By Tom LaMarre – When The Farms Golf Club in Rancho Santa Fe opened in 1988 it was a gem, as you would expect from the design team of Pete Dye and his son, Perry, plus San Diego golf legend Tommy Jacobs. Even Alice Dye got in her two cents worth.
Derived from the imagination of an architect coined “Dyeabolical,” the layout in the coastal foothills north of San Diego delivered a firm test of golf. It quickly became known as one of the top player’s clubs in Southern California and also earned a reputation as one of the most challenging.
In 1999, the membership bought the course and its 36,000-square-foot clubhouse, and a year later commissioned respected course architect John Fought to refine the layout along with PGA Tour Pro, Tom Lehman, who won the 1966 Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes.
Fought, who designed Pumpkin Ridge in Oregon and reworked Pine Needles in North Carolina, and Lehman reconstructed and re-contoured the fast bent grass greens, created new tee boxes and bunkers, added several water hazards, installed a state-of-the-art irrigation system and enlarged the driving range. The goal of the renovation was to maintain the courses challenging nature whilst enhancing its playability.
“I want a player to come away from one of my courses saying, ‘I need to go play that again,’” said Fought, who played college golf at BYU and won the 1975 Pacific Coast Amateur and the 1977 U.S. Amateur before winning twice on the PGA Tour in 1979. “‘I can do better on that hole.’”
Most golfers who have played the course since would consider that mission accomplished, and The Farms has been selected as one of the top “50 Clubs with the Best Players” in the United States by Golf Digest.
While the golf course is the centerpiece, what truly defines The Farms is the culture and tone set by the membership and the staff. There is a shared love for the game of golf that’s evident among everyone who steps foot on the property. People who join The Farms care first and foremost about playing golf, and operations are structured to support that.
For instance, the number of memberships is limited to 300. That’s not to maintain an air exclusivity, but instead to limit the amount of on-course traffic so that the staff can more efficiently provide premium course conditions. Furthermore, it’s a boon for pace of play as the average round at The Farms takes just 3.5 hours.
“There’s a passion for playing fast out here,” says Scott Heyn, the club’s PGA General Manager. “Our purpose as a staff is to meet those demands for our members while also maintaining and building upon our golf-centric culture.”
In addition, there are no tee times for members. They show up and tee it up as they wish as if it was their own personal golfing oasis.
“I’ve had members say to me that the moment they drive through the gate, the rest of the world melts away,” says Heyn. “There’s no other place our members would prefer to be than on the golf course – whether that’s ours or at a destination. Every club has those members who would tee it up every day of the week if they could. We just have 300 of them.”
As Heyn further describes, the golfing culture at The Farms is not predicated on playing ability, gender or age. There’s a strong contingent of women and junior golfers that call the club their home. Instead, it’s purely based on a love for playing the game and embracing the challenge that golf presents.
“All the members have a shared love for golf that bonds them together. There’s a closeness among the membership unlike any place I’ve ever seen,” says Heyn. “By being here, it’s immediately known that you’re a golfer.”
The focus on golf does not come at the sacrifice of other amenities. The food and beverage services are five-star. The dining experiences are created by renowned Chef Eric Mauritzen, who aims to deliver smells, taste, textures and visual aesthetics that are unique to The Farms. However, you will not see tennis courts or a swimming pool at this Rancho Santa Fe masterpiece. It’s all about golf.
The course itself is considered a shot-maker’s paradise that plays to a par of 72. It plays 6,947 yards from the back tees, with a United States Golf Association rating of 73.8 and a slope of 142, but is playable for golfers of all abilities with eight sets of tees – including three for women.
The relatively tight Bermuda grass fairways feature hills and hollows, as water also comes into play on half of the holes. No. 17 is the signature hole, a classic par-4 playing 471 yards from the back tees into the prevailing wind from the west, and is the No. 2 handicap hole. The fairway bends to the right, with three ponds to the right of the fairway, with another lake to the right of a tricky green and bunkers guarding the left side.
What hole could possibly be more challenging? The 558-yard third hole is the No. 1 handicap. It’s a legitimate three-shot par-5 with a narrow landing area off the tee because of sand and water to the left, plus out of bounds and thick bushes to the right. The second shot is no picnic either, with a lake on the right and bushes to the left, before the third shot from between 100 to 175 yards because of the long, narrow green. Take par, if you can, and hustle to the fourth tee.
“The Farms is one of the most challenging courses off the tee in Southern California,” said San Diego native Phil Mickelson, a member at The Farms. “When I’m preparing for a major tournament and really want to test my driver, I come to The Farms.”
Annika Sorenstam, John Schroeder, and Liselotte Neumann are among the others who have been members. Xander Schauffele, who in 2017 became first PGA Tour rookie to win the Tour Championship, recently joined the ranks.
Despite a challenge that appeals to the world’s best players, you don’t have to be a pro to play The Farms; you just have to share their love for the game.
