Ojai Valley Inn

9/2/18

Range grass was mushy wet and uncut, more like rough than fairway. Had to borrow balls from another hitting station. Starter rushed us out to first tee early, only to have play repeatedly slowed by groups ahead. Owing to the native topography, course layout is too hilly to walk, fraught with blind and forced carry shots that made our group's high handicappers grumble, too short to consistently challenge better players, at under 6300 yards; and sadly has too many "so what" holes, including those bordered by on-going construction. Overall, disappointing and certainly not good value for the money, especially in comparison to Ojai's newly revived Soule Park muni, just minutes down the road. Next trip to Ojai, save yourself $100. Skip Ojai Valley CC. Visit Soule instead.

Had a great day even with Labor Day weekend... great course and the staff is the best ever. Golf Now is the best too. I don’t know how you get these great prices at great courses.

Played here with 15 buddies in July. We were offered a great group rate to hold our annual "North/South" match play tournament. I will write a review that gives my honest evaluation of the course and facility:

LAYOUT: tremendous and challenging course that requires a lot of different shots. (great tip: watch the youtube videos that explain how to play each hole--truly helpful). The views are spectacular on many holes. Bring your camera phone.

CONDITIONS: really good. The greens rolled great and the fairways were well maintained (I don't know about the rough because I never hit into it :)). Sand in the bunkers was even and playable.

STAFF: I communicated with Matt Pavin for about 6 weeks ahead of our playing date, and I have to say he was awesome about staying in touch with me as the day approached. He was willing to set up closest to the pins, long drives, and even had scorecards prepared for our matches (with dots for the stroke holes--a nice touch). The valets and bar staff were awesome. If I have one tiny complain it was that we didn't see a beverage cart until the 9th tee (despite calling and asking on the 5th hole). Not a big deal, but when I did see her, she wasn't all that pleasant to our group.

OVERALL: I will definitely return to OVI to replay this great course and want to thank the staff for their personal attention and excellent golf course.

I've played in Ojai quite a bit but wanted to try "The Inn" for the first time while on vacation visiting my family. I was expecting the course to be in much better shape but it was dry with weeds and dead patches on most fairways. For the first several holes there was grounds crew working with power tools on every hole. Whether they were mowing with smaller mowers around the greens, multiple larger mowers on the fairways you're driving onto or using string trimmers on either the cart path or green areas it was just a mess and impossible to concentrate with all the noise and people moving. Once through that it was relatively peaceful for a couple holes until you get through 9 and move to the back. When we arrived on 10 it was a complete joke. This was absolutely the worst experience ever on a golf course and I play a lot of golf. There was a large group (10) of half naked drunk men sitting on the bench on the tee box with their kids running around the area. Not only was this very intimidating but extremely uncomfortable. The threesome two groups in front were with the drunks and everyone was playing on the tee box. At that point they allowed the group in front of me and mine to play through. Now we're teeing off with this loud group mocking and ridiculing us as we're trying to hit the ball. It was an absolute disaster and completely ruined the day. I can't believe a course like this would allow for such behavior. I should have taken my family's advice and played down the road but who would have thought charging so much for a round they would allow such a zoo. Never again will I play this dump.

Enjoyed this resort course despite it being 100 degrees when we played. Pace of play was fantastic for an 8am Sat morning round. Finished in 3.5 hrs. Greens and fairways were in great shape. If you are staying at the OVI this course is a must play. GolfNow has it for cheaper than going through the resort.

It was a beautiful day for golf. We started at 12:25 on the 4th of July, played the blue tees. The starter said the were a few golfers ahead of us and no one scheduled behind us. We had the course to ourselves. The course was in great shape, fairways and rough were well maintained. Greens were well kept and rolled true with some of those gentle breaking putts caused by the rolling greens. Lots of families at the Inn for the holiday. Finished the round in 3 1/2 hours. Both of us had a great time being together. The staff were all very pleasant. If you have never been, you should. A beautiful facility.

I’ve played here maybe a half dozen times in the past twenty years and as usual the golf course didn’t disappoint. The layout is great, a really nice mix of golf.with generous fairways and interesting green complexes. Course conditions, like the weather were near flawless, smooth quick greens and perfect lies in the fairways. I wish I could have stayed another day!

This course hasn’t lost its charm after 94 years. Love the layout, the staff, the surroundings and the challenge. It’s always in good shape and I never tire of bringing new friends to experience the tranquility and old school charm this course has to offer.

Course is not long, but will challenge even the best players. Greens are fast with subtle, hard to read breaks. Lots of elevation changes challenge club selection. Fairways are generous but big misses are severely penalized. Part 3s are challenging with many over 200 yards. If you are a fan of classic designs and want a challenge, this is a course to play.

It is the best experience in the West rod. Every hole is challenging but that is what make it a lot of fun.

Ojai is the best

This classic course is not long but, it requires proper placement off the tee and good approach shots. The greens are in great shape but, have many subtle breaks. The staff is always excellent. They go out of their way to serve and make sure your experience is a good one.

Just love this course! The beauty and serenity and of course the challenge of the course make it a very special destination golf course for me.

I got a hot deal that was $100 off the normal price! This course was super well kept and I finished the round in just 3 hours! They give you the VIP treatment with a valet and also provide fresh fruit from nearby orchards while on the course! I will defygo back to play here the next time I’m in the area.