Number 22: Valley Club of Montecito

Ceiling: 89

Rating: 86

Trend over Time: 6.5

“The Valley Club” is the most recent addition to this list for me as I had the great pleasure just a few weeks back, and my goodness have I not been able to stop thinking about it since. We always talk about the marriage between design and conditions. A course cannot be great if the conditions are not able to allow the design to work in the ways that it should. Well, Valley Club struck this note better than quite possibly and course I have played in the United States, and I truly don’t mean for that statement to be hyperbolic. The speed and firmness of the fairways as well as the greens for someone like myself that enjoys a bit of a challenge was an absolute treat and the setting of the course can be bested by just a small handful. Sunny, no wind, 75 degrees, and views of the pacific and the beautiful mountains of southern California for much of the day, it’s really hard to beat the scenery in Montecito.

Culture:

You can tell quickly that this is a quiet sort of club with an intimate membership. I don’t believe there are many people who end up having the chance to live in a place like Montecito without good reason, and Valley Club’s membership felt like a direct reflection of that. From the old school locker room and clubhouse to the small warm up range and immediate views of the ocean upon arrival, as soon as your day begins at Valley Club, there is no questioning as to whether you are at a special place. Certain courses just have “it” when it comes to a unique and special cultural undertone to the experience of getting to play them, and on that metric, Valley Club isn’t far off a perfect score.

Competition:

My friend, Google, didn’t return a lot of information for me on this front beyond a 2021 US Senior Amateur qualifier, which was probably to be expected. I could certainly be off the mark and maybe the club has in fact hosted some things, but for now, we’ll operate off the assumption that most of the times the pencils come out is for club events only. I believe Valley Club actually would have the ability to be enjoyed in competition by a larger representation of the game than many courses I have played before. While it tips only just shy of 6800, there are more than a few levers to be pulled with firmness, green speeds, and hole locations that can challenge even high caliber players; however, for a lesser group of competitors, you could dial things back a bit and keep it very enjoyable. There’s an Alister Mackenzie quote along the lines of “I design courses that can be enjoyed by the greatest number of players.” Valley Club hits the mark here not only in a general sense, but in a competitive one as well.

Architecture:

This is way up there on my ranking of Alister Mackenzie courses and probably takes the win for “best to play” every day. Tom Doak who did a renovation of the course in 07 described the site as maybe being perfect for his ideal golf course, which is high yet unsurprising praise given what the good doc left us. One of the words that comes to mind for me is variety. There are short par 3’s and somewhat longer ones. Drivable par 4’s, medium 4’s, and even a longer one or two. The par 5’s are quintessentially Mackenzie in that on the card they appear to be great scoring opportunities, which they are, but don’t think that just because they all sit within 20 yards of 500 that they are gimme birdies.

One of the most enjoyable parts of the course is the variability of tee shots a player needs to have. With several clubs, to really gain an advantage off the tee the ball needs to curve both ways, and with an above average level of control. As is common of Mackenzie courses, into the greens is where it really gets fun. Knowing where to leave the ball and what features help and penalize is key to success. From there, just play hard. The putter is what will separate the men from the boys. Again, quintessentially Mackenzie.