It was Johnny Miller who described Pebble Beach golf course as the greatest meeting of land and sea in the world – it’s hard to imagine a more fitting description.
Pebble Beach doesn’t just hug this stunning stretch of the Californian coastline—it defines it. As you stand with your back to the clubhouse and scan your eyes across this heavenly stretch of golf real estate, you would be forgiven for thinking the cliffs, cypress trees, and crashing Pacific surf had been waiting for someone to build a golf course here that would do them all justice. And boy, did they?
Pebble Beach isn’t just a golf course, it’s theatre. Nature is the set designer, the wind special effects, and the ocean an ever-present backdrop. For more than a century, this corner of the Monterey Peninsula has played host to the some truly incredible golfing moments but more than that the golf course is bold, dramatic, beautiful, and often, brutally unforgiving.
Yet for all that history, Pebble Beach golf course remains relatively democratic in that it’s open to all even if the green fees are certainly not for everyone. But the fact, in theory, anyone can play Pebble Beach golf course, makes it one of the most aspirational and accessible major championship venues in the world.
Designed in 1919, the course was laid out with one simple ambition: to run as many holes as possible along the Pacific coast – it’s an intention which still defines the Pebble Beach experience to this day. No fewer than eight holes run along the coastline, with waves licking at fairways and greens and the beach very much in-bound following a rule change in 2019. Even the inland holes are never far from the sound of surf or the smell of salt in the air.
It is a course that has witnessed some of the most iconic moments in golf. Tom Watson’s chip-in on the 17th at the 1982 US Open. Tiger Woods dismantling the field in 2000 with one of the most dominant major performances ever recorded. The ghosts of those moments live in the wind and play with your imagination from the very first tee.
There’s a magic to Pebble Beach that defies simple description. The holes themselves aren’t particularly long by modern standards. The fairways are wide in places. But the greens are small, the elements are ever-changing, and the stakes feel higher than they have any right to. This is a course that tests more than just your swing. It asks questions of your nerve, your rhythm, your sense of occasion.
For many golfers, Pebble Beach is the one. The course they dream of. The trip they plan years in advance. And when you finally walk up to that 1st tee, beneath the watchful eyes of caddies, marshals, and curious onlookers, it feels like stepping into a story you’ve been telling yourself for years.
We hope what follows is a detailed and honest guide to one of the most celebrated golf courses on the planet. From how to book and what it costs, to where to stay and the holes which will stay with you forever—this is everything you need to know about Pebble Beach Golf Course.
What makes Pebble Beach Golf Course Special?
There are golf courses that take your breath away with beauty. Others are revered for their history. Very few offer both quite like Pebble Beach. This place is revered not just for its physical beauty, but for its place in the cultural and competitive fabric of golf. The story dates back to the late 1800s, when the Pacific Improvement Company—led by railroad magnates known as the “Big Four”—transformed the Monterey Peninsula into one of America’s premier destinations. It began with the opening of Hotel Del Monte in 1880 and the creation of 17-Mile Drive a year later.
Though the hotel burned down in 1887, it was swiftly rebuilt and plans for a Pebble Beach resort were announced in 1907. A log-built Lodge opened in 1909 but was, once again, lost to fire in 1917. But finally in 1919, the Del Monte Properties Company purchased 18,000 acres and opening both a new lodge and Pebble Beach Golf Course, which was designed by two amateur golfers—Jack Neville and Douglas Grant.
Their ambition was to create a course that would both stand the test of time and make the most of the incredible beauty of this stretch of the Californian coastline. What they created has endured for more than a century, enhanced over time by the likes of Alister MacKenzie (who designed August National and nearby Cypress Point) and H. Chandler Egan, but never diluted. The result is a layout where land and sea are in constant conversation—from the short but dramatic 7th hole to the vertiginous second shot on the 8th, and the iconic closing hole which hugs the Pacific like a baby to its mother.
