by Rick Surlow, Publisher

The Bay Area Golf Guide has morphed into NorCal Golf Guide. In the spring with its 14+ hours of available golf time, what is your game set to morph into?

In our ten years of publishing Golf Guide, your consistent attention to our book has encouraged us to expand our reach while letting you take advantage of the deliciously varied golf experiences available across the region. With our name change to now reflect the best half of California, we hope to expand further on our offerings and encourage you to play even more golf—a sure prescription for happiness.

The course featured on our cover this issue, Lake Chabot, has re-opened, ready to have you test yourself with its 600+ yard, par-6 finishing hole. I know it’s downhill; hopefully when you’re there it will also be downwind.

Then there’s Lake Shastina Golf Resort under the shadows cast by Mt. Shasta. What a pleasure that north-of-north part of the state is! Avid golfers can think about making it there this summer and then skipping across the border to sample the Oregon courses featured in this book. They include The Running Y Resort, Salmon Run and Sandpines Golf Links.

Wherever you live in Northern California, there are hundreds of golf courses to play within a few hours’ drive from your home. Do yourself proud and consider test driving a new golf course every week. Is there a better way to answer the call of recreation and exploration at this sunniest time of year?

by Rick Surlow, Publisher

I’ve said it before, but like the seasons themselves, it bears repeating: Fall is the best time of year to enjoy golf in Northern California and, come to think of it, pretty much anywhere at all. Sure, the dusk creeps in a little earlier each day, but there is something special about the lengthening shadows across the fairways and the colors turning on the trees in the rough. Vacations are winding down and there are fewer people out on the links. That just leaves you with more of the good stuff to lap up while you play your round, not waiting for the group ahead of you to hit their next shots.

If you’re fortunate enough to be flying into the Bay Area via the Oakland Airport, you won’t have to drive far to discover the Metropolitan Golf Links, which is adjacent to the eastern flank of the airport property.  Metropolitan Golf Links, offers an utterly unique take on the glories of golf on San Francisco Bay.

To the north, Mt. St. Helena Golf Course graces the upper Napa Valley in the town of Calistoga, where you’ll find the golf challenging and the surroundings worthy of an extended stay. Another new entry in these pages is that rare private club that also allows public play: River Island Country Club in the San Joaquin Valley foothills. Put that together with a fall visit to the nearby Sierra Nevada and you’ll have a fall getaway to remember. 

If you’re the type that packs away your golf shoes and stows your clubs in the garage come the end of summer, time to change that old habit. Hundreds of golf courses beckon you across the region during our consistently playable fall and winter months. Don’t let such an abundance of opportunity slip away from you unclaimed.

Finally, it you’re unsure how to get to any of our featured courses, visit our Directory and you’ll be able to view and print a drive-to map.

by Rick Surlow, Publisher

Flashes of brilliance don’t come too often to my golf game. You’d think that by playing nearly 2,000 holes yearly, one would see substantial improvement (if not occasional great play). Well, “substantial” isn’t exactly the word I would apply. I’m not even sure about “minimal”— but I sure had lots of fun.

Perhaps one of my challenges is I’d always rather play on a golf course than practice on a driving range or short-game facility. I should know better, as I have to look no further than my father for an example of how practice makes (almost) perfect. Dad is a mighty fine musician who has played music as long as he has played golf, over 70 years now. Yes, he’s still a better musician than golfer. He can play a keyboard for hours, entertaining not only himself, but everyone within earshot. It helps that he has “practiced” or as he says, “played” countless times over the years.

His golf game is another story. I won’t go into detail on his tee and fairway game, which he has always thrown himself into despite a highly unorthodox swing. His saving grace is that he has become a deft and efficient putter, sometimes taking out his mallet and striking the ball from as far off as 50 yards from the green.

Anyway, Dad has always shied away from the driving range and anything remotely referred to as “practice” for his golf game. Seems we’re both slow learners on this score (although stubbornness probably has a lot more to do with it).

The kind of fun Dad and I seek was in abundance when I played our cover course, Callippe Preserve, in November. What a treat to play a course with 18 unique holes. Be sure to put this one in your must-play category in 2009. Here’s wishing the best in golf for you, your loved ones and friends. It’s always time to play another round.

by Rick Surlow, Publisher

As I look back over these first 13 years of publishing NorCal Golf Guide, I’m not about to argue with the old cliché, “Time flies when you’re having fun.” Truly, it has been a gas, though I’ll have to admit I still have more fun playing golf than I do publishing this essential “Where to Play” bible for the Northern California.

I know that those of you who actually read the ramblings in this column each issue pale in comparison to the vast numbers of golf-addicted readers who rely on the contents beyond this page to assist them in making tee times, finding the courses they have yet to play, and just fantasizing about this glorious game.

Even with golf’s place in the recreational and sporting world increasingly secure, the golf courses and associated businesses on display in this magazine continue to be on the cutting edge. We’re in the California, after all, where all manner of extra-curricular activities either get their start or get taken to new levels!
You don’t have to play many courses in this magazine’s coverage area to get the point: the setting, competition, and sheer gumption of the area’s golf industry has created a paradise for golf lovers of every skill level.

As we begin our thirteenth year, I urge you to take advantage of that paradise (with particular attention to the courses in this Guide!). A great place to start is Brentwood Golf Club. With 27 holes under the shadow of Mt. Diablo to tempt you, it’s another “can’t miss” on every golfing fanatic’s ultimate checklist.