Played twice in the past three weeks. The first outing was on a Sunday and the greens on the front side were heavily sanded and had not really bounced back from the winter. Putting was an adventure. Paid the resident rate of $69 w/cart which is not too bad. The second outing was with my 4 year old through the city's parent-child golf outing. Played later on Saturday afternoon. It was two weeks after the first outing and the greens were noticeably better which much less sand and much more grass. Still fairly slow greens but at least the ball rolled instead of bounced.

Course itself is a decent challenge. It's straightforward if you keep the ball in the fairway. I'm still figuring out my distances in the altitude and find myself hitting through fairways because the ball off the tee goes farther than I'm used to. Some of the views on the back are amazing and with very few homes on the back, it makes for quite a peaceful outing.

First time playing Sandpiper. Location is amazing; walking from parking lot to clubhouse, all you see is the course laid out in front of you with ocean beyond.

The course itself is just a straightforward challenge. No holes are gimmicky or impossible which is nice because I hate unfair golf holes. The greens and wind are what makes this course tough. They tell you at the start to not be above the hole. The practice green provides ample opportunity to see just how slick the downhill putts will be.
The conditions yesterday were pretty still but you could tell there was more of a breeze that would affect your ball flight. It was at least a one club affect on your approach shots. My group was constantly short on approach shots as they got held up in wind that you couldn't feel at the surface.

Holes' 10 and 11 are breathtaking.

Also, they offer a pretty significant discount for Tri-County residents which made my total cost $96 instead of $155. Pretty spendy but a fantastic course and challenge.

Sandpiper Golf Course Review
Santa Barbara California Golf Course Reviews

What's wrong with people? It takes ten seconds to fix a ball mark yet the greens at Rustic are beat up because people are so lazy. The course is in great shape and then you get to the greens and there's marks everywhere!!!
The sand was not really sand but more gravel. It was hard and made getting out a challenge because you couldn't get under the ball.
That was my first round at Rustic in probably five years and I don't know why I waited so long to play there again. Great course, great conditions, wide open fairways but still made you think about your shots and the greens and surrounding collection areas are one heck of a challenge.

Played Friday 3/16 at 9:20am. Played Canyon and Ridgeline. It was empty around the club when we showed up. Our group was the only one on the range. The course itself was in perfect shape. The greens were rolling a little slower than usual and were holding balls which I haven't experienced there before. I was only in one bunker and the sand was wet and heavy but still allowed me to blast out fairly easily.
This course is by far my favorite around. It's tough but fair. If you play in the fairways, you can score well and it punishes you for errant shots. It differs in this way from Lost Canyons where you can hit perfect tee shots and still end up in trouble. Had I not three putted five greens I hit in regulation, I could have shot a personal best. Oh well. Next time. I ended up at Pro Golf in Simi to get my putter shortened and fitted properly.

Pace of play was pathetic. It took 5 hours and 45 minutes to play. There was a tournament in the morning, plus the course design slows play and then on the backside, we got caught behind a foursome who has memories of the Civil War. Their drives were all of about 50 yards, then they would wait until they had 300 yards in front of them to hit their next shot. Never saw a marshall to speed them up. They ended up two holes behind by the time we finished.
The course is gimmicky with lots of blind shots and the worst rough I have ever seen. It's bermuda grass and at least 3 inches in length. The ball sits down below the blades in the roots and you have to hack it out.
If you can play on a discount, I would recommend it, but I would definitely not pay full price.

Played 7/30 at 2pm on Canyon/Ridgeline. Definitely a fun course that makes you make good shots. If you hit the ball straight and employ good course management, you can score low here. It really rewards good shots unlike some other high end courses.
The recent weather seemed to take it's toll on the grass as some of it was brown and dry but you still had good lies in the fairway.
The worst part was the mariachi band playing at a wedding at the club so on 8 and 9 on Canyon you had to listen to them while trying to play, it was pretty distracting.
Also, the fifth hole on Ridgeline, the 600 yard downhill hole, it probably the most unfair and ridiculous hole I have ever played. There is not one level landing area down the entire fairway and absolutely no where to miss. Add to that you basically have to hit the green with an approach shot where you will most likely have a downhill, sidehill lie because going long, left or right will put you 30 feet below the green with an almost vertical chip shot. Impossible. I say play that hole with your pitching wedge and putter!

Got out 5/18 at 2:45pm as a single, finished at 6:30pm. The course is getting better with the only exception being hole 11. They have turned it into a par 3 with a temp green as they fix the wash that runs through the course.

Played Friday afternoon and haven't seen the course beaten up as bad as it is right now. It is really showing the summer heat and also the huge amount of play this course gets. Not worth the money right now.