Black Mesa Golf Club

The layout and look are always great.

This year a couple of things were just not as good as in past.

The green were in ruff shape. Dead areas and generally not great.

Pace of play was slow and marshals and staff did not seem to care that 20mins slow was really slow. Seems "regulars" get pass.

Considering Twin Warriors was half the price this was a hard one to be impressed with this year.

Visited Santa Fe for a concert and golf with my wife and friends. We played TOWA @ Buffalo Thunder on Saturday and Black Mesa on Sunday. My wife doesn’t golf but enjoyed being able to ride along while myself and the other couple played. Black Mesa is a very nice course HOWEVER, THEY CHARGE THE FULL PRICE OF A ROUND OF GOLF, $84 FOR MY WIFE TO RIDE IN THE CART WITH ME. There was NO CHARGE @ TOWA. I was more than happy to pay a cart fee at both locations, but the cost of a round of golf to ride along is RIDICULOUS! This place isn’t Pebble Beach!

Everything about the course is first class. The fairways are in great shape, the greens rolled true and the staff is super friendly. If this is your first time playing this course, please be prepared to take several pictures. This is the only course that I have ever played where any one of the 18 holes can be considered the "Signature Hole". Play this course, you will not be disappointed.

I took three first timers to Black Mesa yesterday and they loved it. The course was in great shape, from tee to green. It's a tough layout, but we'll worth the trip from ABQ. Even with handicaps in the mid teens they had a blast on every hole. The greens have obviously had elephants buried in them (LOL) but that only added to the experience. I'd go back once a month if it was closer, but this won't be my only visit in 2023. Do yourself a favor and get to Black Mesa for a great round of golf.

The course is outstanding with a wide variety of hole designs and great views every direction. This is a spectacular track, beautifully laid out in the natural terrain. The par 4s and 5s are a superb mix of length and uphill / downhill. Many holes have tough tee shots, starting right out of the gate at #1. There are a few holes with blind shots but are easy to figure out the line of play. There is ample room to miss if you don’t quite take the optimal direction. The par 3s are stout and play long and tough from the blue tees. The greens rolled true, while not fast yet in the early part of the season. The putting surfaces have lots of contours that make it very challenging to get the line correct. The course is pure golf in an interesting natural setting.

Thank you to Laurie Meredith and the staff at Black Mesa for a wonderful time!

When you arrive, the rustic style of the clubhouse and restaurant set the tone; this course has a minimalist approach with all the right elements, and no added fluff.

I got treated to amazing conditions considering it was still pre-season; if not for the yellow grass color and snowy mountains in the background giving it away, you couldn't really tell. Even the greens, while not fast yet, rolled nice and true.

All of the staff went above and beyond to make sure we had a good time, and the course itself did not disappoint, with gorgeous views all around, and interesting, varied hole designs.

There are some blind shots, but you usually know well enough where to go, and there is more room to miss than you might think at first glance; I had no problem finding balls that I thought may have been lost left or right. I also love that none of the holes or views are spoiled by houses; it's all golf and nature around you.

The biggest challenge comes from the par 3s, all of which are beautiful and quite long. The shortest club I hit on them was a 5 iron. Then again, if you're not used to play in this area, you might find, like I did a few times, that your clubs fly farther than expected due to the high (7000+ feet) elevation location.

All in all, a splendid experience, I can only imagine how great the course is in summer conditions. Thank you to all the staff at Black Mesa!

Black Mesa is nicknamed the New Mexico Monster for good reason. It is a beast. From the opening tee shot, it never relents.

I like the course, but it's too much for my game. I played twice in three days, never breaking 90 and lost a bunch of balls and a bet along the way. A couple of the holes are just too severe, the par-4 10th and par-5 16th, and probably need some redesign work. A parade of blind shots and elevated, sloping greens make shooting your handicap a chore.

I do have mad love, however, for its collection of par 3s and two short par 4s. They're all world-class holes. I'm glad they took out the fairway bunkers, replacing them with grassy hollows, but I think the rough needs to be lowered for golfers to truly enjoy the experience.

