JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa

Very overpriced for what it is. A very blah and uninspiring and unpicturesque design and course. The conditions were fine. Cart path only due to no rain sucked and slowed pace of play tremendously. Have desperately tried to play the oaks course two different times I have been in town to see if it's way better but haven't been able to get on.

Played the Canyons on a Friday when I was visiting San Antonio. Overall, it was a very nice round. I shipped my clubs, but they were delayed. The pro shop said “we aren’t going to charge you for rentals if they lost your clubs”. I really appreciate their flexibility.

I enjoyed the course. Typical Hill Country layout. You may find a shot that’s well off line, but you probably won’t like it when you find it. Bottom line, near misses are playable, big misses not so much. The course was in very good shape. Fairways provided some roll as well as good lies. Greens were smooth and consistent speed. Only complaint was the insistent sand in some of the bunkers.

Normally, you need to be a member or resort guest to play. My playing partner got us a time and a deal, despite not staying on property. That said. course is still good at the rack rate.

If you are I town and can get on, TPC Canyons is a good option in SAT.

The Good: The Oaks course at TPC San Antonio is the flagship of the two 18-hole designs at the upscale resort community. This Greg Norman & Sergio Garcia collaboration is impeccably conditioned and has more challenging of green complexes that I anticipated, even though I expected them to be tough considering the site hosts an annual PGA Tour event at the Valero Texas Open. Fairly generous off the tee, the Oaks course has greens that repel errant to even just slightly mishit approaches and have sand bunkers that have great depth. Good Par-3 variety and I particularly liked the Par-4’s on the closing nine, several are drivable or require strategic thought. The clubhouse and practice facilities are very impressive, as you would expect for a TPC, and the service throughout the experience was good. Cost for resort and member guests is extremely fair, especially compared to rising golf prices in the area.

The Bad: The front half of the course is fairly forgettable other than the unique Par-3 3rd that has a very long, thin green and a huge sand trap to the right. The newly updated sand traps have very heavy sand, which is great for the experienced professional, but challenging for the average hacker. Pace of play, even on a relatively empty Sunday afternoon, wasn’t great. The routing of the course is odd and is not really walkable.

The Verdict: TPC San Antonio (Oaks) is a very strong addition to the TPC Network and a formidable test for both professionals and amateurs alike. The inward nine is absolutely fantastic and I only wish the front-nine matched its fun-factor and interest. My first and only Texas golf experience was overall a great one!

Best Hole: While everyone raves about the Par-3 16th with the sand trap in the middle of the green (which of course I hit!), I really enjoyed the downhill, short Par-4 11th. You can lay up conservatively to the left of the sand traps but you have a challenging wedge approach, or you can try to get as close to the green as possible that requires carries over a sea of sand.

$500 round with two junior golfers, which is fine but the experience better be worth it!

No beverage cart running in dead of summer. Pro shop didn't know, b/c I asked and they said it was.
Starter failed to mention to load up on drinks.

No water on the course!? In the dead of summer?!

Did not see any staff on the course until #9.
I asked again about beverage cart. He said no and drove off. Didn't offer to get us anything. We paid $500?

Greens were Slow, like 7 on the stimp slow. Course otherwise in good condition.

They sent me a bot survey where I shared the same details and left contact info. No one followed up.

I'll never pay for a round at TPC San Antonio again. Shame, because the Canyons is a good course. The Oaks is so-so, but it was the resort course that day.

Might be time to start staying at La Cantera, shame because some good memories we've had at the JW.

The TPC Oaks remains the best golf course in SA. The course layout and conditions are top notch. Bring your big boy game though, it plays long and difficult. Bunkers are well below the playing surfaces and if you miss greens you will be punished. Pace of play is what you would expect from a major resort/member course...slow. If in town, make this a destination spot. Go play, take your time, enjoy the scenery, be prepared to shoot 5 more than normal and enjoy.

The Oaks is the best course in the city. Be prepared for the best test too. The bunkers are deep, the rough was lush, greens are fast. Beautiful course. Pay, enjoy, but be prepared to shoot 5-10 more than your average. Still, the best course in the city.

