Playing Torrey Pines South Course - Any Advice?

[golfer07840]

I don’t know your hdcp or driving average, but for sure choose the tees that will give you short-mid iron second shots. You don’t want to be struggling all day with trying to find your ball and then hacking it out of the crap. I spent a lot of time fighting the course many years ago and it wasn’t much fun.

 

Im a 5 and played the green tees. It was fine (6650). The course was pretty wide open actually and I didn't lose a ball. I'm sure I would have enjoyed it much more if it wasn't so slow but making the turn and having 3 groups waiting on number 10 after paying $202 for the round and $80 for the rental clubs and $40 for the cart and $16 for range balls was extremely disappointing.

 

Wait a second.. you mean after paying all that money (and aren't there 2 different reservation fees ON TOP of all of that?) you had to pay for range balls??

 

Yeesh.

[golfnhack]

I was going to play this Saturday but this thread deterred me. I’m playing Maderas instead.

 

maderas was amazing.

 

I totally agree. Amazing layout, great condition. So glad I chose it over TP.

Its a total judgment call, but Im taking Barona Creek or Aviara over Maderas all day!

(Open questions for anyone familiar with the area) --> any reviews good/bad about Balboa Park?

And if the range at Torrey Pines isn't good, any suggestions on nearby ranges, preferably with grass tee's?

I liked the driving range at Del Mar race track. Right off the 5, and close to Torrey. I used to practice there then go play Torrey

[bankkur74]

I plan on being in San Diego this New Years Eve and am definitely planning on playing TP. Either the North or the South; I don't care. 5-6 hours to play- I don't care. As long as I get to play, I will be happy.

[Hybrid]

I plan on being in San Diego this New Years Eve and am definitely planning on playing TP. Either the North or the South; I don't care. 5-6 hours to play- I don't care. As long as I get to play, I will be happy.

 

Excellent, have a great time. The La Jolla area is very nice and TP has many positives. When you’re traveling, time on the course is less relevant. The sights are very good and you’ll instantly recognize what you’ve seen on tv. I was impressed with the course and the area and had a great time. We even took a few surfing lessons in Carlsbad. I live in SWFL and we have a long tourist season which jams up the courses. I understand what the SD county locals have said. Sometimes you have to look at the bigger picture frame and have fun.

[golferdrmjr]

its been a week since i played it and I'm more upset now that I was a week ago

 

It was extremely expensive.

The service sucked - i asked if I could play a bit earlier and they scoffed. Ok fine but no need to belittle.

The conditions were horrible.

The Round was incredibly slow.

The only memorable hole was #3.

I played with a 4 some and one of the players had a "caddie" - after the 2nd hole the caddie started hitting shots as well because it was so slow.

 

Did I mention it was unbearably slow???

 

TP was by far the worst high end course I've ever played.

 

I think we found the problem.

 

Torrey Pines is a muni. It's not a high-end course. They just charge non-residents a premium because they can.

 

its high end enough to hold a US open so I disagree Muni or not. St Andrews is also a Muni. As well as PGA National, Doral, Angus Glenn, ....

I'm sorry, you are confusing Muni or full name Municipal, and Public. They are not even close to the same thing! Just because a course is open to the public, does not mean it's a Municipal course. PGA National and Doral are not Municipal courses. Torrey Pines is owned by San Diego City, that's why it's a Municipal. Using the term "Muni" for all Public courses is a pet peeve of mine.

[NickJ]

I was going to play this Saturday but this thread deterred me. I’m playing Maderas instead.

 

maderas was amazing.

 

I totally agree. Amazing layout, great condition. So glad I chose it over TP.

Its a total judgment call, but Im taking Barona Creek or Aviara over Maderas all day!

(Open questions for anyone familiar with the area) --> any reviews good/bad about Balboa Park?

And if the range at Torrey Pines isn't good, any suggestions on nearby ranges, preferably with grass tee's?

 

Balboa is tough. Greens are in a great shape and they are currently reshaping and repairing some of the tee boxes.

 

It’s short but you have to be accurate. Driver only comes out 6-7x per round unless you are extremely accurate.

[PutterKilledTheDream]

I was going to play this Saturday but this thread deterred me. I’m playing Maderas instead.

 

maderas was amazing.

 

I totally agree. Amazing layout, great condition. So glad I chose it over TP.

Its a total judgment call, but Im taking Barona Creek or Aviara over Maderas all day!

(Open questions for anyone familiar with the area) --> any reviews good/bad about Balboa Park?

And if the range at Torrey Pines isn't good, any suggestions on nearby ranges, preferably with grass tee's?

Balboa is short but fun. Totally an old school target golf track. Mission Bay has the best range in that coastal area of town. Night lights, grass tees you can hit driver from.

[PepsiDuck]

I was in San Diego last week and played Balboa Park twice. I enjoyed my rounds there and I’d say it’s my go-to course in San Diego. More affordable than a lot of options in the area, and it’s one of those “fun” courses that isn’t too challenging, but challenging enough, if that makes sense. Basically the perfect after-work course.

[KParks]

So thought I'd bring this back up (rather than start a new post) since I'll be playing Torrey South for the first time on Friday (10:20 am tee time) as a single.

Planning on renting a push cart there and walking unless people think that is a horrible idea (I assume that is an option).

 

Any other tips / tricks I should be aware of? How are conditions right now?

[tw422]

I found Torrey South to be one of the better Tour stop/playable courses. It's all out in front of you - nothing tricky. I've not played since the improvements last year but I can tell you that the rough is very difficult. You can spray your tee shots and still be playable. However, you may think you have clear line to green but your best option will be to wedge it out on fairway. Green complexes are very tough and depending on pin location almost impossible to get to if you are not in the fairway. Scenic, walkable and fun/challenging course. Locals have no idea how good they have it (jk - most do)!

[Chanceman]

Totally agree. Expensive for a visitor but worth it. Its quite a memorable course too and I always enjoy watching the Farmers Insurance event and comparing my own experience.

[ascottwaddell]

How does Coronado compare with Balboa?

I enjoyed Coronado the time I couldn't find my way on to Torrey.

[Haloha]

How did it go? Just wondering, did you use the push carts? or ride? I thought Torrey was cart path only but looking on the webcam it looked like the 90* rule was in effect.?

I'm planning on playing there in March.

[PepsiDuck]

Just got done playing on the South Course this afternoon. It's cart path only on just a couple holes; otherwise, it's a free-for-all. Course is in great shape post-Farmers; tee boxes still look immaculate, bunkers are FULL of sand, and greens are firm and rolling well. Rough isn't as long as it was for the tournament, but it's still thick enough to make a difference on your approach shots and around the green.

I usually walk and carry the bag. Oftentimes, the rough is so thick that it often takes more effort to push a cart through the grass than to just carry a bag.

[KParks]

As PepsiDuck mentioned there were effectively no cart path restrictions. We weren't even told 90* rule (that was the scorecard said but starter said just keep the carts in the fairway). The people I was paired with rode so I just did the same.

Course was generally in very good shape (tee to green). My only complaint would be that the greens were a little sandy. Not horribly bad and they still rolled pretty true, just noticeable still.

[jwcp3]

i know thread is specifically for south, but did anyone play north recently? would like to know conditions of the north, thinking of playing early April.

[PepsiDuck]

Just as good. I played the week before I played the South. Farmers was played on the North as well, so it was also in prime condition after the tournament.