The scenery is striking, and the price tag a nice bargain for a course of its caliber. Definitely worth the drive and should be part of any golf trip to Albuquerque.

Well, you read earlier reviews about its problems in the past, but they seem to be no longer an issue. Just a few miles from Sante Fe and it was an alternate choice for us since the casino course was having a fundraiser on our day.

Words of advice... if you play from the tips, you better be straight with the driver or you will spend your time looking for your ball in the brush with the snakes..Our playing partners on this day spent a lot of time and lost balls as they couldn't keep it in the fairway. So, choose your tees correctly.

Also, bring plenty of golf balls if you spray the ball or it is windy, like it did on our back nine as it becomes more difficult than what it is.

The pace was slow due to lots of looking and waiting but that seems to be the norm they said.

The course is routed around mesas so there was a few unique holes..

IF in the Sante Fe area, it would be worth the drive to play.

For those of us who love this course, the past years have been a rollercoaster due to severe water problems that all but made the course unplayable.

I am really pleased to report that Black Mesa has returned to prime condition. Everything is green, green green. And the condition is fantastic.

This is a very special and spectacular course and must be played.

I love the layout of this high desert challenge. In the past, the conditions were poor. But I heard the conditioning was excellent and I scheduled a tee time for our group. I’ve never seen this place so well groomed. The fairways, tees and greens were almost perfect. Pace of play was good as well. We finished in less than 4 hours. Previously it was a death march. It’s a difficult layout. You had better be able to hit it straight or you’ll be looking for balls in the desert. And you need some local knowledge due some blind shots that are required. Black Mesa Golf Club is back!!!!!

I have been playing Black Mesa for numerous years. I played it 10 years ago when it was fabulous, and I played it 3 years ago when it was awful. I played it last year (July 2018), and was delighted by the progress that had been made to bring the course back into good condition. I played it yesterday, July 1, 2019, and I am thrilled to report that the condition of the course has continued to improve.

The fairways were very good, and the greens were perfect (truly). I had played the great Paako Ridge the day before (fabulous condition), and the Black Mesa greens were equal to the greens at Paako. The rough at Black Mesa still has some room for improvement. The remaining sand bunkers were really pretty good, but not great.

The staff is super friendly. Put Black Mesa back on your approved list. Well worth the reasonable green fee.

There are a few things that need to be addressed, but none of them significantly detract from the overall quality of this great course. We played it for the first time on a Saturday and found the pace of play to be perfect. The challenge of the course was offset by the beautiful desert setting, manicured fairways, and large, nearly perfect greens. This quickly became our favorite course and easily the best we’ve ever played.

As for the detractors, the cart paths need some attention. I think the crushed black lava gravel is a perfect accent and makes a decent path. There just needs to be a lot more of it. Also, better cart paths would encourage golfers not to drive their carts through hazards and unnecessarily through the fairways. If I were king of Black Mesa, I would initiate a 90* rule, and strictly enforce it. Some of the hazards need to readdressed. I know they took out some of the sand traps, but even as a high-handicap golfer, I consider this a mistake. Now there is spotty grass growing in what used to be a sand trap and makes it unnecessarily difficult. It also detracts from the overall beauty and playability of the course. One last detail that would make this a tier 1 course is access to the tee boxes. Cutting steps into the sandstone, or otherwise creating an aesthetic and specific walk up to the otherwise gorgeous tee boxes would be the crowning touch. I only spoke of the detractors to encourage the staff to address these minor issues. Doing so, in my opinion, would make this fantastic course, PERFECT.

To end on the positive, I can’t say enough about the gorgeous fairways. The cut was consistent, with no mower marks or tracks. The grass was consistent and there were no weeds or wild grass detracting from the quality of the turf. When I actually played from the fairways, the ball sat up nicely, and played like I believe a pro course should. The roughs are left about 2 inches taller and do precisely what they are intended to do - encourage you to hit the fairway! The greens were undulating seas of putting perfection. The ball rolls true, not TOO fast, but downhill putts can easily leave you with a 6 footer coming back to the hole. If you don’t like “3-putts”, you better hit your approach close to the pin.

