[Peter Ferlicca]

Pauma Valley is located in northeast San Diego; it is pretty isolated, about 20 minutes south of Temecula.  The country club opened up in 1960, Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed this course, and had quite a good piece of property.  This club is definitely in the top 5 for San Diego.  I would put it in the top 3 with Barona Creek, and Rancho Santa Fe.  The course is a great walk and is in a beautiful valley.  The fairways are either set at an angle or pinched in with bunkers at different distances.  The approaches need to be accurate because these greens are quite undulating, big bold greens with big contours.  The front nine started out good and then tamed down a little, but then the back nine is filled with great holes.  I would love to be a member at this course, probably 350 days of sunshine in a nice laid back area on northern San Diego.

Hole 1 Par 5 (532 yards)





Hole 2 Par 4 (392 yards)







Hole 3 Par 3 (187 yards)




Hole 4 Par 4 (449 yards)




Hole 5 Par 4 (452 yards)



Hole 6 Par 4 (425 yards)




Hole 7 Par 3 (187 yards)




Hole 8 Par 4 (443 yards)




Hole 9 Par 4 (411 yards)





Hole 10 Par 4 (396 yards)




Hole 11 Par 5 (559 yards)




Hole 12 Par 3 (210 yards)




Hole 13 Par 4 (378 yards)





Hole 14 Par 4 (465 yards)





Hole 15 Par 4 (397 yards)




Hole 16 Par 3 (206 yards)




Hole 17 Par 5 (525 yards)





Hole 18 Par 4 (463 yards)

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Pauma Valley is sometimes seen on Golf Channel when replays of All Star Golf are shown. Probably from the early 1960s.

[jeffwarne]

Pauma Valley is sometimes seen on Golf Channel when replays of All Star Golf are shown. Probably from the early 1960s.

That's funny because as I looked at those pictures I kept expecting to see the Partridge family bus or a few of the Brady Bunch in the background.
Pretty valley

[jonathan_becker]

Peter,

Thanks for the photos.  At first glance with a few of the tee shots, it has some looks of LaCosta in there.

How far short of the green is that cross bunker on #17?  It looks as if you'd have to be a damn fool to hit it in there!!

[Richard Hetzel]

Hole #10 looks to be PRETTY TOUGH. You need a big draw and then everything slopes back to right on your approach! Great Pics thanks!

[David Stamm]

Pauma is in a wonderful setting and I always enjoy playing there, but it has some glaring weaknesses as well. There aren't any real risk/reward shortish par 4's, and the par 3's all pretty much require the same shot and don't have alot of variety in length. You seem to hit the same clubs no matter what. And you will wear out the driver on this course, as it is a long par 71. It is one of the best in the city, but it doesn't have much competition. And it is a pain in the rear to get to. Alot of the memberships there are second clubs for Orange County, Los Angeles residents, as they have lodging there along the 10 fairway. A good solid club and course in a very pleasant setting, but some minuses as well.

[Carl Nichols]

It looks incredibly green.  My aunt and uncle lived in Temecula for several years, and it was certainly not very green there.  

[Tim Leahy]

It looks very similar to another RT Sr course, Valencia CC, without the water hazards.

[Craig Sweet]

Wow!...#10 and #11...#15 and #16 are jarringly different....it reminds me a little of the Yellowstone Country Club in Billings, MT...another RTJ Sr. design.

[Bill_McBride]

Disclaimer - never played, probably never will.

Love that 10th hole, most of the rest is pretty repetitive and flattish.  Please go to the rental place and pick up a couple of chain saws for the weekend!

[Ronald Montesano]

I'll say that the pictures of #18 are amazing...I've never seen a hole so white!!  However, I could see the obligatory RTJ water fountain in the distance behind #9 green and assumed that it must be near 18 green.

I just locked in a round at Golden Horseshoe in Williamsburg, VA, which I believe might have the most varied and best collection of RTJ par threes out there.  I'll keep you posted.  The man did struggle with the short hole.  It also looks like he knew how to build one type of fairway bunker and one type of greenside bunker and that was that.

