Arg's Travel Log

[Argonne69]

6 minutes ago, Mullenboy said:

Great review and great pics of Sandpiper - you did get a chamber of commerce day!  That's awesome.  Yeah this is one that growing up in LA would be a special occasion course... as you saw it's just too pricey to be a regular visit.  And you nailed it about what could/might be... the more one plays it the more one tends to see things that could be improved.  Still, it's pretty darn fun as it is.

 

 

Definitely fun, but they need to hire Rees or Gil to do a renovation. Spice it up with some solid bunkering, shorten one or two of the par 5s with the addition of greenside bunkering, and bury a couple of elephants in the greens and it's easily a 7 or 8. 

 

[Dancin]

53 minutes ago, Argonne69 said:

 

Definitely fun, but they need to hire Rees or Gil to do a renovation. Spice it up with some solid bunkering, shorten one or two of the par 5s with the addition of greenside bunkering, and bury a couple of elephants in the greens and it's easily a 7 or 8. 

 

Tom Doak is involved in renovating Sandpiper. He drew up a plan in 2009 for them and in 2020 the course contacted him to start making changes. Getting past the environmental review in CA is the big hindrance. Assuming they can get anything approved by the environmentalists, his 2009 plan was going to reroute 9 of the holes.

[StoutKing]

5 hours ago, Dancin said:

Tom Doak is involved in renovating Sandpiper. He drew up a plan in 2009 for them and in 2020 the course contacted him to start making changes. Getting past the environmental review in CA is the big hindrance. Assuming they can get anything approved by the environmentalists, his 2009 plan was going to reroute 9 of the holes.

Hoping it moves forward.  That pond on 18 is way out of place.

[Dancin]

Doak in 2020 said it would likely be a few years. Given it's been 4 years with little movement, I suspect they will never get the environmental approvals to make massive changes which is very sad.

[trilinkrealty]

11 hours ago, StoutKing said:

Hoping it moves forward.  That pond on 18 is way out of place.

 

 

I read Doak say somewhere that when ever he gets the opportunity to renovate there is no way the finishing hole will be a par 3 over a pond on such a cool property

[ThinkingPlus]

17 minutes ago, trilinkrealty said:

 

 

I read Doak say somewhere that when ever he gets the opportunity to renovate there is no way the finishing hole will be a par 3 over a pond on such a cool property

A boss I had many, many year's ago when I lived in Santa Barbara had an iconic photograph of him standing next to the 18th pin with a ball hanging over the upper edge of the hole. He was a low single digit and played a shot past the hole and spun it back down the slope. Great photo of an almost HIO.

 

Another interesting note on how times have changed. Back in those days (mid 80s) I played Sandpiper on the weekend paying a twilight rate of $25 to walk.

[carrera]

17 minutes ago, ThinkingPlus said:

Back in those days (mid 80s) I played Sandpiper on the weekend paying a twilight rate of $25 to walk

In mid-80's, $25 felt like $250!  A $45 course was basically like Pebble Beach.  It's all relative.

[ThinkingPlus]

5 minutes ago, carrera said:

In mid-80's, $25 felt like $250!  A $45 course was basically like Pebble Beach.  It's all relative.

Yes, for me, at that time, the $25 fee was affordable, but not cheap. The $60 standard fee with cart was mostly unobtanium except for very special circumstances. 

[Lobby]

On 2/10/2024 at 7:02 PM, Argonne69 said:

Well, that was disappointing. For starters, they bring out chips and hot sauce. Had to ask for proper salsa. Also, who puts sour cream on mole? Yuck. Three Roots Mexican Cocina in Santa Ana. The reviews and photos on Google Maps looked good, so I headed down to the restaurant. Pull into a mall parking lot, and think to myself, uh oh. Been to a mall recently? Looks like they could film the next Mad Max movie here. It was getting late in the afternoon, so I gave it a chance. Not terrible, but not very good. Instead of a thick, dark brown mole, it was watery and light brown. Very little flavor. Only positive was that the black beans and white rice were much better than the standard refried beans and Spanish rice. Skip it. 

 

 

At least it had square plates

[Argonne69]

Overcast morning with t-storms forecast for mid morning. I woke up this morning with pain in the lower back part of my right leg. Too low for a calf muscle, and too high for the achilles (I assume). With the threat of rain and a gimp leg, I took a rare cart today. Probably a good thing as the rain started falling on the 16th hole. River Course at Alisal today. Rather disappointing. The course sits in a low river valley with nice views of the hills above, but the layout is quite lackluster. The mounding was minimal, and there were just a couple of elevated tees. Bunkering was light. Green complexes put me to sleep. Water in play on 5 holes helped a bit. Bunkering was very light. Only two holes with any left/right movement. 

