Spyglass Hill Golf Course

Widely regarded as the toughest test of golf on the Monterey Peninsula, Spyglass Hill Golf Course opened in 1966 as a Robert Trent Jones Sr. design and quickly earned a reputation for punishing beauty. Part of the Pebble Beach Company family of resort courses, Spyglass Hill offers a dramatic two-act experience: the opening five holes tumble through coastal sand dunes with sweeping Pacific Ocean views, before the round turns inland and climbs into the towering pines of the Del Monte Forest.

Every hole is named for a character or place from Robert Louis Stevenson's novel Treasure Island, a nod to the author who once wandered these very hills. From the ocean-side drama of the early holes to the tight, tree-lined corridors of the back nine, Spyglass Hill rewards precision, patience, and respect.

Quick Facts

Course History

Spyglass Hill Golf Course opened on March 11, 1966, following six years of planning, design, and construction on land within the Del Monte Forest. Robert Trent Jones Sr. carved the layout from a combination of oceanfront dunes and forested hillside, and the course took its name and its literary theme from Robert Louis Stevenson, who is said to have drawn inspiration from the Monterey Peninsula for Treasure Island. Each of the 18 holes carries a name from the book, from the opening hole, Treasure Island, to Long John Silver on the back nine.

Since 1967, Spyglass Hill has been part of the multi-course rotation of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the celebrated February PGA Tour event on the West Coast Swing. Over the decades it has consistently ranked among the toughest courses the professionals face all year, and its blend of scenery and difficulty has cemented its standing as one of America's premier public-access courses.

The Design & Architecture

Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed Spyglass Hill as a course of two distinct personalities. The first five holes play out among the coastal sand dunes with open, wind-exposed views of the Pacific Ocean and Carmel Bay. The most celebrated of these is the par-4 fourth, Blind Pew, which Jones himself called one of his favorite par 4s and whose long, narrow green set against the dunes is among the most photographed on the property.

From the sixth hole onward, the course turns inland and climbs into the Del Monte Forest, where the holes wind between stands of Monterey pine on tighter, tree-lined corridors. The change in character demands a complete game: exposed, wind-affected shot-making near the sea, followed by demanding, precise play through the forest. Poa annua greens, the same coastal strain found at Pebble Beach, add an extra layer of unpredictability on and around the putting surfaces.

Playing the Course

At 7,026 yards from the championship tees with a course rating of 75.4 and a slope of 145, Spyglass Hill is a genuinely demanding round for players of every level. The opening stretch by the ocean can be brutal when the wind is up, while the forested back holes place a premium on accuracy off the tee and disciplined approach play. Multiple sets of tees make the course playable for higher-handicap golfers, but par is always hard-earned.

Because it is a resort course, Spyglass Hill welcomes public play, with preferred access and tee-time availability for guests staying at Pebble Beach Resorts. A practice facility is available to warm up before tackling one of the peninsula's sternest tests.

Know Before You Go

• Open to public and resort play; guests of Pebble Beach Resorts receive preferred tee-time access.

• Widely considered the toughest course on the Monterey Peninsula, so choose your tees wisely.

• The first five holes are exposed to ocean wind; the remaining thirteen wind through the Del Monte Forest.

• Coastal Poa annua greens can be tricky; expect subtle, sometimes bumpy afternoon roll.

• A regular host in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am rotation since 1967.

• Location: 3206 Stevenson Drive, Pebble Beach, CA. Golf shop: (831) 625-8563; reservations: (800) 654-9300.