Coyote Hills Golf Course
Address: 1440 East Bastanchury, Fullerton.
Phone: (714) 672-6800.
Green fees: $50-85 (cart included).
Tee times: Seven days (additional fee for more than seven days).
The facility: Built on hilly terrain owned by Unocal, the high-end course features a mix of barrancas, a running stream, repeated elevation changes, quality course design and condition, natural habitat for the gnatcatcher songbird and 14 still-functioning oil wells thrown in. Expansive clubhouse and practice areas.
The good: Exceptional variety. No two holes are alike, the Bermuda fairways are excellent and bentgrass greens very true. All holes are well bunkered from tee to green and many offer dramatic tee shots, particularly No. 7 with the tee box 150 feet above the fairway. Kind of like driving from the roof of a penthouse. The back nine has a stream running throughout. Free range balls with your round.
The bad: Not much, unless you’re a free-swinging gorilla who cares more about distance than accuracy. If so, you’ll find many of your tee shots sleeping with the gnatcatchers or rattlesnakes--particularly on the extremely tight No. 11.
The score: Employees take your clubs from car to cart in this full-service operation. Opened in May of 1996, this is a first-rate facility. A demanding, tight layout. The longest of five sets of tees is 6,510 yards, but don’t even think about playing from the tips unless you’re a single-digit handicapper. Fairways have just been overseeded for the winter, so carts will have to remain on paths temporarily. Soft spikes required.
Overall rating: 3 1/2 balls.
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* One ball: No-frills golf.
** Two balls: Worth an occasional round.
*** Three balls: Like shooting four strokes under your handicap.
**** Four balls: Where the golf gods play.
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Hole Back Tees Middle Tees Par Front Tees 1 381 351 4 343 2 354 314 4 302 3 146 120 3 103 4 377 333 4 329 5 348 337 4 312 6 336 327 4 300 7 381 361 4 309 8 184 178 3 161 9 377 349 4 320 Out 2,884 2,670 34 2,479 10 370 334 4 305 11 465 426 5 390 12 383 377 4 346 13 365 359 4 326 14 188 161 3 129 15 487 478 5 435 16 329 323 4 293 17 143 121 3 93 18 393 369 4 346 In 3,123 2,948 36 2,663 Total 6,007 5,618 70 5,142
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Rating/Slope: Black--68.6/120, Middle--66.5/113, Front--64.2/108, Women’s--65.0/115
