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Post by tightdraw on Jan 4, 2011 2:59:03 GMT -5
I have a March trip with my brother in law and we are booked to play at Pasatiempo, Pebble Beach and Spyglass. I am looking into getting on Olympic in SF. I will report on all these when I return. Has anyone played these.
I played Pebble in 1970 when I snuck on from Carmel Beach. So that doesn't count for two reasons. It was a different world then -- in many respects :-)
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Post by gmbtempe on Jan 4, 2011 9:52:52 GMT -5
wow, that should be awesome.
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Post by tightdraw on May 23, 2011 21:52:58 GMT -5
I realize that I never reported on my experiences at Pebble, Spyglass and Pasatiempo. Well, the weather was awful. We played Spyglass first, then Pebble, then Pasatiempo. The only playable day was the first at Spyglass. This is a good sound golf course. The first five holes are spectacularly beautiful and have great views. They are all very good holes. I think the fourth is the toughest with an incredibly inaccessible green. beautiful. The fifth is an excellent par 3. after the fifth the rest of the course meanders through the pines. lots of deer and wildlife. tough course. little roll. lots of elevation changes. a classic Jones design: all hard pars and easy bogeys. Not a lot of memorable holes but a very enjoyable and demanding course of good design. it was incredibly windy. I played as well as I could: 79. no complaints. I'd play it again, but not for 500.00
Next up was Pebble Beach. The day began with 40 mph winds and ended with hail.
i had played PB before but only once and when I was inattentive to design. I may be in the minority, but I am not wild about PB. the scenery is unreal; and the really good holes are GREAT, but there are a lot of boring and genuinely undistinguished holes. There's a big gap between the two. Everything is the wind. The great holes by my lights are 7,8,9,10, 17, 18. 9,10 are unplayably long for people like me. It's a great golf course for competitions because the stretch from 7-10 separates the pretenders form the contenders. then its a break where people can get back into contention by making birdies; and then you come to 17,18. But if you are not playing in a competition, the stretch from 11-16 is way disappointing cause you are unlikely to make birdies but also unlikely to get excited by the design or the challenge.
When we played the wind was unbearable and to give an example my brother in law had to hit a full 6 iron into the 98 yard 7th hole; and the balls would not stay on the green on 6. the wind just blew the balls off.
9 and 10 were three shot par 4s. wow.
Greens are smallish and require a caddy to help you read them. Good condition. I would like to play it again if the weather were better, but not more than once.
I come finally to Pasatiempo. Now this is a GREAT golf course if you like architecture and layout. Unfortunately it was a downpour and we couldn't finish. I will report on it when I go to play it again. But i loved what i saw. It is one of the best courses designed by the great Alistair McKenzie. the first four holes are amazingly good. The views are not comparable to those at PB and Spyglass. But it's in the mountains of Santa Cruz, less than half the price and twice the golf course.
Hope this helps
TD
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