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El Dorado at Quail Valley Golf Course
Rating Snapshot
About
Developers eventually had their way with this cow pasture on the fringe of Houston. Loaded with native pecans and oaks and supplemented with even more transplanted trees, the terrain is ideal for golf, with two creeks and five natural lakes on the property. In fact, it's good enough to host the PGA Tour's Houston Open in 1973 and 1974.
The traditional El Dorado Course plays to a par 70 and features five par 3s that go 190-yards-plus from the tips. Jay Riviere designed the back nine.
Jeff Blume managed the redesign and complete renovation of the El Dorado Course in 2009.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 71 | 6931 yards | 74.6 | 138 |
| Blue | 71 | 6552 yards | 72.8 | 135 |
| White | 71 | 6146 yards | 71.0 | 128 |
| Gold | 71 | 5685 yards | 68.7 | 122 |
| Gold (W) | 71 | 5685 yards | 73.8 | 136 |
| Red (W) | 71 | 5100 yards | 70.7 | 123 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black M: 74.6/138 | 526 | 201 | 425 | 403 | 399 | 222 | 578 | 211 | 397 | 3362 | 516 | 222 | 404 | 412 | 224 | 401 | 403 | 399 | 588 | 3569 | 6931 |
| Blue M: 72.8/135 | 515 | 151 | 406 | 378 | 383 | 198 | 552 | 195 | 372 | 3150 | 499 | 204 | 388 | 398 | 208 | 382 | 377 | 385 | 561 | 3402 | 6552 |
| White M: 71.0/128 | 505 | 143 | 374 | 352 | 347 | 187 | 533 | 178 | 358 | 2977 | 484 | 191 | 360 | 372 | 184 | 362 | 342 | 350 | 524 | 3169 | 6146 |
| Gold M: 68.7/122 W: 73.8/136 | 462 | 129 | 352 | 304 | 322 | 170 | 522 | 155 | 339 | 2755 | 468 | 173 | 339 | 355 | 154 | 350 | 320 | 321 | 450 | 2930 | 5685 |
| Red M: 66.3/117 W: 70.7/123 | 420 | 107 | 329 | 261 | 298 | 147 | 463 | 127 | 311 | 2463 | 427 | 148 | 303 | 323 | 115 | 336 | 297 | 264 | 424 | 2637 | 5100 |
| Handicap | 5 | 13 | 7 | 9 | 1 | 17 | 3 | 15 | 11 | 8 | 18 | 14 | 6 | 16 | 4 | 10 | 2 | 12 | |||
| Par | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 35 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 36 | 71 |
| Handicap (W) | 5 | 17 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 15 | 3 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 16 | 14 | 4 | 18 | 10 | 12 | 2 | 6 |
Hot Deals at Quail Valley Golf Club - El Dorado
1-2
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Golf Advisor: Top Courses in Texas (2022 #22)
Reviews
Reviewer Photos
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Photo submitted by u000003288063 on 10/22/2025
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Weather beautiful Photo submitted by u000003288063 on 10/22/2025
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Conditions great Photo submitted by u000003288063 on 10/22/2025
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Photo submitted by Houston2020 on 09/27/2025
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Photo submitted by Houston2020 on 09/27/2025
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Photo submitted by 18Hdotorg on 05/30/2022
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Photo submitted by afmarko99 on 09/19/2020
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Photo submitted by caddyshack79 on 07/06/2020
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Photo submitted by Floyd600 on 04/08/2020
First Time Here
It was my first time on El Dorado. I would recommend it to any golfer wanting a somewhat challenging course. It does have water and lots of sand, both fairway and greenside. I believe it was the site of the 1973 Houston Open.
Thank you for the compliments and we apologize you missed the bathrooms/water-fountains on holes 5, 10, 13, 16. Hope to have you back in a less stressful weather season.
It was my first time there and here were my first impressions:
Goods:
-Very very friendly staff. They were so nice in particular the front desk and the drink cart lady.
-The back 9 was in good condition and had well designed holes.
Bad:
-I don't recall if it just rained or not, but the front 9 was terrible. The condition was so bad (i.e. I couldnt tell the fairway from the rough, the greens had so many ball marks and a couple had fungus growing on them, etc). The scenery felt like I was going through a swamp and there was nothing pleasant to look at.
-There were not water coolers, except one at the turn. I just moved back to Houston, but I was fortunate to play a lot of courses here and this course was the very first one with only one water cooler. I cant even imagine trying to play in Houston heat without water, but I will that to business strategy to get people to buy more drinks from the cart.
Overall, it was a decent experience, but the front 9 is was really affected this rating.
We'd like to earn another 1-2 stars. Any additional feedback is appreciated. Hope to have you back.
Thank you!
Great value
Good conditions for the winter. Greens good, traps not.
.
