Southern California's No. 1 Golf Source
SITE
SEARCH
GOLF RESOURCE GUIDE:
The Golfing Nomad
|
||||
 After 30 years of playing golf in the Southland, there are still a few courses I haven’t had the chance to mangle. I can now scratch San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo Inn, a classic William F. Bell design, off the list. My playing companions on my first visit had handicaps they wouldn’t claim, but both jumped at the chance to bypass the black tees (6,631 yards) and blue tees (6,272 yards) to play from the white tees (5,845 yards). Being a four-star resort, the course employs a friendly starter to give you the lay of the land, but it would have been helpful for him to tell us how far it was to carry the concrete drainage ditch that cut across the fairway of the 312-yard opening hole. Although the ditch appeared to be in play off the tee, my drive that flew about 250 yards carried it by at least 50 yards. Carrying the concrete cavern might have been a little more dicey from the back tee. A walk in the park After the simple 136-yard, par-3 second hole, we moved to No. 3, a 469-yard par 5 with a hazard that stretches the length of the hole on the right side and out-of-bound stakes on the left. It was easily the toughest hole on the course, but I managed a good drive down the right side that left me a hybrid in. If I had anything more than that, I would have laid up. The hole gets pretty tight up by the green. Thankfully, the rest of the front nine felt like a walk in the park, but strategy still comes into play. The tee box on the downhill 471-yard, par-5 eighth hole lines you up toward out-of-bounds stakes on the left, and the 271-yard, par-4 ninth hole looks drivable, but water around the green leaves little room for error. Heading for home The back nine is more of the same, with a meandering water hazard between most holes. It was remarkable how soft the greens were for the middle of summer. It allowed us to fire even short pitches all the way to the flag. The round finishes with some short par 4s that give you a chance to make up some shots down the stretch, and the round concludes with an imaginative par-5 finishing hole. Even from the white tees and playing 508 yards, the hole really isn’t reachable in two shots. The same concrete ditch that bisects the opening hole is in play here, and the multi-tiered green is elevated and well-protected by a creek that runs the entire left side of the fairway. Lay up to the 100-yard marker and hope for the best on another semi-blind approach shot. A calming effect Rancho Bernardo Inn is a peaceful resort golf experience. The course is in good condition from tee to green, and the bunkers are mostly uniform and easy to play from. Our scores ranged from 70 to 114, but even the player with the latter number had a good time and lost only a handful of balls. His score was due more to rust than the difficulty of the course. It was fun playing golf in such a friendly atmosphere, and we all should move up to the forward tees from time to time. The white tees at Rancho Bernardo remove whatever teeth the layout has, but shouldn’t fun occasionally be the name of the game? Rates and information Rancho Bernardo Inn & Country Club is east of I-15 at Rancho Bernardo Road. Green fees range from $40 to $115, with stay-and-play golf and spa packages available. For more information, call (858) 675-8470 or visit ranchobernardoinn.com. |
||||
RSS SubscribeReaders Feedback:
I am totally wowed and prapered to take the next step now.
| Comment at 7/6/2011 |
Way to go on this essay, hleepd a ton.
| Comment at 7/8/2011 |
Was toatlly stuck until I read this, now back up and running.
| Comment at 7/9/2011 |
vVS90e , [url=http://jcocwawnxgfk.com/]jcocwawnxgfk[/url], [link=http://eqcwrthjmvxg.com/]eqcwrthjmvxg[/link], http://wtkbzppynycs.com/
| Comment at 7/10/2011 |
2fN5bA , [url=http://uqpetrvptqyw.com/]uqpetrvptqyw[/url], [link=http://gkounjyigdbr.com/]gkounjyigdbr[/link], http://svikjdcrcuzs.com/
| Comment at 7/11/2011 |
