Public golf near San Diego

[John Kavanaugh]

Thanks, guys! I appreciate the counsel. Looks like I better get to Barona Creek.

I have played both Torrey South and Barona and believe choosing Barona is a huge mistake that you will regret for years to come.  One thing that I don't think has been mentioned is how cool it is to play one of the great iconic public courses in the world.  You will no doubt both observe and perhaps interact with other fine people who are on travel.  My round was the first I had ever played with an African American male or an Asian woman.  We sat waiting on the third tee with a group from Sweden while enjoying one of the great views our country has to offer.  I love everything about the place and enjoy reliving those memories each year while viewing the Buick during my Sunday afternoon nap.

Now Barona has its culture too if you enjoy abject poverty and velour cart seats reserved for the tribal council.  The artificial trout stream is also a treat if you can get over the noise of the pumps.  Barona is just another casino crap hole built on false promises and the losses of bored housewives.  Good Luck.

[Jud_T]

John,

Apparently the guys in the shops at Torrey, Whistling Straights, Firestone, Valhalla, Old Head and Tralee all just sent an intern out for a new package of Jockey shorts simultaneously...

[Rich Goodale]

To me, Barona is a signfiicantly better golf course than, say, Rustic Canyon, and I liked the "in your face" element of the posh golf carts for the tribal elders--after all, we stole all their good land from Boston through Indiana  and Dismal River and Arizona to California, and the fact that they are making a bob or two with the  crap land that is left over, seems like justice to me....  I used to spend a fair amount of time in San Diego on business, but never ever felt like spending my free time playing golf, but I was young then and if you must spend 5-6 hours on a golf when the surf is up, see if you can get a game with Pete Lavalee or Alex Miller.  Wherever you play with them will memorable.

[Jeff_Brauer]

Rich,

Probably heresy here, but I agree Barona  is a better course than Rustic and probably your best option near SD.  I really liked the course.

Agree with the negatives on the Crossings. 

Played Torrey for the experience, but it is still disapointing in many ways. 

I think La Costa Champions is now back in the mix.  Style is somewhat the same as Wilson, but improved (depending on your POV) and it now drains, has no poa, etc., correcting all the negatives it has had for years.

[Jud_T]

Jeff,

I'm looking forward to seeing the work at La Costa.  The place was in dire need of a makeover but had very good potential, and could do particularly well as one of the few interesting destinations south of LA proper.

[Tim Leahy]

If you really want the San Diego experience, seeing the ocean while you play, you have to play Torrey South and Coronado Muni.
Plus next year when the San Diego Open comes on TV in Feb you can say "Hey I parred that hole that Tiger just double bogeyed!"

[Carl Nichols]

Does Steele Canyon still exist?  I think I played it a few times in the early 90's. 

[Joe Stansell]

I played Steele Canyon too about the same time. Once. That was enough.

[Carl Nichols]

Joe-
Was Steele Canyon a place with some old trees and 27 holes?  If so, I think one of the nines was decent but the others weren't.  I also remember a course, probably 25 miles east of downtown, built on top of a hill in a new community (with its own schools, etc.).  Wish I could remember the name.   

[Alex Miller]

Joe-
Was Steele Canyon a place with some old trees and 27 holes?  If so, I think one of the nines was decent but the others weren't.  I also remember a course, probably 25 miles east of downtown, built on top of a hill in a new community (with its own schools, etc.).  Wish I could remember the name.   

Could you mean The Auld Course, now called Salt Creek?

Oh, and if you want the experience of playing a course that pros play, I believe Barona also hosts a Nationwide event. 

[Joe Stansell]

Carl, Steele Canyon is East of San Diego 20 miles or so. It is best described as a "target course," as I remember it.

[Tim Martin]

Very interesting to hear the divergence of opinions. As someone who has not played any golf in San Diego I come away from this thread wanting to play Torrey South and Barona.

[Brad Wilbur]

One thing I haven't seen mentioned a lot is the quantity of walkers at Torrey.  It was unusual to be paired up with people in carts, so I'd have to give that some bonus points.  My wife and I often either went out early am, or came out later in the afternoon.  Can't say we ever were denied access---I guess a few people spend the night there in the parking lot to guarantee a spot, but it seems unnecessary to me.  Get there around dawn and you should get a spot to play.

