I played here last Friday, December 6, with some buddies from work. Many areas were over watered, but it's a lot better than it was 10 years ago when the old owners didn't have the water. We played th... Continue »

I played here last Friday, December 6, with some buddies from work. Many areas were over watered, but it's a lot better than it was 10 years ago when the old owners didn't have the water. We played the Valley/Mountain nines. they were overseeded a month ago. The Desert Course is currently under overseeding and maintenance and is closed.

The greens were medium speed and mostly good. Hole #6 on the Mountain Course (a par 3) was not mowed. Maybe it's under some kind of maintenance, but it was shaggy. Soft greens throughout and there were plenty of ball marks to fix.

Fairways were good for coverage. Not as green as you might expect for being overseeded. Very few, if any, bare areas. Plenty of divots in the popular zones; think 100-150 yards to center of the greens.

Rough on this course is a different story. For the most part, there's none. It's thin, bare, and mowed tight so your ball will find its way into the scrub brush for a penalty. There are a lot of burrowing animal holes throughout the rough on this course. Ground squirrels are prevalent here and you could lose a ball or get some terrible lie. There's a premium on fairway shots at this course. Anything else and you're possibly looking at a big score.

Bunkers were a mixed bag of mostly not good. Thin sand here and there, deep and fluffy in others. Typically, it will be more sand around the greens and thin-to-little sand in the fairway bunkers.

Tees were not great. Mountain #8 was undergoing some construction and all moved forward. It did make for some fun shots to go at this green (uphill 285 yards), although it's very well protected with numerous bunkers up the right-hand side.

Overall, the course was okay condition-wise. I really want to say it's great, or even good. I just can't. Maintenance could be stepped up. Maybe increase the size of the landing areas in the fairways and grow some real rough to keep your ball in play. Maybe trim some of the large heritage oak trees that tend to interfere with your shots.

There was no beverage service, but the carts have ice chests and there is ice outside the starters office. Drinks and food are available at the snack bar, but it's not cheap. The upstairs restaurant has long been closed. It's kind of a shame as the restaurant and bar used to be good. The future of this course could be looking up if the owner can build his dream resort like he has planned, but there has been push back from the local community. I will continue to play here occasionally as it's only $55 senior rate M-F.

I played here again last Friday, 2/16/24. We played the Valley/Desert nines. It seems the course conditions are somewhat deteriorating overall. Most of the grass here is dormant Bermuda. There are are... Continue »

I played here again last Friday, 2/16/24. We played the Valley/Desert nines. It seems the course conditions are somewhat deteriorating overall. Most of the grass here is dormant Bermuda. There are areas of dirt where there should be grass growing; mostly in the rough, but many areas of the fairways. We played the Blue tees and they seemed to be beat up. Some tees needed mowing. Despite all the recent rain, there are areas of the course that seemed very dry. It would have been nice if the course had overseeded last fall. It could have been stunning by now. Other than all that negativity, there are some redeeming qualities to consider. It was only $40 Senior rate with a cart in the afternoon. There were two friendly cart girls that were very easy on the eyes. Finally, the greens seemed to be in decent condition; rolling true and few ball marks or other damage. I like playing here because it is close to home; however, I think I may be looking for other venues until the summer when things green up around here.

I played the Valley/Desert combination last Friday. The tee time was 12:35 and we got out about 10 minutes late due to the cluster f... of carts and golfers trying to make the afternoon discount rates... Continue »

I played the Valley/Desert combination last Friday. The tee time was 12:35 and we got out about 10 minutes late due to the cluster f... of carts and golfers trying to make the afternoon discount rates. What a disorganized mess trying to get a cart assignment. I did not know if the starter who was assigning carts had my name or even if I had to check in with him. Once we got our carts it was all good. Play was a little on the slow side, but it was the Friday before New Years weekend, so I expected a lot of golfers. The course was in mediocre shape. Fairways looked a bit dry and maybe needed an overseed for the winter. It was playable and there was mostly good coverage of dormant turf. We played the Blue tees and they were fine. Good coverage and somewhat level. Okay, so you do have to pick a spot. The rough at this course is mostly nonexistent, so if you hit one past the fairway, it could go off into the native areas. I was in three bunkers and the sand was very deep in two of them. It had a nice brown color and a medium texture. Both bunkers had a lot of deep footprints and were unraked. That was two of the bunkers. The third bunker I was in (Hole 15/Desert #6, Par 4) behind the green, had no sand at all; just the white fabric liner. That was easy to slide my club under the ball and make a save there. The greens rolled fine. They had a good speed; not super fast but just enough to keep you from having to hammer any putts. All in all, it was fun. My buddy and I finished with another twosome in the dark. We had a couple of glow balls, so that made it a little better. There was a great sunset to look at on 18 Tee as we waited for the group ahead of us to move off. The overall conditions of the course seemed to be somewhat on the poor side, though. I had hoped there would have been more some improvement since my last visit, but it hasn't happened yet. I'm still hopeful. For $40 senior rate after 12, it was good.

