The Olympic Club - Lake Course

Legendary Experience at a epic course. The opportunity to play was via an outing but playing my own ball and taking the full challenge made it extra special. Elevated tee shots and valley like green side bunkers provided all the challenges you would want to see if you are up to the test that break even the best of golfers. Add in the amenities and TOGC is perhaps the finest place I’ve ever been!

The more I play the Lake, the more I've come to embrace, not bemoan, its challenges. The course was rounding into championship form at the media day for the U.S. Women's Open one month before the event. With the bunkers deeper than ever, and most surrounding elevated greens, the Lake is the epitome of a second-shot golf course. There are some bunkers out there where double bogey is automatic for amateurs and bogey nearly guaranteed for the pros. The course plays long, thanks to the rough and San Francisco's heavy air. I don't think you ever conquer the Lake. You're just happy to survive. As one-ball golf courses go, this might be the hardest.

Had a wonderful day at the beautiful course. My only complaint is the tricky greens. Due to the grains of the grass, it was almost impossible to judge the speed or break with any accuracy, with unexpected breaks and much faster or slower than expected rolls..

This is one tough, brilliant, beautiful golf course and it was a treat to play it. Every hole is tough, but not unfair, and I will always smile when I think of playing this course.

Lost a little sleep the night before this past Sunday.

Was invited back in January to play Olympic but had to cancel my visit to SF. Luckily, my schedule had me return to Northern California this month.

Arrived early in tour the historic clubhouse and grounds. The men’s locker room is its own health club, complete with indoor pool. This is the real deal.

And the course, 5 time US Open venue, is nearly perfect. This is a manicured masterpiece. Every shot is special. Tee shots go uphill and downhill, right to left and left to right to fairly wide fairways. And then, precision and distance control is rewarded if correct and penalized if just slightly off.

Green complexes are extreme. Gaping bunkers surround every putting surface. Two putt pars turn into bogeys or worse if you miss any green.

I thought the speed of greens was a little slow. No more than 9 stimp.

Played well enough to walk away happy and feeling that I had some success.

Thanks Dan B for the invite

The first time I played the famous Lake course at The Olympic Club in 2009 was a true slog. It was a gloomy, cold and wet February day - in other words, just another winter day in San Francisco. I struggled mightily and came away with the impression that this venerable U.S. Open venue was too difficult to be enjoyable for most of us. One magical day in March changed all that. I caught the course on a partly cloudy, mild day and marveled at how much more beautiful the layout looked after a significant tree removal program several years ago opened up views of the city. It probably helped that the tees were pushed forward for a media day for the new 2015 USGA Four Ball Championship. The length of the rough and speed of the greens was manageable. Fairway bunkers are almost non-existent. It's the deep green-side traps ringing elevated greens that always prove to be the biggest obstacles. I was thrilled to make bogey after hitting into the "U" of the dreaded "IOU" bunkers fronting the 18th green. The day catapulted The Olympic Club into the upper-echelon of my favorite places in golf. The players who qualified for the Four Ball Championship will have an incredible experience.

Always lives up to the hype. Unbelievable range to warm up and it is always in great shape. A lot more challenging than it appears with difficult greens.

I had a chance to play this amazing facility and was lucky enough to be paired with two very accomodating members. The conditions were perfect, not hazy and the temperature was ideal. I felt like a tourist snapping pictures of the picturesque views and immaculate course conditions. I also birdied 18 from the US Open tee box. I can now see why it was so difficult for those guys.

The Olympic Club is a classic and has hosted the U.S. Open a bunch of times. It is obviously very difficult. The biggest challenge is the undulating fairways and elevation changes. Hitting the ball accurately off the tee and finding the fairway is a must if you want to score well. Don't get your ball stuck in a tree like Lee Janzen or Lee Westwood. Try the burger dog if you go. It is not amazing, but at least you can say you had one.

The 18th hole says it all, when teeing off the greenside bunkers spell out "I O U". Even with the 18th ending this way, the entire course presents a challenge. We played on a moderate windy day which didn't help us on this target golf course. There were times I thought I hit perfect shots only to end up in 4 inches of rough. This is not a golf course for your everyday average golfer