 

Fairly easy off the tee with moderately wide fairways and light bunkering. Water in play off the tee on two holes. Minor misses were no problem with fairly generous rough and the trees set back from the fairways. Big misses would find an adjacent fairway on many holes, but OB on the handful of perimeter holes. Approaches were very easy with greens sitting at fairway height with most having openings in front. Greens had very little contouring and minimal slope. Putting could be a done sleeping. Up and downs were no issue. Rough was decent around the greens. 

 

Par 3s were meh. The 12th had water in play short and right. The short 17th had a peninsula green surrounded by water, but the pin was located far left away from trouble. 5s were snoozers. Nothing reachable for mortals, and little trouble other than the pond left on the 11th. The two short 4s were mixed. The 8th was boring, but the 15th had a decent amount of trouble with trees right forcing a fade off the tee. 

 

Conditions were generally good. Fairways were a tad shaggy, but resulted in some nice lies. Rough was freshly cut. Bunkers we're poor with little sand. Greens looked and rolled good. Speed was a little slow at 9. 

 

Played a Blue/White combo at 6315 yds (70.3/120). Somehow managed a decent day off the tee with the bum leg. Irons were spotty, but wedges were solid. Putter was uncooperative. Five bogies. The 15' par putt on the 7th was nice, but the highlight of the round was a goofy up and down on the short par 4 15th. Coming out of the left rough I hit what I thought was a solid gap wedge to a back left pin. Walked up the side of the green with putter in hand, and saw no ball on the green. Thought I might have holed out, but nothing in the cup. Looked behind the green, and still no ball. Checked right of the green and found the ball in the rough 6 inches from the pond. No idea how it wound up there. With rain starting to fall I was too lazy to walk back to the cart to grab a wedge, so I figured I could putt through 12 feet of rough and up the side of the green. Gave the ball a whack and it managed to climb on to the green with a bit too much speed. The ball should have wound up in the rough on the other side of the green, but hit the flagstick dead center, and stopped a foot from the cup. Lol. Greedy me was kvetching that it should have gone in. 

 

Going to be nice and go with 4 cows here. Nice piece of property with some nice views, but they simply did little with it. Usual stuff. Little trouble and no risk/reward holes. The $79 weekday riding rate was very good. Would have been a nice course to walk. Definitely not a must play, but little in the area, so it's playable if you're passing through. 

 

[Argonne69]

River Course at Alisal, Solvang, CA 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Full photo set: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/helwm47khx16sw6yq63xi/h?rlkey=lowrmywginyjm7vgg1oniyxbt&dl=0

 

[Argonne69]

This is a real treat. Firestone Walker Brewing Company Barrelworks Taproom in Buellton. Currently have 39 beers on tap with a nice variety. They specialize in barrel aged wild ales brewed on site, along with their usual suspects brewed in Pasa Robles. Starting with a trio of their vintage strong ales, Daisy's Favorite, Gold Rider, and Firestone 26 Anniversary Ale. They're like a flavor explosion in your mouth. 

 

 

The 805 Smash Burger with the garlic steak fries was excellent. A taproom worthy of a visit, or two. My next RV park is in Buellton less than a mile away. I have a strange feeling I'll be back here a few times. Lol. 

 

 

Edited March 6 by Argonne69

[carrera]

Agree about the River course at Alisal.  The Ranch course is much more charming.  We stayed there 14 years in a row and I played the River twice over that time.

[Argonne69]

43 minutes ago, carrera said:

Agree about the River course at Alisal.  The Ranch course is much more charming.  We stayed there 14 years in a row and I played the River twice over that time.

 

I asked about the Ranch course this morning when I was checking in. No chance of playing it without knowing a member or dropping $900 on a room at the resort. Pity. 

 

Edited March 6 by Argonne69

[tad950]

2 hours ago, Argonne69 said:

Overcast morning with t-storms forecast for mid morning. I woke up this morning with pain in the lower back part of my right leg. Too low for a calf muscle, and too high for the achilles (I assume). With the threat of rain and a gimp leg, I took a rare cart today. Probably a good thing as the rain started falling on the 16th hole. River Course at Alisal today. Rather disappointing. The course sits in a low river valley with nice views of the hills above, but the layout is quite lackluster. The mounding was minimal, and there were just a couple of elevated tees. Bunkering was light. Green complexes put me to sleep. Water in play on 5 holes helped a bit. Bunkering was very light. Only two holes with any left/right movement. 

