Los Lagos Golf Club Review

Texas Outside Rating: 8.9

Golf - Public Course · 18 Holes · Par 72
Edinburg
Website · Locate This Course

Img_6943 Img_6957 Img_6968

Los Lagos Golf Club Review

Review of Los Lagos Golf Club - Edinburg

If you are anywhere near Edinburg, then you need to find the time to play Los Lagos Golf Club.  What a blast to play and a real bargain.  Los Lagos is a links style course that is very unique and different than the vast majority of links courses in Texas.  What defines this course is dramatic mounding, huge sweeping bunkers, contoured fairways, challenging green complexes, and 11 acres of lakes!  Los Lagos got a lot of "wows" from our group and we can't wait to get back and play it again.

Los Lagos Golf Club, opened in late 2000 and is owned and managed by the City of Edinburg.  If you been to the Rio Grande Valley you know how flat it is, but that's not the case at Los Lagos.  The designers must have moved millions of cubic feet of sand and desert to create the contoured and rolling fairways and huge mounds and swales. 

The course is visually stunning and intimidating to look at and it is no walk in the park!  With a slope of 74.7 and a rating of 132, Los Lagos is probably the most challenging track in the Valley.  With four sets of tee boxes and yardages ranging from 5561 to 7188, make sure you don't get too macho and try to bite off more than you can chew - you'll regret it.  78 strategically placed bunkers, uneven lies thanks to contoured and mounded fairways, water on 11 holes, and challenging green complexes require your "A" game to score well here.  And don't forget to consider the prevailing winds which can have a dramatic impact on your game. 

But don't let those challenges keep you from playing this fantastic and fun track.  Just pick the right set of tee boxes, play strategically, and manage the wind and you'll do fine.  There are some really fun and interesting holes, for example:

  • the 539 par 5 #1 sets the stage and tests your wind and course management skills as well as your willingness to take some risk reward shots - the fairway twists and turns through huge mounds, swales, and 7 bunkers of all sizes to a small green - par this one and the rest are easy
  • #4 and #5 have huge 100 yard long and very wide bunkers leading to and around the green and 5 has 3 more bunkers on the left side of the green waiting for your ball
  • #10 will tempt your risk reward tolerance to see if you can carry the huge bunker and two pot bunkers to try and shorten this 611 yard dog leg left - be careful on the approach, the green is surrounded by 4 bunkers plus a lake off the backside
  • #14 is the signature hole and a shot makers dream - read the description on the Los Lagos website
  • #18 is a fantastic finishing hole that will make you want to come back to play again - a 569 yard par 5 that dog legs right through a minefield of 15 bunkers of all shapes and sizes to a large green guarded by a lake on the right and bunkers on the left

The fairways range from ample and generous to fairly tight and at times you may want to leave the driver in the bag.  All of the fairways are lined by huge mounds, most have strategically placed bunkers, and some are a fun roller coaster ride.  You can expect to play some uneven lies.  Some nice homes line one side of a few holes.  The fairways were in fair condition and the rough is playable and in some places dirt and patches of grass. Keep in mind when you're looking at the pictures that it was January and the fairways were in transition or dormant.

The greens at Los Lagos range from small to very large, ran at a good speed and very true, and most have some slope, undulation, tiers, or spines.  When we played Los Lagos, the greens were in very good condition.  All of the greens are complex and challenging thanks to bunkers, water, slope, or elevation - accuracy on your approach shots is critical to scoring well. 

The bunkering at Los Lagos is something else!  They range from huge tractor trailer size to small pot bunkers and there are 78 of them waiting for your sand wedge.  Make sure you study your scorecard or range finder before each shot and do what you can to avoid them.  The sand was firm and crunchy which may have been due to the recent drizzing rain.  Most of the lips and steep, so don't expect to roll in and out!

What a fun track, an outstanding value, and a must play.

Img_6935 Img_6954 Img_6951

Course Slope & Ratings

Tee Box Yardage Rating Slope
Blue 6,789 72.8 127
White 6,211 70.1 122
Gold 7,188 74.7 132
Red 5,561 72.8 120

Course Information

Course Architect:
von Hagge, Smelek & Baril
Greens Type:
TIF Eagle
Greens Condition
8.0
Greens Difficulty
8.5
Fairway Condition
7.0
Bunker Condition
7.0
GPS:
No
Walkable:
Easy
Scorecard
Beware of water on 11 holes and the 78 sand traps.

Texas Outside Rating

Overall Rating:
8.9 out of 10
Beauty:
7.0
Difficulty:
9.0
Variety:
9.5
Fun to Play:
10.0
Value:
10.0
Condition:
7.5
Front Nine Rating:
8.8
Back Nine Rating:
9.0
Img_6947

FEES & AMENITIES

Approximate Weekend
Rates: $26.00 to $39.00

Service is very good and friendly, the pro shop has all the basics, and the practice facilities are adaquate - spend time here before you head out. The grill has a variety of options and we hear they cook the best cheeseburger in the Valley.

Img_6944

 

Here's How Texas Outside Determines the Scorecard Rating

The Texas Outside rating scale ranges from 1 to 10 – a perfect 10 course would be something like this:  links along a cliff overlooking the Pacific ocean and bordered by tall trees; lush fairways on rolling hills with lots of natural hazards; water (which is crystal clear) on most of the holes; immaculate greens (but they are undulating and tough); lots of variety and character (each hole is completely different and includes blind shots, elevation changes, doglegs, and significant challenges); perfectly manicured traps with the whitest and prettiest sand you’ve ever seen; a nice club house with great food and a 19th hole; a GPS; plenty of beverage carts or your own cooler and ice; and it only costs $40 bucks! What this means is that you probably won’t find any 10s in Texas – try Cabo San Lucas, Pebble Beach, or some of the Hawaii courses! 
Texas Outside rates courses on the following:

  • Beauty – tall trees, rolling hills, beautiful houses, waterfalls, and similar stuff would score high; a 1 would be flat, bushes or cactus instead of trees, and some grass but mostly weeds
  • Difficulty – a straight, 300 yard par 4 with no traps or hazards, no out of bounds or water would probably get a 1; if it is a 460 yard par 4 over two ravines, with water along one side, natural hazards on the other, strategically placed traps or that dreaded tree right in the middle of the fairway, we are talking a 10. 
  • Variety – what would you give a course where all the holes looked and played exactly the same (“I thought we just played that hole!”); were side-by-side, which is good for finding or dodging other people’s balls, but not much fun; and you can see the flag from every tee box?  That’s right, it gets a 1.
  • Fun Scale – a 10 is where you walk off the course and say “now that was fun” and you can’t wait to get back, or you immediately turn around and play another 18 holes
  • Value – a 5 is $50 to $60, a 10 is $20 to $30, and 1 is $200 or so – of course all of this is dependent upon how you liked the course.  For example, if a run down, boring municipal course, with six players on each hole was only $10; it would still get a value rating of 1.
  • Condition – this one’s pretty easy – what condition are the fairways. A 10 commands very lush perfectly manicured fairways, compared to a 1, which has fire ants, weeds, and more dirt than grass!
  • Condition of Greens and Difficulty – very hard to read greens with lots of undulation and tough pin placement, rate very high on the difficulty scale.  Condition is self-explanatory.  

All of the above determines the overall score for the golf course.  In other words, we like courses that are pretty, fun, very challenging with a lot of variety, and fairways and greens in excellent condition – all for $40.  We also tend to play the courses that are affordable for the masses, which means in the $30 to $80 range. We rate hard and we haven’t found a 10 in Texas yet – don’t worry we haven’t given up and we’re still looking.