California Golf Tour

This is Pebble Beach Golf Links, Hole #7. The most photographed golf hole on the Monterey Peninsula. If Hollywood were to ever cast a golf course, Pebble Beach would get the job. It's white capped water hazards, cliffside fairways and ocean mist long ago created the standard in set design. Epic confrontations between the games legends will be a landmark for years to come. Names like Jack Niclaus verses Arnold Palmer in the 1972 U. S. Open and again Jack Nicklaus verses Tom Watson in the 1982 U. S. Open. Who can forget Jack Lemmon playing in the Pro-Amature tour?

It was Bing Crosby that turned Pebble Beach & Poppy Hills Golf Course into an icon. In 1958, the national TV audience tuned into the Pro-Am for the first time as Bing Crosby set aside his clubs to offer his unique color commentary. Eventually, the tournament's growing viewership and galleries convinced the USGA (United States Golf Association) that Pebble Beach could draw crowds adequate for a national golf championship. In 1972, Jack Nicklaus hit a one iron straight at the ocean on a par three 17th hole and caught the flagstick. This clinched the victory for jack that year.

The toughest golf hole in Pebble Beach is the 431 yard, par 4 eight, which plays along the ocean to it's right. It squeezes to a very narrow fairway into a small green. It is guarded by a large bunker to the right and two more bunkers at the rear. The approach shot must carry the ocean chasm that cuts into the right fairway to reach the severely forward-sloping target.A right to left wind off the ocean is another challenging factor of this hole. The variable winds off the ocean, small greens and the sloping fairways make Pebble Beach a shotmakers course! You must take the 17 mile drive during your visit to Monterey for a breathtaking ocean view. You may be able to see the whales migrate!