marcwhitehead

I had high expectations of this course, and overall it delivered. The staff were extremely welcoming, the range was right by the pro shop and well stocked with balls, and the practice putting was right beside the first tee - all good indications that they have the golfer in mind. Played in 4.5 hours, which was longer than I expected based on other reviews. The greens were quite firm and ran very fast, which I liked, but they were also very spiked. The fairways were fairly tight, but most of them had hills on either side that funneled slightly miss-hit balls back into play. The carts included GPS and you could drive just about anywhere, which helped with yardages, and in those times when I hit it into the desert scrub, most of it was fairly clean between bushes, making it easy to find and hit your ball. I would recommend this course to others.

As I drove into Rustic Canyon, the course looked flat, with wide fairways that seemed to blend together. I was pleasantly surprised that it played much tougher than it looked. There was a warm, 3 club wind that was a major factor in club selection, and the greens ran so fast that on a few holes the wind could take your ball right off. Several holes had carries off the tee of at least 150, perhaps 200 yards, so you had to make solid contact to avoid the desert scrub. Thankfully I played with a few regulars who offered important tips (the greens break towards the front gate). There wasn’t a Marshall on the course, and we were stuck behind a slow group, so it took far longer to play than it should have - 5 hours, but the beverage cart passed twice on both the front and back, so we were well hydrated in the 90 degree sunny weather. I would play this track again, and recommend it to others.

I knew the price was too low to expect a high end experience. But there are lots of ways you can make up for a course with little grass off the fairways, bare patches on the greens and poorly maintained bunkers. Unfortunately the staff were equally disappointing. The check in was curt and unfriendly, and when I approached the gentleman outside that I assumed was the starter, I was corrected in a manner reserved for rude waiters. First, and last visit to Island West.