To be fair, it's entirely possible that my relatively lukewarm feelings about Deep Cliff Golf Course has more to do with having the wrong expectations than the experience itself. It's just that, given how this place is in Cupertino, which I've always been quite fond of, I guess I just thought this course would stand out when, in hindsight, it's probably perfectly fine for what it is. Compared to some of the other courses my friends and I have played around the Bay Area, Deep Cliff is rather unique in its own way. As an executive course, made up entirely of par-3's and par-4's, the full 18 isn't particularly lengthy, which is great for beginners and/or anyone trying to get in a quick round. Yet, while it plays pretty fair for the most part, it still offers some challenges, with the creek/water hazards appearing on several holes, prominent bunkers fronting several holes (especially on the 18th), numerous tree lined fairways that create a narrow feel, and areas that are a bit more wooded, especially along the edge that runs next to an open green space. Despite how some of Deep Cliff's unique features are largely positive, they can cut the other way, too. For example, while all of those trees create some much appreciated shade when it's warm and sunny, those wooded areas are also home to wildlife that will occasionally wander onto the course. Awesome to see, but it can lead to some (understandable) pauses in play as you wait for the deer and the like to clear out. Thankfully, that didn't happen to us and we were here on a weekday, so our pace of play was still pretty steady. However, between that and how short some of the holes are, I can see the course getting bogged down on weekends when there are that many more folks around. As for everything else Deep Cliff has to offer, their facilities and amenities are decent enough. Our cart was serviceable and clean, the pro shop was fine, and their onsite restaurant looked like a nice spot to grab a post-round beer. That said, certain aspects could've been better. At a couple of points, it didn't feel intuitive as to where we should go (the worker at the desk gave us some confusing directions for where the first tee box was) and, most notably, the driving "range" was more like a bunch of netting that you hit into (I know they're limited on space, but still). All in all, even though I'm only giving three stars, I actually think Deep Cliff's three and a half star average is more accurate. It's a solid option for anyone just getting started, as well as more experienced golfers looking to work on their irons or short game, and their rates aren't too shabby. Since it's a bit of a drive from us, though, coming back would be more for a change of pace than as part of our rotation. However, I'm sure we'll be back down the line...and when we do, it'll be with a more appropriate set of expectations that just might lead to an improved review! Until then, THREE AND A HALF STARS rounded down for now. read more

Won't be playing again. Twice now my round of 18 short holes took five hours. 5 hours!... an hour longer than a par 72 golf course. The management here knows that they are overbooking, sending out groups every 8 minutes. The marshal comes out and tells us that there is nothing anyone can do. "There are groups on every hole." What really is happening is that there are two groups on every hole. What that means is that you are letting too many groups out on the golf course. People are quitting the round after the first nine out of frustration, that's the only reason the pace increases on the back nine. Never again, the experience you've created there sucks. read more

Decided to play a quick 9-hole here on my birthday before work. Not a bad course when compared to the others in the area. Lots of short par-3's that definitely challenge your game if you're not ready. My only complaint is that the Marshall came over and told us to pick up our pace (we couldn't even see the group behind us after hole 5). Kind of killed the mood as we were rushing and hurrying up every shot after that. When we got done, he greeted us at the ninth hole and "says wait you guys aren't playing 18?!" Anywho, I'll probably be back anyway. read more

Played an early(ish) start time. Was done in 3 1/2 hours. Staff were very friendly and the greens were very well taken care of. I will be back in the future. read more

This is a very short 18 hole course. The course itself is in ok shape but to charge 85.00 on a weekend is theft! It was overbooked..10 plus min wait on every home and not a marshal in sight to regulate....probably as it was the course overbooking. You can play a nice course... in great shape...regulated for the same money. Look at Santa Teresa...Spring Valley... Sunnyvale muni...Los Lagos. Trust me... you'll be better off. We paid for 18 and left after 9 as it was 3 hours to get thru the front. Seems like a stupid problem that's easily fixed if the management gave a sh#t. We won't be back. read more