 

Fairly easy off the tee with moderately wide fairways and light bunkering. Water in play off the tee on two holes. Minor misses were no problem with fairly generous rough and the trees set back from the fairways. Big misses would find an adjacent fairway on many holes, but OB on the handful of perimeter holes. Approaches were very easy with greens sitting at fairway height with most having openings in front. Greens had very little contouring and minimal slope. Putting could be a done sleeping. Up and downs were no issue. Rough was decent around the greens. 

 

Par 3s were meh. The 12th had water in play short and right. The short 17th had a peninsula green surrounded by water, but the pin was located far left away from trouble. 5s were snoozers. Nothing reachable for mortals, and little trouble other than the pond left on the 11th. The two short 4s were mixed. The 8th was boring, but the 15th had a decent amount of trouble with trees right forcing a fade off the tee. 

 

Conditions were generally good. Fairways were a tad shaggy, but resulted in some nice lies. Rough was freshly cut. Bunkers we're poor with little sand. Greens looked and rolled good. Speed was a little slow at 9. 

 

Played a Blue/White combo at 6315 yds (70.3/120). Somehow managed a decent day off the tee with the bum leg. Irons were spotty, but wedges were solid. Putter was uncooperative. Five bogies. The 15' par putt on the 7th was nice, but the highlight of the round was a goofy up and down on the short par 4 15th. Coming out of the left rough I hit what I thought was a solid gap wedge to a back left pin. Walked up the side of the green with putter in hand, and saw no ball on the green. Thought I might have holed out, but nothing in the cup. Looked behind the green, and still no ball. Checked right of the green and found the ball in the rough 6 inches from the pond. No idea how it wound up there. With rain starting to fall I was too lazy to walk back to the cart to grab a wedge, so I figured I could putt through 12 feet of rough and up the side of the green. Gave the ball a whack and it managed to climb on to the green with a bit too much speed. The ball should have wound up in the rough on the other side of the green, but hit the flagstick dead center, and stopped a foot from the cup. Lol. Greedy me was kvetching that it should have gone in. 

 

Going to be nice and go with 4 cows here. Nice piece of property with some nice views, but they simply did little with it. Usual stuff. Little trouble and no risk/reward holes. The $79 weekday riding rate was very good. Would have been a nice course to walk. Definitely not a must play, but little in the area, so it's playable if you're passing through. 

 

River for me was ok. Not great. Only a couple interesting holes. But it was fine. We had an outing at the Ranch course, definitely superior.
I thought I read that you were going to play La Purisima. That course will grab your attention, especially if it is windy. I think the locals call it La Piranha 😄. Or something to that affect. 

[Argonne69]

10 minutes ago, tad950 said:

River for me was ok. Not great. Only a couple interesting holes. But it was fine. We had an outing at the Ranch course, definitely superior.
I thought I read that you were going to play La Purisima. That course will grab your attention, especially if it is windy. I think the locals call it La Piranha 😄. Or something to that affect. 

 

La Purisima is on the agenda for next week, along with Mission Club and Rancho Maria. 

 

[StoutKing]

4 hours ago, Argonne69 said:

 

La Purisima is on the agenda for next week, along with Mission Club and Rancho Maria. 

 

If you break 80 I'll buy you a beer.

[Argonne69]

Other than the sloppy course conditions, an enjoyable morning. My right leg is on fire, though. Pretty sure it's the upper achilles. Feet are also giving me fits after walking the hills on squishy turf. Heavy rain most of the afternoon and evening yesterday. Plenty of beautiful sunshine today, but breezy and very wet conditions at Glen Annie. Gorgeous piece of property. The front has some moderate elevation changes, but the back really shines with dramatic elevated tees on several holes. Water in play one six holes, but also plenty of red stakes areas surround thick junk. Three dodlegs on the back, and one on the front. Fairway bunkering was light, and most of them appeared to be marked as GUR. Even with the rain, it's clear that a bunker renovation is seriously needed. 

 

Moderately difficult off the tee with trees pinching several holes, forced carries, and a few side slopes redirecting shots. Minor misses wound generally catch the rough, but there wasn't much of it. Really big misses were better than big misses, as they might find an adjacent fairway instead of the junk. Approaches were straightforward. Greens had decent bunkering, but the fronts were open for the most part. Greens had modest contouring, but a decent amount of slope. Putting from above the hole was dicey. Up and downs could be tricky if you found one of the more plentiful uneven lies. Several greens had upslopes around them. 

