980 Madera Rd
Simi Valley, CA  93065
(805)581-2662

Hours: 7am to 7pm
Green fees: $10, $12 on weekend 

This week we decided to take a road trip and headed to the Sinaloa par 3 golf course in Simi Valley. Simi Valley is about an hour drive north of downtown Los Angeles (with no traffic). The course is located south of the 118 freeway, Madera Rd exit. Just follow signs for the Reagan Library once you exit the freeway.

 
This course was a good find. It was not really that well known about. I stumbled upon it while searching the depths of the internet. I didn’t have much expectations, but the course was really nice and we enjoyed our round. When we paid and got the scorecard we noticed hole names on the card. We asked the starter and he explained that each hole was a replica of a real famous par 3 in world golf. They include shorter versions of the 12th at Augusta National and the 10th at Riviera.

The course was super quiet. The parking lot was basically empty with just a few people on the range and out on the course. We went on a Sunday morning at 10am. We walked right on and played. There was really minimal delays/ wait on the course and we completed our round in an hour and a half.

The course was in decent above-average condition. However the grass needs watering and replacing/ repairing around the tee boxes. The greens however were superb. Immaculate condition and super fast running. In fact I would say the greens are probably the nicest we have placed in the LA area on a par 3 course. The greens were good size, but hard to keep the ball on due to the speed. The course is wide open with holes close together. There were really few trees and the holes were not divided with trees, like you find with many par 3 courses in the area. There was a water station on the 8th tee box, but only two ball washers on the whole course.

Sialoa had a lot of bunkers and there was water behind the back of the 9th green. Some of the bunkers are very deep with steep sides (links style). It was fun, yet a challenge to play. I would recommend that you have at least some minor golfing ability to play here. If you have never really swung a golf club much and looking to start, I would recommend you try somewhere simpler like De Bell par 3 first to get your feet wet.

The highlight of the course for me was the 6th hole. You have to walk up a path to an elevated green. You tee off about 30ft higher than the green and it is a short 87 yard hole. It is a copy of the 11th hole (called Eden) at the Old Courss, St. Andrews. It was a lot of fun and probably in the top 5, or possible top 3 of holes I have played in Los Angeles.

Richie says… “A nice surprise. A really enjoyable and fun course to play. I love how quiet it was and the fact that they tried to model real classic golf holes. I would certainly play here again.”

Chris says… “Overall I liked the course. Usually I do not like wide open courses. I like courses which have natural boundaries like trees or even fences. But overall a good course. The 6th hole is one of the best par 3 holes I have ever played”.

Hole by Hole

Hole 1 – 100 yards

Hole 2 – 95 yards (10th at Rivera)

Hole 3 – 137 yards

Hole 4 – 130 yards

Hole 5  – 135 yards (12th Augusta)

Hole 5 – green

Hole 6 – 87 yards (11th at St. Andrews)

Hole 7 – 107 yards

Hole 8 – 132 yards

Hole 8 – green (bunkers are to the left and right of green)

Hole 9 – 165 yards (water directly behind green)

16449 Piuma Ave
Cerritos, CA90703
(562) 916-8400

Iron wood is a 9 hole executive golf course. It is public and operated by the City of Cerritos. The course is located just off the 605 at Alondra. I called in advanced and was advised to book a tee time, which I did. The course has a driving range and a small restaurant on site.

 

Hole 9 -151 yards

The course is nicely laid out and has a fun course design. There is water in the middle of the course which affects holes 2, 8 and 9. The show piece of the course is hole 9 which is a par 3 almost surrounded by water. On the course are two par 4’s at 272 and 316 yards respectively. Every hole has bunkers and trees in play which add to the challenge of the course.

Green at hole 2

The course condition is good, but not excellent. When we played several of the tee boxes were closed for maintenance. As you can see on some of the pictures and videos below of the various holes there is some work needed on the grass. The greens are large and run well. They are in good condition with not a lot of pitch marks and divots associated with many of the par 3 and executive courses. The greens are those with the aeration holes in. Not my favorite, but I guess it works. 

Play was kind of slow. We started right on our start time, but we were behind a pair who were really slow. Every hole they were setting up cameras to record their swings and it just led to a back up. By the time we has gotten to hole 5 play had got a lot quicker.

Overall this was an enjoyable course to play. Plenty of variation and challenges. I would put it in the top 5 of courses in the LA and Orange County area.

Richie says… “Really nicely designed course. It has it all – sand, water, par 4’s. If you have a couple of hours spare and do not want to play an 18 hole (par 72) golf course I would recommend Iron-Wood.”

Chris says… “Course was ok. It is far, but if I was in the area I would play it again. But otherwise I wouldn’t. If you live around there good course, but it is a little expensive. If you don’t live around there I would say it is not worth the drive.”

Hole by Hole

Hole 1 – 111 yards

Hole 2 – 272 yards

Hole 3 – 133 yards

Hole 4 – 316 yards

Hole 5 – 100 yards

Hole 6 – 140 yards

Hole 7 – 134 yards

Hole 8 – 111 yards

Hole 9 – 151 yards

6550 Odessa Ave
Van Nuys, CA  91406

(818) 785-8871

9 holes (par 30)
Yardage: 1,574 yards
Hours: 6am-10pm
Green fees: $13, $17 on weekends and holidays

This course is located in Lake Balboa by the Van Nuys Whiteman airport. In fact it is right in the flight path and you can see small aircraft flying over (as you can see in the picture above). The golf course complex comprises of a 18 hole par 3 course, an executive course and a driving range. This review focuses on the 9 hole executive course.

