san diego golf- hidden gems??

[Greg Hohman]

 John:
 
Your timing is perfect. I have been chatting with a neighbor who is teaching himself and his son, and I have not seen Lomas Santa Fe either.
 
Pete:
 
Oh, for some money for mounding and hazards on at least some of ABS's forgettable holes!
 
I too would love to hear the Balboa #4 suggestion. Would I want it to be realized? (Yes, I admit to being a little bit fond of that crazy thing.) The DG might like a crack at its redesign if someone with technical skill would be kind enough to post a graphic.
 
Tim
 
Nice to see a vote for Mission Trails, which is priced in the muni range. 10 to 17 is a pleasant walk with some fun holes, especially 10 and 16. Some quirky (to be polite) holes elsewhere, including 4, 5 and 18.

[Tim Gavrich]

Playing The Loma Club at dawn with a friend last December before my flight home and seeing the sun rise over the city skyline is a top-tier golf course moment for me.


If there's a better $60-$70 golf course in America than San Vicente, I'd love to see it.

[Mark Kiely]

Has anyone played Marine Memorial recently? Or more specifically, has anyone gotten a civilian access pass for Camp Pendleton recently? I called at some point in the springtime and they told me the Visitor's Center had been badly damaged by all the early-year rain, and as a result, there would be no way to apply for base access for several months until they fixed and reopened it.


When this thread was bumped a week or so ago, it reminded me to inquire. (I'm not sure if the "apply and the approval takes about a week" message on their website is current because the process for gaining access seems to change every year or so.) I've tried to call the course several times over the weekend and today, and it just rings and rings with no answer. They used to always answer their phone. Any chance they're closed for overseeding right now?


Also, anyone know if the water main break that caused the course to dry out has been fixed?

[Mark Kiely]

Update: Called again today and their phones worked normally. The guy who answered said there's no update since the Visitors Center was damaged, and there's currently no way for civilians to apply for base access. Bummer.

[Tim Leahy]

Update: Called again today and their phones worked normally. The guy who answered said there's no update since the Visitors Center was damaged, and there's currently no way for civilians to apply for base access. Bummer.

It's been years since I played there but when I did I just drove up to the front gate and told the guard I was meeting a friend at the golf course and they let me right through as I have done at many military courses. Also it's not as if Pendleton is some top secret base, it's a training center for infantry.

[Mark Kiely]

Update: Called again today and their phones worked normally. The guy who answered said there's no update since the Visitors Center was damaged, and there's currently no way for civilians to apply for base access. Bummer.

It's been years since I played there but when I did I just drove up to the front gate and told the guard I was meeting a friend at the golf course and they let me right through as I have done at many military courses. Also it's not as if Pendleton is some top secret base, it's a training center for infantry.

Not sure if you're just being nostalgic or saying that I'm overly dramatizing the process. When I first played there (I think about a decade ago), the process was much looser... just show ID at the gate. Since then, they've changed it several times, and most recently for me (April 2022), I had to go into the Visitor's Center where they conducted some sort of quick background check and then issued a 90-day base access pass. The whole process took around 45 minutes to an hour. I believe that's still the "official" process (once the Visitor's Center reopens, that is) but maybe they are more lax at the gates than I know of.