Historic Pebble Beach Moments
Pebble Beach is not a museum piece; it is a stage. And some of the greatest performances in golf history have unfolded here. In 1982, Tom Watson stood just off the 17th green during the final round of the US Open, locked in a duel with Jack Nicklaus. From thick rough, above the hole, with the tournament hanging in the balance, Watson struck a chip that danced once, twice, and then dropped—dead centre. “I told you I was going to sink it,” he would say to his caddie. He went on to birdie the 18th and win by two. It remains one of the most iconic moments in major championship golf.
Fast-forward to 2000, and Pebble Beach bore witness to a different kind of brilliance. Tiger Woods didn’t just win the US Open that year—he dismantled the field. In one of the most complete performances ever seen, Woods finished at 12-under par, 15 shots clear of second place. It was clinical, historic and era defining. Pebble Beach golf course was the perfect canvas for that masterclass—every shot framed by ocean, pressure, and perfection.
PEBBLE BEACH GOLF COURSE: A-LIST LOVE AFFAIR
But it isn’t just professionals who have shaped Pebble Beach’s legend. The course has long had a love affair with celebrity. The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am—first hosted by Bing Crosby in 1937—has brought together Hollywood stars, musicians, athletes, and corporate giants alongside PGA Tour players for decades. The sight of Bill Murray clowning with fans while Phil Mickelson grinds over a birdie putt is part of what gives Pebble its laid-back, West Coast charisma. It’s golf, yes—but with a red carpet twist.
That blend of tradition and glamour is what sets Pebble Beach Golf Course apart. It has the tournament pedigree of a major venue, the soul of a links, and the allure of a Californian dreamscape. It doesn’t just belong to the game—it belongs to the culture of sport, celebrity, and storytelling.
Pebble Beach Golf: Small targets
One of Pebble Beach’s most defining features is its putting surfaces. The greens here are among the smallest on the PGA Tour, averaging just 3,500 square feet. Compared to the vast landing zones players enjoy elsewhere, these greens feel like postage stamps. That intimacy creates drama. It forces precision. And it gets inside your head. “Pebble Beach is one of the most intimidating golf courses I’ve ever played,” said 2002 PGA Championship winner Rich Beem. “You get caught up in the views so easily, and all of a sudden you’ve got all of these difficult shots into greens that look like the size of dimes.”
Those minuscule targets—often perched, sloped, and exposed to sea breeze—contribute to some fascinating statistics. Between 2018 and 2020, Pebble Beach consistently ranked inside the top 15 in difficulty for greens hit in regulation. And that’s despite the course setup being softened to accommodate amateurs during the AT&T Pro-Am. In some seasons, it’s been even tougher than Augusta National.
There are 117 bunkers on the course—five more than at the Old Course at St Andrews—and many lie in wait around the greens. Throw in the wind funnelling off Carmel Bay and ever-changing weather, and what looks like a simple wedge shot can quickly become a bogey—or worse. If you want to score at Pebble, you must be sharp with your irons and even sharper with your imagination.
Playing Pebble Beach: What to Expect
Playing Pebble Beach Golf Course is about more than just the round—it’s about stepping into a living postcard. Every detail, from the scent of cypress trees on the morning breeze, to the murmur of waves breaking along the cliffs, adds to the theatre of the day. The sense of occasion builds the moment you arrive. It is one of the few places in golf where anticipation is part of the performance.
Arrive early. Walk slowly. Soak it all in. The Lodge at Pebble Beach sets the tone—a place of classic elegance overlooking the 18th green. Eat breakfast and drink in the view. Once you’re done, warm up. The range hums with a gentle tension, the short game area is tucked among the pines, and the putting green, with its view across Carmel Bay, offers one final glimpse of serenity before the nerves arrive. It’s not uncommon for visitors to feel their hands tremble as their name is called on the 1st tee, announced to onlookers like they’ve stepped into a Sunday afternoon at a major.
