Bear Valley Meadows Golf Club

This review is kinda hard to do from a "how many stars" standpoint because so much of the return on Bear Valley Meadows is contingent on your attitude and expectations going in (I gave it three stars because I didn't want people heading there based on the rec without reading this first... but personally my enjoyment level was more of a 4-star experience). You are not going to have any good lies (even on the tee boxes), you are going to hit shots off of dirt and rocks, you are going to probably lose balls that are right in the middle of the "fairway." If you can't be okay with this, you should not go.

I said "yes" to recommending to friends, because of who my (golf oriented) friends are... and that I know so many of them enjoy experiences over pristine greens etc.

Having said all of that, if you can play in the spirit of having a fun experience seeing what it would actually be like to play in a field that very little has been done too... other than mowing... it's all out there for you in Seneca. I had an absolute blast playing this $7 for 9, $12 for all day (honor box) course.

It's just pure (rough, very rough) golf. No yardage markers, no distances on sprinklers (in fact it's tough to identify a sprinkler that actually is doing anything other than the fact that there is green grass mixed in with the brown). It's kinda hard to determine where some of the tee boxes are, even if you are standing right next to them (the benches on several of them help a lot).

Some of the unique features include a paved lot as the "fairway" on the par 3 second hole, one (exactly 1) O.B. sign in a place you'd never hit a ball, a covered bridge on #9/18 that is an old shipping container, and - if you're lucky, a captive audience as you wind down your round...

We found it on our way to Silvies Ranch and thought it would be a fun add on/contrast course... it was both (especially the contrast part). I played with 4 clubs (4, 6, 9, gw) where were plenty, there is absolutely no need for a putter, the less time the ball spends on the ground the better.

You'd likely be frustrated if you traveled all the way to Seneca to play this course, but if you're in the area and in the right mood (and maybe have a couple rock clubs handy) it really is a fun way to take a very different look at what golf could be (or might have been a couple hundred years ago). Despite everything that might have appeared negative I said above, I'm certain I'll play it again at some point and have a blast then too.

No staff rating because no staff; no amenities rating because no amenities... it's just golf... pasture golf.