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River Course at Alisal
Rating Snapshot
About
The River Course at Alisal enjoys a scenic backdrop provided by the foothills of the beautiful Santa Ynez Mountains. Stands of mature live oaks, native sycamores, and elderberry trees sway against the vivid hues of the mountains. Though scenery abounds, don't get too distracted because the golf course demands a fair amount of attention. It's a challenging but not punishing layout that features a variety of hazards that will reward length and accuracy. Seemingly wide fairways are bordered by mounding and the large greens have subtle but tricky undulations. One of the toughest holes is the par-4 seventh, which has a challenge waiting for you everywhere you look. A beautiful vineyard runs the length of the hole on one side and on the other, there is a lake that runs all the way up to the green.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 72 | 6830 yards | 72.7 | 125 |
| Blue | 72 | 6451 yards | 70.9 | 121 |
| White | 72 | 6099 yards | 69.5 | 118 |
| White (W) | 72 | 6099 yards | 75.7 | 132 |
| Red (W) | 72 | 5710 yards | 73.8 | 128 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold M: 73.0/128 W: 80.2/139 | 570 | 385 | 420 | 227 | 580 | 396 | 437 | 357 | 173 | 3545 | 428 | 538 | 147 | 393 | 521 | 353 | 398 | 128 | 451 | 3357 | 6902 |
| Blue M: 70.9/123 W: 77.7/134 | 558 | 366 | 398 | 201 | 560 | 376 | 405 | 332 | 151 | 3347 | 408 | 524 | 135 | 357 | 494 | 331 | 369 | 115 | 373 | 3106 | 6453 |
| White M: 69.4/119 W: 75.7/130 | 524 | 350 | 380 | 182 | 550 | 356 | 396 | 311 | 131 | 3180 | 398 | 464 | 125 | 340 | 481 | 313 | 358 | 95 | 354 | 2928 | 6108 |
| Red M: 67.3/114 W: 73.2/125 | 458 | 336 | 367 | 136 | 511 | 338 | 377 | 299 | 123 | 2945 | 381 | 450 | 108 | 323 | 471 | 251 | 343 | 80 | 309 | 2716 | 5661 |
| Handicap | 13 | 11 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 15 | 17 | 2 | 14 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 16 | 12 | |||
| Par | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 36 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Handicap (W) | 7 | 9 | 5 | 15 | 3 | 11 | 1 | 13 | 17 | 2 | 10 | 16 | 8 | 4 | 14 | 6 | 18 | 12 |
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Reviews
Reviewer Photos
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Photo submitted by u217656252 on 12/05/2025
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1st tee from the tips Photo submitted by RichMini2 on 04/04/2022
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Photo submitted by chrisleduc on 04/01/2021
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Vineyards and fairways Photo submitted by Robstnr on 06/15/2015
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View from the 1st tee !!! Photo submitted by Zimbotrini on 04/21/2015
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Photo submitted by Zimbotrini on 04/21/2015
The total package
Great course, great conditions top notch staff. The river course is a cool layout with winding fairways, water and wonderful views of the Santa ynez Hills. Gotta be accurate off the tee as there are some tight tree lined passages to navigate. Make sure to stay for lunch as the steak tacos are amazing. Seriously.
this course is nestled in a valley with fairly flat terrain
The River course at Allisal Ranch is a very nice course. It is lined on the fairways with Sycamore tress. they can be troublesome at times. very scenic outlay. The course has fairly flat greens. nice fairway grasses and the tee boxes are nicely done. best to go in the morning early, because it can get hot and windy.
Great Course, Bad Service
Found a great deal to play some golf on Saturday morning (Golfnow Hot Deal) and really enjoyed the round. The course was a great shape and the pace of play was excellent. The deal was great but even for the standard rate on Golfnow, you would get good value for your money.
The experience with the staff was a bit poor. Prior to the round, found out a good friend was going to be attending the same wedding and called the Pro Shop to see if they could accommodate us adding another (we were a twosome) or moving us around to find space. There was zero effort to help us out and basically told tough luck. When we get to the course, it's an absolute gong show off the first tee (I was given the impression on the phone that they run a tight ship, obviously not the case) and we ended up playing as a twosome. Clearly would not have been a problem to accommodate us adding another and it ended up being a lost opportunity to play a round with a friend who lives across the country.
The customer service aside, the course was fun, challenging and in great shape. Definitely recommend it but just don't expect any willingness to accommodate you as a guest.
Beautiful day
WOW, What fun my friend and I had. 18 holes, beautiful scenery, absolutely no one around, large wide fairways. Be sure to bring snacks / drinks with you, we found out a little late after 2 everything is closed. Come prepared
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Wonderful Time
What a lovely get away place to spend a day. Looks like some where from a movie like Darby oh gill and the little people. Wow what a view each hole has. Just good for the soul.
First Time
simply beautiful. Great facility, great views and great weather. a must play when visiting the central coast!!
ALISAL
grenns were aerated, we were not made aware of this until we got to the 1st green. practice driving range very poor, ground not flat or have much grass. limited hitting area.
chipping area very limited. putting green good!
Great Day
7:20 tee off. Finished by 11. Greens recently punch
Well maintained even after the rain!
Fun course with some challenging holes. The only drawback is the poor layout in some areas. But, we'll be back to play again.
Wonderful course
Everything about this facility is first class. The people are great. Very good course for ladies. Forward tees are not intimidating. My wife had an excellent time.
Great course overall. Had a great time and there was almost no one there on a Saturday.
Fantastic course for the deal we got! There was literally probably only 4 other carts that we saw all day on a Saturday! Great time!
Excellent course conditions!!!
Beautiful course surroundings. Greens moderate speed in great condition. The whole course was in great shape and staff was friendly and professional! Would recommend this course to anyone who likes golf.
This is a very playable course for most regular golfers.
We have been to Solvang many times but never played the Alisal courses because the cost is typically pretty high. But, through Golf Now, we secured a very reasonable rate, so we booked a time mid-morning. The staff was very nice and told us to go out whenever we were ready. We followed two five-somes, which was the only negative aspect, but the players were very nice and told us to play on through if we wanted. We would play this course again when we return to Solvang and would recommend it to others.
Great shape.
I got there at 7:15 on a Saturday morning for a 7:40 tee time. Hardly anyone there. I was a single and ended up playing with 3 locals. Had a great time. Walked in less than 4 1/2 hours and never waited.
First Time at the River Course
Excellent facility. Did not try the food but it did smell and look good. Staff were friendly! Class act compared to most courses. Loved the grass and the greens. Well maintained facility.
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this review tells me nothing about the course... not very helpful.