What a little gem of a course. 18 holes challenging but overall fun. Little pricey for a morning round of $47. I suggest becoming a member which cuts the price down. Definitely will be coming back to this place some awesome signature holes keep up the good work grounds crew those greens were awesome read more

See all

Deep Cliff Golf Course is such a fun place to play. The views are amazing, the vibes are always relaxed, and the pace of play during the weekdays is great! You can get through a round without feeling rushed. Course conditions are good for the most part, making it an enjoyable spot for golfers of all levels. read more

Deep Cliff Golf Course - Golf Near Me - Cupertino, California

Racists ! Kept checking up on me and my group every 2 holes ! They threw the wealthy card on use saying that a lot of wealthy people come to this course basically saying that we aren't the type of class that usually comes to this course which really offended us . They told us to move quickly because there was people waiting for us on the tee box which was false . The group behind us was 4 holes behind us. We told them plenty of times that we feel harassed and they still continued to check up on us every 2 holes. Won't be coming back to this course again . read more

Wanna work on your short game and don't have 4-5 hours to play a regulation 18 hole course? Able to spend $55? Well, this is the place in the Peninsula/South Bay area! And, it is a very walkable course as well. Booking a tee time 2 weeks in advance is a bonus and fairly easy to do. I would say this is a hidden gem, figuratively and literally! read more

Great short 18 hole golf course located in Cupertino. The staff are all friendly and help keep the pace moving so usually not a lot of delays between holes - which can be a problem at a lot of beginner courses. The greens are firm and in good shape. read more

Deep Cliff Golf Course - Golf Near Me - Cupertino, California

I'm a beginner and this is a perfect 18 holes course for me, the greens are well kept, lots of shade and trees, I rented a golf cart (I think is better to walk this course) the golf cart had USB connections! I think the price is right. I should be going back soon here read more

I wanted to give 5 stars as I do like the atmosphere of this course, staff are super friendly, convenient location and fill the void when you don't have time for a par-72 but a 9-hole course isn't enough. That 1-star off is due to the luck factor here on who's in front of you that the course and staff can't control (perhaps some level of marshaling). I've completed this course in 2.5hrs, while yesterday took me 3 hrs to finish 11 holes, so you see the variance. Group in front of us yesterday were clearly 4 beginners that insisted to start from blue boxes...when it took them a few shots to go from blue to yellow, you know it's a long day. Everyone gotta start somewhere, but be nice to other players on pacing is part of golf etiquette too read more

Scenic views, lots of trees, water, great walks and somewhat unique holes, lots of animals, i've seen deers, turtles, rabbits, birds, falcons, squirels. It's like a free visit to the zoo. Great short game area, lots of holes to practice, kept really well. I always take my kids here to work on chipping and putting. Everything is FREE, and it's in such a nice a chill area. Range is kinda bad, the nets are too low, can't really see ball flight too well. Tee times are spaced out 7 mins at the most, majority of the players here are below average. Considering it's almost all par 3s. I have never played this course once where it wasn't BACKED up. I've had membership here for like 3 years, there's almost no incentive in being a member unless you are playing weekdays, and even so the savings is medicore. I think gotta play at least 15 rounds to make the money worth. Suggestion for management -- Hole 11 can get dangerous as a fair number of balls have landed on the practice area. Consider expanding the net for better protection. Hole 1 consider pushing the tee boxes up a bit. 90% of the groups hit it in the water, need to carry like 120 before the fairway opens up. Consider recommendating to the players max score per hole should be a double par. Lastly space out the tee times to at least 15 mins per group not 7 mins. It typically takes us over 3 hours finishing 9 holes. read more

