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Golden Gate
Golf Course
47th Ave. & Fulton
San Francisco, CA
415-751-8987


Course cost:
$6 - $14. Check with pro shop for specials.
Architect:
Jack Fleming (1950)
Hoofing it:
No problems at all. In fact, not even sure if you could take a cart even if you wanted one. This is salt-of-the-earth nine-hole par-3 muni golf. You can walk it in your sleep.
Practice Facilities:
Driving net (mats), putting green
Food & Booze:
Snack bar with some beers in the fridge.

Course lowdown
If you live in San Francisco, you have to play this course. You owe it to The City.

Before you moan about the horrible condition of the par-3 track compared to better facilities or the long waits or the fact that the golfers surrounding you wouldn't be best described by the term "serious about the game," rejoice in a few things.

First of all, the course is right in the middle of beautiful Golden Gate Park and is an enjoyable 9-hole jaunt just a big drive from the ocean and near the very cool windmill that welcomes visitors to the park from the Ocean Beach side.

Second, if nothing else, it's a great test of your iron play. Even though the longest hole on the course is under 200 yards, you'll still have to hit all of your wedges and most of your irons. Also, you don't have to bring your woods, so your bag will be significantly lighter when you're trudging up some of the hills.

For non-residents, it's frankly a lot of money for the golf that you get, but in a pinch it's a lot of fun and during summer evenings when the fog hasn't yet crept up from the ocean, it can be a beautiful setting.

FYI: This course is home to what originally was called the Father and Son Tournament and is now the more politically correct Northern California Family Golf Championship, a 50-year-old San Francisco tradition.