Golf in Vallejo

Dave Johnson has been coaching golfers for over 20 years and through more than 40,000 lessons. His style is intuitive and all about connecting with the students. Enjoy the benefit of his deft professionalism during your two-hour golf lesson. Three different clinics are available for all skill levels, from high-level hobbyists to recent mini-golf graduates, and classes are capped at eight students to ensure personalized attention. Pick up multiple Groupons to attend multiple clinics.

Within the verdant expanse of Burlingame Golf Center’s practice facilities, instructor Dave Atchison, who attained his PGA Class A status in 1981, imparts score-shaving tips to pupils of all ages and abilities. After demonstrating his passion for golf each morning by shaving with a sharpened divot tool, Dave heads to the golf center to showcase club-swinging skills that have fueled his 33-year teaching career, which has included six seasons of coaching at UCLA and another seven at UC Santa Barbara. With a full-length driving range, practice areas for chipping and pitching, and a sandtrap for bunker shots and makeshift hourglass construction, Burlingame Golf Center helps Dave and his clients foster improvements in all facets of the game.

Healdsburg Golf Club carves through Wine Country, loping over undulating terrain marked by mature fir trees and views of Dry Creek Valley. Before taking the course, limber up on the all-weather driving range, with 18 stalls spread over three tiers that allow golfers to smack 300-yard drives or attempt to sink a two-story practice putt. The nine-hole course wraps well-manicured fairways around doglegs and surrounds greens with an entourage of bunkers and rolling mounds. Though suited for beginners, the course is a test for players of abilities, challenging golfers to hit a variety of shots, from long drives down par 5s to bicycle kicks past the goalkeeper on the eighth green. Golfers can relax after their rounds with a relaxing meal at the club’s bar and outdoor patio. The elevated patio overlooks the course as it fades into a sea of trees, misty mountains lining the horizon, and a wormhole leading to a secret nine-hole course on the moon.

Course at a Glance

• Nine-hole, par 35 layout
• Three sets of tees
• Length of 2,622 yards from farthest tees
• Course rating of 65.4 from farthest tees
• Slope rating of 114 from farthest tees

Pruneridge Golf Club’s nine-hole par 30 course features few obstacles and just two holes longer than 300 yards so that golfers can concentrate on making solid contact with the ball and enjoying their round instead of worrying about extreme distance or hazards such as “Sink Holes Probable” signs. Meanwhile, range balls spray from both levels of a two-tier driving range with 44 stalls, and Class A PGA professionals dole out advice throughout indoor and outdoor lessons. During these sessions, Visual Golf stop motion video technology helps golfers see their own bad habits and instructors make recommendations on how students could improve.

Within his teaching domain at Fremont Park Golf Center, PGA professional Ren Chang smoothes rusty swing mechanics and hones mental strategy, with an emphasis on shoring up the fundamentals. Ren brings more than 20 years of golf experience—including more than 10 years as a teacher—when he teaches his personally tailored lessons. He employs video analysis to ascertain problem areas such as assuming a weak stance or mistaking a tire iron for a pitching wedge, and then both student and teacher collaborate to craft a swing that feels comfortable and leads to lower scores. Throughout instruction, Ren aims to make students as comfortable as possible, keeping an extra set of clubs on hand to loan to those who need them. He is also fluent in Chinese, ideal for native Chinese speakers and those seeking to curse at their clubs in more than one language.