Comments: Played a game at the cart-only Arrowood Golf Course in Oceanside at just past noon on a hot and balmy Saturday with temperatures hovering just over 81 degrees. I was hoping to be impressed by this course which just opened last year after two of my playing partners were able to try out this course a few months back and exclaimed that the greens were in immaculate condition and there was a hole you hit over water into an island. Unfortunately the hot summer and increased traffic to this course has not been too kind to this course overlooking the hills and homes around the No. San Diego County.
The course is located just past the Oceanside Municipal Golf Course with new tract homes lining the streets to the club house. The clubhouse had a nice pro shop with adequately stocked supplies and OEM clubs (Burners, Raptures, Super Quads) available to buy. An afternoon tee time was priced at the regular weekend rate of $85 which includes a golf cart and $5 discount for Southern California residents. If you want to try out this course on the cheap, I suggest the 4:00 p.m. tee time which clocks in the late twilight rate of $30. The heat was bearable only due to the occasional light breeze, but when it died down the sun beat down on you horribly.
Due to the hot weather these last few weeks, there were not a lot of players on the course at high-noon; we had a couple 4-somes moving at a good pace ahead of us and a two-some behind us. So we were able to play at a leisurely pace with a few second tee-offs if they were needed. At the time the course was just being aerated. There were a couple holes where the drive off the tee was blind since the course would wrap up and over a hill.
The greens were in o.k. condition, but the tee boxes were in need of fixing and divots were not fixed on the greens. The rough grass was long and kept you from bombing over them in hopes not to lose your balls into them. There were some challenging fairways, but not too distinct with the “lake” hole the 16th consisted of a pretty large island with ducks and dirty water that you needed to carry on the second shot after your initial drive. I enjoyed the challenging 18th hole with required you to drive your ball over a hill and right before a water hazard to the enclosed green surrounded by 3 bunkers. If you hit a slope and not on the green, the ball will roll into the lake.
While a nice course, with good scenery, I felt that for the cost of playing that the tee boxes, greens should be in better condition or discounted because of the aerating. The course would have been a better value if the fee was at about $65. For the $85 we played I felt the San Juan Hills course in San Juan Capistrano offered more of a challenge with the same layout and yardage type and the Aliso Viejo Golf Course in Aliso Viejo had just a good view of the county, both at relatively the same or lower price. So if you’re looking to play a good course with nice views and not feel like you’ve spent too much, check out Arrowood in the twilight or super-twilight hours.
Score: 2.75 out of 5. Priced a bit too high for my expectations. Too many blind shots that do not challenge but instead infuriate the course layout.
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