 

The five par 3s were fairly benign. Three mid length and a pair of longer ones. Not much to look at. Three of the four par 5s were meh. The dogleg 14th with its elevated tee was a heck of a risk/reward hole. A PA guarded the corner, and one could risk cutting the corner to leave a fairway wood into the unguarded green. The dogleg 10th was long, and required a solid two shot to have a clear look at the green hidden by the hill right. Short 4s were very good, but the 3rd and 4th were difficult if you play a draw with trees blocking the right side. The 12th was driveable from its elevated tee, but plenty of trouble, including a small crossing creek, awaited. 

 

Conditions were barely playable. Cart path only for the riders. Practically every step tee to green brought water to the surface. Finding a spot to place the ball in the fairways without risking getting mud in your eyes was a challenge. Rough was thick. Bunkers were trashed. Greens were quite nice, though. Speed was a good 10. 

 

Played the Green/White combo at 6122 yds on the par 71 layout (69.8/126). Plenty of length with the hills and soft conditions, especially when there were five par 3s and four short 4s. Decent day driving, but spotty irons, and a cold putter. Eight bogies. Highlight of the day was the views on the back nine. 

 

Solid 6 cows here. I'll give them a pass on the conditions tee to green after getting yet another inch of rain yesterday, but the bunkers are a joke. I'd like to see a little more trouble on the par 3s. A handful of additional fairway bunkers wouldn't hurt either. The $96 weekday rate with no walking rate seemed high, but certainly not crazy. I'm actually surprised that they allow walking on such a hilly course. Tip of the hat to them. Can't say it's a must play, but it won't disappoint. 

 

[Argonne69]

Glen Annie GC, Goleta, CA. (Lol. Love how Glen Annie and Sandpiper both list Santa Barbara on their scorecards, but they're both several miles west of SB) 

 

 

 

Yeah, just try hitting a draw 

 

 

 

 

The driveable par 4 12th 

 

 

 

 

 

Full photo set: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/75oyy1ihdrc93vnuu7agn/h?rlkey=79corb1j6qlvyj59ft720274b&dl=0

 

[Argonne69]

Had plans to visit a couple of breweries in Santa Barbara, but after my two playing partners quit at the turn due to the conditions, I breezed through the back nine, and finished an hour and a half before their noon opening. So, it was back to Third Window. Not a bad backup plan. Lol. I thought I might still hit the other two, but after downing this Bierbara 2023 bourbon barrel aged quad, and having my behind firmly planted in this barstool, I think I'll defer the two to tomorrow after a round at Santa Barbara GC. 

 

 

[Argonne69]

Lovely day. Still quite soft out there, but not as bad as yesterday. The leg is still bothering me. Ugh. Santa Barbara GC today, the local parkland muni. Better than I was expecting. Nowhere near as hilly as Glen Annie, but half the holes have some nice rolling terrain. The other holes are fairly mundane. Starts off nicely, but the front finishes weak, and the back starts the same way. The final three holes are picturesque. Fairway bunkering was light. Greenside a little better. Water in play on just one hole. Left/right movement is limited to just three holes. Trees are dense enough to cause trouble if you're out of position, but not so thick as to cause turf issues. 

 

Fairly easy off the tee with moderately wide fairways. There are a couple of holes that require a good amount of carry or you're stopping dead into the upslope. Trees pinched a few holes. Minor misses would catch the generous rough. Big misses could be found in the trees or adjacent fairways. A handful of perimeter holes had OB. Approaches were moderately difficult. Greens were on the small side, but not tiny except for one hole that had a miniscule putting surface. With soft conditions there was no running a ball up the throat. Greens had gentle contours, but enough slope to produce some big breaks. Up and downs were moderately difficult from the thick rough. 

 

The five par 3s were OK. No real lookers other than the 16th. Lengths had a good mix from a gap wedge to a fairway wood. Needed a little more trouble. The three par 5s were meh. The 6th and 18th could be reached with good drives, but little risk. The sole short 4 was benign. 

 

Conditions were soft, but playable. Cart path only for the riders. The kikiyu was shaggy and stopping any rollout. Rough was being cut during the round, and was thick, but a decent height. Bunkers were groomed, but the compacted sand needed to be broken up. Greens looked great, and were rolling at least 10. 

