Banner image above: Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club

Best Private Golf Course & Best Country Club:
Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club
(Runner-Up: The Crosby at Rancho Santa Fe/Runner-Up for Best Country Club: Santaluz Club)
How does Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club differ from the many others in our area? "It’s unique because it was built in the ’20s," head golf professional Jason Edmiston explains. "Back then they didn’t have a lot of earth-moving equipment, so they chose a rolling, wooded piece of ground that is naturally interesting. Many new courses today have a manmade look, but ours is lined by mature oaks, sycamores, and eucalypts." The club has 620 members who enjoy the course with their guests. In addition, folks staying at The Inn at Rancho Santa Fe can play at limited times. All 1,800 Covenant homeowners are welcome to use the dining and bar facilities. (858/756-3094, www.rsfgolfclub.com) — Elizabeth Hansen


Best Beach:
La Jolla
(Runner-Up: Del Mar)
It’s no wonder La Jolla received the Best Beach nod. La Jolla Shores is one of the most family-friendly stretches of sand in the county, and adjacent Kellogg Park is an ideal spot for picnics and games. The Shores also offers the option of kayaking to the La Jolla Caves and the La Jolla Underwater Park and Ecological Preserve. Iconic La Jolla Cove, surrounded by sandstone cliffs, is a wonderful spot for snorkeling and scuba diving, as the protected waters are home to giant sea bass. Seals and sea lions have made the Children’s Pool more than a trifle controversial, but no one would deny that the sea wall around this area is an exciting place to be during a winter high tide. Windansea Beach is best known for its shorebreak. Here, a Polynesian-style hut, first built by Windansea surfers in 1947, is a renowned landmark. — Elizabeth Hansen


Best Recreation Experience:
Walking On The Beach
(Runner-Up: La Jolla Kayak)
For many busy multi-taskers, walking is now the most popular way to spend time with friends. "It’s replaced doing lunch," says one mom-on-the-go. "It’s a great way to combine fitness, fun, and friendship." In some parts of the country, winter walks are limited to indoor malls, but here in San Diego we are blessed with walkable beaches year round. La Jolla Shores is one of the best because even at high tide there’s plenty of hard pack. Torrey Pines State Beach is another good one. Canine companions are welcome on San Diego beaches only after 4pm in winter and 6pm in summer, but they can join their two-legged friends anytime on Del Mar’s Dog Beach, Ocean Beach’s Dog Beach, or around Fiesta Island. Beach walkers can pick up a tide chart at most surf shops.
— Elizabeth Hansen


Best Horse Trails:
Rancho Santa Fe
(Runner-Up: San Dieguito River Park)
"The horse trails are for the private use of the members of the Rancho Santa Fe Association and their guests," firmly states a spokesperson for the Association. So if you don’t happen to live in the Covenant, grab a friend who does and go for a walk, a trot, or a jog. The scenic trail system that winds through Rancho has been there for 80 years — since 1928 when Ranch property owners formally adopted the Rancho Santa Fe Protective Covenant. Its adoption marked the culmination of the process of institutionalizing the planned community concept, which had originally begun in the form of deed restrictions in 1921. Today, Rancho Santa Fe is the oldest planned community in California. — Elizabeth Hansen

Best Sports Experience:
San Diego Chargers
(Runner-Up: San Diego Padres)
With their first post-season win in over a decade, the Chargers gave San Diegans a reason to cheer in 2007. Sure, it wasn’t a long-lived post season, and we’ll continue to argue about LT’s absence from that final game, but in the end they gave us what we wanted — they were contenders. More than that they provided us with a pastime that is unparalleled in San Diego. A packed Qualcomm Stadium on a Sunday afternoon has the frenetic energy of an ancient gladiator tournament. A typical day for Chargers fans: tailgate in the lot until kickoff, scream themselves hoarse as Rivers throws another perfect pass from the pocket, and sing victoriously as the Raiders go home with their tails between their legs. (www.chargers.com) — Ryan Thomas
Best Public Golf Course:
Torrey Pines
(Runner-Up: Four Seasons Resort Aviara)
The squirrels get in his bag, but Tiger Woods still loves Torrey Pines. And why shouldn’t he? He recently won the Buick Invitational for the fourth straight time. He’ll be back in June when the 2008 U.S. Open is held on the South Course. In the meantime, locals can enjoy the 7,607-yard course — the longest Open course ever. Although some are concerned about "out-of-towners inundating the course," most are incredibly proud to see golf’s Super Bowl coming to La Jolla. Torrey Pines is only the second public course to host the U.S. Open. (858/452-3226,
www.torreypinesgolfcourse.com)
— Elizbeth Hansen
 
 


© 2008 Rocket Publishing Company, Inc.    760.942.2330     P.O. Box 676130, Rancho Santa Fe, CA 92067