Monte Cristo Golf & Country Club Review

Texas Outside Rating: 7.6

Golf - Public Course · 18 Holes · Par 71
Edinburg
Website · Locate This Course

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Monte Cristo Golf & Country Club Review

Review of Monte Cristo Golf & Country Club in Edinburg

Monte Cristo Golf & CC opened in 1976 and it can be characterized as a traditional and straight-forward 18 hole course called a Parkland layout.   Like most older courses in the Rio Grande Valley, some of the fairways are side by side and all are very flat and in most cases you can see the flag and what you're up against from the tee box. The course measures 6392 yards from the Gold tees with trees and homes lining the majority of the fairways on the front nine.  7 lakes on the course create water trouble on 11 holes. 

What makes Monte Cristo Golf & CC a stand-out from its Rio Grande Valley competitors are the conditions - the greens are regarded as the best in the Valley, the fairways are in good shape, and the course is very well maintained.

Monte Cristo Golf & CC is a course where you can have a relaxing, enjoyable round and walk into the club house feeling pretty good about your score.  There are currently 5 sets of tee boxes with yardages from 4521 to 6392 yards - so distance isn't a problem.  Monte Cristo Golf & CC may not be the longest but with water on 11 holes, some forced carries, lots of trees, back yards, and wind the course forces you to think about your shots before stepping up to smack the ball!  The back nine is short at 2156 to 3040 yards and its a par 35 with 4 par 3s, 2 par 4s, and 3 par 5s. 

Some of the holes that are fun include:

  • #2 is a simple 386 yard par 4 but a pond and a slight dog leg left make you decide whether to risk using the driver or play safe and lay-up off the tee box
  • #12 is a 153 yard par three island green similar to that at TPC Sawgrass
  • #18 is a great finishing hole - a 526 yard par 5 with out of bounds and water to cross at 150 yards in front of the green

Speaking of the greens - we are told that they are "the best greens in the Rio Grande Valley."  They were in very good condition when we played - they were soft and held the ball well, and run true and at a good speed of around 8.5 or so.  Many of the Monte Cristo Golf Course greens are slightly raised and are oval or kidney shaped. 

The sand bunkers at Monte Cristo have turned into grass bunkers that can be treacherous with thick grass and a line of dirt around the front of the lips. 

The fairways are flat, mostly straight ahead, and in pretty good condition.  Like the rough, there are some bare and dirt spots and some ant hills to watch out for.  Houses that line one side of the fairway can come into play.

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Course Slope & Ratings

Tee Box Yardage Rating Slope
Blue 6,014 68.3 119
White 5,373 65.5 111
Gold 6,392 70.2 122
Red 4,521 67.7 104

Course Information

Greens Type:
TIF Dwarf
Greens Condition
8.8
Greens Difficulty
7.5
Fairway Condition
8.0
GPS:
No
Walkable:
Easy
Scorecard
Beware of water on 11 holes and the 0 sand traps.

Texas Outside Rating

Overall Rating:
7.6 out of 10
Beauty:
7.0
Difficulty:
8.0
Variety:
6.5
Fun to Play:
7.5
Value:
8.2
Condition:
8.5
Front Nine Rating:
7.5
Back Nine Rating:
7.5
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FEES & AMENITIES

Approximate Weekend
Rates: $25.00 to $38.00

The 1500 square feet pro shop is well stocked with everything from shirts and shoes to clubs and bags. There is a 7000 square feet putting green and driving range to warm up on. There is a restaurant and full service bar and grill that serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

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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.