Our experience at Black Mesa was nothing short of fantastic, Easily the best experience of our golfing adventures. It’s certainly not a beginner’s course, but even a 20 handicapper like me loved every hole and enjoyed the experience.

I read the other reviews of this course and so was somewhat hesitant to play here. It ended up being conveniently located and when I was told the price, $54, I figured it was worth it. And it definitely was. I showed up on a Thursday morning with no tee time and teed off shortly thereafter. The greens were very good and the fairways solid. New Mexico is in a drought so the rough was dry and hard. Is this course in perfect shape, definitely not, but it is in great shape for $54. My only complaint (besides my average golf game that day) is that there are many blind shots, especially from the tees, so playing it once would be super helpful. I played as a single and finished the front 9 in about 90 minutes. I caught some groups at 15 but still finished in just under 4 hours. I would recommend this course to those wanting a challenging experience in and around Santa Fe.

I have been a great fan of Black Mesa for years, and believe it is a very special course in one of the most dramatic settings anywhere. Because it is such a unique venue, I have tried in recent years to "support" and play the course in spite of steadily deteriorating conditions. Unfortunately, by the end of last summer it had degraded to such a state it was essentially unplayable...

I recently heard some encouraging comments about the new leadership at the course, and reinvestment in the facility and intensified maintenance. So yesterday I went out again to see for myself.

While there is more work to be done (for example, the majority of the 70+ bunkers are being grassed over...and this is still in progress), the turnaround in conditions is remarkable. Tees and greens (firm and fast!) are in very good shape, and the fairways mostly good to very good. A lot of clearing of scrub has been done around several greens making them more fair/playable; the natural cart paths have been improved with gravel; rope/post markers have been installed along the more tricky cart path slopes; the carts have been improved and have on-cart ball and club washers, and the driving range actually has grass growing.

Overall, Black Mesa is in as good or better shape than several other courses in the area - and I enjoyed my round very much. I also spent time with both the course director and pro discussing their future plans, and I am convinced the leadership - and ownership - are genuinely committed to returning Black Mesa to a "top tier" status.

I encourage all of us who know how special Black Mesa was in the past...to come out and play and help the new team keep up the momentum. Be aware that it is still a work in progress (even more challenging given the extreme drought conditions in New Mexico this summer)...but already at a stage that it is very enjoyable and playable. And for visitors to northern New Mexico, don't expect conditions you see in Florida or other places not in a high altitude desert...but this is a unique, and highly rewarding (but challenging) golf experience.

I love the challenge of this course. And the views are great. I try to play here a few times per year. Last visit was disappointing. We brought guests that had never played there before. We played early to beat the slower high handicappers. However the pro shop allowed a sixsome to tee off in front of us. They held us up on every hole while they looked for balls in the desert. They refused to let us thru and were very rude when we asked. I called the pro shop to get some help with this issue. There was no one available to ride out to manage this issue. It ruined our day at Black Mesa. I'm not sure I will go back to play there, There are many good choices for vacationers to play in the Santa Fe area.

Wow. Great layout for experienced golfer however 6 greens in need of serious repair. Fairways long & thick. Distance markers impossible to locate... AND NO DRINKABLE WATER ON COURSE!! Sad to see unique course in this condition. $51 too steep for condition of course. Did I mention new golf carts!

Just got back from a golf trip to New Mexico. Going in I was concerned about playing Black Mesa given it's location, 30 min north of Sante Fe and reports of poor conditions due to irrigation issues a few years back. Yes, some of the fairways, greens and bunkers still need some TLC, but it is all pretty much cosmetic and does not negatively impact the experience. These issues are the only reason I did not give it 5 stars. With continued improvements this will be a 5 star course again. It would be a sin to let these concerns prevent you from playing this course if you are in the area. The terrain, mountain views and layout are truly amazing and should not be missed. It is well worth the drive and definitely worth the money to play.