First of all, this is not the Oaks and it slightly shows. The property is vastly different. If you’re spraying the ball just a bit, don’t play here. One side of the fairway always plays next to the Canyon. While beautiful, this can create a lot of problems for some amateurs. Bunkering is amazingly done though. Pete Dye is a masterful bunker created and it shows. Somehow, even though holes look like they fall off the map around the green, there is actually tons of room. The greens are smaller especially for a resort type course and have tons of slope in places. Miss, and you will be penalized heavily. Not sure there was a flat lie on the entire course. Conditions were great for mid winter, but this has been a very mild winter and the front of greens were still very soft, no running your ball up to greens. Most greens are highly elevated and found many holes played uphill. Par 3s are spectacular. 16 is beautiful with the scale of the Canyon below. Play the Oaks if you only can play 18 here, but if you want a place to play 36. This one provides beautiful hill country views without the blindness of the La Cantera Palmer. Nice, not sure 150-200 nice, but worth the play if you want something different.

Played this course in November 2018 as I was staying at the resort for work (the resort is fantastic) - was really wanting to play the oaks but they had the course shut down for some work so the canyons it was. The weather was cold and miserable (which I don't take into account in any ratings) but the course was still pretty packed and the play was slow. I was by myself and got paired up with three other guys who were all super nice. The course was very unmemorable and although it was in good condition, I probably wouldn't go back due to the blahnesss of the course and the crazy price. I believe it was around $220 and I would way rather play 3-4 different $80 courses in my own area in Missouri than this course.

The course was in immaculate condition as it had received a bit of rain in the past couple of weeks. Fairways and greens were super green. Although the greens have been aerated a week or so ago, you couldn't notice it at all. Two major cons though: 1) there were no range balls available to practice with which is unsatisfactory for a place like this, and 2) the pace of play was extremely slow and there was no starter on the first tee box which made things even worse

This course is in very nice shape, and it should be for the price you pay. The twilight rate is reasonable, but you are otherwise paying a ridiculous premium because the pros play here. The front 9 is a bit redundant, but the back 9 is interesting and nicely done. The front and back are both quite challenging with tight fairways. Golfers that struggle off the tees are in for a long day. I give this 4 stars but don't recommend to others because of the unreasonable price and the fact that you don't get the views/scenery that you get at some other courses in town (for a much better price).

The Oaks course comes with a steep green fee of 240$ but does not live up to the lofty price. The course is linked to a top notch resort and with it’s more popular big brother course the oaks. The course was designed by Pete Dye so I had high expectations for the Canyons. The course is set in the hill country with beautiful views throughout the course. The course itself is an average layout and doesn’t haven’t anything you haven’t seen before. The most disappointing part of the course was the green speed. They were very slow and I anticipate they were running around an 8 which is way too slow for a course you pay 240$. There is a certain standard for courses linked to a good resort that charge over 100$/round and this certainly did not live up to expectations.

$175 for an average layout in awful condition! Greens riddled with po- Anna grass - couldn’t putt properly. No warning no discount. Bad!

Putting green and chipping green closed - no discount.. no warning.

Pace of play was awful. They allowed 5-somes to play! 5 hour round

Course is quite different from its sister, the Oaks. While the Oaks is quite flat, the Canyons (as it's name implies) is a roller coaster. In January, the conditions were not quite up to TPC quality (the Oaks was tour quality). Compared to Oaks, the course had fewer bunkers, smaller greens and more wind. It was a fun round, but I'd play at the Oaks twice rather than place both courses.

I'm not normally a fan of Norman designed courses, but this is one of his best. He has managed to take a relatively flat piece of terrain and craft an interesting routing. Although this is a PGA tour course, Norman has always left a bailout area for us amateurs so that the course is playable by everyone. Not common to be both a tour and resort course at the same time.. Course is heavily bunkered but the greens are gigantic and relatively flat. Enjoyable.

The Canyons course is less heralded than it's PGA hosting big sister Oaks course, but it's still a fun course to play. Both courses share the same facilities, so it's all top notch. Staff is very friendly, and everything you need for a great golfing experience is right there... good food, good practice facilities, etc.

On this particular day, I started off playing the Oaks course for the third time, but took advantage of favorable replay rates to hop on Canyons for a second 18. I'm really glad we did!

The layout of the course is considerably more open than Oaks. There are fewer trees, fewer bunkers, fewer places to get into trouble... but that's not to say there aren't plenty of those things! I guess I'd say that on Canyons, the course is a little more in front of you, and there aren't as many hazards waiting to sneak up on you. The most obvious difference is the elevation changes are a little more dramatic on Canyons (as the name implies). There are some great hill country views as you make your way around the course.

