Rio Vista Golf Club | The Golf Club at Rio Vista
The Golf Club at Rio Vista is a public, 18 hole golf course located in Rio Vista, California. Membership options are available.
Rio Vista first opened for play in 1996. The final 9 was completed in May 1998. The course was designed by Ted Robinson.
The name Rio Vista, or "river view," is indicative of the wide open scenery, golden rolling hills and glorious peaks that make the backdrop for every swing.
The layout in this setting where river delta meets rolling hills incorporates lengthy open fairways and generous but challenging greens. Rio Vista spans over 6,800 yards from the Championship tees and 5,300 from the Forward tees. With a slope of 73.6 and a rating of 131, it is a true test for any level of golfer.
This is a links-style course. There are ten lakes, numerous bunkers, and waterfalls highlighting the design. Fairways are spacious and forgiving, although there are out-of-bounds areas on each side. The signature hole is #18, a 372-yard, par 4, which features a large pond that comes into play 100 yards in front of the green.
Located in Northern California's wine region, Rio Vista is located mid-way between San Francisco and Sacramento, about one hour east of the Bay Area and 40 minutes south of Sacramento.
This course has been reviewed 8 time
I had a great coupon price which explains the value ranking, but alas the course condition was pretty poor.
Every tee box looked like it curled up and died. They were all brown and dead. The fairways were not much better. I would describe them as threadbare. The greens were in overall good condition but they were punched about 10 days earlier and were still recovering. The driving range was not much more than a field. There was no grass to hit off except for a tuft of green here and there. There was no beverage cart (even on a Saturday) but we did get free soda refills at the bar (this was a big plus since it was very warm).
The course is not really difficult or long. From the gold tees (which are the second longest) most of the par 5s were under 500 yards. There were a lot of par 4s that were under 350 yards. To make up the yardage shortage, they made all of the par 3s 190+ yards.
What makes this course difficult are the bunkers, water and penalty areas that are placed pretty much everywhere you would want to land your ball. In addition, a lot of balls seem to run sideways toward these places.
The bunkers were nothing more than dirt. Every bunker crunched under your foot when you walked into it. Another problem are the houses that seem to sit right on the edge of the fairways. Anyone who owns a home on a fairway must hear balls bouncing off their roofs and walls on a constant basis.