That
said, the two experiences
could not have been more divergent. One course is 84
years
old, the
other a babe of 2. One is a classic, host of four U.S. Opens,
the
other
an original, all but unseen by the pros. One is
maintained meticulously,
the other a calculated paragon of benign
neglect. One resort is
radiant, its
every aspect the
definition of luxury and the good life.
The other is raw, an
unabashed celebration of minimalism and
simplicity.
And
both are spectacular. Bottom
line: Pebble Beach remains as gorgeous and
formidable as ever,
the
world’s most dazzling test of championship golf—and
Pacific Dunes, with
its own jaw-dropping location and an
ingeniously plotted
series of
holes, absolutely blew me away.
Still,
I refuse to cop out. Do I
rate Pacific more highly than Pebble? No, and for two
reasons.
First,
it’s a bit too susceptible to the whims of Mother Nature. During
my
second round the wind blew at a constant 25–30 miles per
hour with occasional
gusts near 50, and that day, according to my
patient caddie, “Hoops,”
was pretty
average. “About five or
six on a scale of 10,” said
Hoops.
Second,
Pacifice Dunes measures
less than 6,700 fast-running yards—in large part because
of
that
wind—and that’s not a full test for today’s pummeling pros. Fair
or not,
that’s my tiebreaker—the element that gives Pebble the nod.
With new
Tiger tees
just installed at holes 2 and 9, Pebble is
now approaching
6,900 yards. Courses
like Pacific Dunes,
Cypress Point and Fishers
Island stir this golfer’s
soul—maybe
even more so than does Pebble—but
except under difficult weather or
tricked-up conditions, those American
classics would be too
easy for today’s
tour pros.
For
the other 99.99 percent of
golfers, however, it’s close to a toss-up. Together
and
separately,
Pacific and Pebble are beyond compare. I will therefore
resist
the
temptation to pontificate on the relative shot
values, design philosophies
and strategic integrities of these two
gems. Besides, we all know
that’s
painfully dull. Instead,
here are a few quick
thoughts—mini-showdowns—with a
winner
declared in each case.
More
difficult:
Pacific. Not for the world’s best players, but for the rest of us
choppers. You’ll probably never hit a ball into the ocean at
Pacific
Dunes, but
thick fescue and gorse-of-no-return border
most of the
holes, and the greens are
gripped by steep-faced
dune bunkers and
swooping falloffs. And keep in mind,
again,
that the average weather
conditions are more severe at Pacific than at
Pebble.