Pebble Beach overlooks some of California’s most beautiful stretches of sand
There is joy in walking here. The land rolls gently, inviting you to move at the pace of the place. A caddie does more than carry your bag—they offer a bridge between you and the course: stories of Watson and Nicklaus, wind reads, and unspoken reassurance. If you choose to take a golf cart at Pebble Beach it has to stay on the path at all times and that will mean you get a very different experience. On foot, you begin to see the course the way it was meant to be seen—from ground level, in sequence, with the sea to your side and the sun on your back.
The rhythm of the round is dictated by more than pace-of-play. Pebble Beach is contemplative, cinematic. You’ll pause to take photos, to laugh at a bounce, to marvel at the bravery of past champions. The 6th tee, the 7th green, the walk across the 8th fairway—they’re all pauses in a kind of slow, deliberate symphony.
But Pebble is also a test. The greens are tiny, the wind unpredictable, and the bunkers plentiful. The course will ask questions of your short game, your club selection and your confidence. It is possible to stand on the most beautiful hole you’ve ever played and hit the worst shot of your life. That’s part of it. That’s the charm. Pebble Beach does not promise perfection—it promises experience.
By the time you reach the final stretch and that sweeping arc of 18—you’ve become part of something bigger. Your game may or may not have held up. But you’ve walked the walk. And you’ve done so where legends have gone before you. That alone is worth every step—and every cent.
Best Holes at Pebble Beach
Every hole at Pebble Beach has its own personality. But while some whisper, others roar. A few stand out from the rest, not just for their challenge or beauty, but for their role in golf history. Here are the holes we believe define the Pebble Beach experience.
The 4th: 333 yards, Par 4: Short, strategic, and often underestimated. The 4th tempts you to drive the green, but bunkers and a narrow landing area await the greedy. From the tee, the Pacific spreads out to your right—teasing and terrifying in equal measure. A true risk-reward masterpiece.
The 6th: 498 yards, par 5: The 6th marks the beginning of the fabled oceanfront stretch at Pebble Beach. As you stride up the fairway, take a moment to study where the green sits—perched high above, like a challenge issued by the land itself. The second shot on this iconic par-5 demands elevation and ambition, rising nearly four stories to a distant, elevated tier that turns boldness into theatre.
The 7th: 107 yards, par 3: Perhaps the most photographed golf hole in the world. Just over 100 yards, it plays straight out to the ocean. One moment you’re holding a sand wedge, the next a hooded 6-iron—depending on the wind. It’s a study in scale: short in distance, infinite in atmosphere.
The 8th: 416 yards, par 4: Jack Nicklaus called it the greatest second shot in golf. A solid drive leaves a blind approach over a yawning cliff to a small, raised green. Misjudge the distance or flight, and your ball tumbles toward the rocks below. It’s exhilarating and unforgiving—quintessential Pebble.
The 9th: 483 yards, Par 4: This hole runs parallel to the Pacific with a fairway that leans toward the cliffs. Into the prevailing wind, it’s a brute. The approach must carry a gaping bunker to reach a sloped green perched at the edge of the continent. A par here feels like a birdie.
The 10th: 444 yards, Par 4: A sweeping hole which, once again, runs right along the cliffs to the furthest point on the course. Precision off the tee is crucial, and the second shot plays uphill into a tightly bunkered green. It’s scenic and savage—a true test of nerve as you begin the back nine.
The 17th: 182 yards, par 3: Site of Tom Watson’s legendary chip-in during the 1982 U.S. Open. The green is small, hard, and canted left to right. Miss short and you’re in the sand. Miss long and you’re wet. It’s one of the most demanding par 3s in championship golf—and one of the most storied.
The 18th: 541 yards, par-5: One of the most iconic finishing holes in the game. With the Pacific on your left the entire way along the length of the hole, each shot tempts disaster. But for those who navigate the dogleg and dare to go for the green in two, the reward is unforgettable. The amphitheatre setting of the 18th green, watched from the Lodge’s veranda, completes the experience with quiet applause and ocean air.
