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15100 Happy Camp Canyon Road Moorpark, CA 93021 805-530-0221 map & directions

Rustic Canyon Opening

April 25, 2002

The newest addition to the Ventura County golf landscape opened today, as 80 players tested out Moorpark’s Rustic Canyon Golf Course. The course opens April 26 with limited tee times from 8 am to noon daily until a complete opening in mid-summer when clubhouse and other infrastructure are complete. Green fees are $30 on weekdays, $40 on weekends, with carts costing an additional $10.

Designed by Gil Hanse and Geoff Shackelford, the par-72 6,906 yard “minimalist” design takes advantage of the beautiful Happy Camp Canyon terrain. The sandy soil and sage scrub covering the hillsides hearken to Scottish links style golf. The thick, rugged bunker edges and several waste bunkers are designed to give the course a rustic feel, while the wide fairways and open approaches to the greens were designed to favor a bump-and-run version of golf not often found in California. However, the large, heavily contoured greens were designed to promote strategic golf, meaning a rather forgiving test for the average golfer but a tough scoring test for the better player who fails to place their tee shots in the best angles to attack the greens. Many of the design features were inspired by the works of master architects Alister MacKenzie, Donald Ross and George Thomas.

Hanse, a former associate of architect Tom Doak, is noted for several restorations, including East Coast designs by Ross, A.W. Tillinghast and Seth Raynor. Two of his designs in his hometown of Philadelphia, Stonewall (with Tom Doak) and Inniscrone, were recently ranked in Golfweek’s Top 100 Modern Courses. Shackelford, a resident of Santa Monica and former collegiate golfer at Pepperdine, is the author of seven books on golf courses, including a histories of Riviera Country Club and Cypress Point Club, along with books detailing various aspects of classic golf course architecture. His next book, Grounds for Golf (St. Martins Press), will include a chapter on the design and construction of Rustic Canyon.

Construction began just one year ago on the course. But because of limited earth moving, creative use of the existing features and excellent soil, the course was able to grow in quickly despite the cool and dry winter. Fairways are comprised of rye grass, while the greens and approach areas are bent.

Four sets of tees provide multiple playing options, from the aforementioned 6,906 “Player” tee total, to the 6,585 yard “Back” tees, the 6,011 yard “Middle” tees and the 5,273 yard “Forward” tees.

Highlands Golf is the developer and operator of Rustic Canyon, leasing the large, secluded property from Ventura County. Mark Wipf, formerly of Ojai Valley Inn, is the Head Professional while Jeff Hicks, formerly of Woodland Hills Country Club, is the golf course superintendent.