Philly Golf Guy
#PGG
- Joined
- Nov 7, 2012
- Messages
- 9,103
- Reaction score
- 7
- Handicap
- USGA 14
6,628 yards, 128 slope from the Blues
Course: Just about 30 minutes outside downtown Los Angeles in Moorpark, CA Ventura County, sits Rustic Canyon, a daily fee course designed by Gil Hanse. Hanse is currently designing the Rio course for the Olympics and among others, also designed Inniscrone, a course I recently came to love after a long and tumultuous 6 or 7 rounds and a few years. It should also be noted that Geoff Shackleford and Jim Wagner contributed significantly to the design. RC is an interesting course for a number of reasons, but can really be an example of developing an outstanding public track while keeping local residents, environmentalists and golfers every where extremely happy. The course is indeed set in a canyon and is the natural habitat and breeding grounds for coyotes, woodland creatures, etc. Many course developers shied away from the area because of the numerous regulations that would limit the design of the course, but Hanse and his team envisioned a minimalist design where the course was basically placed in the surroundings instead of built or constructed. This means very little land was moved and instead, the course enhances the natural surroundings more than creating a new or different site. It also means that many of the hazards consist of utilizing the surroundings instead of putting in water hazards or bunker complexes. The minimalist approach to course design is nothing new and is actually what reinvigorated the design industry recently, but the amazing thing about RC is that green fees are staggeringly low; the course strives to be accessible to virtually anyone and is touted as the best value golf in the country. I couldn't agree more. Going along with this theme is keeping the area open to hikers, horseback riders, etc. I saw a bunch of both during my round. Essentially, RC can be seen as one of the ultimate courses that melds into the environment, is unobtrusive to the local community all while providing top notch quality golf to the public.
In fact, Rustic Canyon is ranked 91st on Golf Magazine's 2012 top 100 public courses. The fairways meander in the canyon, along with on and around the canyon walls and features a some what open layout. There really aren't any trees and wind can be a major factor on a number of holes (the Fifteenth immediately comes to mind). The greens are quite large, are extremely quick and are tough to read. Most if not all of the greens have an apron, or false front, which is a short grass area in front of the green that spans any where from 20 - 50 yards. This unique feature of the course provides an array of short game options once you get close to the green, yet is challenging in its own right, as some of these aprons are below severe slopes or in other areas that doesn't necessarily make for an easy bump and run to the hole. Most significantly, the aprons and other aspects of the course create illusions, which make you second guess many shots even though the yardage books and cart based GPS system are telling you what to do. Just like Inniscrone, it was definitely a course I wanted to replay immediately, convinced my newfound knowledge would help shave a ton of strokes off my score. Local knowledge is rewarded, the layout is challenging by commanding a variety of shots and presenting a number of thought provoking options and you're hallucinating all over the place. Yep, I had a great time.
I was visiting family in LA, so I forced my Dad and Brother in law to make the trek to Moorpark for an early weekday a.m. tee time. Aside from a long road that runs alongside the Second and Third hole, the entrance and clubhouse are very unassuming. I hate saying this, but the entire clubhouse area had a very, well, I mean, rustic feel. The putting green and Eighteenth hole/green dominated most of the area and beyond that, just the canyon and the course. There were other touches as well that kind of felt Frontierland-ish to me, like the trash cans fashioned like barrels, but it's the right thing to do to get the entire feel here. There was no starter, marshall or any other type of course employees milling about other than the guy in the pro shop. There were GPS in the carts though. You simply go up to the tee when your starting time is and swing away.
The First is a 512 yard par 5. The fairway for the opening tee shot is rather wide, allowing a generous landing area. There is OB on the right, one of many fenced off environmentally protected areas, which runs up a good deal of the right side of the fairway. The fairway gradually descends until it ends at a narrow and steep bunker gorge that runs along across the entire fairway. You can't see this from second shot territory. Then there are greenside bunkers and deep rough directly in front of the green, or green apron. It's a nice opening hole, but there are enough hazards to make sure you don't get away with anything.
The Second is a 443 yard par 4. There are trees and OB along the left side while the right side is pretty much wide open. The risk reward element here is that there is a large bunker on the right side of the green, so deciding to tee off and go up the right side of the hole means the bunker will block your view of the green and obviously make you carry the bunker. If you decide to cozy up to the left side and stay in bounds, your approach and view of the green is much better. This green taught my entire group just how challenging putting would be. Subtle undulations and lighting quickness made us scratch our heads a lot.
The Third is a shorter par 4 at 308 yards. More choices here with a great short par 4 that starts with the tee shot. Again, right is safer, but you have a longer approach and you bring in a bunch of bunkers on that right side into play. Left is riskier because it's a longer shot and you have carry trouble to get there, but you're rewarded with a shorter pitch shot to the green and really don't have to contend with any of the scary bunkers. It was this hole that I realized the aprons or large greens weren't doing me any favors. It usually meant my putts double, triple, quadruple, etc. broke to the hole, making reading my line an act of futility.
The Fourth is the first par 3 at 152 yards. There are large bunker areas to the left and short right of the green, but the green is so big that getting it on wasn't that tough. No, the big challenge came with the putting, as the pin placement and slopes made for extremely difficult putting. Practice putting on the greens before your round. A lot.