I've always really enjoyed playing at Deep Cliff--it's honestly been one of my favorite local courses for a while. That's why this experience was especially disappointing. Starting around the 3rd hole, the course marshal began checking in on us--and not just once or twice. It felt like every 2-3 holes we were being stopped or monitored. Instead of helping pace of play, it actually became disruptive and slowed us down, especially with groups behind us waiting. What made it worse was a comment the marshal made about how the course has players with "a lot of money" who don't like being told what to do. That rubbed us the wrong way. It came off as unnecessary and unprofessional. The frustrating part is we were then told to speed up, even though the repeated check-ins were part of what was slowing everything down in the first place. It felt contradictory and unfair.What used to be a relaxing and enjoyable round turned into a pretty unpleasant experience. I still like the course itself, but this visit definitely left a bad impression. read more

Love the course. It's very pretty with lots of trees up against the cliff. Can be a little muddy in spots

Best public golf course I've played at in the Bay! My friend got a hole-in-one!!! I found this course by sifting through photos and Yelp reviews and it really is as beautiful as it looks in the pictures. The second hole really took my breath away with the enormous cliff on the left side. The fairways and rough are very well kept but unfortunately the greens were being aerated and were not nice as a result. Many of the tee boxes were also pretty bad and made it impossible to hit off the ground so I almost always used a tee. Lots of shade from the trees make this a uniquely nice course to play during the Summer. MAKE SURE YOU GET A TIME IN THE FRONT OF ALL THE GROUPS OR YOU WILL BE WAITING A LONG TIME ON EVERY HOLE. I will be playing here again when the greens are done! read more

Deep Cliff Golf Course - Golf Near Me - Cupertino, California

See all

Pretty old school course, totally reminds me of Caddy Shack. Lots of groups of seniors swinging away having a good time. Definitely seems like a locals hangout. It is 18 holes, but a much shorter course, a par 60 I believe. No par 5s, a few par 4s and lots of par 3s. The course is pretty tight so unless you're really accurate, there aren't many opportunities to use longer clubs like your driver. But to tee off with an iron for me, is still just as much part of the game. You gotta stay within yourself and more importantly stay within the course. I still had a lot of fun here, even though I didn't utilize my whole bag, which longer courses allow you to do. There are tons of mature trees here, from redwoods to large oaks to many others. It is quite aesthetically pleasing to take a stroll here. Even though near the hills, the course is quite flat, so very walkable. The tee boxes are maintained quite nice, better than most near my area. The greens were very well kept and surprisingly fast. It was my first time and I struggled a bit with the speed of the greens. I also struggled a bit with the yardage assessments. The markers are very elusive and none of the sprinklers had numbers. So you have to use a lot of instincts/intuition or use some form of gps which I don't care for. I want to play again as to see if I can do a better job. Also by playing again, I can avoid some of the trouble I got into by not knowing the local knowledge. A little far for me, but still gonna try and make it out. That's when I know a golf course has pulled me in. read more

See all

Best golf value in the Bay Area, full stop. Great little course that you can play in under 3 hours (depending on crowd of course), with friendly service. Just enough challenge to keep it interesting and force you to use club selection and creativity to make the loop. read more

Your staff in the club house when checking in was very rude. This was never the case before, been playing here for many years, night golf ect ect. read more

This is kind of a hidden gem in the South Bay Area. A par 60 course awaits in the woodlands by Stevens Creek so there are no par 5's and actually you will almost never hit driver off the tee here for the sprinkling of par 4's. Instead, come here to test your iron accuracy with the many par 3's here. The course begins with a dogleg right but if you slice it off the tee, it's going into the water. It truly sets the tone for accuracy, but missing the 2nd shot will just serve as a great opportunity to get up and down, especially with the great greens here. Greens are on the slower side, but not to be messed around with as there are lots of domed greens that require you to have just the right speed in your putts. Several holes have trees overhanging parts of the fairway so you do have to be creative with shots if you land in a bad position. Tee times are easy to get even on weekends. However, just be prepared to wait on many holes as the course can get busy especially during twilight hours. You should be able to finish a round in 3.5 hours. This is my go to course if I want something quiet and want to focus more on approach shots or practicing par 3's while still having the full 18 hole experience. Only star deduction is the tee boxes can be quite trash and having to wait a lot on each hole for the group in front to finish. But, I understand a lot of beginners seek this course out as it's not as intimidating as a par 72 course at face value, but I would say this course can punish you if your short game is not good or you make poor aiming decisions. Definitely a nice place to play though for a quick round. read more

