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About
Rose City Golf Course is the second oldest municipal track in the Portland area. In 1921, A.H. "Jay" Gould played his first round of golf ever at Eastmoreland Golf Course. After returning home, he decided to look for a good place to hit golf balls and came upon The Rose City Speedway. He spoke with C.P. Keyser of the City Park Bureau and obtained permission to burn the tall grass on the infield so that golf balls could be found.
Jay and friend Herbert George used shovels and hoes to carve out a nine-hole course on the speedway infield. Tin cans were used for cups, packing cases for tee-boxes, and iron rods and rags for flags. The Oregonian and Journal Newspapers ran a story on the new golf course and 30 golfers showed up the following Sunday to hit balls around on the burnt grass and dirt. The main hazard was a head-on train collision that occurred earlier in the summer and partially blocked the seventh green.
After a few weeks, the Rose City Golf Association was founded which marked the beginning of the course. Full cooperation from the city and donations from businesses and individuals solidified the construction. George Ott drew up a nine-hole plan and work began in the spring of 1922. Play continued in the spring, but was stopped in the summer due to long grass and no mower. Play started again in the fall, but stopped again due to motorcycle racing. In the winter of 1922-23, the viaduct on the west end of the track washed out and put an end to the races. On Jan. 31, 1923 the first green fee ticket was sold to Jay Gould and in the spring, more than 800 played in one day. The city then took over the course completely.
Today, Rose City Golf Course is an 18-hole, par-72 course with rolling fairways that are lined with a variety of large trees. Water comes into play on holes 10, 11, 14, and 15 and greenside bunkers are well placed.
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Course Details
Rentals & Services
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Food & Beverage
Available Facilities
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5 Stars
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4 Stars
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3 Stars
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2 Stars
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1 Stars
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5 Stars
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4 Stars
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3 Stars
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2 Stars
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1 Stars
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Conditions3.8
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Value4.3
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Layout4.4
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Friendliness4.4
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Pace4.3
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Amenities3.6
Golfer Photos
Golfer Reviews
Golf in January
With a break in the weather I took a chance and went out to Rose city and had a great time. Sure the course was wet but the greens were in great shape and the fairways were mowed and pretty solid. Even though it was a holiday it was not crowded and I had a great first day out for the new year.
Big old trees..
This course is one of my favorite courses in portland.
The fairways are wide open and has plenty of room to mess up. We played in The middle of December and it was pretty soggy but the ball didnt plug too much. Overall great course but avoid playing during heavy rain falls. The sausage dogs are great with beer after the 9 holes.
Thanksgiving week, November!!
Greens were excellent! I was very surprised how well the courses condition was considering the time of year, was supposed to rain today, even snow possible this week, and it’s was a great out there! Well done with the Greens, very very nice.
Okay layout, friendly staff.
We played behind the men's club and the pace of play was somewhat slow. Overall, we enjoyed the course, even though the greens were in need of attention. We especially enjoyed the 19th hole.
Classic course
This is a great course and I love playing here. Friendly and helpful staff. Beautiful course and green, fairways in good shape.
Sooo Slooow and thin fairways poorly taken care of by golfers
Pace of play is so slow, every time I’ve gone out during the week at 10, 11, 12 doesn’t matter the old men (and women) play soooo slow! It should never take more than 2 1/2 hours to play the front nine on this course during the week .
I mean I get it that this is a city course and everybody walks and all the old people play there because it’s cheap but… anything over two hours and 10 minutes is ridiculous for a foursome, The course is barely over 6000 yards it should not take them that long
Conditions are below average there is a lot of thin muddy spots all over the fairway where grass is just not growing The only thing this place has going for it the greens are in good to very good shape and put fairly true for Poa Annua greens
I guess the Takeaway is golfer beware you’re going to be playing very slow for 5-6 hours if your playing 18 behind slow groups that have no interest in proper etiquette like fixing divots, filling their [hack marks] and keeping up with a decent pace...
oh and don’t expect or even ask to play through they take it personally and either ignore you or argue with you for even asking!
City courses like this would do well to have the starter and ranger making sure people know how important filling their divots and repairing ball marks is for longevity and playability of the course especially it’s health through the winter.
Always a fun course to play
Fun, historic course with interesting layout tight in the middle of the city.
Great pace and in great shape
I had a 7:40 tee time and we finished 18 in just under 4 hours. Great pace of play, fairways and greens were in great shape, staff were always friendly, and I was given the option to pair up with a another player or stay as a walking single. I wasn’t forced to join up. I would absolutely play here again. Check the course website for greens fees, so you don’t have to pay the GN convenience fee...
Pace of play
I had to leave after 11 holes because it had already been 3.5 hours. Men’s club plays so slow.
Great old timers course. ..big fairways and reasonable greens.
Pleasantly Surprised
This muni course is a Portand gem. The course was in good condition and the staff was very helpful. I played at 5:15 PM so it was slow going with the after work crowd. But, I would definitely play there again. Greens were in good shape but SLOW.
Lots of charm and ease of use
The staff is very friendly and the fellow golfers have always been friendly. They have great hashbrowns for breakfast and the place feels laid back. My husband and I love it.
