Links Magazine | The Best Of Golf

Pacific Drive continued...

pebble vs. torrey
After miles of mountains plunging into the sea, the Monterey Peninsula emerged like a mirage through the marine layer sitting along the coast. With the possible exception of the Hamptons on Long Island, no area in the world contains such a concentration of golf in its most highly evolved form.

The most famous course is Pebble, which will host its fifth U.S. Open in 2010. Pebble and Torrey would seem to have plenty of similarities: along the Pacific, open to the public, U.S Open site. But the experience of playing each is quite different.

At Torrey, you feel like a spearholder in an epic opera celebrating public golf. The prima donna is the game itself, along with the millions of everyday folks at its foundation.

At Pebble, you are the headliner, and the spotlight shines upon you from the 1st tee to the 18th green as you navigate one of golf’s most rarified grounds. The day is about celebrating your game and your achievements, so go ahead and bask: You’ve earned it.

As we watched several groups on Pebble’s 543-yard 18th, we noticed not a single pull cart or ball retriever. Instead, there were plenty of shirt logos and bag tags to impress, and no doubt, one of Pebble’s three shops would add to the collection.

But there is plenty more to the area than golf. In Carmel, we noticed a fitting road-trip sculpture. Anyone who has looked for license plates from different states on drives would be interested in the map of the U.S. made up of license plates at the Hanson Gallery.

Bibliophiles should check out Cannery Row in Monterey. No longer a working sardine factory, it was the setting for John Steinbeck’s eponymous novel. Cannery Row’s fishery, bar and whorehouse have been replaced by hotels, wine tasting rooms and an aquarium, but the legacy of Steinbeck, who grew up in nearby Salinas, as well as a bit of the grit described in his novel, remain.

To varying extents, all road trips pay nods toSteinbeck’s Travels with Charley and Jack Kerouac’s On the Road. And any mention of the Beat Generation must lead to San Francisco.

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