During the week I might play this course but on the weekend get ready for a 5/12 hour round. The staff are really nice though and the food is good as well. But again, weekends are too slow. read more

We paid for 9 holes at 7:40 and got through 5 holes, super rude employee comes and kicks everyone off the course and doesn't let us finish, didn't refund. Don't go to this course, horrible! read more

No ball washers on the tee boxes or WATER on the course anymore when needed on those hot summer days! Seems this Corp. is raising fees EVERY YEAR and are giving us less & less every year. BAD business decisions. read more

Great course! I went with a few new golfers and had a blast! The course is well maintained and the pro shop has great service. Fun par 60 course that has challenging fairways and greens. My only complaint was the pace of play, it felt that there were simply too many people for the course as groups were backed up on the tee boxes. Beginners might struggle a little but I think it is a great course to perfect iron play. read more

Deep Cliff Golf Course - Golf Near Me - Cupertino, California

Such a great time out! Rate of play for a player who kind jones what they are doing will get you in and out in 2.5hrs . Par 60 can't complain. I'm not very good, I have only been playing for 18months and I have fun using a majority of my clubs. Weather is usually good I highly recommend if you have time to enjoy some good weather and have some solace. But don't take my word for it, CHECK IT OUT! read more

Deep Cliff Golf Course - Golf Near Me - Cupertino, California

By far my favorite course close to me. Deep Cliff is a 18 hole par 3 course with a sprinkle of short par 4s sprinkled in. The course is relatively challenging, mainly due to the trees that tend to overhang on a lot of the holes, specifically on the front nine. The course is well maintained, however sometimes the bunkers can be a little hard (almost broke my wrist on one of them). The fairways on the par 4's are all in pretty good shape. All of the greens are great and tend to run about medium to fast. My only gripe is that there are some trees that I feel should be trimmed a bit, as not all of us mear mortals can shape the ball exactly how we want to get around an overhanging tree right off the tee box. Overall, Deep Cliff is a great time out and I highly recommend it. Pace of play is decent and usually takes me around 3 hours to complete. read more

Deep Cliff Golf Course - Family of deer on hole #2 - Golf Near Me - Cupertino, California

See all

Zero stars course isn't maintained greens are fully covered in sand also if you brown skin or Hispanic decent don't bother here chuck made tee time with my buddies a horrible experience. He was checking in on us and told us when we spotted him spying on us he drove to us and said of course I'm checking on you guys ! Zero stars also no driving range read more

There's bad customer service, and then there's John who manages the clubhouse. You'd think they'd make up for their overpriced green fees and terrible tee boxes by providing great service to their guests, but it looks like their horrible golf course and service compliment each other. If you have an ounce of common sense, save your money and stay away from this place. read more

Love it, great value and atmosphere. I really like using this course to work on my short game

