Avila Beach Golf Resort

From the road leading into beautiful Avila Beach, the first impression of the course is one of discolored, splotchy fairways. The actual condition is far worse than it looks, and it's not due to lack of water. Several tee boxes were so wet and muddy they could not be mowed, and the fairways were a mixture of dried out hard-pan and standing water from a dysfunctional a irrigation system. The attached photo illustrates a most unusual immovable obstruction adjacent to the third fairway. Rusted sprinkler heads continued to squirt streams of water long after irrigation was finally turned off around 8:00am (we were forced to dodge active sprinklers for the first 8 holes after teeing off at 7:10am). Much of the front nine was also played amidst the unavoidable stench of raw sewage.

The greens and the immediate approaches to them were actually in very good condition. If the rest of the course were in that kind f shape, it would certainly be a fine resort course. But for now there are other far better courses to be played on the central California coast. At $21 on GolfNow, I could still only call it a "fair" value for money in light of it's current state of disrepair.

Played on a hot deal late afternoon . Not to much wind and pace of play excellent! Played the back tees. Nice test and variety of holes. Would recommend for sure!

Beautiful setting, was very windy when we played. Tough angles, local knowledge is huge. Small, lightning fast greens. Fairways are pretty weak. Bathrooms on the course were nasty and out of supplies. Back 9 plays much nicer. Staff was friendly and accommodating . Carts are trashed and no beverage girl. Pro shop has very limited merchandise. All in all, it was a challenging fun course. It has the potential to be great if they put some love into the property.

Wonderful course, beautiful setting. Front 9 in the hills and back 9 ocean side!
BUT, Course condition could be better. Greens were great, but just a bit hard. Tee boxes and fairways need attention. Many of the cart paths are decomposed granite, no problem if well maintained, but they were not. Many times you need to go around chuck holes in the path! Not good.
However still a real pleasure to play.
CarlGeo

Great course, challenging with not being too painful. Only lost one ball.
Location was awesome with lot of great birds. And one birdie!

Run down range, course could be in better shape. Would only play for a very discounted price of $30.00 or less with cart.

A perfect location with an interesting layout but total mismanagement and the poorest of conditions possible. From the driving range to no available refreshments and rundown conditions.

We've been coming to the Avila Beach Golf Resort on/off for more than a decade - and despite always being a challenge, we love playing here. It's one of those courses where you remember each and every hole, no matter how much time has elapsed. Don't be deceived by the ease of Hole No. 1 ... there's lots of surprises ahead! You'll enjoy playing here, no matter what.

Arriving an hour early i was informed i couldnt get a cart until 20 minutes before my tee time.so i had to drag my bag 100 yards to the range and back to use my rangeballs.and THEN RELOCK BAG in the car while i got the cart,then reload bag in the cart and get to the t-box.all in fifteen minutes. REALLY ??!! Only to find four course /pro shop workers on the tee in front of me. Though i was a solo they didnt offer to let me go ahead of them.they took exactly twelve minutes for the four of them to tee off. I skipped the hole and started on second hole. JERKS!!

Awesome course and challenging. Definitely a course I would go to regularly when in the area. A few nice places to visit around the course as well but overall I would recommend it anytime

Looks like they are working on the course
When its done it will b a nice course
A little short though
A good time awaits at this course
I will definitely play it again

The course was fun and challenging due to the dog legs and elevation changes. The driving range was the absolute worst. No grass and the mats were on uneven lies.

This could be an awesome course (the area is beautiful), but the maintenance of the fairways, tee boxes and greens were a bit disappointing. Some of the fairways were excellent, but others were like hitting off of hard-packed dirt (the grass was extremely short). some of the greens had dead grass or dirt showing. Overall, it was still a fun and challenging course to play. I would play it again.

the setting of the course was lovely-lots of nature!
we rode, but found out the course is walkable which is a plus
nice fairways with water hazards and ravines to make things more challenging

Two reviews blocked (my fault url), one never showed Idk why. Here is a synopsis as the other/s may never appear.

Pace - we played steady, it can get excruciatingly slow.

Course conditions - many areas do need work, not the complete horror story some portray.

Staff - everyone was friendly and helpful for us.

Value - off the rack not competitive with other local courses, deals can be found.

Food - above average for what we ate.

Facilities - the range needs divine intervention, the rest of the facilities are aging but clean.

Overall - average at the right price below average (2 stars) value if paying full weekend rates. The fun layout/design takes thought and the ability to hit shots other than grip and rip. 19 holes are rotated to play 18 depending on events occurring.

More reviews than all the courses in the area combined and anything from 1-5 stars all in a short period of time make me wonder if I played the same course.

Overall - 3, this is all subjective. We played relatively fast for a weekend, we enjoyed the deck/view at sunset, we played for a reasonable price, and we are happy to play designs that require shotmaking/strategy/thought not just grip and rip.

Pace - 4, we passed two groups and finished in just over four hours. They finished an hour-ish later as we were cocktailing. The layout/weekenders/etc can result in long times here.

Course conditions - 2, drought yes (excusable), but the 2 comes from the combination of tees being chewed up and/or unleveled and greens that were between very good and very bad depending on the green and/or section of the green. Easy fix; move the tees and pins to good areas while the bad areas recover.

Staff - 4, everyone was friendly and helpful and the marshal expedited our playing through the two groups almost simultaneously.

Value - 2, the off the rack rate is too high for the current conditions and in comparison to other local offerings (Hunter/Cypress/Monarch/Morro/Dairy when it's green). We had a deal from a local paper that included round/cart/lunch that made it a great value for us.

Food - 3, good selection that was well prepared.

Facilities - 2, most everything was average and dated but was clean. The 2 comes from the range which is in need of being euthanized. At this point mats and a net would be an improvement.

After playing and reading other reviews, I asked the pro about a few items. The range/course have improvements planned. The design which currently has nineteen holes is not going to permanently close any holes, but rather will rotate the old 2nd/10th holes in and out as necessary to accommodate weddings/festivals/concerts/etc. The new par three will be the permanent twelfth and the GHIN machine is set up to recognize the different setups. Sorry, no budging on the prices. Always check golfnow.

The course was not very long, but it had several interesting holes. I had to rely on advice from the players that I was paired with who knew the course. Many holes where you would greatly benefit from local knowledge. Greens were fast, but could have been in better shape. Fairways were suffering from the draught that has plagued the area. Too many tee boxes were unlevel and need to be rebuilt. No beverage cart on the course the day that I played,

Over rated, over priced, too many gimmicky holes, driving range is very substandard, I was very disappointed from the start, I expected a better faculty for what I paid. Even though it's a pretty course I would not recommend it to my friends or fellow golfers. The owner does not have the golfers interest at heart. Staff at the 19th were great, and the only part worthwhile. Last note, the greens were in great shape but doesn't make the entire experience worthwhile, I've played muni's with better facilities and just as good of greens for a fraction of the price.

Fun course with some difficult over water shots. I will definitely be playing this course the next time I'mIin the area.

I have nothing bad to say about Avila. I've been playing here for a while now and am always treated with respect, the staff is efficient and the people who play here are terrific. I never mind being paired up when I play here.