After a 2 year, 7 month hiatus from golf for an insidious disease, I joined in a GKPlays outing on Sunday, July 15, 2018. I had not seen JohnnyGK and my other buddies for such a long time but I was welcomed back heartily which has always been the norm for GK members!

We were concerned with the heat but it was much more tolerable than we thought. The course was magnificent! Fairways were lush green leaving ideal lies, rough was short and lush which facilitated getting out of it! The tee boxes were lush and mostly level. Bunkers were damp with a top crust from the monsoon rain from the night before but could be escaped with a hardpan swing. The greens initially were damp and quite slow but got faster as the moisture evaporated. Since the maintenance crew could not mow the greens, the grain influenced putts by deflecting the ball unpredictably! Late in the round I started pounding the putt into the back side of the cup. That was only partially effective!

The cart girl came around once on the front nine and once on the back. There was water on the course at several holes to ensure you stayed hydrated. There was ice provided in the cart cooler which also helped.

Overall, the course was in great condition! I had problems with hitting fat shots with many clubs and the Bermuda grass complied by producing huge divots! We used most of the sand/seed on the cart! I was frustrated many times but in the end I realized I didn't do too badly after not playing in so long!

I played in the last group with JohnnyGK and Kviser who kept encouraging me throughout the round. Kevin would rake after bunker shots and John retrieved wayward balls for me. That is what being a GK member is all about. Thank you both for making my return round so enjoyable guys!


Staff at the course and in the restaurant were super nice and our group had a good time during the award ceremony and lunch afterward. Another great outing made possible by our own JohnnyGK! Very much appreciated John!

Jesse

Played on Friday, October 23, 2015 with GKers roarksown1 (Robert), mswhsu (Willie), and Mswhsu's brother (Steven) on a warm sunny day with light variable winds. Pace of play was a little slow at about 4.5 hours.

Thanks JohnnyGK for setting up a great venue and Green River Golf club for treating us as honored guests! The course was in very good condition with green abundant everywhere you looked!

The tee boxes were a little out of level but mostly lush. The fairways were lush green and were better than the norm due to the drought conditions at many courses. The rough was 1-3 inches deep and mostly lush but not too penal. I cannot report on the sand conditions in the bunkers as I was not in any of them (another miracle!) all day. The greens were mostly lush with some unrepaired ball marks, rolled true, and were about a 9 on the Stimp.

The visual condition of the course is a very pleasant "green" when you arrive! The course staff were pleasant and were very efficent in getting us out on the course. I haven't seen it done this way before but it seems to work very well. We were treated well in the lounge area for our awards ceremony and the food was very good and welcomed after the round!

I highly recommend getting out and playing this course which has some interesting par 3 holes that are very challenging! I would like to thank Green River Golf Club for hosting us and providing a course that is in very good condition. It was a pleasure to participate in another well run GK Plays and I look forward to our next outing opportunity!

Jesse

I played the GK Plays on Monday, August 31, 2015 with GKers Osamabinhacker (Ben) a GK newbie, kevbig (Kevin), and SBogey (Steve) on a bright sunny 85 degree day with variable winds to about 20 m.p.h. at times.

I'd like to thank JohnnyGK for organizing another great event and Goose Creek Golf Club for providing the opportunity to play in the footsteps of the USGA Mid-Am Qualifier players!

Upon entering the clubhouse I was met by Ross Fisher (GM of Goose Creek) and when I said I had not played the course before he very graciously provided everything I needed to know about the layout of the course and what we were about to be provided at the Lorena Ochoa Academy facility and the short game demonstration presented by Scott Bridges (PGA Pro) in less than three minutes time! I was duly impressed! I was even more impressed by the demonstrations and learned some things in the process.

The course has a large grass driving range, a chipping green, and a large putting green to warm up before your round. We had expected some quick greens on the course but they turned out to be very similiar to the putting green and running at maybe 9 to 10 on the Stimp! Maybe those 80 competitors trampled the area about the holes but I can tell you that away from the hole those greens were fast and would only hold well struck shots with good spin coming in high and soft. If a chip had no spin to regulate the release it would roll right past the hole or off the green.

The tee boxes were level, lush, and had minimal divot damage which was mostly at the par 3 holes.
The fairways were nearly lush but provided good lies. The rough was not as long as it could have been and was also not quite lush but still provided a challenge to escape cleanly. Fairway bunkers and greenside bunkers were crusty and appeared to have been expertly raked while still wet and allowed to dry. I had to forego the 14 degree bounce on my 56° sand wedge and use the 8 degree bounce on my 60° wedge to slide under the ball like a lob shot and still never made it to the green!

The greens had some ball mark damage but rolled true and much slower as the ball got closer to the cup. The key was to hold the line with just enough speed to not die before reaching the hole. Too much speed would cause a lip out or edge burn and create a comebacker!

