The new VW EV was fully charged (with 290 miles on the battery) for the two-hour, 90-mile trek to Borrego Springs for a guys’ golf trip. But range anxiety kicked in as I left Julian and climbed up the precarious and spectacular Highway 79 through Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. Then, as I descended into Borrego Springs, a tiny San Diego County desert town nestled against the Santa Rosa Mountains, miles magically reemerged on the odometer and a lush, magical golf course—Rams Hill Golf Club–appeared out of nowhere.
Since literally coming back from the dead, Rams Hill has earned two coveted Golf Digest Top 100 U.S. Courses rankings and become one of the top public courses in Southern California. From 2010 to 2014, the Tom Fazio designed par-72 masterpiece was abandoned by its former owners after the course’s water rights were sold. It wasn’t long before trees died and lush fairways turned brown. New owners immediately poured $10 million into the property, securing irrigation from six native wells, planting new seed, investing in bentgrass greens and a 3 ½-acre solar farm. The remodeled and expanded clubhouse now includes a fine-dining restaurant and bar.
GOLFING RAMS HILL
We came from all over to experience “remote destination golf” as Rams Hill GM Harry Turner calls it–Daniel from LA’s Koreatown, a 3-hour-15-minute drive; Rich from central Orange County, 2 hours, 15 minutes away; and Jim from Scottsdale, Ariz., a 5-hour drive broken up by an overnight stay in Yuma, Ariz.
With five sets of tees, ranging from 7,200 yards to just under 5,000 yards, Rams Hill can handle all levels of players. We played our first round from the white tees (5,824 yards) and our second round from the blues (6,369). Naturally, we all scored better from the whites.
The expansive Bermuda grass fairways are vast and perfectly manicured, but there is plenty of trouble to be had at Rams Hill—conspicuously placed fairway bunkers, slick, undulating greens (11.5 on the stimpmeter), and wicked false fronts that prompted several F-bombs from our group.
Even though his drive from LA to Rams Hill is more than three hours, Daniel was making his fourth trip to the secluded course in six years.
“It’s classic desert golf, but it’s elevated by the contours, shapes and elevation changes,” said Daniel, whose first round was highlighted by a chip in for eagle on the par 5, 2nd hole. “It’s kind of like an amusement park for golfers.”
Mountain backdrops, elevated tees and breathtaking views of the desert floor give golfers the illusion they’re playing a mountain course at altitude, but the highest point on the course is only 800 feet. There are too many gorgeous, yet challenging holes to count, but my favorite is probably the striking downhill, downwind 556-yard, par 5 11th. From the elevated tee box, there’s nothing but a lush, dark green fairway, endless desert floor and the Santa Rosa Mountains in the distance. There’s trouble on the right (a massive bunker) and the left (a water feature that flows into a lake), and somehow my 240-tee shot and my 3-hybrid approach stayed in the fairway. With a no-stress pitch to the peninsula green and two putts, I made par, finally besting my playing partner, Daniel, who settled for bogey.
Despite its challenges around the greens and fairways, Rams Hill moves rather quickly for a public course. We played both rounds in four hours, at least an hour less than a round at most public courses in San Diego County. The free post-round apple-caramel cookie is a nice touch as well. The green fees are reasonable–$170 weekdays and $230 on Friday-Sunday in January, about $100 less than Aviara, another highly-rated public course in Carlsbad. As the weather warms, Rams Hills’ rates increase to $195 weekdays and $245 weekends for March-May.
STAY AND PLAY PACKAGES AT RAMS HILL
The most economical and sensible way to golf Rams Hill is playing 18 holes, then staying overnight at one of Rams Hills’ 15 properties surrounding the course and playing another round the next days. We stayed at the luxurious House on the Hill, a 4-bedroom, 3-bathroom house overlooking the 15th fairway. The house sleeps up to eight people and comes with a barbecue on one of the outdoor patios and a golf simulator in the garage—our group foolishly failed to use either.
Since it was a Monday, the clubhouse’s restaurant closed early and we opted for margaritas, carnitas tacos and Monday night football at Carmelita’s, the Mexican restaurant in town, a 10-minute drive from our house. Back at the house, we discussed the merits of a stay-and-play getaway at Rams Hill.
“This is not a golf resort, it’s a golf retreat,” Daniel said. “It’s a place you go with good friends who are really into golf. It’s a much more laid-back experience than a resort, a nice place for bonding with good buddies.”
The House on the Hills’ outdoor patios and a rooftop deck are perfect for stargazing, sipping margaritas or craft brews and enjoying the solitude of desert life.
“It’s so clear outside you can see the space stations come over every night,” said Turner, the Rams Hill GM. “You turn the lights off, it’s dark. You turn the TV off, it’s quiet.”
About the only noise we heard were coyotes, who were patrolling the fairways and greens in the wee hours. The House on the Hill, which Rams Hill owns, rents for $750 to $1,700 a night, depending on the season. The other 14 properties Rams Hill manages range from $200 a night to $2,000, depending on the size and the season. In 2017, day trippers were our primary customer. Eight years ago, most Rams’ customers played 18 holes and then immediately made the adventurous drive home to beat sunset. Now, stay and play golfers make up nearly 40% of Rams’ players.
WHAT’S ON THE HORIZON AT RAMS HILL? A MINI-BANDON DUNES?
There have been rumors about plans of a second course on the Rams Hill property for several years. Turner said it’s no longer a rumor; a second course is in the works. He expects to break ground next year. The new course doesn’t have a name yet, but it will be built just northeast of Rams Hill, and it will share the same clubhouse.
“We’d break ground tomorrow if we could, but we have to get the specific plan amended and that won’t happen until the second half of 2026,” Turner said. “The good news is, we have all the water we need for our entire development already in place.”
The best news for golfers is that famed Scottish golf architect David McLay Kidd, has signed on to the project. After starting his design career at Bandon Dunes in 1999, Kidd has gone to lay out masterpieces such as Gamble Sands in Washington, Mammoth Dunes at Sand Valley in Wisconsin and the new GrayBull in Nebraska.
“We want the new course to be way different than Rams Hills,” Turner said. “We’ve got a wonderful Fazio course already here, so the intent is to do something that’s more in line with a links style course and David is good at that.”
Turner cautions against any comparisons to Bandon Dunes, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t aiming high.
“We’re never going to have six golf courses like Bandon,” he said. “The goal is to develop remote destination golf. As long as you’re coming this far, we want to give you a chance to play two great bucket list golf courses that are completely different, with onsite accommodations so you capture revenue from golf, lodging and incremental revenue from food and beverage.”
The first phase of the second-course project is already underway. Construction started on four of 16 four-bedroom cottages planned to accommodate the extra players. Seating at the clubhouse’s fine dining restaurant is sufficient to handle the next flood of golfers, but Turner said the kitchen will have to be expanded.
“We’ve been working on this [expansion] a long time” Turner said. “We believe that remote destination golf can work here, but we do have a high bar.”
Photo Credit: Troy Knight
Last Updated on March 10, 2026 by Maria Haase
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