubhouse is the BOMB! Brand new, well appointed bathrooms with lockers and showers; nice pro shop, excellent bar and restaurant with decent prices for good food. Kind of sad that the best thing about this "Hidden Jewel of the Desert" is not the course- it used to be exactly opposite with a fantastic course and dingy falling down club house. Still hoping they'll bring this one back...but I might pass on playing here again until I know it's getting there.

Played Monday Feb 18, noonish. Course is in GREAT condition except most of the traps were dense and wet. They must have had some bad weather recently as they are usually quite nice. Fairways are lush and green, greens were smooth and FAST. Some of the tee boxes need some minor leveling work. Pace of play could've been better but they did send a marshal out when we called for some speed-up help! After that we finished in 4 1/2 hours which is pretty good on a holiday. Overall this is a great course with enough challenge to keep everyone on their toes. It's not a punishing course though- it plays fair. The greens tend to be large and undulating but they break true. My favorite kind of green! We saw the refreshment cart multiple times. Customer service was good. It was especially nice to play for $30 including cart!! Check the course website for good deals! I really enjoy this course and play it every chance I get!

Played Sat morning 12/8- Birch, Mesquite, shotgun start at 9 due to frost. This course is usually in nice condition year round. It LOOKED nice but playability was a little different- just typical winter conditions for the most part. But there were some things that couldn't be explained away by winter- VERY patchy fairways on Birch. Made it difficult to hit clean from a nice fairway lie as the ball would sit down between clumps of grass. The ground was so hard that trying to take a divot could result in a sore wrist! Tee boxes on Birch had a weird encroachment of 4-5 different kinds of grass and most of them were very bumpy/lumpy and hard to get a good stance. The greens on both courses are what I consider typical winter greens- smooth and pretty but hard as a rock and not holding anything. Its the price you pay for winter golf in the desert. Benefit to that is that there really aren't any ball marks to worry about! Mesquite was in better shape- fairways were fairly lush and nice, tee boxes in better shape. Sand on both courses was wet and heavy- again, the price you pay for winter golf. Cart girl visited at least twice and considering she takes care of 27 holes that was a good accomplishment! Played in under 4 hours and could've played faster if we'd been a 2some. Overall it's still a very enjoyable course- enough challenge to keep it interesting but not so much that it distracts from having a good relaxing day golfing. I would definitely play here anytime- even in the winter!! :-)

Ashwood Golf Course Review
Apple Valley Golf Course Reviews

FUN FUN FUN!! this is a great course to warm up on or just to challenge your short sticks on! Played here before the GK event on 9/29 as an informal get together with other GK friends. The course was shrouded in fog which gave a cool other-worldly feel to the game. Whole different experience hitting to a par 3 green that you can't see at all and having to trust the monument distance explicitly! There are enough different layouts, enough mounds in play, enough sand, enough water, enough tricky greens here to satisfy even the most masochistic golfer! The sand here, likely because of the fog, was what we used to call gumbo. It's red, sticky, but not overly heavy. If your ball rolls in the trap it WILL be coated with an inch of the stuff!! Just made it more of a challenge getting out! I would LOVE to have this course nearby- I'd play it regularly!!

Monarch Dunes Golf Club Review
Central California Golf Course Reviews