Links Magazine | The Best Of Golf

Pacific Drive continued...

pelican brief
I pulled out of Torrey Pines and turned north. The worst aspect of road trips is the driving itself, so it was nice to have companionship for the first half. Mike and I have been friends since junior high, but he is useless as a navigator. He has such a bad sense of direction that he has gotten confused on New York City’s street grid. So what, you say. A lot of people have.

He lives there.

If my opinion seems harsh, it’s payback for when we were on the same youth-league basketball team. Mike was the point guard, and no matter how open I was, my only chance of touching the ball was a rebound off one of his heaves.

Long-standing grudge or no, Mike’s sense of direction is hopeless.

No matter. The idea was that we would be fine as long as we kept the Pacific Ocean to our left. Along the way, there were plenty of sights, both natural and artificial. (It is California, after all.) If we stopped at every interesting sight, the trip would have taken months. So we decided to make only crucial detours: for golf and food—preferably outdoors with ocean views. We were also in search of local fare—breakfast burritos, fish tacos and In-N-Out Burger, the cult-favorite fast food chain.

Pelican Hill Golf Club in Newport Coast met all the requirements. Its Ocean North and Ocean South courses re-opened late 2007 with a new clubhouse after a renovation by Tom Fazio. In addition to unseen work like adding an advanced, environmentally friendly water system, Fazio opened up vistas of the Pacific Ocean from both layouts.

Ocean South is closer to the water; Ocean North, which we played, is higher on the hill and provides better views. One of the most memorable holes is the 411-yard 14th, which has a skyline green that from the fairway seems to extend to the horizon like an infinity edge pool.

The course re-opening is the first step of the Resort at Pelican Hill, scheduled to open in the fall with 204 rooms and suites, as well as 128 villas. If the new clubhouse is any indication, the Resort at Pelican Hill will rival California’s top resorts. The centerpiece of the clubhouse is the Pelican Grill. After a morning round, we enjoyed lunch on the terrace, a setting that added to the enjoyment of the California cuisine like spicy tortilla soup.

Until the resort opens (and even afterward), visitors can stay at the nearby Island Hotel, also owned by the Irvine Company.

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