I also played 6/10/14 in the SCGA outing, first time here on the South, teeing off in the second group at 7:10AM. Very nice practice area with plenty of balls, level grass hitting areas, plenty of ta... Continue »

I also played 6/10/14 in the SCGA outing, first time here on the South, teeing off in the second group at 7:10AM. Very nice practice area with plenty of balls, level grass hitting areas, plenty of targets on the hillside. Putting greens (one next to the range, one at the first tee) were small and pretty level – not in any way similar to the hell we were about to experience. Weather throughout the round was overcast and cool, with only light breezes when we got to the ‘ocean’ holes (11-13). We finished in just over 4 hours, never catching the group in front of us, and rarely seeing the group behind. This is a challenging course with significant elevation changes throughout. Very large green complexes with significant undulations and tiering. There are many severe slopes in fairways and on and around greens; many approaches and green surrounds have deep collection areas and runoffs. I spent at least half the day with the ball above my feet. It is critical to be on the correct side of the fairway off the tee to approach these greens. Ocean holes (11-13) are shoehorned in between expensive homes and the beach and are too short to be interesting, beyond the views of the ocean. Greens were very large, held shots well, and rolled great at medium speed. Rough was generally cut fairly short and easy to play from unless you ventured into the scrub (frequently marked red or played as a lateral hazard). Tees were all in great shape and level. The par 3 tees, where you normally see a lot of wear, were also good, probably due to the architect allotting adequate teeing areas so the wear and tear can be moved around and not build up. Sand was of good quality but had a wet base and damp upper layer, probably from watering. In my opinion the course was badly overwatered for the round this morning. During our round, despite the cool temperatures and overcast skies, a lot of water was being put on the course. Sprinklers were running during the round on several green areas and fairways, and in a number of cases course workers were actively putting water on greens and approach areas. With a par of 70, there are a number of long par 4s on the course. I’m not the longest hitter, and I hit the ball fairly low, so a lot of my approach game today required long irons or hybrids. But the fronts and approaches to most of the greens were soft and wet – my shots would hit into banks and die, or run off into collection areas. These approach areas need to play firmer and allow players to attack greens when they are not able to fly the ball onto the putting surfaces. There is an advertised slope of 131 on the blue tees where we played. Based on my round today, I feel this course is very much UNDERSLOPED based on comparisons to the characteristics of other courses in Southern California. For instance, blue tees at (randomly selected courses) include Sierra Lakes (123), Talega (130), Green River (123), and Black Gold (130). Talega and Black Gold have many characteristics similar to Pelican, but are both much less severe in terms of fairway and green slopes and undulations. The similarity of Pelican’s 131 slope to Talega and Black Gold may have something to do with Pelican having a par of 70 (Talega and Black Gold have pars of 72) – I don’t understand all the ramifications of the par/slope relationship. But a slope of 131 for these blue tees at Pelican looks TOO LOW to my battered game. Recommended – but bring a stiff upper lip!