[Pete Lavallee]

Brad,

The "dawn patrol" lines up to get  the early times; tee times don't start until 7:00am. Two weeks before the Open I arrived in the parking lot at 2:00am on a Sat. My bag was 25th in line. Only 2 people behind me got off that day! When I retuned from my nap in the car there were 75 bags lining the balcony hoping to get off!

[Keith Doleshel]

Haven't played either one of the courses at Torrey, but Barona Creek is an awfully good golf course.  Doesn't have the views or the US Open pedigree, but it is well worth playing if you are anywhere in the San Diego area.  It is definitely on my itinerary whenever I go down to SD and bring my clubs.

[Geoffrey_Walsh]

Don't overlook Coronado.  I played it last year and thought it was a very good course in a unique location.  Pound for pound (or dollar for dollar) it has to be the best option in the area and you are less than 10 minutes from downtown.

[Bill Seitz]

Depending on how far north you are, San Clemente has a pretty fun municipal course that they list as  Billy Bell course.  It doesn't play right on the cliffs, but you have ocean views from the majority of holes, and it has some nice strategic holes, 16 in particular.  It's on some really nice land, and the weather is usually terrific. 

I played in a PAT at Steele Canyon back when I thought I wanted to be a teaching pro, and I remember that I thought it was a fun course at the time, but as I've learned more about gca, I suppose my opinion might be a little different if I were to go back.  I also played a college tournament at what I think was called Rancho San Diego, and now appears to be called the Cottonwood Club.  It was pretty blah.  Though it had just suffered some erosion from a creek that runs through the course.  Heavy rains took half of one of the greens, and almost the entire tenth hole.  As a result, everyone had to play and score two balls on one hole (the 16th, I think).  Plus it was a 36 hole event, so we did that twice.  Craziest local rule I've ever come across in a tournament. 

[Matthew Petersen]

I played Steele Canyon years ago, and can't really remember anything about it. Not really a good sign as generally if there's one thing I can remember, it's golf holes.

I wouldn't recommend it for everyone, and certainly not as your only stop in the SD-area, but Mount Woodson is a unique experience. Short and very penal, it's built over extreme hills and canyons, but has some really memorable holes (and bridges).

[Jim Johnson]

Anybody played at Rancho Bernardo? If so, thoughts?
I'm scheduled to attend a conference near there in mid-June and it's the host hotel.

http://www.ranchobernardoinn.com/golf

Thanks.
Jim

[Tim Leahy]

Anybody played at Rancho Bernardo? If so, thoughts?
I'm scheduled to attend a conference near there in mid-June and it's the host hotel.

http://www.ranchobernardoinn.com/golf

Thanks.
Jim

RB plays thru housing developments and can get claustrophobic. Good conditions, gently rolling, average layout.

[Pete Lavallee]

Jim,

There are two course, the Rancho Bernardo Inn and Rancho Bernardo CC which is private. The Inn course is a very pleasant Billy Bell; just ingnore the hideous water feature and triple tiered green that was retrofitted on #18. There was some issues with the greens last year but that should be straightened out by now. Well worth a play if in the area. I haven't played the private but am sure it;'s as good or better that the Inn course.

Steele Canyon is truely forgettable, 3 nines by Mr Vanilla, Gary Player. Cart ball at it's best on terrain not really suited for golf; where have I heard that before? I've played there a handful of times and don't feel any need to return. They have been trying to drum up enough members to go private, but 10 years later they still haven't come up with enough applicants.

Cottonwood is a 36 hole complex that has been run into the gound by owners who are looking to suck every dime they can out of it. They are in bankruptcy now, but the bank cannot find anyone who would buy it for what is owed on the note, so the current owner are still running the place. Yeras ago it was a nice place to play, they had excellent greens. They should as it's built on at leats 50 feet of sand, being on the banks of the Sweetwater River. They are currently running 36 holes with a maintenance staff of 4; they tells you all you really need to know. Hopefully the bank will find new owners and turn the place around. They have a great bunch of guys in the mebership though; I'll keep my fingers crossed.