Played today, Desert/Mountain nines, 10/09/23, $55 senior rate, at 7:00 am tee time. The previous reviews did not look promising as they rated the course very low. It's not the best course around but ... Continue »

Played today, Desert/Mountain nines, 10/09/23, $55 senior rate, at 7:00 am tee time. The previous reviews did not look promising as they rated the course very low. It's not the best course around but it definitely was better than the 3.06. The greens were in good shape, soft and medium fast in speed. There were a few ball marks to fix on most of the greens. Hole 6 on the Mountain course was the worst green and I would say it was very bumpy and there was a small repair area near the walk off point. Other than that, there were 17 very decent greens.

I played the White tees and all were okay; not perfectly level, but I had no trouble finding a level hitting surface. Also, the tees were soft and had good coverage. Hole 3 on the Mountain course was temporary tees, pushed forward to the golds for maintenance.

Fairways had good coverage in most areas. Desert Hole 13 had a large bare area but not really coming into play on the par 5 there.

Rough was a mix of good to sparse coverage. There were areas that were thick enough to completely hide your ball. Okay, penalizing enough in the deep Bermuda rough, but most areas were nicely mowed and if your ball was up all was good.

Bunkers were a little wet in the morning but there was a maintenance guy with the sand pro going around and conditioning the traps. All good there. I was in a few and was able to escape easily enough.

The snack bar was not open when I arrived, and I did not check at the turn.

Check in was quick and and I am considering playing here next Friday.

The recent aerations on Mountain and Valley were done with apparently small tines. Other than top dressing which maintenance was blowing pretty much off, the greens were fine. Except #6 on Mountain. I... Continue »

The recent aerations on Mountain and Valley were done with apparently small tines. Other than top dressing which maintenance was blowing pretty much off, the greens were fine. Except #6 on Mountain. It’s garbage. Not because of aeration, it’s just in need of a scrape and resod. The courses are really not in good shape on the edges. Tees are really spongy and super thick. Course overall is a 5 out of 10. Not worth the money in the current condition. Views are great and this place always makes me believe “what if someone invested some money?” Could be great. Just not.

Played last week with some friends. The Pro Shop staff were not very friendly. There were no Marshall’s on the course to help speed up the party boys in front of us who wouldn’t let us through so we h... Continue »

Played last week with some friends. The Pro Shop staff were not very friendly. There were no Marshall’s on the course to help speed up the party boys in front of us who wouldn’t let us through so we had to skip a hole. Never going back, it was a waste of good money and time with my friends. ??

I played here Friday morning with my old pal and fellow GKer, Tony. 9 AM tee, $55 senior rate, Desert-Mountain nines. In the old Robinson Ranch days this would have been the back nine on the Valley an... Continue »

I played here Friday morning with my old pal and fellow GKer, Tony. 9 AM tee, $55 senior rate, Desert-Mountain nines. In the old Robinson Ranch days this would have been the back nine on the Valley and the front nine on the Mountain. The Mountain nine plays as it did back in the day. Definitely more established turf, although it is dormant Bermudagrass. The courses are seeing a lot more play recently and it shows.

Greens: Lots of ball marks to fix, but mostly they aren't too bad. The greens now are very firm and most of the marks were shallow. The speed was fast, probably around 11-ish plus. With the many undulations on the greens, it allowed for some interesting putting lines depending on your speed. Very challenging.

