Is there a more famous golf course in the world than Pebble Beach? An argument can be made for historic St. Andrews or even Augusta National with all of its TV time, but the public access Pebble Beach course with its coastal holes and unsurpassed beauty may be the most coveted course in the world to play.
No other course offers more time on the coast than Pebble Beach and few courses offer as much major tournament history; most recently the 2019 U.S. Open.
At Pebble Beach it is easier to find a non-signature hole than to select a single signature hole. However, it is difficult to pass on perhaps the most famous finishing hole in the world. With the Pacific Ocean crashing into the rocks the entire left side of this dogleg left hole it is the most recognizable and one of the most beautiful holes anywhere.
| Few thrills are greater than launching a tee shot over the ocean towards an emerald green fairway and that is exactly what you are able to do here. The approach shot is protected on the right by a large tree and the left side features a long bunker that stands as a buffer between the green and the ocean. Truly one of the greatest holes in the world, this hole is a thrill from start to finish. |
Interestingly, the Par-5 18th was an afterthought!
| When pebble Beach opened in 1919, its 18th hole was a short, straight par 4. In defense of the original designers, Jack Neville and Douglas Grant, it was the best they could do. |
Their topographic map shows they positioned the green just in front of a deep ravine, with the Pacific on the left and a 75-cent toll road called 17 Mile Drive, soon relocated, close on the right. It wasn't their fault the green was only 325 yards from the tee. They'd proposed an ocean-side tee box to stretch the hole to 379 yards, but it wasn't built. Funds were limited.
| In April 1920, Pebble's owner, Samuel Finley Brown Morse, invited British golf architect W. Herbert Fowler to inspect Pebble Beach. Sure enough, Fowler suggested an ocean-side tee for 18, and this time, Morse had it built. In October 1921, stung by the criticism of the California Golf Association that Pebble still had "a woefully poor finishing hole," Morse brought Fowler back. This time Fowler proposed filling in the ravine, building a sea wall and backfilling a new green location some 170 yards farther up the shoreline, turning the hole into a boomerang-shaped par 5. |
Thus was created what many consider the finest finishing hole in golf -- certainly the most photogenic. Over the years, bunkers have been added and shifted, trees removed and transplanted, and the tee box and sea walls reconstructed from bedrock up, but the 18th remains as Fowler suggested 90 years ago.
There is no doubt this is one of the great holes, and golf courses, in the world. As the 2 greatest golfers of all time (that might be an interesting debate for the newsletter someday…) put it:
| Tiger Woods said, “Pebble Beach probably has the most historic and picturesque 18th hole. If anyone ever sees a photo from the 18th tee box all the way to the hole, you know what it is. People who have never played Pebble Beach know what it is.” |
| Jack Nicklaus wrote, “If I only had one more round to play, I would choose to play it at Pebble Beach.” |
Pebble Beach, combined with Spyglass Hill & The Links at Spanish Bay, with a stay in either the Pebble Beach Lodge or The Inn at Spanish Bay, makes for a perfect golf getaway.
At Golf Away Tours we have built many trips for clients to this great area and customized it to the needs of each group. Whether it was adding in a trip to San Francisco for a couple days of touring that one of a kind city, or a visit to the Napa Valley Wine region to find the next great Piot Noir, we have been able to build the perfect trip to help out clients tick a lot of boxes off the old bucket list!
Give us a call any time and we will be happy to help you build your perfect vacation to Pebble Beach, or any other great golf location you want to visit.
Give us a call any time and we will be happy to help you build your perfect vacation to Pebble Beach, or any other great golf location you want to visit.
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