Thank you. It's been tough weather (up and down) yet again this year. We're working hard on the greens but the rain keeps beating up the bunkers. We're on it though! Thanks again.
Eldorado has many challenging features.
Had a super time playing this course. Will play again.
We're doing our best to help everyone have out here. Thank you and we'll see you again.
This is an interesting course
Enjoyed the course. It was very windy which made it more challenging.
Thank you Carolyn. The wind can make El Dorado a brute on the par-3s. Glad you enjoyed it and hope to have you back on a less-windy day.
Excellent
A great value and venue for public play. I play there regularly and highly recommend.
Thank you very much! If there is every anything we can do for you please don't hesitate to let us know.
Thank you for the rating. Hope to have you back from NOLA and earn that 5th star.
Waited so much remember cart more than course
Every par three seemed to be the same club. Greens not consistent. One par 5 has water across fairway and no way to see it. I complained tired of watching group in front tee off, very soon was watching them tee off too. Marshall said problem was several groups up but nothing he could do. I suggested that he ask them to skip a hole. He said he couldn't do that. Reminded me of commercial where bank is being robbed and security says he is just there to let them know not do anything. Watched scores on phone as much as played golf. Cheap rate on Golfnow or would have been really annoyed.
Weekends, especially around the holidays, are extremely busy, so we apologize for the pace of play. We do our best to move things along without affecting their day out. Hope we can have you back.
really nice layout
got a great price had to play other wise I think it is a little over price but it is a nice course
Thank you. We're the popular venue and consistently rated a top-value, so we hope you can make it back. If there is anything we can do to help you have fun and enjoy your play here a little more, please don't hesitate to inquire with management.
slow play took almost 5 hrs to play.
always slow play , marshals?
We apologize for the slow play last Sunday. The recent fall weather has packed the courses on weekends even more. Our team of course attendants hustle to try and encourage ready golf, so we hope you make it back to play Quail Valley again.
Enjoyable Golf Experience
Really enjoyed the course! Would play again without hesitation.
Thank you Tom. We look forward to having you back again.
10/8/16
Overpriced for the quantity of layout. Enjoyable but not a must play venue.
4-stars is pretty good. Thank you. We'd like to think the El Dorado course layout as well as the course conditions are some of the best on the SW side of Houston.
Earned It's Recommendation
Quite a variety of layouts. Lots of water and fairway bunkers in play. Choose your tees wisely. Some long carries over water if you challenge from the back tees. I agree that having carry distances over water and to fairway hazards would be a big plus. The course was really in great shape, especially given that it had rained some every day for a week.
This course puts a premium on well placed tee shots on many of the holes.
The range was closed due to the rain, but we did do some chipping and putting before heading out. I must say that the practice facility wasn't kept up as well as the course, but the potential is really there with a little TLC.
Thank you Mark. We are addressing the driving range after a season of big events. Hopefully we can earn that 5th star on your next visit.
Good Experience
This course is much better than La Quinta. More challenging and better pace of play. I enjoyed my time here.
Glad you enjoyed yourself here. I'll goal is to help everyone have fun. Regarding the 2 courses, we'd like to think that they are just different. People tend to love one or other for different reasons. Being an 'old scholl' course, La Quinta is more forgiving off the tee but with tougher, elevated greens while El Dorado is a modern, rolling golf course that can be visually intimidating. Either way, hope you come back again. Thank you.
Fun at the Golf Course
My golf buddy and I enjoyed a relaxing round. Though the greens had been recently aerated the were in good condition. We found the course to be very playable and challenging. Can't wait to return!
Thank you John.We look forward to having you back for another day of fun out here at Quail Valley.
Fantastic course but bring your own water!
This is one of the nicest courses I have played but we were all very shocked by the fact that there were not coolers of cold water around the golf course. I believe there were three or four elementary school type water fountains. Not nearly enough to keep you hydrated during the hot summer and we play on the hottest days of the year. I was tempted to drink out of one of the ponds at one point in the round and we all left lightheaded.
We know summer can be a brute, so we have ice, cups and water available in the clubhouse for the start and end of the round. Also there is water on the 5th hole, ice/water at the turn-house after #9 (a little hidden - we apologize), water on #13 and #16. Also have a beverage cart that runs but can get caught up on busy days. Apologize that wasn't enough for you but hope you come back out.
Nice course with tight fairways
We had a foursome tee off saturday morning and it was each of our first times playing. There is alot of water on many holes and the fairways were in great shape. the greens were firm and rolled pretty well. The course was in great shape and we will be back
Fantastic. Thank you and we look forward to having you back.
Great course
Great place to play anytime
Thank you... come back out anytime!
The Quarry Stay & Play Package
JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa Stay & Play Package
Thank you... and indeed Quail Valley hosted the Houston Open for a couple years. The routing back then including 9 holes from the La Quinta golf course and 9 holes from the El Dorado golf course.