TEE TIME: DEC 01 @ 8:37

nice track and conditions couldn't have been better. tee boxes were nice leveled. fairways were well maintained. roughs were about 1 inch cut. bunkers seemed to be in good s... Continue »

TEE TIME: DEC 01 @ 8:37

nice track and conditions couldn't have been better. tee boxes were nice leveled. fairways were well maintained. roughs were about 1 inch cut. bunkers seemed to be in good shape as i didn't get into one. greens were rolling very nicely and smooth. pace is very decent considering this course attracts a lot of walkers. overall, it was a good but can't say for my score tho

Played a round after some Black Friday shopping in the morning, going out when the twilight rate started at 12:30pm. It had been raining all morning, but it had tapered off by the time we teed off. ... Continue »

Played a round after some Black Friday shopping in the morning, going out when the twilight rate started at 12:30pm. It had been raining all morning, but it had tapered off by the time we teed off. The wet conditions made the greens play slower than I've ever seen them at Santa Anita. The pace of play was fine for the first few holes, but our twosome eventually joined up with the twosome in front of us on the fifth hole, and the pace was brutally slow after that. The tee boxes were sanded down with a lot of repair mix, so I often had to back up a couple of yards to find some firm footing to stand on for my tee shot. Bunkers were packed down because of the rain, but were in good condition. We eventually finished barely able to see around 5pm, making for a 4 1/2 hr round that felt much longer because of all the waiting.

Although the scorecard doesn't reflect it at 6412 yards from the blue tees, the course tends to play long. Except for the first par 3, the par 3s are pretty lengthy and challenging. The signature mounds on the course also protect the long hitter from overpowering the course by requiring a variety of lie angles to hit from. I also have never made the transition of the ninth hole being a par 5, it still feels like a brutally long par 4 to me. I still think of the course as a par 70.

Played Sat 11/16/13 9:37am $49 w/ cart. POP 4:35

Played Santa Anita as a twosome on Saturday and once again, couldn't have had a better time. If you appreciate what the architect of this course was... Continue »

Played Sat 11/16/13 9:37am $49 w/ cart. POP 4:35

Played Santa Anita as a twosome on Saturday and once again, couldn't have had a better time. If you appreciate what the architect of this course was doing, this is the best public layout in LA. Not a drop of water on it and the piece of property looks totally flat from above, except there isn't a flat lie on the whole course unless you know exactly where to hit it. Type of place where every time you play it you like it more. Anyone can put three man made ponds on a hole and make it hard. It takes true inspiration to do what this guy did. At 6400 yards, you can hit driver on every hole and not worry about losing balls OB but it's not the smart play about half the time. The 14th hole is a prime example. 310 yards. Wide open, but if you hit driver you're leaving a super awkward pitch to the green. Much better to hit your 190 yard club and have a full shot in.

And for this time of year it's in really good shape. Greens were medium speed but rolled true and there where very minimal pitch marks. The traps here are easily the best in LA County. Fairways have typical Fall/Winter wear. Some small problems for sure, but mostly due to the mounding and where water funnels. Tee boxes seem like they're moved around often enough to avoid major damage but the par threes had some minimal wear.

Couldn't recommend it any higher.

Decided to come here for what is becoming an annual Veteran's Day round based on all the good reviews lately. Course lives up to the compliments-it was in fantastic shape.

Greens are the highlight... Continue »

Decided to come here for what is becoming an annual Veteran's Day round based on all the good reviews lately. Course lives up to the compliments-it was in fantastic shape.

Greens are the highlight here. Perfectly smooth & rolled well. They might have LOOKED bumpier in the afternoon but I didn't notice anything on my putts.

Rough is definitely above average for a city muni. There are always some thin, bare spots on courses but these were few & far between.

Fairways were in great shape. Nice & green, and rolled out well. I can see why some people complain about the mounding on certain holes (#18 comes to mind) but it's really not that bad, just gotta get it on the right portion of the fairway. Not ridiculous in any way unlike Lost Canyons. I actually appreciated it compared to the long, flat city munis. Gives the place character.

I was in an awful lot of bunkers for me today, so I can with confidence say that they too, are in great shape. Sand is great to hit out of-might be a bit too firm for some perhaps.

