Played this on a Monday with some friends and family during AVCC’s member for a day outing. This was my second time playing the course having played it once before in a charity tournament scramble. T... Continue »

Played this on a Monday with some friends and family during AVCC’s member for a day outing. This was my second time playing the course having played it once before in a charity tournament scramble. The highlights: The greens were phenomenal even though they had a bit of a top dressing on them. The greens and tee boxes were above average and in very good shape. The customer service and Covid check in process was a breeze. The clubhouse is very nice and well designed. The company was great and the outings was perfect. Didn’t wait on a group all day or hold anyone up. The weather was also perfect. The negatives: The fairways and rough were in awful shape for a “country club”. There were a ton of bare spots and unfilled divots all throughout the fairway. We had to play the ball up because the chances of getting a bad lie in the fairway were very common. Also the fact that this country club has no actual range facility (they offer hitting nets) is a bummer. They’re chipping and putting areas are about average for a country club. Conclusion: I was glad we got the invitation to participate in the member for a day outing. However, if the invitation was extended to me again I would probably not take them up on the offer given the price we paid. It was fine for a one off but wouldn’t do this on a regular basis.

Had the opportunity to play this Private Country Club as a part of an online golf deal for ~$75pp - The course called it Member For A Day. 10am, shotgun start, we played the Blue tees, and the forwar... Continue »

Had the opportunity to play this Private Country Club as a part of an online golf deal for ~$75pp - The course called it Member For A Day. 10am, shotgun start, we played the Blue tees, and the forward Ladies tee, and started on 13.

Short review: Course was in okay shape, especially for a "Private Country Club" I was not impressed. Lots of divots everywhere in the fairways and tee boxes. Greens and bunkers were very good. Random areas throughout the course had soggy wet spots as well. For the price we paid, didn't really fit the course, felt more like a muni.

Long Review: Given the COVID stuff, and this was more tournament-ish (shotgun start), check-in was a breeze. They took our temp and checked our names as we drove into the parking lot. There is no driving range, only a few hitting mats into a net/cage, but it was closed for COVID. They had all the golf carts nicely arranged and labeled by hole for everyone. The golf carts were in great condition, no GPS. Good weather, mainly overcast and probably 68deg. Our POP was 5 hours, but that was mainly us taking our time as we had some games going on, but we never had anyone behind us or in front of us all day, so felt like the course was all to ourselves. Not sure where the bottleneck was, but that probably means it was way over 5 hours.

GREENS: Greens were in very good shape! Much faster as the day went on. They had some sort-of weekly dressing on it (fertilizer?) but it never affected putting. They were relatively firm, but with playability. No ball marks or bumpiness to speak of.

FAIRWAYS/ROUGH: Mainly dormant and dry, but man-oh-man, LOTS of divots. Divots that had sand, divots that were starting to grow back, and just lots of divots.

TEES: Again, LOTS of divots. Very level tee boxes and fair amount of lushness to them, some holes had a lot of selections for tees, but there were divots everywhere.

BUNKERS: Fresh sand but kind of shallow compared to some courses I've played recently. Still no problems with playability though.

Also, Not sure why, as there has not been any rain at all recently, yet there were random spots all over the course that were very soggy and wet, most times roped off but not always. I would understand a few leaks, but there was A LOT.

Overall a tough course, need to make sure you're good at your yardage and targets.

Last minute invite to play Aliso. Frustrating because while this is a Club Corp course, which I have reciprocity with, because it is within 50 miles of Coto, I can not play here, so must rely on frie... Continue »

Last minute invite to play Aliso. Frustrating because while this is a Club Corp course, which I have reciprocity with, because it is within 50 miles of Coto, I can not play here, so must rely on friends to gain access.

Course was in overall good condition. Lush fairways, Rough, tee boxes well maintained. Greens slower than I recall. This is a fun course to play with nice vistas, enough of a challenge to keep your interest without beating you up. Not too busy, so pace was decent, under four hours which is not bad for a mid morning tee time.

We played here yesterday on a perfect golf day. A little breeze, some sun shining through, and a beautiful setting. I haven't played here for many years so didn't remember anything about the course. I... Continue »

We played here yesterday on a perfect golf day. A little breeze, some sun shining through, and a beautiful setting. I haven't played here for many years so didn't remember anything about the course. I think it was redone some time ago and this course is really great. It reminds me of Old Ranch in Seal Beach with the water holes and design but it is in much better condition. Generous fairways and well protected greens were the norm but the design is fair and engaging. Paid $65 and it was well worth it. Can't wait to get back. Everything was in great shape as you would expect from a private course in the OC. A lot of elevated greens with false fronts that made scoring difficult but super fun to play. The fairway grass gives you tight lies but nice to hit from. Play it if you get a chance!

