Golf Industry Online Equipment Reviews

[an error occurred while processing this directive]

What happens when you cross a world-class golf architect with a world-class parcel of land? A masterpiece by Tom Fazio called The Meadows Del Mar!

By: Dr. Barry Lotz

Opening day was August 28th, 1999 for this premier San Diego golf course and to date, the Meadows has already been ranked as one of the top 5 courses in San Diego by numerous magazines.

The course is a par-71, 6,885-yard masterpiece. It features a winning combination of scenery, wildlife and challenging golf holes. Facilities include a driving range staffed with teaching professionals, a fully stocked high-end pro-shop and a marvelous restaurant.

The Meadows Del Mar is located in a beautiful, two-mile long valley, away from the freeways and noise, secluded in Del Mar's coveted Shaw Valley and just south of the famous Del Mar Turf Club. However, the property's access to Interstate 56 and other major traffic arteries (located 1 mile from the Interstate 5 Freeway), as well as its central location within San Diego, makes its location very desirable. The Meadows community consists of 134 estate lots terraced on hills and valleys clustered around the golf course.

And amid this classic golf community, just enough man-made enhancements to let you know you've arrived. Palatial homes from a sophisticated mix of styles - 1920's Spanish, Mediterranean, Italian, and French - sprinkled across undulating hills. Enclaves of custom home sites perched over canyons and fairways, so you can gasp at the views.

The course is immaculate, service superb; the staff is very helpful and caters to corporate outings on a regular basis. Though somewhat pricey, it is a much better value than Torrey Pines, Aviara or La Costa, and most definitely easier to get a tee time. While the layout is not overly long, it places emphasis on tee ball location; greens are large and beautiful, a joy to putt. Avoid the white bunkers on every hole. The clubhouse architecture reminds one of a Frank Lloyd Wright creation similar to his famous "Fallingwater".

The Meadows has an outstanding staff – courteous to a fault. Herb Moore, director of golf, is truly the quintessential gentleman and one of the most knowledgeable golf professionals you will ever meet. Rare is it to find a public golf course that sends just 24 players out per hour! Player assistants and refreshment carts are positioned at each nine for the player's comfort, refreshment needs, guidance and traffic flow.

Upon arrival at The Meadows, there is a well-designed guardhouse at the entrance where the golfer is greeted very cordially by the well-dressed guards. Nothing really jumps out visually; except for a glimpse of lush green fairways and white sand bunkers you pass on your way up to the clubhouse. Very subtle, very peaceful.

The Meadows at Del Mar is recognized as a "players" course especially from the tips. At 13 of the holes, there is a racetrack-themed striped pole that has been placed exactly 250 yards from the "Tournament" tees.

The strongest hole, the fourth, is as challenging as it is beautiful. The tee sits atop a Pacific view ridge and faces the prevailing winds. This 476-yard hole from the tips features a dogleg left with the typical large, Fazio trademarked finger bunkers at the bend and on the right. The majority of golfers are left with a long approach to the green. Using too much club sends the shot over the edge of the cliff, unless the ball finds the bunker at the left of the big undulating green.

Hole number six, a very short par 3 125 yards, really personifies the natural surroundings of the course, the elevation changes and more of Fazio's bunkers protecting the entrance to the green. Accuracy with a wedge is critical, making a birdie possible and an ace a definite option.

The eighth is another long and tricky par 4, with the fairway hugging what looks like the Mojave Desert on the left, all the way to the putting surface. Another short par 3, the 161-yard ninth, features some devilishly deep bunkers left.

On the returning nine, the course's topography is very apparent. It is only here where water enters the picture. There is water off the tee at the twelfth and a lake to be carried at the par 3 seventeenth. The back nine opens with a short 368-yard par 4 with eight bunkers all down the right side followed by another, pretty much average, straightaway, 212-yard par 3. One of the true tests on the course comes at the 446-yard par 4 thirteenth, a bear when the wind is up and the sun is setting. Along with number four, it might be the toughest hole at The Meadows. Hole fifteen offers the course's highest point.

The course finishes with a great test in the 422-yard, slight dogleg left, par 4 eighteenth. Any chance of a par requires two very good shots. A large bunker on the left side and another three bunkers guarding the green protect both the drive and access to the green, as it should be for a closing hole.

The Meadows is always in superb condition, another reason for so many returnees. Hybrid Bermuda grass is used for fairways with bent grass greens. After the round, the grille beckons, a comfortable setting either indoors or out, for tallying up the scores. A stickler for neatness, head pro Mike Lissebeck, demands that the pro shop always be professionally addressed and fully stocked. "The pro shop is something that I take a personal interest in and am very proud of, as all of us who are part of Western Golf Properties," Mike said. "I like the small boutique feel and look, similar to our other courses at Pelican Hill and Oak Creek.

Par/Yardage/Slope/Rating:

• 71/6885/138/73.7 (championship)
• 71/6353/131/71.2 (tournament)
• 71/5821/123/68.3 (resort)
• 71/4929/116/68.3 (forward)

Greens Fees:

• Monday-Thursday: $110
• Fri-Sun & Hol: $140
• Twilight (M-Th): $70
• Twilight (F-S & H): $80

Walking: Mandatory carts and spike less shoes.

Reservations: Up to one week in advance at the regular rates listed above. Up to 60 days in advance for $130 (M-Th) and $160 (Friday-Sunday & Holidays). A 48-hour cancellation notice is required. Groups of 36-100 players: up to six months in advance; and groups of more than 100 players: up to one year in advance.

5300 Meadows Del Mar, San Diego 92130 - 858-792-6200 - www.meadowsdelmar.com

Barry Lotz, J.D., Ph.D. is the director of the Professional Golf Teachers Association of America. He is also a member of the Golf Writers Association of America and the California Golf Writers Association. He is a contributing writer to numerous national magazines. He can be reached at www.pgtaa.com or drlotz@cbsgolf.com