played Friday 8/6 starting at 12:00 p.m. Better than last time I played but still took 4 1/2 hours with no five somes.

Course is cutting back on water so hit a low ball and let it run down the fai... Continue »

played Friday 8/6 starting at 12:00 p.m. Better than last time I played but still took 4 1/2 hours with no five somes.

Course is cutting back on water so hit a low ball and let it run down the fairway.

People must have gone back to work because not so many party people. Mostly old people like me age 65.

Although as I was teeing it up on No. 9 I heard a guy on adjacent tee No. 6 saying he was just out there to get drunk.

Good course to walk and only five minutes to where I was staying so I would play it again.

Found five balls around the course just laying around. Strange. Nobody came up and claimed them.

Would I drive more than 30 minutes to play it? No.

Unfortunately AndrewZ28 and I had to postpone our GK Cup match at Rio Hondo on Friday afternoon, but I did get another buddy to play and it was quite a different experience from my last review here a ... Continue »

Unfortunately AndrewZ28 and I had to postpone our GK Cup match at Rio Hondo on Friday afternoon, but I did get another buddy to play and it was quite a different experience from my last review here a few weeks ago when I played with mcantos.

No need to get into too many details, but the previous review for Rio Hondo warned me that they had just done a small greens punch, but I was also pretty surprised to see so many of the greens having weird fungus-like patches all around them which lead to slow and bumpy putts most of the afternoon, in addition of course to the aeration damage that's still visible.

Another disappointment was how dry the fairways have become over the last few weeks. I had many shots right in the middle of the fairway only to have to pick my ball off a thin and burned out lie. Definitely not ideal. The rough was better than the fairways in many sections, but overall it's okay, just not as good as it was recently.

Tee boxes were fine, and the bunkers that I was in were of varying quality depending on the hole. Rakes are out again but no one seems to be using them all that often. POP was also an issue as it took us just shy of five hours to finish and we waited on most holes on the front nine, but it cleared up on the back until around hole 13.

We did have some cart service out there which was a nice surprise. So yes, all in all Rio Hondo will always remain a very good, sometimes great public facility, but it's currently nowhere near its best shape and needs some more work to be done.

Played Rio Hondo yesterday. Most of the greens were just aerated. Small punch, but no recent maintenance on Greenskeeper. I would wait at least a month to play again.

Played Rio Hondo yesterday. Most of the greens were just aerated. Small punch, but no recent maintenance on Greenskeeper. I would wait at least a month to play again.

Great to get back out to Rio Hondo. This is a solid golf course which, while not overly penal, still provides enough challenge to keep your interest without beating you up. Not super long, even from... Continue »

Great to get back out to Rio Hondo. This is a solid golf course which, while not overly penal, still provides enough challenge to keep your interest without beating you up. Not super long, even from the tips, it has more than enough length for this senior, with several par 4 holes which are becoming increasingly difficult for me to reach in regulation. Not really narrow either, but tight enough that you need to keep it pretty straight. The course is right out in front of you and allows you to just play without about losing balls, searching for mildly errant shots, or worrying about forced carries.

Course condition are very acceptable. Greens roll true and have reasonable speed. Good coverage in the fairways. Bunkers were well maintained and had adequate sand. Good value, friendly staff. Recommend this course for all skill levels.

Played GK cup match with roarksown (Robert) on a beautiful Friday afternoon. I agree with everything Robert says and course was in great shape. It’s true was he said about the cart girl, I looked at... Continue »

Played GK cup match with roarksown (Robert) on a beautiful Friday afternoon. I agree with everything Robert says and course was in great shape. It’s true was he said about the cart girl, I looked at her and said we want something and she kept driving.. To summarize, neither of us were on but he played well enough to take the match. Playing with Robert is always a great time and you won’t fine a nicer person to play with. Look forward to playing with him again…

Perfect day out at Rio Hondo today for my GK Cup match with Marvin (mcantos). We had a 2:10 tee time and played from the blue tees. We shared a moody cart that kept on having fits of fatigue and joint... Continue »

Perfect day out at Rio Hondo today for my GK Cup match with Marvin (mcantos). We had a 2:10 tee time and played from the blue tees. We shared a moody cart that kept on having fits of fatigue and joint pain all afternoon ... no GPS on it either. Oh yeah, we did see the cart girl once on the 4th hole tee box but she drove right by and never stopped. That was amusing.

