Renovations Elevate Course
The drive: About 85 miles from downtown L.A.
Address: 39500 Robert Trent Jones Parkway, Murrieta (800) 752-9724.
Rates: $48-$78 (carts included).
Overview: If you haven’t played the SCGA Golf Course in the last six months, you haven’t played the SCGA Golf Course. Six months ago, the course was called the SCGA Members Club. That name was dropped because it insinuated a private course and caused players to overlook it when deciding where to play.
Also, six months ago, the ninth hole didn’t have a big lake on the left side, nor did it have a huge bunker running along the left side of the fairway. The Robert Trent Jones Sr.-designed course has been continually upgraded since the Southern California Golf Assn. purchased it in 1994, and the revamped ninth hole is the final step. The changes have made a wide-open, ho-hum par four into an interesting, challenging par four.
Much of the course is typical Trent Jones Sr.: large greens and even larger bunkers. There are significant elevation changes throughout, highlighted by the par-four third hole, which drops more than 100 feet from tee to fairway. Doglegs, both severe and subtle, frequent the layout and water comes into play on six holes, making the course visually intimidating. The course demands that you drive well because most of the hazards and out-of-bounds come into play off the tee. Missing a few greens here and there won’t hurt as much as missing the fairways.
The course plays longer than the 7,060 yards listed from the back tees because of the elevation changes. Even the 6,724-yard second tees can be too long for anyone who isn’t a single-digit handicap. The greens are severely sloped and several are multi-tiered, so pay attention to pin placements and choose clubs accordingly.
Free tip: The key on this course is to stay patient. If you find yourself struggling to score on the front nine, hang in there. The back nine starts tough with a long par three over water and the 12th is among the most difficult driving holes on the course, but holes 13-17 are where you can make up some strokes and salvage a good round.
Nice touches: The all-grass driving range, also newly redesigned, has a strip of high-tech artificial turf running through it, enabling players to use the range even when the club needs to shut down the grass for regrowth.
Snapshot to remember: The third tee is considered the best view on the course and you can see much of the Temecula Valley from there. There are also good views of the valley from the fairway on No. 1 and the green on No. 8.
-- Peter Yoon