It’s a rare circumstance to be able to review a course with grass and without, but that’s my opportunity with Goat Hill Park in Oceanside.
In 2014 I was invited to walk nine holes with course savior and new owner John Ashworth shortly after his plan to revive the course had been approved by the city to save the property from redevelopment.
Ashworth’s work at the course had barely begun. The pro shop was in the midst of a remodel, but the course itself, after years of neglect, consisted of little more than spotty greens, hardpan and acres of awaiting hard work. My most memorable shot was an approach to an uphill green. It missed by mere feet – and then came rolling back nearly 100 yards to mine.
I dubbed Goat Hill “the Charlie Brown tree of golf courses.” Ashworth replied that the place simply needed a little love – and a lot of grass seed. He was right. The turnaround is astounding. Aesthetically, Goat Hill is now a verdant gem dotted by wildflowers and colorful landscaping, much of it the drought-tolerant variety.
The course now also glows with praise. The Golf Channel’s Matt Ginella has heaped attention and adoration on the project, calling it one of the best stories in golf and rating Goat Hill among the top five short courses in the country.
The positive reviews and community support, which included 60 people showing up for a volunteer course maintenance day, has been gratifying and motivating, Ashworth said.
“People are loving it,” he said. “The response has been pretty overwhelming. We still have things to do, but it has come a long way.”
Ashworth wanted to restore the course’s status as a social hub and he’s done that by, among other things, making the course accommodate disk golf as well as real golf. Ironically, the greens are like trying to land on a Frisbee, making it a tough test of target golf. Greens in regulation here are the sign of a true golf marksman.
As a 65 playing 4,454 from the tips, the course might not sound like much on paper, but you can throw out the stats. There’s plenty of challenge here, including elevated greens with severe slops that can make misses especially penal.
A good example is the par-3 fifth, a 139-yard hole with a green guarded by bunkers right and long as was well as a severe drop-off on the right. I actually missed left onto a hill. My chip hit the green and ran through into a patch of nearly impossible rough. I took two futile swings and picked up.
The course makes you earn everything you get – and trying to overpower it only seems to invite more trouble. You can basically bag your driver here. A hybrid and some skillful iron and wedge play will take you a long way at Goat Hill.
“It’s a tough course, but it’s playable,” Ashworth said. “We wanted to make it a lot more playable for everybody.”
That’s in skill and comfort level on the course. True to its motto of “World Class, Working Class,” the course has dropped dress codes. That made for the interesting scene of a player putting out in board shorts in a nearby foursome.
As a host to the North County Junior Golf Association, Goat Hill seeks to introduce more young players to the game. Ashworth said the course has succeeded in a being a local catalyst, but its growing reputation and good word of mouth is starting to make it a bit of a tourist draw.
“We definitely have a strong local following, but we are getting more tourists people from San Diego and tourists as they hear about it on things like the Golf Channel.”
Ashworth continues to balance his roles of managing the course and running Linksoul, his golf lifestyle clothing brand. Ashworth said balancing the two roles continues to be a challenge but he treasures his time at the course.
“It’s a bit like being a caretaker, but I love the people who work here and who come here, and I meet a lot of new people,” he said. “I spend a lot of time here because I love it.”
Ashworth has some remaining projects at the course but hopes to hold a grand opening this summer. He said the staff and community have something to celebrate.
“It’s had its ups and downs, like anything, but for the most part, it’s been a real pleasure,” Ashworth said, “It’s a real feel-good story for golf.”
BY THE NUMBERS
3, 8 – Holes that share a double green, a rarity in American golf
6 – Number of the hole converted from a par-4 to a par-3
450 – Length, in yards from the back tees, of the course’s only par-5
1952 – Year the course opened as a nine-hole country club
2014 – Year Ashworth took ownership, saving the property from redevelopment
$26, $32 – Weekday and weekend green fee, without cart