* = Great availability - you can usually find weekend 18ers in the AM here * = Very convenient location off 85 near De Anza * = Marshal was a terrific guy * = Course was better maintained this time - = Still has awful service in the club house We've gone back to Deep Cliff since my last review and, in fairness, I had a better experience. The main reason was the older gentlemen starter/marshal supervising folks near the first tee. But before we get there, I'll start at the beginning: Deep Cliff still has an absolutely awful ordering system in their clubhouse. There's no organization to the line ever. You always get people coming in from both directions, pretending they don't see the line of people trailing off to the other side. The kids behind the counter are stoned or otherwise disengaged. They offer zero direction. They watch people cut the line and they say nothing. They'll look you in the face, make eye contact, and then walk away from the register, loitering near the kitchen, BS'ing with their friends on staff, watching the TV, killing as much of your time as humanly possible. I don't think I've ever once had what would be called a "good" experience in the shop. Best you can hope for is "painless." In and out. Otherwise, expect to get irritated right before your round of golf. We pay up and head down to the driving range. We're 30 minutes early, so we're going to hit a bucket of balls before our round. We get there, we drop the coin they gave us in the ball dispenser... and NOTHING happens. At this point, I started loudly bitching. Going off on how I never have a good time at this course and how cheap and unmaintained it is. After a couple yelps, the older gentlemen sitting in the marshal cart near the starter's position asks me if anything is wrong. I explain that the machine ate my coin. This guy grabs a bucket, stops the folks from teeing off at the driving range, fills the bucket by hand, and then gives it to me. So now I feel like a prick and immediately make a mental note that I need to change my Yelp rating from 3 stars to 4. Really nice guy and we appreciated his help. We enjoyed our round of golf, but Deep Cliff is still a course where you have to play with some kid gloves on. You're surrounded by a neighborhood, so you can never truly unleash the fury with any of your big sticks and if you waiver off-course, Deep Cliff's primary concern is ensuring you don't break anybody's windows, so they have high climbing vines, thick bushes, wide trees, and basically any other defensive shrub meant to eat your ball. They don't want you to be able to play even slightly off the fairway here. So fair warning: if you land in the rough, it's 50/50 you might lose an ordinarily decently hit ball to something infuriating, like a gopher hole or pile of leaves. Take a little oomph out, keep it down the middle, and try not to get frustrated. While I'm increasing my Yelp rating (as a thank-you to the starter), I remain unchanged in my overall opinion of this place. If you have alternative options, use them. Deep Cliff remains a last resort for me and my friends. read more

Very unpleasant experience playing at this course for the following reason: 1. The course is poorly maintained. Divot everywhere, all the Tee box are not playable, Greens are super slow and uneven. 2. The customer service is horrible. The ranger staff literally rushing us every 2 Tee. 3. Tee time management has serious problems. 4. Definitely not friendly for first time golfers playing on a course. In summary, it basically ruined our day. I will never come back. Don't waste your money!!! read more

Probably thee worst golf-course in the Bay Area. You only go here when you cannot get a tee time anywhere else. The course is not maintained at all and the driving range was closed. You can barely use your drivers here since everything is under 150 yards. Will never set foot on this course again. read more

First and foremost the golf course is good and the kitchen cooks are very nice and understand customer service. They have no choice when the manager Shane, changes policy midway in the season dictating which drinks are or are not allowed with the free drink ticket. So the course and staff would get 4 stars and the management 0. I've been playing there for 10 years. In a league for 4 years, approx. 3 times a week for about 9 months of the year. The first 2 years were fine and we even played through a major drought, and Golf Course renovation. Last year the policy changed so we would get a free drink instead of the appetizers we got in previous years. Ok, so we buy some appetizers to share and pick any drink we want. That worked out OK. Many stayed to even buy a second drink. This year the policy was the same, until last week, when Shane decided we could only get Budweiser and a few select wines. After much confusion, I asked Shane and he replied that nothing had changed, that "they" (that would be his staff) had been doing it wrong the whole time. I replied that it had been like that since before he was hired as manager and that until last week nobody had mentioned any changes. I asked if maybe he was wrong and he said NO he was not wrong. Needless to say this was not a popular change and as things go we started discussing how: 1)The course is not as well kept up as it should be 2)The ladies bathroom has had a broken mirror, faucet, and leaky toilet for a while. 3) And $22 plus league charges for 9 holes is not very competitive So, needless to say Shane has not really made things better or even kept up all the improvements made before he arrived. I understand cost increases and what it takes to run a business, and that some times changes are necessary... BUT there is no excuse for bad attitude from management. read more

