Pros:
-Excellent variety and use of terrain
-Variation between very long and short but technical holes
-Not repetitive at all
-Fly 18 tees
-Great views of the Sierra Nevada foothills
-TWO 'epic downhill' shots
-Effective use of man made structures incorporated into course design
-Long nature of course prevents back-ups among multiple groups
Cons:
-Lost discs can be very difficult to find on some holes
-First time navigation is difficult without a map in your pocket or a group you can keep up with to follow
-No 'park amenities,' ie benches, water fountains, and trash cans. Pack it in, pack it out! Bring water!
-Tee signs are still not installed.
-Random brush and other plants stick to socks, but I did not find pants to be a requirement.
Other Thoughts:
Shark Tooth Mountain course is situated at the base of and alongside a hill in rural Kern County, near Bakersfield. While the course begins and ends in a park like setting, it explores the rugged hillside for the majority of the course resulting in a long, varied course among a mostly brush covered route. Some trees exist on the hill, particularly toward the end of the course.
We found a map to be crucial in following the course, most holes are so long that numbers on the pins cannot be read, and the (mostly rubber) tee pads do not have signs on them. I do not see concrete being installed anytime soon due to the remote location of many tees, and even with signs, it is so spread out that I can still imagine a first time visit without a map to be difficult.
Holes 1, 2, 3, and then 17, and 18, all follow pretty direct park course lines essentially identical to all of the holes on the adjoining 'Suicide Flats' course. All similarities between the two courses end here.
Hole four immediately sends you up the brush covered hill on a short, but quite steep attempt for birdie. There are not many birdie attempts to be found on the course, at least in the setup we encountered.
Hole 5 passes underneath the beginning of hole 7's flight path, but errant shots should not kill you because the tee is a good 75 feet higher, and the location of 7's basket should send even the worst of drive attempts somewhere other than where you are.
Hole six is an extremely fun short hole with tons of danger surrounding it...throw too short and you lose mega elevation, throw too far and it sails forever down the other side of the hill.
Hole 11 sends you around a large water tower that makes an amazing zapping noise when you nail it with a disc. We understood that the water tower is mandatory left, which, in the pin position we encountered, required an amazing right fading shot between the tower and a cliff before landing near the basket, which was perched on a small hill behind the tower.
Holes 7 and 12 are the long, open downhill shots on the course. Both are wonderful, but can be tough to find discs on. 7 boasts tons of open space, but it is covered in brush that often exceeds 3 feet tall. 12 has a nice grove of trees on the right that looks pretty terrible to lose plastic in.
Beyond hole 12 lie a few more mountain holes, but in my opinion, the course begins to lose a little steam here. Less elevation involved and more long precise shots. These appeared to me to be more like your typical 'non-ski hill' mountain course shots, and not as unique as the first half of the course. That being said, it was still very enjoyable.
We all like to compare courses to each other, and this one is really on a different level than most So Cal courses. I would compare Shark Tooth Mountain to Lake Casitas and Diamond X, mostly due to terrain, length, and use of land more than trees.
This course does not receive as much attention as it should, and that is probably because it is 15 miles from Bakersfield, which itself is at the bottom of most Californians 'destination cities.' Combined with Suicide Flats, this destination is definitely a worthy visit for any visitor from the south looking for a new challenge. I recommend using your energy playing this course before Suicide Flats, as it will be a workout and it gets windy later in the day, an added challenge that a first time visit could do without. I would recommend playing when passing through, but this monster requires a bit more time than 'swinging by.' Definitely a top tier course.