Invited back out to play Aliso Viejo with some old friends. I don't play here all that often despite its relative close proximity to my home. Always enjoy this course as it offers some wonderful vis... Continue »

Invited back out to play Aliso Viejo with some old friends. I don't play here all that often despite its relative close proximity to my home. Always enjoy this course as it offers some wonderful vistas along with a fun track.

Course was in nice condition, particularly the fairways. Some of the greens had a few issues, and putted much slower than they appeared. It would have been nice to have more "local knowledge" on a few greens, because I sure didn't read them very well.

Fun day with great weather, and despite not playing very well, enjoyed the experience. We finished in 3:45 which wasn't too bad.

I played here this afternoon as part of an SCGA member outing. $60, which is reasonable. We were in the last group out at 12:30 and the pace was brutally slow all day. We finished in just under 5.5 ho... Continue »

I played here this afternoon as part of an SCGA member outing. $60, which is reasonable. We were in the last group out at 12:30 and the pace was brutally slow all day. We finished in just under 5.5 hours. I felt really bad for the members stuck behind the SCGA group because I assume they are not used to rounds like that! The course is pretty fresh out of its overseed and aeration, so it was running as cart path only and that definitely contributed a lot to the slow pace. The tee boxes were mostly good, with just the par-3s being a bit chewed up in the afternoon. The fairways were relatively shaggy and sometimes mushy bermuda, so it was extra grabby. The rough is deep, thick rye that is definitely penal. Most of the outer edges have a very deep fescue, which looks much nicer than many courses right now that just have a lot of bare dirt outer areas amidst the drought. On the other hand, anything hit into this stuff is most likely a lost ball. The one bunker I was in had good sand and the greens were in pretty decent shape. Very soft and a little bumpy at times, rolling at medium speeds. Very little signs of the recent aeration. I enjoyed the course. There's a lot to like about it. It's not very long at under 6,300 from the blues, but it still offers some challenge. Plenty of elevation changes, very few flat lies, relatively forgiving fairways, but greens that can be tough to get at (Nicklaus Design). Some nice scenery and views. However, there is still something lacking that I can't quite put my finger on. It's a fun and often interesting course with several memorable holes like 12 and 17, but it still didn't quite blow me away. The routing does feel a bit mish-mashed together, so I'd be curious how it compares to the original 27-hole layout and even what they played as the 14-hole version in between then and now.

Played Monday in a shot gun offered by the course. Other than taking almost 5 1/2 hours to complete play, had a great time. The course was in excellent condition! Weather was near perfect - mid 70's ... Continue »

Played Monday in a shot gun offered by the course. Other than taking almost 5 1/2 hours to complete play, had a great time. The course was in excellent condition! Weather was near perfect - mid 70's with a slight breeze for February and clear skys, offering great views of South Orange County. (Sure glad I don't still live in Chicago) Always enjoy playing this course as it is not too punishng yet provides enough of a challenge to be interesting. Fun day

course is in great shape, only wished my game was as nice. The greens were perfect and fast and held shots well. Rough was very rough, looking for balls for a long time that were not on the fairway,... Continue »

course is in great shape, only wished my game was as nice. The greens were perfect and fast and held shots well. Rough was very rough, looking for balls for a long time that were not on the fairway, but it looked like they were mowing it today. fairways were perfect as were the bunkers. Fun track and very fair. Love playing this course when I get the opportunity.

Played here Wednesday morning, 10/10/12, with a Travelzoo coupon my wife gave me. This course went full private earlier this year but have occasional events where you can get on it. Was once 27 holes ... Continue »

Played here Wednesday morning, 10/10/12, with a Travelzoo coupon my wife gave me. This course went full private earlier this year but have occasional events where you can get on it. Was once 27 holes of Nicklaus golf but they bulldozed one nine (and redesigned a couple holes) to build houses just in time for the bust. I played just after they got through overseeding and aerating so the entire course was wet and soft. Cart path only and some long walks up and down the slopy fairways to get to your ball. Some sprinklers going occasionally during the round.

Greens were medium slow and rolled OK – I had trouble getting the ball to the hole. Fairway lies were generally good but you could get some bare or patchy areas. Scattered clumpy areas in the rough yielded poor lies. I wasn’t in the sand. Tees were level and in good shape.
There was adequate water available. The course was not crowded and I played in 3.5 hrs while sometimes hitting multiple balls.

There is no GPS, no yardage book – some sprinklers are marked, but distances to traps off tees, etc. is not available to those who don’t play here a lot. No range – hitting stalls only, but the facility was nice and mats/balls in good shape. There’s a large short game facility, nice clubhouse and facilities. Saw a huge coyote in the hazard area behind the 12th green!

Aliso Viejo Country Club Review
Orange County California Golf Course Reviews