Arroyo Del Oso Golf Course — Attraction in Albuquerque

I have played Arroyo for over 30 years. I have always maintained that for a municipal course, it is among the best I have played and over the 50+ years I have been playing, I have played dozens in several states. Still carrying a single digit handicap and I can say without equivocation that it is challenging for all levels of players. Usually in decent to very good condition. Routing is great for a muni. Actually, it is just great. Lots of doglegs and elevation changes make the course very interesting, even if you play it many times a year. I also feel that the greens don't get the respect they deserve for the subtle breaks on virtually every green. The backdrop of the Sandia mountains towering to 11,000 feet to the east is a spectacular view that many pay a much larger green fee to enjoy. A real value at just over $30 for weekend play and less during the week. Admittedly, pace of play could be improved, although I have rarely experienced rounds over 5 hours and have played in under 3 during the week playing by myself. I am a walker and carry, even though I am over 70. Course is walker friendly. No long walks between greens and the next tee. Driving range is well maintained and plenty large. Putting green is similar to course greens and the course also has nice chipping green area and practice sand trap. Pro shop is always well stocked and the staff are friendly. All of the 4 Albuquerque City courses are a good value. No. I didn't get paid...

Terrible. Happened two days in a row. Cart girl will look straight at you flagging her down and just keep driving. The course marshal warned us for slow play when we were waiting for a group to clear the green. Told him there is nothing we can do as we are waiting to hit our approach from 160 yards out, marshal states not his problem and drives off. Two holes later, while waiting again for the group in front of us, the marshal yells at us for hitting two balls. I told him we were chipping a ball back and forth between group carts (roughly 10-15 yards) trying to past the time since it was at least a 5 minute wait between every shot. Marshal yells that doesn’t matter. All in all. Took almost 6 hours to play 18 holes. Course was in poor condition but coming out of the winter months I was not expecting a super green course and THE COURSE MARSHAL...

The course itself - 4/5 stars. For a municipal course, it is quite good and more demanding than might be expected. It is usually in good to very good condition. From the white (men's) tee, it rates at 70.2 (course) and 128 (slope). The price is reasonable - $25-30 for 18 holes. Practice facility - 4/5 stars. The range balls are average (10% good, 60% moderate, 30% poor). Only on rare occasions are artificial mats placed to hit off of. The putting green is representative of the course. Pace of play - 1/5 stars. Expect extremely slow play. The only time I finished in under 5.5 hours, was when I was playing alone and few other people were on the golf course. I have had several rounds last over 6 hours and the marshals do nothing to speed up the pace of play. If the pace of play were reasonable, I would...