Key Takeaways

Whitney Oaks experience:

Challenging Course: Whitney Oaks is noted for its challenging layout, making it an interesting play for golfers.
Course Quality: The quality of the turf and greens, despite recent aeration, shows promising upkeep and potential for excellent conditions.
Staff Accommodation: Exceptional staff hospitality, especially in offering discounts on special occasions, enhances the golfing experience.

This week I had a chance to take a break and go golfing with some good friends at Whitney Oaks golf course in Rocklin, CA. Although I was there for a beautiful day of golf, I really wish I would have chance to meet up with the grounds crew to interview them about the upkeep around the course. Whitney Oaks is probably one of the more difficult courses I have played in the past few years outside of Reno. I do not have a registered handicap and normally shoot in the mid 80's, but the two times I played here I have shot a 98 and a 92. As far as the actual quality of the turf at the course goes, I can't say I was disappointed. However, most holes were not in the greatest shape. I do have to give credit to the fact that the greens were just aerated and things have greened up more in the past 3 weeks. I guess part of me just expects California courses to be immaculate in the winter/spring compared to the golf courses we have in Reno.

I really want to start meeting with the grounds crews at the different courses I play to find out the reasons why their courses look the way they do. When do they activate the full time watering? What fertilizer do they use? And when do they apply it? I think this would share a glimpse of how and why golf courses stay in great shape throughout the year. After driving out to Whitney Oaks twice from Reno, I would give this course a overall score of 7 out of 10 for spring golf. It is challenging but fun, and the pace of play was decent. Also, the staff was super nice the first time to hook us up with a discounted rate for a friend's birthday, even though our coupon was not valid on that day (read the fine print Rob!) I would like to return to Whitney Oaks in the summer and I bet my rating would go up when everything is green!

Although it might seem stupid, I wanted to take a little video of the guys we were out with and give a little shout out to my buddy Christian's amazing restaurant SUP in Reno, NV. Christian has only been playing golf seriously a few months and with his garage sale bag of mismatched clubs this guy is just around the corner from consistently shooting in the 90's.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DwcmQJp1dQ&context=C4e51814ADvjVQa1PpcFPx7JAKY9g4keXtgbnMg3LFetFh9D1Z5Uk=[/youtube]