As far as course conditions, everything is pretty good right now at Rio Hondo. There was nothing that stood out as outstanding, but there sure wasn't anything that felt too problematic either. It was above average in all respects. Greens were in pretty nice shape, rolled medium fast and true, while the fairways had plenty of good lies, a few thin here and there, and nicely cut rough with only some areas of real mayhem.

Tee boxes in good shape, and the bunkers were all good as far as I saw, but maybe a tiny bit grainy and of course people still aren't using the rakes just yet. It'll come with time I hope.

Rio Hondo is definitely a 'hit hard, hit first' golf course with the bulk of its teeth showing on the front nine with very narrow alleys for fairways and large trees in all directions waiting to swallow up anything wayward. Both par 3s on the front have water trouble, too. But she softens on the back nine, offering plenty of par chances and very few 'scary' holes outside of maybe 14 and 18.

POP was quite good (better than expected at least) so we only waited on around a quarter of the holes at best, so that was quite nice finishing in just around 4 hours and 20 minutes on a busy LA Friday afternoon.

So yes, overall, Rio Hondo is a good test, a good value and a good time.

Back out to Rio Hondo yesterday with a couple of buddies at 1:30 pm. Check in was smooth and the course was very busy with the range packed and tee sheet stacked.

$30 single cart fees in effective... Continue »

Back out to Rio Hondo yesterday with a couple of buddies at 1:30 pm. Check in was smooth and the course was very busy with the range packed and tee sheet stacked.

$30 single cart fees in effective. Course is in good shape. The greens were still a little bumpy and slow running around 8/8.5. The aprons and area around the greens were in great shape. Fairways were good, but plenty of divots despite the return of the divot mixes on the carts. Sand traps had rakes and in good shape. The restaurant is now open for indoor dining and libations. I had a friend who had not played this course in 10 years...and he became a fan again. Look forward to returning soon.

*** Senior rate pro tip*** from their website:

(Reduce Senior Rates valid all day Monday, and before 8am or after 11am Tuesday thru Friday)

Go play!

Played here today with my weekly tournament group. We had a good tee time (9am) ,so I got out early enough to miss the usual slow play here. The course was in okay condition. Tee boxes where nice, the... Continue »

Played here today with my weekly tournament group. We had a good tee time (9am) ,so I got out early enough to miss the usual slow play here. The course was in okay condition. Tee boxes where nice, they are firm and level. The fairways where firm and fast , but they did have some GUR and spotty patchy dirt areas. The rough was a nice playable level, again, some spotty dirt patches. Bunkers with no rakes are in good condition with good quality sand. Greens rolled at a medium pace, but rolled very true. A good place to play, with a lot of undulating fairways ... Fun and challenging.

Made it back out to Rio Hondo this weekend, grabbing a late solo spot with a 2pm tee time, playing the blues and riding. Paired up with a lovely older Korean couple and this 80yo had some good stories... Continue »

Made it back out to Rio Hondo this weekend, grabbing a late solo spot with a 2pm tee time, playing the blues and riding. Paired up with a lovely older Korean couple and this 80yo had some good stories to tell and game to boot. Fee with cart a very reasonable $56 for this place.

Unfortunately caught the tail end of the recent punching so there's still ample evidence of it on the greens, and still a good amount of sand on them to make matters more complicated. Green speeds of course were quite inconsistent and unreliable, but not enough to sour the experience. You adjust like you do other greens on any course.

Fairways are in relatively nice shape overall with a few thin areas to contend with in popular landing areas or near the greens. But you're going to have plenty of opportunities to get off clean shots off good grass. Rough was not too penal at all so nothing to worry about there, while the tee boxes were mostly in good shape and level. Avoided bunkers all day but saw them to be in nice condition where I noticed them.

POP was very nice at just over four hours, and also had good cart service once or twice during the round. Did not hit balls before my round but Rio Hondo has a pretty nice dual-level driving range with yellow balls that often find their way to the 18th fairway.

The layout? You know the story here ... easier back than front, but lots of narrow holes that will test length and accuracy. Good variety of lengths and looks for the par 3s here. Tree trouble always abounds and plenty of water features throughout to keep you sharp. Very good public golf at a reasonable price. Can't go wrong coming here right now, or even better in a week or two when the greens are healed up.