The back 9 is particularly enjoyable. 12 is a really fun par 5 up a hill. 13 and 16 are cool par 3s. But 18 is my favorite hole. It looks great from the tee box, and is good challenge to end the round.

Conditions at Canyons are very good. I'd say the greenskeeping is less intricate than Oaks.. simpler bunker designs, less variation of rough, less sprawling native areas... but still enjoyable and well maintained.

If I was only able to play one of the TPC San Antonio courses, I'd probably pick Oaks the vast majority of the time. However, I highly recommend this course if A) you are staying at the resort and have time for two rounds, B) you have time for a second 18 after playing Oaks - this course is a good wind down after a tough round, or C) you're not the most skilled/confident golfer and want to have a good time without getting beat up.

As a final note, I just want to again compliment the staff at TPC San Antonio for being extremely friendly and professional. Truly excellent customer service.

The TPC San Antonio Oaks course in my opinion is the best course in San Antonio. I've played every course around the city and this one was my favorite pure golf course. I played a few days after the pros finished at the VTO, so the course conditions were nothing short of perfect. The greens rolled smooth and very quick, every bunker was sanded and in pristine condition, all ponds were full, and every fairway looked great. The course sits in Texas hill country and has some elevation change but isn't gimmicky with the elevations at all. Many holes are framed with beautiful live oaks, bunkers, and rock outcroppings that make them a thing of beauty. The par 3s are strong throughout the course, maybe one of the best collections of them I've played to date. If I am comparing the course to other truly top facilities, I must admit the service was slightly lagging behind them. I've played many places where Valet service was standard, tee times were adhered to strictly by the starter whom normally gives a great overview of the course itself to guests, and the cart girls are ever present. While none of this really is necessary to me and I am splitting hairs between the top facilities, it needs to be mentioned in reviews to stay valid. Still, if given the chance to get a round on this course, I would highly suggest making it a golfing priority. Practice bunker play, chips from tight lies, and play the correct set of tees in order to have a chance at scoring at all here. The course is tough, but sometimes tough can bring out the best. In this case, it brings out the best San Antonio has to offer.

This is an enjoyable strategic course routed wonderfully through hill country. Very fair with great risk reward strategy options. Quite a few long bunkers parallel to fairways typical of Pete Dye. Nice fairway movement and angles. Very nice interesting greens. Misses lead to challenging but not punishing shots. Wind and elevation are factors. Need a cart. My favorite of the San Antonio and Austin area courses.

This is a good course, very well-conditioned, with some quirky/gimmicky features. It rolls through Texas hill country but the elevations are not severe. It has large, deep cavernous bunkers. Greens are fairly large but if you miss them anywhere you are punished. The front 9 is surprisingly fairly plain other than a few quirks like the shared green that wraps around a monstrous bunker. I played a couple of weeks before the Valero tournament so the greens were lightning fast. The back-9 makes good use of the topography and the streams to make a nice-looking course and to make you think through your shot selection.

Our group played from the Tournament tees 6700 yards 72.3/134. Started at 50 degrees and warmed up to 70 degrees with moderate winds that affected shots. First time for me playing at TPC San Antonio. First impression was great seeing Greg Hiller on the instruction tee. Nice to have a former tour player on staff.

The course appears to play short visually but is definitely longer. The course conditions are good. Playing dry and ball is running. Starter told us greens were 12 to 13 on the stimp. They were fast but played true. The green complexes did show Pete Dye bunkering but green size was a moving target. Some very small, some amazingly large. We played on a Monday so the greenskeeper had most pin placements on ridges. Made for some tricky putts.

The layout ran both sides of a gully (Canyon?) that will filled with live oak, wildlife, and cactus. I lost five balls but found a dozen more. The fairways are wide. A few have narrow openings off the tee. Several doglegs offer big hitters a chance to cut corners for easy scoring. The par 3 holes are all exceptional.

I enjoyed the course immensely. It was mostly empty. We did have two member twosomes play through us and we finished our round in slightly over 4 hours.

I look forward to playing the Oaks on my next visit.

It's always fun to play where the pros play. This is a cool layout through the tress and plays fairly difficult. The main defense are the deep green side bunkers, if you miss the green by just a little bit you are most likely in one. The sand was super soft which made them hard to get out of. I played this course in August 2017 through a stay and play package so the rate was pretty cheap, this is definitely not a course worth playing during peak season and peak rates. Definitely better than the Canyons course though.