This time around we are giving away a free Swing Whistle golf swing training aid. More information about the product can be found here – www.swingwhistle.com.
To enter please submit the form below. Please be assured that your info will not be shared and you will receive no junk mail.
The competition closes at noon PST on Sunday July 14, 2013. Winner will be drawn at random and announced later that day. One entry per person please.
Note – this is for USA residents only, I can not ship internationally.
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We did the random draw earlier today and the winner was Michelle from Woodland Hills.
Congratulations and your glove is on its way to you. Thank you for all of those who entered. Check back soon for our next giveaway.
3600 W Ramona Blvd Monterey Park, CA 91754 (323) 266-4632
Hours: M-F 6.30am-11pm (closes at 10pm on Sunday’s and Holiday’s
Small bucket (45 balls): $4 Medium bucket (85 balls): $6 Large bucket (120 balls): $8
The Monterey Park driving range is located off the 10 freeway, where the 10 meets the 710. The range is adjacent to the 9 hole executive golf course. There is adequate parking, however note on Friday and Saturday evenings parking can be tough as it is next to the Luminaris restaurant.
The range is of good size about 250 yards to the back fence and pretty wide. There are yardage markers spread throughout. There are 37 stalls and whenever I have been there has been at least half vacant and available to use. You hit off mats and the mats seem to be in good shape. Note that no plastic tees are provided. You have to buy one or bring your own. The facility itself is overall in very good condition. There is one swing analyzing machine where you can pay and record your swing. Similar to what is at the Harding driving range at Griffith Park.
Putting green
The rates here are very reasonable and the balls are decent quality. They seem to collect the balls from the hitting area regularly also. In addition to the driving range there is a small putting green. There is no chipping area however. From my travels this range seems to be one of the better in the Los Angeles area.
NOTE: As published earlier this week in the Pasadena Star News, the course has new ownership. They are renovating the practice facility areas and club shop later this year. I will return and do a new review once the renovations are complete.
Having played 25+ golf courses on a regular basis in the Los Angeles area I consider myself somewhat of a subject matter expert. I was approached by a reporter from the Pasadena Star News earlier today regarding my experiences at Monterey Park Golf Course.
Below is a link to the article. It will also be in tomorrow’s print version (Wednesday July, 10). Shame they did not mention the website directly.
Hours: 6am-10pm Green fees: M-F $10.50 (residents $8); Weekends $13 (residents $10) Pico Rivera is south east of downtown Los Angeles and located just off the 605 Freeway – Beverly Blvd. Exit. It is a 9 hole executive golf course with two short par 4 holes. The course was opened in 1965, but went through a renovation in January 2012. In the golfing complex is also a putting green and driving range. There is also a small club house with a bar at the golf course. The course has lights throughout the 9 holes, thus enabling play until 10pm each day. The last tee time is 8pm. This is another of those small golf courses in Los Angeles County which is not widely publicized. If you live outside the Pico Rivera area you probably will not know about it’s existence. It is advisable to call in advance and book a tee time. We played on a Saturday morning and it was extremely busy. We had to wait about 10 minutes past tee time to get started. After which there was very slow play and delays at almost every hole. It took 3 full hours to play 9 holes! Not good.
The course is well laid out and has a nice flow to it. You have to tee off from mats and no plastic tee’s are provided. The par 3 holes were pretty long for a 9 hole executive course – each being around the 150 yard mark. This is not a course to play if you are a complete novice, but a good progression before you hit the full 18 hole, par 72’s. The standout holes were 6 and 8 and 9. Hole 6 is a 161 yard hole where you have to hit over a ravine. In the background is some kind of reservoir gate which has interesting architecture. Then hole 8 is a dog-leg right short par 4. You tee off, then your next shot is 90 degrees right over a small lake. If playing there for the first time it is a little tricky to know where to go, as hole 9 green looks like it is in play also. There is no signage or direction. Water comes into play on holes 8 and 9 and there are a few bunkers spread out throughout the course. Hole 9 is a straight par 3, but with two small ponds (with fish in) in front of it. So if you hit short you are going to be in trouble.
Each hole has a nice ball cleaner and a bench by the tee box. Also several tee boxes have water dispensers and paper cups. After the 4th hole, there is a little drinks/ snack cart. Where they also sell bottles of beer. The course condition was above average, but not excellent. The greens were large and again above-average. As with some of the other courses which we have recently played the grass is very dry and the ground is hard. Also there are power lines running straight down the middle of the course, so on some holes you hit the crackling/ buzzing of the power lines above your head. The starter is friendly and there is a little pro shop on site. Although the course was above-average, it is marked down overall due to the amount of people and slow play. Richie says… “Nice course, but too busy. 3 hours to play 9 holes of par 29 is way too long.” Chris says… “Course was generic, played courses like this before. Big greens, big crowds. 3 hours to play 9 holes – I don’t think so!”
Albino says…“I don’t like the vibe here. Plus you can not get in the rhythm with your shots and stay loose as you have to wait to play each hole.”