Overall, the course was in good to excellent condition considering our drought situation. The layout is exactly how it appears to you without gimmicks or optical delusions and the longtime players tell us that the course can be much better when everything is top notch! It is no wonder why so many love this course and I can see why that would be! The care in preparation of this course is evident even though a virtual army of players have passed through recently and I imagine the GM has the maintenance crew out working to repair what damage has been inflicted upon the course.

As many others have stated, I wish I lived closer in order to enjoy playing here more often and using the facilities available. I highly recommend playing this interesting and challenging course!

Again, thank you Johnny and Ross for providing a great venue for our community to enjoy.

Jesse

Played on Sunday, August 16th with GKers hbtim1967, JohnnyGK, and Mattias in 108 degree weather with a light wind that would come and go. The course was in remarkable condition overall even with the drought. The Redhawk Golf Club staff were tops from the starter to the snack bar lady, they were attentive and glad we were with them this day! We appreciated being with them also even with the elevated temperature!

The golf course was in good to very good shape and does not have unusual features to play with your psyche! The tee boxes had good grass, were mostly level, and had minimal divot damage. The fairways were lush to mostly lush and cut to just the right height to leave your ball in a good lie and if you managed to catch the back side of an undulation there was a bonus 5 to 10 yards to be gained. The rough, though mostly short, allowed your ball to nestle in causing you to have to come in steep to get a clean hit and advance the ball toward the green. The fairway bunkers I was in had minimal sand mixed with soil, watered and dried out, to become like hardpan. Nevertheless, I used my hybrid and escaped both of them cleanly! The greenside bunkers were a mixed bag for me being wet in places and firm 6 inches further away from the green on the rollback! The greens were rolling true at my estimate of 10 to 11 on the Stimp, were green and damp in places, and of course, there were some ball marks that the previous groups had repaired. Thanks guys!

I would like to thank Redhawk Golf Club for having us and JohnnyGK for arranging another sucessful GK Plays for us all to enjoy. I parred four holes which is a new record for me at a GK event and got to see some friends I haven't seen in a while! We welcomed two new GK members and one of them's 81 year old father who appeared to be having a great time! We enjoyed Rico's Cantina with food and drinks while Johnny became MC and rewarded everyone in attendence with some swag! Special thanks to LinkSoul for providing some of their great golf shirts and tee shirts and to AndrewZ28 for bringing them to us to enjoy! What a guy!

I can highly recommend Redhawk Golf Club as a challenging test of your golfing skills and I will happily come back and play this course in the future.

Jesse

Played on Sunday, June 14, 2015 in overcast skies. Temperature around 71 degrees and light winds. I enjoyed playing with JohnnyGK, AndrewZ28, and my sister EvilT2 in the last group. We had a blast working our way around the Presidio/Mission combo! The staff at the course were great in all aspects of service!

The course follows both sides of the San Diego River up and down the hills and provides some risk/reward opportunities for the long hitters and more subtle challenges for the rest of the players.

The tee boxes were mostly level with a normal amount of divots for the volume of play. The fairways were not lush but adequate and had some GUR areas that were sodded in but provided good lies. The rough was not overly penal but still made you adjust your swing to escape cleanly. Fairway bunkers had good firm sand making it easier to pick the ball off the surface and move it forward. The greenside bunkers had fluffy sand with dampness underlying that took finesse to escape without skulling the ball! I did not possess that finesse on this day and got out of only one bunker with one stroke! The greens were smooth, fairly fast, had some unrepaired ball marks, and many had volcanoed cups that accepted only center cut strokes and diverting off center attempts including many lip outs. Clearly, these cups have not been moved in some time! Still, players with good touch were rolling in 28 putts!

Overall, the course is picturesque and interesting visually, provides variety and challenges, obviously provides a fun atmosphere for its locals and visitors alike, and battles the water shortages as do many other courses.

I applaud the maintenance crew for making necessary repairs where needed and maintaining the balance of the courses in playable condition. This is very much appreciated whether realized or not!

I recommend you play these 9 holes combos when you are in the San Diego area! You will not be disappointed.

Jesse

I played in the GK outing on Saturday, May 16, 2015 on a sunny 80+ degree day with light winds. While driving in, the clouds were dark and menacing and reminded me of the identical conditions that were in effect at the infamous "WindRock" outing a few years ago! However, unlike that fateful day at SilverRock, this day turned out to be just as reported by the weather services and was ideal for a round of golf.

The cordial staff met me at the bag drop and handled getting my clubs on the correct cart, the bartender made me a nice margarita to relax with before the round, the starter was very informative, the cart crew cleaned my clubs and put them at the front door after the round, and the staff at Ernie's provided service, food, and drink while the award ceremony was handled by JohnnyGK assisted by sixpez doing the number crunching!