Course: Just about 30 minutes outside downtown Los Angeles in Moorpark, CA Ventura County, sits Rustic Canyon, a daily fee course designed by Gil Hanse. Hanse is currently designing the Rio course for the Olympics and among others, also designed Inniscrone, a course I recently came to love after a long and tumultuous 6 or 7 rounds and a few years. It should also be noted that Geoff Shackleford and Jim Wagner contributed significantly to the design. RC is an interesting course for a number of reasons, but can really be an example of developing an outstanding public track while keeping local residents, environmentalists and golfers every where extremely happy. The course is indeed set in a canyon and is the natural habitat and breeding grounds for coyotes, woodland creatures, etc. Many course developers shied away from the area because of the numerous regulations that would limit the design of the course, but Hanse and his team envisioned a minimalist design where the course was basically placed in the surroundings instead of built or constructed. This means very little land was moved and instead, the course enhances the natural surroundings more than creating a new or different site. It also means that many of the hazards consist of utilizing the surroundings instead of putting in water hazards or bunker complexes. The minimalist approach to course design is nothing new and is actually what reinvigorated the design industry recently, but the amazing thing about RC is that green fees are staggeringly low; the course strives to be accessible to virtually anyone and is touted as the best value golf in the country. I couldn't agree more. Going along with this theme is keeping the area open to hikers, horseback riders, etc. I saw a bunch of both during my round. Essentially, RC can be seen as one of the ultimate courses that melds into the environment, is unobtrusive to the local community all while providing top notch quality golf to the public.
In fact, Rustic Canyon is ranked 91st on Golf Magazine's 2012 top 100 public courses. The fairways meander in the canyon, along with on and around the canyon walls and features a some what open layout. There really aren't any trees and wind can be a major factor on a number of holes (the Fifteenth immediately comes to mind). The greens are quite large, are extremely quick and are tough to read. Most if not all of the greens have an apron, or false front, which is a short grass area in front of the green that spans any where from 20 - 50 yards. This unique feature of the course provides an array of short game options once you get close to the green, yet is challenging in its own right, as some of these aprons are below severe slopes or in other areas that doesn't necessarily make for an easy bump and run to the hole. Most significantly, the aprons and other aspects of the course create illusions, which make you second guess many shots even though the yardage books and cart based GPS system are telling you what to do. Just like Inniscrone, it was definitely a course I wanted to replay immediately, convinced my newfound knowledge would help shave a ton of strokes off my score. Local knowledge is rewarded, the layout is challenging by commanding a variety of shots and presenting a number of thought provoking options and you're hallucinating all over the place. Yep, I had a great time.
I was visiting family in LA, so I forced my Dad and Brother in law to make the trek to Moorpark for an early weekday a.m. tee time. Aside from a long road that runs alongside the Second and Third hole, the entrance and clubhouse are very unassuming. I hate saying this, but the entire clubhouse area had a very, well, I mean, rustic feel. The putting green and Eighteenth hole/green dominated most of the area and beyond that, just the canyon and the course. There were other touches as well that kind of felt Frontierland-ish to me, like the trash cans fashioned like barrels, but it's the right thing to do to get the entire feel here. There was no starter, marshall or any other type of course employees milling about other than the guy in the pro shop. There were GPS in the carts though. You simply go up to the tee when your starting time is and swing away.
The First is a 512 yard par 5. The fairway for the opening tee shot is rather wide, allowing a generous landing area. There is OB on the right, one of many fenced off environmentally protected areas, which runs up a good deal of the right side of the fairway. The fairway gradually descends until it ends at a narrow and steep bunker gorge that runs along across the entire fairway. You can't see this from second shot territory. Then there are greenside bunkers and deep rough directly in front of the green, or green apron. It's a nice opening hole, but there are enough hazards to make sure you don't get away with anything.
The Second is a 443 yard par 4. There are trees and OB along the left side while the right side is pretty much wide open. The risk reward element here is that there is a large bunker on the right side of the green, so deciding to tee off and go up the right side of the hole means the bunker will block your view of the green and obviously make you carry the bunker. If you decide to cozy up to the left side and stay in bounds, your approach and view of the green is much better. This green taught my entire group just how challenging putting would be. Subtle undulations and lighting quickness made us scratch our heads a lot.
The Third is a shorter par 4 at 308 yards. More choices here with a great short par 4 that starts with the tee shot. Again, right is safer, but you have a longer approach and you bring in a bunch of bunkers on that right side into play. Left is riskier because it's a longer shot and you have carry trouble to get there, but you're rewarded with a shorter pitch shot to the green and really don't have to contend with any of the scary bunkers. It was this hole that I realized the aprons or large greens weren't doing me any favors. It usually meant my putts double, triple, quadruple, etc. broke to the hole, making reading my line an act of futility.
Looking back at the fairway and tee area of the Third. Loved how the clouds were looking in the background. |
The Fourth is the first par 3 at 152 yards. There are large bunker areas to the left and short right of the green, but the green is so big that getting it on wasn't that tough. No, the big challenge came with the putting, as the pin placement and slopes made for extremely difficult putting. Practice putting on the greens before your round. A lot.