537 N Western Ave Los Angeles, CA90004 (323) 466-1131
Hours: M-F 7am-9pm, weekends 10am-6pm
Pricing: $15 for day pass $60-90 for monthly passes
Outside of range
I have driven past this place many times and finally stopped by to check it out. The Western Golf College and Driving Range is located on Western Ave, between Beverly and Melrose. The parking situation is tough. They have a tiny lot (may be 6 parking spaces) and there is limited street parking. If you plan on visiting here be sure to avoid rush-hour traffic times as this part of the city gets crazy.
This is a tiny (in terms on length) practice facility. There are about 15 stalls and the range is about 20 yards long. The inside reminded me of indoor batting cages. I am personally a visual person and like to see the flight of my ball and where it ends up. If you are not concerned with that and can determine the quality of your hit by touch then this driving range will work for you. The range seemed to be in nice condition inside and the balls seemed to be of good condition. There is no putting green located at this facility or anything other than the driving range itself.
I was greeted by the local pro (Wilson Kang), who gave me his business card. He is a South America Tour Player. He was very friendly and spoke in detail about the pricing. Basically you don’t buy a bucket of balls, you buy a day pass. This is $15. Then they have three monthly pass programs. The first is $60 and with this you have to select an hour block of time – i.e. 7am-8am. You are then only allowed to use the facility between those times each day. The second option is $90. This gives you a set 5 hour window in which you can practice each day. Giving you slightly more flexibility than the first option. For $140 a month you can practice at anytime with no restrictions.
If you plan on practicing frequently, this range costs a lot less than Aroma down the street. I think that Western Golf could be a good neighborhood spot to practice your golf if you live in the local Korean community. If you like the traditional style range and watching your balls fly, the nearest outdoor 250+ yard ranges in the area would be Monterey Park or may be Rancho Park.
As part of Red Bull Capital Drive, 2010 PGA tour Rookie of the Year Rickie Fowler hit a hole in one from an elevated tee box, without a sight line, at a man-made hole constructed for him at Washington Harbor at the Georgetown Waterfront.
Leading into the 2011 US Open, the man-made 106-yard hole tested Fowler’s precise shot-making skills, surrounded by fans, buildings and a narrow fairway leading to a fountain hole with the Potomac River as a backdrop and winds swirling. Fowler’s shots had to go over a fountain hazard – and into an island green placed in another fountain.
Claremont golf course is a 9 hole executive golf course off the 210 freeway at the start of the Inland Empire. It is about 20 minutes drive east of Pasadena (depending on traffic). We exited Towne St and once at the course there is a large free parking lot. The course itself has five par 3’s and four par 4 holes making a 9 hole par 31. The first three holes are very hilly and you have to walk up some steep inclines between the holes which can be a challenge if you have a pull/ push cart. There is no water on the course and only a few green-side bunkers spread thinly throughout the course. There are a lot of large trees on the course which come into play. The holes on the course are generally narrow and you have to be accurate in your drives in order to post a decent score.
There are a couple of standout holes. Hole 6 is a long 426 yard sharp dog leg left. You have to hit a good tee shot to be in position to hit your 2nd shot to the green. Hole 9 is a short 99 yard par 3. You hit from the top off a hill and the green is about 50-70 yards below you (similar to hole 3 at Monterey Park). We were surprised at hole 3 as if you hit off the men’s tee you hit blindly onto the green. The green is a lot higher and out of sight. It is kind of dangerous as you can not tell if the group ahead of you is finished on the green or not. The course condition was bad. The grass is way to long on the fairways and the tee box. The tee boxes resemble hitting out of the thick rough. Also there are large patches of grass which needs re-seeding or worked on. It is unusal to see in the spring as normally the courses in the area are all prepped and ready for the busy summer months. The greens were in decent to average condition. They ran quite slow. The greens were very undulated and there were not many flat putts, which made it challenging.
When we arrived we asked for a cart. We were told we could not have one as we were under 60 years old. The starter was also unfriendly. My golfing partner mentioned that he had a bad leg, but he was still denied. We noticed further around the course that both groups behind us had carts. One guy was about 40 and the other group comprised of three guys in their 20’s messing around. There is a driving range and putting green at this location also. The driving range didn’t look that good. The balls looked old and the hitting surface was sandy like John Wells in North Hollywood. If you do decide to play here check out the Southland Golf magazine or the course’s website. They often have promos going on, like 2 for 1 green fees.
Richie says… “This is not somewhere I would play again. The staff were not friendly and the course condition is bad for what the green fees are. Also as it is located in the IE, it gets hot! We played at the start of June and it was 98 in the shade.” Chris says… “I know that the course can not help the weather – it was hot! It can however help the condition of the fairways and tee boxes; overgrown and patchy grass throughout. Overall a challenging course, but I wouldn’t play here again.”
Here is our next giveaway. It is basically a pronged piece of plastic which clips onto the end of your putter grip. When you sink your putt, you simply turn your putter upside down and stick the prongs onto the ball. You can then pick up the ball without having to bend over and reaching into the hole – saves the back! It will fit a standard size putter grip, but not those huge ones (like SuperStroke).
We recently played a round with someone who was using one of these gadgets and it worked great. Competition closes at noon PST on Sunday June 30 2013. Winner will be drawn at random and announced later that day. One entry per person please.
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We did the random draw earlier today and the winner was John from Koreatown.
Congratulations and the ball picker-upper is on its way to you. Thank you for all of those who entered. Check back soon for our next giveaway.
