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From our Directory of the most recommended golf courses
Monarch Dunes Golf Club
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Monarch Dunes is located 60 miles west of Bakersfield, near Santa Maria and 15 miles south of San Luis Obispo, and less than 5 miles from the Pacific. The course was designed by Pate & Pascuzzo and the design feature is links style...except for the housing development that surrounds the course. The course is relatively new, having opened in 2006. The greens are hard, and fast and well contoured, and force you to not only think about the break on putts, but also your chip shots. The course has several stands of eucalyptus which will grab the errant tee shot. There' numerous pot style bunkers, some oddly placed throughout the course, and extremely small. The terrain rolls throughout, and provides a number of uneven lies, hitting to elevated greens...not usual for links style, but interesting combination. The fairways, guarded by a lot of water, are a fescue, the greens bentgrass, both unusual to West Coast courses. The course plays to 6812 from the tips, with a handicap rating of 73.0, and a slope of 137.
Published by: nickr
Posted by: Chesley
Dec 6th, 2010
Played Monarch yesterday. The course is very walkable, but when you add the green to tee walks through houses, it becomes more difficult. The golf course was built to sell homes. Play it soon because they are building more than 1,000 homes in the area, many along the golf course holes. For a new course, the greens are very good, and hard. An interesting variety of holes, not the best course in California but one I would recommend over anything else in San Luis Obispo County (Vandenburg, Cypress Ridge, SLOCC, Morro Bay). I haven't played Hunter Ranch and don't know what county it is in. For me, too many lakes/ponds and phoney dunes, but again it is there to sell homes. It will be pretty tough, but I think more interesting when the afternoon sea breeze picks up. The better players will enjoy it, but the average 90-105 golfer will struggle a bit.
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Posted by: AlanMcP
Sep 8th, 2010
Don't forget to play the Challenge course at Monarch, a 12 hole par 3 designed by Damian Pascuzzo as well. It's one of the best par 3s any of us had played, you will use every club in the bag to be sure. The layout is full of big natural bunkers, small bunkers, lakes and high grass, links-style, and has major undulations on the greens with six different pin positions. Great warm up for the 18 hole course here, and really a unique experience.
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Posted by: AlexanderM
Nov 26th, 2009
They also have a Challenge Course here, a 12 hole pitch and putt course, great for working on the short game. Nice conditioning for the Old course, great rates for the quality, just a bit of a ways drive from Santa Barbara.
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