Fairways: Good roll out on most any drive. Even bad shots seemed to get good yardage. There were plenty of divots to fix and the sand bottles had just crappy sand, not even nice, clean sand. Never mind any seed, mulch or organic matter mixed in like you see in really nice courses. I guess you don't want to mix other grasses in with that Bermuda. With that said, there is a good mat of roots and it does make for a good hitting surface. There was an occasional tight lie.

Rough: For all the good fairway grass, the rough was that and more tightly mowed. It doesn't hold your ball, so if your shot is off line or gathers into a down sloped area, it can run off into the junk.

Tees: It's a mixed bag. We played the whites and some tees were hard to place a tee, many were unlevel, and nothing was lush by any means. It just made it more challenging to find the right lie and stance.

Sand: Bunkers were a mixed bag as well. Most were raked nicely and had a decent amount of sand. Some bunkers were totally not maintained with damage from recent rains. For the most part, they were playable.

Overall, the experience is as nice as you can get around Santa Clarita this time of year for $55. Check in was efficient and employees seemed pleasant. Pace of play was right about 4 hours. I think the course needs to go back to the original 36 holes and drop the idea of a resort that the City and nearby residents will not allow. It definitely needs more tlc, water, and maintenance. Maybe some minor redesign to make it a little more forgivable for the average golfer: you know, lots of nice grass, deep rough, maybe widening the fairways? Right now, the $55 rate may keep me coming back. I can golf cheaper elsewhere, but I have to factor in the travel time and gas money.

I play there regularly but most recently the course is is great shape for the winter! The fairways are nice and green, and the greens are not too fast, but rather just perfect. There are 27 holes to p... Continue »

I play there regularly but most recently the course is is great shape for the winter! The fairways are nice and green, and the greens are not too fast, but rather just perfect. There are 27 holes to play and you can always walk on with no problem. They have maintained the same pricing structure of $70 - $90 with a senior discount that make it $55. The effort of the crew to keep the course playing like it is, is a feat that is not easily accomplished. I highly recommend it!

I played late yesterday (Valley-Desert nines). Currently, they are offering something new: 2:00 p.m. shotgun, $45 riding, for all times between 2:00 and 4:20ish. I was given the option of going out a ... Continue »

I played late yesterday (Valley-Desert nines). Currently, they are offering something new: 2:00 p.m. shotgun, $45 riding, for all times between 2:00 and 4:20ish. I was given the option of going out a little earlier on the Mountain-Desert routing, but it looked like there were quite a few groups on that route. The starter got me out at 2:00 on Valley Hole 2 and it was wide open with no waiting for me until I got to my last hole. POP at just about 2.5 hours. I played multiple shots during the round, keeping score with my first shot (good, bad, and ugly).

Greens: 6/10: While the PPG was noticeable bumpy (poa), the rest of the greens were a little better. It appeared that new holes were not cut today and they all appeared somewhat shaggy. Not a lot of ball marks (kind of firm) and they rolled medium-slow to medium-fast. If I had to guess, maybe 8.5'-9.0'.

Fairways and rough: 5/10: Conditions of the fairways was just okay. There were the occasional areas of wetness and some areas that were dry and bare. Mostly, though, there was decent coverage and I did not always have poor lies. Good roll on most of my shots, although I only hit a couple of fairways. The rough could be better, but the further you get from the center of the fairway the worse conditions get. Your ball might end up on wood chips, dirt, or in the desert scrub, so try to keep it down the middle, okay!

Tees: 4/10: I played the blue tees but all were in need of mowing. The grass was very deep and the ground was a little uneven on many tees. I would say it was not good at all; playable, but not what you would expect on a course with "Country Club" in the name.

Bunkers: 6/10: I was in a couple greenside bunkers on Hole 3, Valley, and they were great to hit from. The sand appeared a little wet, but it was not hard packed and I found it fairly easy to hit the ball. Maybe too easy as I went bunker to bunker there.

All told, I could see myself playing here often in the late afternoon for the $45 M-Th or $55 on Fridays. I wish they would step up the maintenance and expand the landing areas. It's a tough landscape and very challenging for the average golfer with many forced carries and hazards. Club selection, course management, and hitting your targets are key to scoring well here. With the owner wanting to build a resort and related hotel facilities, he's going to want to have a bigger draw than just a mediocre golf course. Sand Canyon is close to being a really great course once again, I just think the maintenance needs to pick up a bit.