See all

There is a reason you can find a tee time at this place. It's horrible. $55 for a weekend round should include real tee boxes and someone to marshal the variety of golf around the course at a reasonable pass. It took us 2 hours to play 1 par 4 and 4 par 3's. Walked off the course after 5 holes. Course conditions are horrible, no course management, and the $55 for this experience is robbery. Not recommended. Wish I could have given it zero stars. read more

Really disappointed in the new Saturday staff at Deep Cliff We called ahead, and arrived 30 mins before our tee time. My wife is recovering from knee and hip surgery, so playing without a cart is not an option. we informed staff of this, but they had no carts. Not really unusual, but they would not rent a cart until one came in. We were sitting on the porch, waiting for one to come in, but must have missed one, because a cart came headed down the path to the first tee. so being there, waiting, didn't help, even though we were there first. I guess we will wait inside next time, in their face. if we hadn't just renewed our membership, I don't think I would return. read more

Deep Cliff is a beautiful 18-hole golf course in the hills of Cupertino. Most of the holes are par 3, but the course provides a good amount of challenge from bunkers and water hazards. The course is really well maintained. Fairways and greens are free of branches and leaves. When we went on a weekend we saw lots of employees driving carts around and watering grass, fixing boundary stakes, and refilling water barrels. The scenery is great too. The course is snug up against the hills and makes it feel like you're walking through a beautiful valley. I recommend walking instead of carting to really appreciate the environment. I love the way how the river winds through the course and how the course takes you over the river multiple times. You walk over multiple bridges to get to the next tee and it feels very refreshing. Overall, would recommend this course to anyone looking to play a quick 18 holes while getting a breath of fresh air! read more

I've been golfing off and on at Deep Cliff for the past 20 years. The fairways have gotten progressively worse. There are tree roots all over the place, and the fairways are patchy and thin. The tee boxes have no grass and instead, they are using mats. The worst part is the wait. For a short course, it took over 2 hours to finish 9 holes when I started at 5:30 PM. The cost is outrageous. As a member and renting a power cart, it came to $83.00 for 2 people. I can golf at any other local course at super twilight for half the price. Yes. Please do check that out, Deep Cliff Management. The guy checking us in was rude and didn't know anything. He said there was no wait. The only positive was the golf marshal. He tried his best to move everyone along in a kind manner. Worst $83 I have ever spent. read more

Can't go indoor due to growing COVID number so we go for a round of golf. Cupertino may not be the best choice for golfing but it is close by and it is on sale with GOLFNOW...lol. A mini 18 hole course and I didn't even get a golf cart. perfect weather for a nice 3 hours walk. Maybe it is the weather or I am really good. I didn't break a sweat for 18. Good course for beginners or someone just want to take it easy. Nice and easy fun. Oh, Friendly staff too!! read more

Deep Cliff Golf Course - Course - Golf Near Me - Cupertino, California

See all

This will be my 3rd review for Deep Cliff and the outstanding service Ryan and his staff have provided me each time I have played. My GF and I played here about a month ago and we started early enough to ask "what about replay rates?" Ryan informed me that since I was a returning customer, and have played here before, that there would be no charge if we finished our round and wanted to play another. 36 holes is a LOOONG day, so we only did the back 9. We broke up our day by taking a nice lunch break outside after the first 18 holes and it was DELICIOUS! The food came out hot, and fresh. Not a single piece of french fry or Pastrami was left on my plate. I love how this place has affordable rates, a decent course, and offers you a free replay if you finish your round. I love place and look forward to playing here about once a month. I also recommend walking the course as well, its not too long but I would recommend a cart if you are feeling a bit low on energy. Thanks again!!! read more

Deep Cliff Golf Course - Still dry from the 4 years of drought we could use the rain! - Golf Near Me - Cupertino, California

I love Deep Cliff Golf Course. This course is esthetically pretty being up against a cliff. The course has a comfortable yardage length making it great for seniors & young golfers. It also is well maintained. If you want to try for a hole in one, this is the course to try your skills. I got a hole in one so this will be my favorite golf course always. Happy golfing! read more