 

Played the Blue tees (tips) at 6022 yds on the par 70 layout (69.4/123). Decent day off the tee, but getting zero rollout meant way too many long approaches. I really need to work on getting a higher launch and more carry. Irons were iffy. Putter was in deep freeze. Couldn't quite nail the speed and the break. Eight bogies and a double. Highlight of the day was simply watching my playing partner stripe the ball. He was a good 60 yds longer than me. Played college golf a few years ago. 

 

Solid 4 cows here. Better than average muni with some nice rolling terrain, but a layout that needs a few tweeks. The $69 non-resident rate was a tad high, but given that there are few public courses in the area, not unexpected. Not a must play, but worth a visit if you're in the area and don't want to unload your wallet. 

 

[Argonne69]

Santa Barbara GC, Santa Barbara, CA 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Full photo set: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/v4l68157yly593nii5k6a/h?rlkey=kteiw46cmpfoh2zpd24zytipy&dl=0

 

[Argonne69]

Couldn't stop in Santa Barbara and spend all my time on the courses and brewpubs. Took a drive to Stearns Wharf and strolled down State St. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Argonne69]

OK, enough of the tourist stuff. Lol. The Brewhouse has 16 taps with a couple of very tasty Belgian brews. Enjoying the Saint Barb's Tripel. 

 

 

[Argonne69]

It's been a while since I had some decent BBQ. Looks like it'll be a little bit longer. Sigh. Best BBQ in Santa Barbara. Tri Tip was lean and a wee bit chewy. Ribs were too lean. The hot link was excellent, though. Juicy with a nice kick. Macaroni salad and coleslaw were both OK. Beans looked bland, but had a nice kick. Sauce was good. Can't really recommend the place, but at least the three meat combo didn't break the bank. 

 

 

[ThinkingPlus]

37 minutes ago, Argonne69 said:

It's been a while since I had some decent BBQ. Looks like it'll be a little bit longer. Sigh. Best BBQ in Santa Barbara. Tri Tip was lean and a wee bit chewy. Ribs were too lean. The hot link was excellent, though. Juicy with a nice kick. Macaroni salad and coleslaw were both OK. Beans looked bland, but had a nice kick. Sauce was good. Can't really recommend the place, but at least the three meat combo didn't break the bank. 

 

 

The tri-tip will get better as you head north to the central coast. Santa Maria, Pismo Beach, etc...

[hammergolf]

1 hour ago, Argonne69 said:

It's been a while since I had some decent BBQ. Looks like it'll be a little bit longer. Sigh. Best BBQ in Santa Barbara. Tri Tip was lean and a wee bit chewy. Ribs were too lean. The hot link was excellent, though. Juicy with a nice kick. Macaroni salad and coleslaw were both OK. Beans looked bland, but had a nice kick. Sauce was good. Can't really recommend the place, but at least the three meat combo didn't break the bank. 

 

 

Yeah, seems like bbq isn’t their thing in Cali. Hope the leg heals up!

[StoutKing]

7 hours ago, Argonne69 said:

Santa Barbara GC, Santa Barbara, CA 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Full photo set: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/v4l68157yly593nii5k6a/h?rlkey=kteiw46cmpfoh2zpd24zytipy&dl=0

 

Looks like nice land for golf.  A little over treed but still good bones

[Argonne69]

Slight change of plans for this week. I had Rancho Maria booked for early tomorrow morning, but I forgot that daylight savings time starts tonight. Ugh. With my leg still bothering me, I decided to take an actual day off tomorrow. I'll try to get up early and watch the (recorded) LPGA Blue Bay to see if Lydia can get her HoF point. Booked Rancho Maria for Wednesday. 

 

On Friday I head to Pismo Beach, so I still have an open day on Thursday. I'll probably wind up playing one of the courses near Lompac for a 2nd time. 

 

[Argonne69]

Short drive to Buellton. With two rounds in Lompac and one in Santa Maria, it would have been nice to have an RV park closer, but the two towns primarily have mobile home parks. 

 

Avoided a small disaster this morning when I was getting ready to pull out of my spot. Did one final walk around, and noticed that the exhaust pipe for my generator had fallen off for the 2nd time. The last time it fell off I wound up running it over and destroying it. Luckily I caught it this time, but now I have to climb under Bessie and try to reattach it. Dumb design with the exhaust pointed down, instead of out the side, which puts the full weight of the exhaust pipe on the clamp holding it to the generator. 

 

Decent RV park, although the gravel pad isn't particularly level. Hate paying top dollar and having Bessie's front wheel off the ground. The gravel is also going to be a mess later this week when the area gets rain (again). 

 

 

Edited March 9 by Argonne69