Out on the course, I avoided the pitfalls on the first 2 holes with bogeys on both, then, the gloves came off and I began to get myself into trouble at every turn. In weeks past I had been pulling my tee shots and thought I had fixed that with the first 2 holes going straight, however, I now started pushing my tee shots right into the moguls, again and again! It became whatever was the very worse thing you could do; I did so!

The resort has a very nice practice area with grass driving range, putting and chipping greens, and I think a sand bunker as well.

On the course, the tee boxes were nearly pristine except for the par 3 holes that were more damaged. The fairways were in excellent condition and the rough though not penal would give you a worse lie with the ball sinking down lower. The sand traps I was in a lot had adequate sand and I was out in 1 stroke in all of them but the San Andreas Fault which I had to negoitiate with a 5-iron in 2 stokes after returning from the moguls! The moguls, ah, The moguls. You had to have the balance and timing of an acrobat to escape lies in the moguls; traits that I do not possess! Some escapes took 1 stroke but most were 2 strokes and a couple of them took three! The greens were running between about 11 and 13 on the Stimp, rolling true with speed control paramount both uphill and downhill. What appeared to break right to left actually broke left to right up the hill above the hole and I didn't cut it either! Whaaat?

It was perfect weather, great company, and a challenging course along with great service from the course staff. The awards ceremony went smoothly and I won a $100.00+ voucher in the raffle for some new golf duds from Linksoul, GK's newest sponsor!

This course is recommended as a challenging test of your target golf skills and putting prowess! Ask the weather gods for a day like the 16th and get out there and play.

Jesse

I must confess to delaying this review due to some personal anguish with, myself, the game of golf, and working on the resolution of same! That said, I played on Saturday, April 11, 2015 with a tee time of 12:03 with GKers lotrgolfer, nickesquire, and toobaked on a sunny afternoon with light and variable winds that progressed into sustained wind of about 15 mph with gusts to 20-25 mph on the last few holes. We walked the course at a POP of just over 4.5 hours. The course is walkable for the most part but be forewarned that you must endure a very steep climb to reach hole 15, a medium length par 3 with an elevated tee box.

I arrived at the course early, checked in, and again went to the cafe for a very nice breakfast and coffee before tee time. The staff is great and they keep everything moving along well and got us off very near our time. The tee boxes are in good shape, the Bermuda fairways have been verticut but it does not hinder play, the rough is short and is not penal at this time, the sand traps have good sand and are conditioned well, the fairway bunkers have firm sand in good condition, the greens rolled smoothly at 11+ with some unrepaired ball marks and accepted well struck shots. If you were above the hole, good luck! This course will be in fine shape once healed from the upcoming aeration on April 20, 2015. In the meantime, play the Vineyard course that is nearly healed from it's maintenance cycle performed in March.

Aside from my personal misfortunes and L.O.F.T. this course is challenging and enjoyable. The course management has demonstrated that they intend to keep this course looking and playing well. It is evident to those of us who have seen many other golf courses over the years and can tell a well run operation from one not so promising!

Jesse

Played 4/6 with HmtGolfGuy, kviser, and nickesquire1 on a cool, breezy, partly cloudy Monday afternoon. I arrived early and enjoyed some coffee and a delicious spanish omelet in the Cafe! On the course, the wind blew at a sustained 15 mph with some gusts over 30 that made some shots tricky. Tee boxes were in good shape, fairway bunkers I visited were firm sand, fairways were verticut and were being verticut as we played but my lies were all on the dormant bermuda and not in the grooves! The rough is dormant and short so no trouble getting out, the greens were running faster than the posted 11 on the Stimp from the wind but putted true unless you got some help from the wind! We, being GKers, fixed our own ball marks and several more as we made our way around the course. I made two pars and one birdie which is pretty good for me since I rarely make par anywhere! It was an enjoyable round with GK buds on a very good course that should be spectacular come Summer! Highly recommended with the GK coupon at $26 to walk!

I played on Saturday, March 28, 2015 on a beautifully renovated course with GKers JohnnyGK, dconnally, and Mattwelch55 in 95 degree weather with low cooling winds except for a lone trash mover that visited us briefly! Upon pulling into the parking lot I was warmly greeted by staff who took my bag and made me feel welcome. This was typical of the interaction with all of the course's staff; courteous, attentive, professional!

The course is in near pristine condition especially with the drought California is enduring at present. Steven Gregory and his maintenance crew have exemplified the art of greenskeeping with their hard work and dedication to making the course particularly gorgeous! Thank you, Steven for your warm welcoming post. Greenskeeper members welcome you to Greenskeeper.org Stevengreg52 and value your contributions to our forums!

