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Pebble Beach – the mere mention of the name conjures up images of forested glory, cool gray days, chilly clambake nights around the fire, and golf – perhaps the most iconic set of golf courses the United States of America has to offer.
You can make a case for Bandon Dunes and its four courses, or La Quinta with its five offerings, as competition. But the four golf courses that make up the rotation for Pebble Beach Resorts are literally second-to-none. You may have another personal favorite, but you choose that favorite at the expense of Pebble Beach, because you’re aware of exactly what it is and what it means, whether you’ve been there previously or not.
Walking under the arch that welcomes golfers to Pebble Beach Golf Links is like stepping into another world, a world where only golf matters, and you move amongst those who place golf among their highest priorities. It renders the most exclusive feeling of any golf course that doesn’t require a membership.
Pebble Beach is really the brand, or the trademark, of the Pebble Beach Resorts family, which includes The Lodge at Pebble Beach and The Inn at Spanish Bay as its flagship hotels and four golf courses:
- Pebble Beach Golf Links
- Spyglass Hill Golf Course
- The Links at Spanish Bay
- Del Monte Golf Course
All are located on the Monterey Peninsula, the fog-dusted rock outcropping on the California coast nearly 90 minutes south of San Francisco. The seaside cruise along the 17-Mile Drive, the quaint town of Carmel-by-the-Sea, the picturesque municipality of Pacific Grove, and the magnificence of the Del Monte Forest have been luring tourists for well over 100 years.
Some golf courses are architectural masterworks; there are seaside golf courses; and still others where the setting, surroundings, feelings, atmosphere and history are inseparable from the golf experience. Pebble Beach Golf Links is all of these things.
I stood on the par-5 No. 6 tee and could not see the fairway because of thick fog, but I knew it was straight ahead, with Stillwater Cove on the right. I asked the caddie for the line, and he replied: “Hit it right down the foot path.” I addressed the tee shot, looked up one time to check my alignment, and at that moment, the fog began to lift, and the fairway was revealed. I had to start the entire routine over. It was a spectacular sight.
Then came the famous par-3 No. 7. The green seemed so close you could almost throw it to the green, and therein lay the difficulty – how to get yourself to hit the shot softly enough! My punched wedge shot disappeared into the Pacific haze, and upon reaching the green, there was not a ball to be found. A member of the Japanese foursome playing ahead of me saw me looking for my ball. He stepped back from the No. 8 tee, made a diving motion with his hand, and said “In sea! In sea!” Depressed, I dropped, hit a third into the bunker, then hit the rake I refused to move with my fourth, and the ball rolled back into the bunker. I quickly dug back in and re-chopped at the ball, but this time it popped just over the bunker lip and tracked into the dead-center of the hole, clanging in off the pin for a 5 that would be discussed in articles and dinners for a lifetime.
For many who have sought the Pebble Beach Resorts grail, their primary deterrent has been the cost. The glamour, history, conditions, and atmosphere come at a price. And because players must stay at a Pebble Beach Resorts property to gain access to Pebble Beach Golf Links, the cost of an overnight stay and round could still run in the $1,500 range, even if one chooses to stay at The Inn at Spanish Bay rather than the more luxurious and historic dwellings at The Lodge.
One option for players: utilize the package organized by the website waggletravel.com. It can help mitigate the costs of a multi-night stay-and-play by placing golfers at The Inn at Spanish Bay for a portion of the vacation to soak in the resort’s pleasures and gain access to the Pebble Beach Golf Links. The remaining portion of the stay can be spent at the recently-renovated (2008) Mariposa Inn and Suites in Monterey.
With Pebble Beach Golf Links, and perhaps Spanish Bay under your belt before making the move to Monterey, players may then continue their golf-a-thon at Spyglass Hill, Del Monte or a number of neighboring courses including the recently-renovated Bayonet and Blackhorse Courses in Seaside, the Pete Dye design east of the Pacific Coast Highway at Carmel Valley Ranch, or the scenic Quail Lodge, also on the sunny side of the 1. Theoretically, packaging a four-night trip in this manner could reduce a bill in the $6,000 neighborhood to somewhere around $2,500.
Now that you know cost can be circumvented, perhaps this is the year you grasp the grail and make a lifetime of your own memories on the Monterey Peninsula.
By Matt McKay
When not RV’ing on the California coast or on the golf course, Matt McKay can be heard on “The Elevated Tee” radio program Sundays 9-11 a.m. Pacific on Newstalk 920 KPSI or newstalk920.com.
All photos © Joann Dost
Pebble Beach®, Pebble Beach Resorts®, Pebble Beach Golf Links®. Spanish Bay®, The Inn at Spanish Bay™, The Links at Spanish Bay™, Spyglass Hill Golf Course™, Del Monte™ Golf Course and their respective underlying distinctive images are trademarks, service marks, and trade dress of Pebble Beach Company. Used by permission.
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