April 4, 2021 | BY AAGD STAFF
Notwithstanding the coronavirus pandemic and Tiger Wood’ car crash, next month Pebble Beach Resort‘s renovated short course will welcome golfers. The renovated short course that was designed with the help of Woods is completed and is located on the former site of the historic Peter Hay Golf Course, the course will be officially open for play on April 16.
“One of Tiger’s big things was for it to be playable for everyone and that nobody feels intimidated. What has resulted is a course that is friendly and playable for the junior golfer but also intriguing and challenging and able to double as a short-game practice area for the pros”, John Sawin, Pebble Bech Company’s vice president and director of golf, said.
the executive short course is named “The Hay” and is comprised of a putting course and nine par-3 holes located directly between the Pebble Beach Pro Shop and the Golf Academy. The effort was a collaboration between Pebble Beach and Woods’ company TGR Design. The venture officially broke ground in March 2020.
Stretching 670 yards the various holes range from 47 to 106 yards. Sawin said both the resort and Woods accomplished their goals of taking better advantage of the scenic views from the site, highlighting its history and adding more variety to the holes.
“One of Tiger’s big things was for it to be playable for everyone and that nobody feels intimidated,” said Sawin, “What has resulted is a course that is friendly and playable for the junior golfer but also intriguing and challenging and able to double as a short-game practice area for the pros.”
Acting as a lead for the Pebble Beach Company project, Sawin, along with Steve Aitchison, senior vice president, capital services and Bubba Wright, superintendent of Pebble Beach Golf Link worked together with Woods and his team.
But there is more than just a course on the property, because, accompanying the re-designed is also a 5,000 square-foot food and beverage venue that will be complete with a full kitchen and bar and indoor seating. Most notably, the patio is positioned to offer extraordinary views of the putting and short course, Carmel Bay and Point Lobos.
Woods aligned each hole’s yardage to correspond with a significant year in Pebble Beach history, with accompanying plaques on each tee telling a story, creating a sense guests are walking amongst the resort’s rich championship heritage. The only exception is the course’s second hole, which at 107 yards, will be a replica of the famous seventh hole at Pebble Beach with all the dynamics of elevation, views and the way it plays.
“It’s pulling Pebble Beach into this property literally,” said Sawin.
At the start of the project, when plans were released, Woods said“Pebble Beach is such an iconic golf destination, we want guests to feel the entirety of that spirit when they play the course. We also know not everyone who comes to Pebble Beach will have a chance to play the U.S. Open course, so we wanted to create the opportunity for all visitors to experience one of its most famous holes.”
Overall, “The Hay” renovation has created much better ocean views, and four of the holes in play aimed directly toward Carmel Bay. In the end, the course is completely unrecognizable from its former beauty, transformed into a magnificent landscape with the maximum number of shots played directly to the water.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS ARE EVERYTHING
When players enter they are greeted with a 20,000-square foot putting course which is triple the size of Pebble Beach Golf Links.
“This was a big focus of Tiger’s,” noted Sawin, as putting is often seen as “the lowest common denominator of golf” literally and figuratively. This particular aspect of the design was what Tiger viewed for both pulling and welcoming players to the game, said Sawin.
