Rancho San Marcos Golf Course

We're in a severe drought and RSM gets hit the hardest as they pull their water from wells which are pretty much dry.... So until the rains return the course is at the mercy of the weather. They do keep the greens in perfect condition though and with little play, you probably wont find better greens anywhere.

Upside: Its gorgeous. One of the prettiest courses in the state. There are NO HOUSES. Just views for miles and miles and lots of oak trees and wildlife.

The layout is pretty good except for the finish. There are three par 3's in three holes here for some unknown or stupid reason. Back to back ones and then another one just a hole later - what the heck were they thinking on that? There is plenty of room but for some reason they made it a par 71 with 3 par 3's in 3 holes...

Play it if you can but if you're playing past now (may) you will have brown fairways until the rains return. The good side is that its like your own private course, the bad side is you're going to have hard pan lies.

The wild life was worth the price to play coarse, dear,turkey, turtles and they could all be seen from one of the many 500+ yard tees a great place to spend any day of the week. Thanks for a great experience my wife my self a good friend had a great afternoon.

The title should say it all, there was no grass and the rates are way to high for playing in the dirt and rocks

Because of the DROUGHT in this area the fairways are very thin, but the greens are in excellent condition. This is one of the most beautiful courses I've ever played.

Calif. Has been in a drought but Dont they have sprinklers? And it still doesn't account for a six hour golf round. At the prices they charge-hire a Marshall.

Beautiful day, very good conditions, a great bargain through Golfnow, and I would recommend this cours to all golfers.

The layout is excellent! it is a bit challenging for first timers because the greens are fast and difficult to read. Luckly, I was paired up with local golfers. they gave me a lot of good instructions. Definitely will play this golf course again.

Used to play and practice here frequently but
quit when they raised the range fee to $40.00
It seems management's new business model at
that time was to drive people away. I assume
that worked, but mother nature in the form of a
severe drought really made their dream come
true. I gave it a try the other day. The greens
are perfect, tees good, but fairways burned out
and dry. The recent rain helped but can't make grass grow over night. I still enjoyed myself.
The course is playable, one just has to accept
it as it is. What I noticed most though is
how nice the shop personnel are. I had called
a few days before going and spoke to Josh who told me exactly what to expect condition wise
and Andy who checked me in was most pleasent to deal with. A nice change.

Due to lack of water fairways were mostley bare. Greens were nice and holding. Still had fun.

This course has no grass in any of the fairways, just dirt. The greens look great, but the fairways have not been watered for what looks like two years.After driving two hours to get to the course it was extremely disappointing,this course will not be ready for play for some years and Golfnow should remove it from its listings. The staff did recommend a great alternative, La Purisima Golf Course and it was a lot of fun and very challenging

RSM is under the drought laws so the fairways haven't been watered. They hard firm and fast. This leads to some long drives if you have the room, but club selection is key. I had a 3 wood run out of room at 300 yds.!! Greens are in great shape and the staff is very friendly and accomodating.

Fairways dead due to no water for the course, but the greens were excellent (smooth and fast), so it was still enjoyable, especially with the deeply discounted green fees. Pray for rain!

First time played, didn't know what to expect from view off highway. Due to the drought and not being able to water as much the fairways have gotten dried out, but are still playable for the ball picker. Greens are in very good shape very receptive, true roll, and fast. This is a well designed Jones course with the white sand traps in all the right places. Playing here made this old Wyoming boy feel at home with all the wild life, mountain setting. to the valley river. Staff, food, and club house are the best I've encountered in all the years of coming to Cali. This is a must for any golfer who likes the challenge and the game of golf. (ANY BODY CAN PLAY FROM LUSH GREEN FAIRWAYS BUT IT TAKES A TRUE GOLFER TO PLAY THE GAME WHEN MOTHER NATURE DOESN'T PROVIDE)

First of all, The price was great (GolfNow - $59) and the greens were abive average. The couse layout was fine. But, Dry, Brown, desert-like everywhere! We didn't have time to go anywhere nice (1:45 pm) with just enough time to finish 18 holes. If this course was able to receive a lot of rain and "reseeding & TLC" I've heard it's a very nice course! Well, I won't hold my breath and make this a last choice for now. Club house guy was nice and accomodating. . . Yiu can't drive yourcart to the parking lot. . .kinda a pain!

I blame the drought for the dry conditions, but the beauty of the course continues to exist. Great layout, great staff and the course is very challenging. Can't wait to play it again.

The fairways are dead. No green grass any where. Played of dirt a lot. Drove an hour to scratch up two clubs.

Beautiful Setting but the course fairways have not been watered in months so they are very dry, no green grass. The greens are fast and true.

Although the course is suffering tremendously from the drought, the greens are in excellent shape and challenging. Because the fairways are hard packed, the ball rolls a long way. Sand traps are in excellent shape. The staff is very friendly and accommodating. We enjoy playing this course, and because of the drought conditions, the rates are very good. Very scenic course.

Mother Nature has taken her toll on this course. It hasn't seen water in years and is more like a dirt bowling alley than a golf course. The only grass still living is on the green, which were very nice and challenging. Unfortunately, unless you like golfing on dirt, clay, and hay, this course should be avoided at all costs. That is untill the drought ends. There is great potential there and maybe someday it will be back in shape. Too bad they don't water it more during these down times, but maybe in a few years it will be back in shape once the rain returns.

It was a great Santa Barbara wether to play golf. Extremly friendly personnel in the club house is the only 5 star.
The green is fair, but the condition based on $100 green fee is not worth it. The fairway is the worst, there is no green color period. According to them, because of extreme drought, but it is the worst fairway condition that I ever saw. They should close the golf course, otherwise the golfer will be upset once they get to the golf course, especially tourist. If you are tourist, please never play here at all. Even though discount green fee is cheap, but it will be much better to play in the different golf course.