Course attributes: Tee boxes were clean and level, fairways lush and green, rough though short was tricky, sand traps had friable sand and were quite playable, greens were fast with subtle breaks near the hole and as mentioned in earlier reviews had some evil pin locations. The grain gave me fits as the ball would roll faster uphill then downhill so beware and read the greens closely with particular attention to grain direction. Speed control is also paramount! Landing an approach shot was exasperating! One bounce and the ball is rolling regardless of spin. Learned too late that bump and run was the best approach to try and even then it was precarious!

Overall, the course is postcard!

There were some unrepaired ball marks on the greens but that is expected at a busy course. It is still appalling to me that informed golfers continue to not repair their ball marks. I fixed a couple of them and some that were "iffy", just in case, but most were too old. Sad, but it continues....

We were the last group in the outing and there was an incident involving being hit up on by the group following us that was graciously handled by the course staff and very much appreciated. Thank you!

It was great to hear cassiusclay aced #5! Way to go Jim. A great ending to a wonderful day at Rams Hill Golf Course!

This course is highly recommended and the hype about it is absolutely valid! Get out and play!

Jesse

I played Friday, December 7, 2012 in the GK outing at Classic Club in Palm Desert. You are at once impressed by the enormous clubhouse even before you have seen the inside of the building. The grounds and the practice area are landscaped beautifully as well as the course. I was greeted cordially by everyone I encountered and enjoyed a delicious breakfast sandwich with coffee at the snack grill. If you had forgotten to bring an item, the well stocked pro shop almost certainly would have it or the equivalent.

The golf course is in good condition after the recent over seeding with the fairways being lush and green. The tee boxes were generally in good shape and level. The bunkers had plenty sand and were raked for the most part. The rough was at two levels; you could get a club on the ball or you were going to have a flier ball with few exceptions! The greens ran slower than the practice green and I was a little surprised over the number of improperly repaired and unrepaired ball marks for a club of this caliber. The wind speed increased and dropped a couple of times during the round but it did not affect play. I enjoyed the round with JohnnyGK, ringworld, and 1plus1 on a picture perfect day in the mid 70’s surrounded by pine trees that reminded me a little of the Lakes course at Primm Valley.

Our members were treated to a delicious Italian dinner after the round in a nicely appointed room adjacent to the bar which was decorated for Christmas and set the mood for the award ceremony that followed.

The staff at Classic Club provided First Class service from arrival to departure. One could not have asked for more!

Overall it was a very good day for golf with great people in outstanding surroundings. I recommend this resort to anyone who would like to enjoy exemplary service and playing on an immaculate golf course.

Classic Club Review
Palm Springs California Golf Course Reviews

I played Saturday, December 8, 2012 in the GKplays event along with JohnnyGK, Broomy, and gymflake at Desert Willow (Firecliff). This is one of the better clubs in the Palm Springs area. The staff took care of you as soon as you arrived and I was soon enjoying a rather large breakfast burrito! After greeting a few of the attendees, I headed for the range and putting green. The course abounds in palm trees with desert appropriate landscaping filling in between and providing a daunting barrier between the tee boxes and the beginning of the fairways.

The course is as beautiful as it is treacherous. The starter told us there are 109 bunkers at last count! It reminded me of Tom Fazio layouts. The fairways were lush with very little roll out. The rough was not bad and you could get out without trouble. The bunkers had sand but it was damp enough that you could not get your club under the ball so 2 strokes minimum to escape! I tried to avoid them but got into some in late morning after they had dried out a bit. The tee boxes were level and in good condition. The greens weren’t fast but not slow either and had some subtle breaks that were hard to discern. Putts that should have broken toward the hole just breezed on by while putts that were for sure straight in would break off right at the cup! Speed was critical. The greens were in great shape with little damage from ball marks. Avoiding the bunkers was the key at this course.

The best part of the day was having lunch on the patio overlooking holes 9 and 18. A great time was had by those who played and stayed for lunch and relaxation. I highly recommend this course for its beauty, challenge, facilities, and service.

Desert Willow Resort Review
Palm Springs California Golf Course Reviews

I played in the GK outing on Saturday, September 29, 2012 after playing the Challenge Course earlier in the morning. The staff is always accommodating and the food in the Café was delicious! The fairways were in good shape. The rough was not as penal this year but still tough. Tee boxes were showing some divots but not bad. Greens were tricky and did unexpected things such as breaking the opposite of what you thought you read! The sand was easy to get out of so not too tough. The flipped nines were a little disconcerting but made the course more interesting and challenging since it was like playing a new course. This outing is one of GKs best attended and most enjoyed of the year. I make it a priority now that I have experienced it with my GK friends!

Monarch Dunes Golf Club Review
Central California Golf Course Reviews