The property looks much more varied than Bill Mc gives it credit for being.  I could see enjoying a trip or two around this course.

Are the fairways/drive zones as ample in life as they appear in the photos?

[Tim Book]

Pferlicca,

The greens are reputed to be the best in San Diego from fiends of mine that have played there.  Would you agree?  I believe it was once an isolated retreat, but as time has passed civilization has crept in.  Still probably considered somewhat of a hidden gem in SD.

[Sean_A]

Peter

Thanks for the pix.  While I strongly dislike the bunkering, the bones of the course looks quite interesting if not very subtle.  Its a shame about many of the scraggly trees.  Do you think this course hs the potential to be much better?

Ciao

[jim_lewis]

I played the course just once, about a decade or so ago. The photos helped me recall some of the details that I had forgotten, but I do remember enjoying the course. I must say I was distracted from my usual keen evaluation of the course by the group I played with. I was traveling alone and wound up being placed in a group including Scott Simpson and Bill Murray. It was Saturday while the Hope was going on (Duval shot 59 the next day). After the round we had drinks in the club, and women came out of the woodwork to meet Murray. He performed all day. That guy is one ugly funny dude. Remember the old expression, "looks like he has been beaten in the face with a track shoe"?

BTW, funny that several have referred to course as being in San Diego. It is actually about 60 miles north of downtown San Diego in a remote area that is not easy to get to.

[Jon Spaulding]

Pferlicca,

The greens are reputed to be the best in San Diego from fiends of mine that have played there.  Would you agree?  I believe it was once an isolated retreat, but as time has passed civilization has crept in.  Still probably considered somewhat of a hidden gem in SD.

I would agree with that assessment on the greens.

The place is still in the utter boondocks, other than the Indian casino up the road a few minutes.

[Jon Spaulding]

I played the course just once, about a decade or so ago. The photos helped me recall some of the details that I had forgotten, but I do remember enjoying the course. I must say I was distracted from my usual keen evaluation of the course by the group I played with. I was traveling alone and wound up being placed in a group including Scott Simpson and Bill Murray. It was Saturday while the Hope was going on (Duval shot 59 the next day). After the round we had drinks in the club, and women came out of the woodwork to meet Murray. He performed all day. That guy is one ugly funny dude. Remember the old expression, "looks like he has been beaten in the face with a track shoe"?

BTW, funny that several have referred to course as being in San Diego. It is actually about 60 miles north of downtown San Diego in a remote area that is not easy to get to.

Good story Jim. I believe Spackler is a member there, as was John Wayne back in the day. The latter had a home on the course.

I concur with the San Diego comment. It is about as San Diego as San Jose is on the 17-mile drive.

I'd rather spend a day in the peace and quiet of that valley over anywhere else in the county.

[Jon Spaulding]

Thanks for the photos Peter. I played there a couple years ago with GCA's least favorite cardiac patient, and really enjoyed the golf course.

I concur with your putting it alongside Barona and RSF.....might even raise you one and say that this is the best "place" in SD county. It's a hell of a nice setting and a great walk, sans the big money attitude.

I found the design to be less monotonous that the RTJ designs at Spyglass, SCGA, Mission Viejo. There's a very good balance of shots to hit, in both shape and distance throughout the round. Also, decent mix of uphill/downhill, short/long.

The bunkering is a bit utilitarian, but I typically don't head to an RTJ design looking to dry hump the artistry.

As Stammps mentioned, it is lacking a driveable par 4, but what RTJ from the 1960's isn't.

[Sean Leary]

The bunkering is a bit utilitarian, but I typically don't head to an RTJ design looking to dry hump the artistry.

This a good thing, because knowing you, you would probably get the bunker pregnant.....

[Jon Spaulding]

The bunkering is a bit utilitarian, but I typically don't head to an RTJ design looking to dry hump the artistry.

This a good thing, because knowing you, you would probably get the bunker pregnant.....

Good point, but your logic became void on January 22nd, 2010. A day that will live in infamy.

On a positive note, I did single handedly prop up the frozen pea industry.

[Tags:]

Tags:

[Tags:]

Tags:

Call to undefined function theme_linktree()