Hole 5 – 283 yards (par 4)

I really enjoyed playing this course. 9 holes, 3 of which are relatively short par 4’s in the 270-300 yard range. The holes have plenty of variation. There are a few trees and bunkers spread throughout. In the middle of the course there is a large concrete area, which appears to have been previously filled with water.

The condition of the course is decent and so to are the greens. They are in fair condition, but you still see the odd hole and divot in them. The greens are nice and big – full sized. 

I am not so sure about the maintenance workers on this course. On one occasion they were changing the pin positions while we were playing. I would have thought that this would have been done at the start or end of the day’s play. On one par 4 hole (hole 6) we had taken our first shot. We were walking to take our second into the green and here came a golf cart with a golf course worker. He pulled out the flag, dug a new hole and placed the flag in a different location in the green. This all after we had already started to play the hole!

This course is also the site of one of our most memorable rounds. We were partnered with a partially blind 95 year old World War 2 veteran, Dave. It was a privilege to play with him. As Dave was partially blind we assisted him with finding his ball after he hit it. Despite being 95, partially blind and showing up with a bunch of 50 year old clubs, he shot a way better score than either Chris or I.

Richie says… “Nice big greens, and some long holes where you can get the big stick out. I enjoyed this course. It is like playing a standard par 72 course just on a smaller scale and in much less time.”

Chris says… “It is a pretty good course, but a little pricey. It is nice as you can break out the big boys every once in a while. You are not relegated with playing with the shorter clubs.”

I rate this #1 course in L.A. for kids starting out!

1200 E Harvard Rd
Burbank, CA 91501
(818) 848-3292

This review is for the par 3 course, not to be confused with the 18 hole (par 71) De Bell golf course. Also within this complex is a driving range. The range here is one of my favorites. The balls are in good shape unlike the Griffith Park range. This course is relatively easy to find. It is located up in the Burbank Hills, north of Sunset Canyon. There is a good sized parking lot next to the course which always has plenty of available spaces.

Hole 1 – 70 yards

Unless there is sunshine out, I would recommend calling before you go. On a couple of occasions we went in light drizzle and the starter had locked the place up and gone home. Finding this course open is a little hit and miss. I believe they are closed on holidays also.

The course is really short. All of the 9 holes are in the 70-90 yards range. This would make it suitable for kids of newbies to the game. The greens are tiny – probably only about 15-20ft wide. So unless you are really accurate, don’t expect to hitting many greens in regulation. As the course is so short, unless it is really busy you can complete a round a 45 minutes.

 

Each of the holes are relatively straightforward. There are a few trees, but generally the course is wide open with no hazards. Hole 5 and 9 you have to hit over a storm drain, but as the holes are so short it is not really an issue. Personally I find hole 9 is the best, you have to tee off through a short opening between trees and over the previously mentioned storm drain.

The course condition is average for a par 3 course. The greens are in better condition as of late, but previously were full of holes and divots. The grass on the greens is pretty long, it is somewhat like putting on shag carpet. As a result they obviously run super slow. In 2012 they installed frisbee golf alongside the golf holes, so be warned that you may have to negotiate flying frisbee’s during your round.

Richie says… “Good course for kids or people just starting out. It is personally too short for me. You don’t have to worry about carrying a heavy bag. All you need is a putter and a wedge.”

Chris says… “I like it. It is a very small course. You only need a 9 iron max, you can get away with just a pitching wedge and a putter. It is a good course. The greens are horrible. They are small and sometimes sandy. But overall it is a good course and good value.”

Albino says… “Too short – I can not take a full shot on this course. I have to choke down on the club when playing each shot.”

Hole by Hole 

Hole 1 – 70 yards

Hole 2 – 90 yards

Hole 3 – 65 yards

Hole 4 – 80 yards

Hole 5 – 60 yards

Hole 6 – 70 yards

Hole 6 – green

Hole 7 – 90 yards

Hole 8 – 70 yards

Hole 9 – 65 yards

 
6400 E Compton Blvd
Compton, CA 90221
(562) 633-6721

Hole 2

This course is more East Rancho Dominguez than Compton, just off the 710. I tried this course for the first time last weekend. The course was very quiet and those on the course were playing at a very fast pace.  I have read other reviews and people say the same about how quiet the place usually is.

The price is very reasonable ($6 at weekends) and the course was surprisingly long for a par 3. In fact I hear it is one of the longest par 3’s in the country at 1,345 yards. I found the course a bit boring to be honest. All of the holes felt the same. At least 7 of the 9 holes were in the 150-160 yard range. All straight with the only hazards being trees. As you have probably figured out from my other posts, I enjoy a golf course with variation and different hole lengths. I like having the ability to use different clubs and figure out club choice on each hole.

The condition of the course was fair. Throughout the middle few holes there was a lot of mud around. It was surprising as it hadn’t rained for a while. The greens are of decent size, the grass was adequate. I have seen a lot better, but also seen considerably worse. The grass wasn’t exactly immaculate, with some holes/ divots etc on the greens. We saw only one ball cleaner on the whole course. It is usually standard to see one at the start of every hole.

The highlight for me was the last – 9th hole. This hole was relatively long and wide – ending to the left of the club house.

Richie says.. “If I lived locally I would probably play this course more frequently. But it is really not worth the 45 minute drive for me. I have better options closer to me. Don’t let the location being in Compton put you off. The area was ok and I did not feel any safety concerns at all while playing. Compton has changed and it is not like the Compton of the 1990’s any more”.

Albino says… “Long par 3! If you like long par 3’s then this is your place.”

Chris says… “I like Compton, but again it is not worth the long drive for me. If you live near it is a good course. It is cheap, but the problem is that there is only one ball washing station. Also none of the holes are marked. So if you don’t know where you are going you are randomly wandering the course trying to figure out where to go.”