Pebble Beach: final thoughts
Pebble Beach is more than a venue—it’s a celebration of everything the game can be. It’s the thrill of walking in the footsteps of giants, the sound of waves crashing beside the 18th fairway, the whisper of a caddie pointing out a break that only the locals know. It’s where the stakes feel higher, not because of the tournament, but because of the meaning each moment holds for you.
It’s also a place of contrasts: both relaxed and regal, intimate and expansive, public yet wrapped in prestige. Where you’ll find first-timers with wide eyes and seasoned players with a reverent hush. It’s a golf course that tells a story—of sport, of landscape, of legacy—and then invites you to write a line of your own.
Whether you shoot 72 or 102, what stays with you won’t be the score. It will be the light over Carmel Bay, the wind on the 7th tee, the echo of applause at 18. You don’t just play Pebble Beach. You carry it with you. And if you’re lucky, you return to it again—each time with the same wide-eyed wonder as your first visit.
Pebble Beach Golf Course Map
Pebble Beach Golf Course Scorecard
Pebble Beach Golf Course: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Pebble Beach Golf Course: Book a Tee Time
If you’re serious about playing Pebble Beach, book early—and book smart. Staying at one of the resort’s properties—The Lodge, The Inn at Spanish Bay, or Casa Palmero—grants advance access to tee times up to 18 months out. For those not staying onsite, a limited number of last-minute tee times are released 24 hours in advance, but they vanish quicker than a well-struck wedge in coastal wind.
Pebble Beach Golf Course: Green Fees
The cost to play Pebble Beach Golf Course is steep—$625 as of 2025. Add in a cart or caddie, and you could be well over $800. But this isn’t just a green fee. It’s an admission ticket to a place where golf’s most storied moments have unfolded. For many, it’s worth every cent.
Pebble Beach: Arrival and Atmosphere
From the moment you pull into the driveway of The Lodge, you feel it: this is hallowed ground. Staff greet you with warmth and quiet ceremony. Your name is called on the 1st tee. The practice range is pristine. The putting green overlooks the Pacific. Even before you swing a club, the experience has begun.
Pebble Beach: Should I walk or ride?
Make no mistake—Pebble Beach is best experienced on foot. Walking allows you to connect with the rhythm of the course, to hear the ocean, to watch the shadows stretch across the cliffs. Caddies are strongly encouraged, not just for the read on a tricky green, but for the stories, the tips, the history. If you must take a cart, know that they’re only allowed after noon—unless you have a medical exemption.
Pebble Beach Golf Map
Pebble Beach Golf Course: Conditions & Pace
Coastal fog is a frequent guest, especially in the morning. Winds can be unpredictable. Greens are firm and small. Rounds often stretch past five hours, especially during busy seasons. But don’t rush. This isn’t a place to chase birdies—it’s a place to breathe deeply, look up, and savour every swing.
In short: prepare well, walk slow, bring your best—and bring your camera.
What is the Pebble Beach golf course price?
Green fees start at $625, plus optional fees for caddies or carts.
Can I book Pebble Beach golf packages?
Yes, resort packages include golf, accommodation, and often dining or spa credits.
When is the Pebble Beach Pro-Am?
The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am takes place each February, combining PGA players with celebrities.
Who owns Pebble Beach Golf Course?
The Pebble Beach Company owns the course, led by a group including Clint Eastwood (long time mayor of nearby Carmel) and Peter Ueberroth.
What is the Pebble Beach Golf Resort?
A luxury resort spanning multiple properties, offering golf, dining, spa services, and coastal views.
Is there a Pebble Beach golf shop?
Yes—several, including the flagship pro shop with apparel, bags, and collectibles.
Can I buy a Pebble Beach golf bag?
You won’t be alone if you did, many visitors pick one up as a keepsake. Rental sets are also available.
Where can I see the Lone Cypress?
Along 17-Mile Drive, perched dramatically above the ocean and protected by Pebble Beach Company.
Pebble Beach golf logo
