Latest on Hiddenbrooke?

[lchang]

Have they been struggling financially? I see some evidence of people saying the pro shop has the feel of a place that is struggling. And, depending on who you ask, it has either affected the conditions a lot, or the conditions are just fine. Anyone have any recent experience they can share?

[mark174ace]

Hiddenbrooke has been a dump for a long time.

[lchang]

17 hours ago, mark174ace said:

Hiddenbrooke has been a dump for a long time.

 

Oh, you sound pretty unequivocal! Would you choose to play Eagle Vines with freshly punched greens over Hiddenbrooke?

[mark174ace]

I would skip both if that is the case. I played Hiddenbrooke twice and never again.

 

Eagle Vines is underrated imo. EV just needs to resurface some of their tee boxes. Last time I played there a couple of tee boxes were so sloped I played from another tee as opposed to turning an ankle or throwing my back out lol.

[lchang]

 

30 minutes ago, mark174ace said:

I would skip both if that is the case. I played Hiddenbrooke twice and never again.

 

Eagle Vines is underrated imo. EV just needs to resurface some of their tee boxes. Last time I played there a couple of tee boxes were so sloped I played from another tee as opposed to turning an ankle or throwing my back out lol.

Thanks. Well, Chardonnay is having a tourney on the day in question. My sister is in from out of town and staying up in Sonoma (not at the Mission Inn, and not at Silverado). Was counting on EV or Chardonnay. We may just play Hiddenbrooke with adjusted expectations 

[lchang]

Unless there is another suggestion?

[lchang]

How about Rooster Run?

[mark174ace]

There is Indian Valley in Novato. I played it once a few years ago and it was quirky but pretty good. I have no idea what kind of shape it is in right now. I think there are some places in Santa Rosa. You may be stuck with Hiddenbrooke depending on how far you want to drive. I don't blame you for not wanting to play on freshly punched greens.

[carrera]

Rooster Run is straightforward and fun to play.  Nothing great about it, but not bad.  I love Indian Valley but that is quite a bit away from Sonoma.

[James the Hogan Fan]

Hiddenbrooke fell off a cliff between 2021 and 2022. Haven't been back since but they had basically stopped doing bunker maintenance when I played it last.

 

I love Eagle Vines (more than Chardonnay)

I love Rancho Solano

I haven't played Paradise but have heard it is equal to Rancho

Indian Valley is infinitely more interesting than Rooster Run.

 

If you were already willing to drive out to Hiddenbrooke, drive the extra 10 minutes to Rancho Solano. If you want quirky fun with massive greens make the trip to Indian Valley (one of my personal favorites). 

 

 

[lchang]

For what it's worth, we ended up playing Rooster Run. Conditions were generally fine--a bit soggy given it hasn't rained in months. Pace of play (on a Monday morning) was great. It was a fun round.

[carrera]

Have a fun tournament scheduled for next Wednesday (day before TG) at Rooster Run.  Not looking good on the weather map!

[highhdcp]

Rooster is a fun course to play and a great walk

 

[carrera]

On 11/23/2024 at 11:47 AM, highhdcp said:

Rooster is a fun course to play and a great walk

Yeah I enjoy it.  We have a mini tournament (just fun) of about 50 guys there every Wednesday before Thanksgiving.   

[James the Hogan Fan]

On 11/25/2024 at 4:50 PM, carrera said:

Yeah I enjoy it.  We have a mini tournament (just fun) of about 50 guys there every Wednesday before Thanksgiving.   

 

It's fun and the conditions are usually excellent but I have never stayed dry on 15. It's in my head now. I either push fade or power pull, either way the ball goes splash...

[carrera]

Course was a swamp and CPO, but greens and bunkers were excellent and we had a blast.  Bright sunshine.

[qtlaw]

What's sad about Hiddenbrooke is that it has a very challenging, interesting layout.  The LPGA used to play the Samsung World Challenge (or something like that) there.  However, the conditions are very poor now and there simply isn't the demand to support better conditions.  Tough situation for the owner(s).

[James the Hogan Fan]

10 hours ago, qtlaw said:

What's sad about Hiddenbrooke is that it has a very challenging, interesting layout.  The LPGA used to play the Samsung World Challenge (or something like that) there.  However, the conditions are very poor now and there simply isn't the demand to support better conditions.  Tough situation for the owner(s).

But is it the chicken or the egg? If they have good conditions, people will come. I did and I really liked the course the first time. 

 

 

But then you come back and they've let it go, and it's like they pulled the rug out from under you. And word gets around very quickly once that happens; this whole thread is people saying they don't want to play there anymore. 

 

I'm glad I got to play it once when it was good, Im sad I got to play it again when it wasn't. Hopefully they can turn it around.