Didn't see anything wrong with the tee boxes really, either. Staff was very pleasant & if you notice the little things the workers do in terms of maintenance it really makes for an enjoyable round. POP was a little slow but hey its Veteran's Day, everyone's out. Would play more often if I lived closer.

Played Friday, 11/8, as a two-some plus a single, out around 12:00. Not particularly busy that time of day and no trouble getting on as walk ups. The short story is I have nothing to nitpick. It's one... Continue »

Played Friday, 11/8, as a two-some plus a single, out around 12:00. Not particularly busy that time of day and no trouble getting on as walk ups. The short story is I have nothing to nitpick. It's one of the nicer LA County Courses both as to layout and generally being in good shape. Greens were clean, firm, and medium fast. With respect to all the other particulars, it was all good. If you like this course, or are interested in trying one of the better examples of a solid muni experience, I recommend checking it out.

I got out Tuesday early afternoon paired up with another single. A two-some behind us moved up to join us on the third hole because they all knew each other as course regulars, one of whom was the cou... Continue »

I got out Tuesday early afternoon paired up with another single. A two-some behind us moved up to join us on the third hole because they all knew each other as course regulars, one of whom was the course head pro. For the record, they were all excellent company and made a bad round for me more enjoyable. The good news /bad news: I thought the course was in really nice shape, but they punch the greens on Monday, so you've only got the weekend to hit it as I am describing it. The tee boxes were all flat and green with two exceptions: 16 is a bit less than level, and the 18th back box definitely needs leveling. The 18th has a tight tolerance on the preferred line of flight that demands moving your tee to the left side of the box, but the left side of the box slopes off the further left you get. The hole is quirky enough without having an unsettled tee shot. Everything else was good, from fairways to bunkers to greens (medium quick). It's an interesting layout that has nice views of the local mountains. Pace was very good and I think we did it in a little over 4 hrs. If it wasn't for the aeration upcoming, I'd go back to play the course soon in an effort to redeem myself. Oh, and the high school right across the street apparently has one of the best drum sections in the state, but they practice all… day… …long. I tune it out and really had no problem with it—it became the source for some humor. But if you are the sensitive type and you are going out on a school day, be forewarned.

The course was in surprisingly good shape for this weather (97 degrees when I teed off). Tee boxes were decent. Fairways were lush! Especially compared to Angeles National I recently played. (Altho... Continue »

The course was in surprisingly good shape for this weather (97 degrees when I teed off). Tee boxes were decent. Fairways were lush! Especially compared to Angeles National I recently played. (Although A.N. is a much better track, obviously) There were dry spots, but they were few and far in between. The bunkers at Santa Anita always have plenty of sand, but a lot of people don't rake here. The greens were very good for this course. Not a lot of damage and putts rolled pretty good. It was faster than usual for Santa Anita, which is still slower than most non-muni courses. This was pretty close to the best shape I've seen Santa Anita at for a while. I'm not sure if playing on a weekday had anything to do with it. P.O.P. was just over 4 hours.

Tee Time: @ 15:30 on Aug 06

Not a bad playing pace for a foursome/walk which finished in 4 hours. The course, however, needed some TLC. The greens were rolling pretty nice. But some of the fairways... Continue »

Tee Time: @ 15:30 on Aug 06

Not a bad playing pace for a foursome/walk which finished in 4 hours. The course, however, needed some TLC. The greens were rolling pretty nice. But some of the fairways were bare and dirt. Roughs were not too bad. Tee Boxes needed to be leveled out some more. Traps were a bit inconsistent I may add

This course used to be in top shape as I remembered the last time we played in Feb (winter time). Overall, I enjoyed the round and the price was hard to beat. $18/walk

Have to make this one quick. Out at Santa Anita yesterday as a single, @1:45, walking, $27, and paired with a father-son twosome. Good company, nice weather (warm but felt cooler with a breeze to cool... Continue »

Have to make this one quick. Out at Santa Anita yesterday as a single, @1:45, walking, $27, and paired with a father-son twosome. Good company, nice weather (warm but felt cooler with a breeze to cool your sweat) and good pace overall—well under 4.5 hr round. Conditions were all around worth it. One slight critique would be that, by their own standards, the medium speed greens could have been faster and smoother. But they were good enough, particularly as to rolling pretty true. A solid muni experience.