[POLL] Play Pebble Beach? Or other?

[Larryd3]

I'm leaning towards Scotland, Ireland, etc instead of PB.  

[Mr. 82]

6 hours ago, GolfSpy Stroker said:

We went to Carmel about 15 years ago and walked down to the beach next to the course.  The course is right there.  My family convinced me to walk up onto the course so I can say I was "on Pebble Beach" LOL

I was genuinely surprised that there wasn't a fence or something.  So - if you're ever in the area - consider walking on when it's clear and getting a feel for it.  A heckuva lot less than 575.  HAHA  Who knows - maybe I was "trespassing" but one could easily feign ignorance. 

We were staying in the bay area and took a day trip down the Big Sur.  It is absolutely stunning and 100 pct worth it.

I was there on my honeymoon in 1997, and pretty much did what you did.  I even went inside the clubhouse and bought a little Pebble Beach pin.  I wasn't majorly into golf back then like I am now, or I might have bought a lot of other things at the time.  Regretfully I haven't had the chance to get back since, but here are a few pics from that experience - pre iphone and digital photography days...

 

[MaxEntropy]

Of the choices, I picked launch monitor.

Given the opportunity, I would happily hand over whatever they wanted to play PB, but if I were planning it, there are likely other places I'd pick before PB (Scotland for sure, possibly Bandon)

[revkev]

On ‎2‎/‎4‎/‎2020 at 11:16 AM, sixcat said:

My dream golf experience is a lengthy trip to Scotland and Ireland.  I'm sure $3,000 wouldn't cover my dream but Pebble Beach has never been a "bucket list" item for me.  I'm not sure why except to say, I have always felt drawn to the origins of the game rather than the exorbitant Americanized version of the game.  The game is open and welcoming in Scotland and Ireland.  It's mostly closed, stuffy and elitist in the US.  And Pebble Beach is the poster child for that closed, stuffy and elitist mantra given it would cost over $800 after fees, taxes, caddie and gratuity for a single experience. 

I guess I'm not really playing along with the topic, as presented, but I would save the $3,000 until I had enough to fund my lengthy trip around Scotland and Ireland.

I came on to write exactly this....

I've been to Pebble - so long ago (early 70's) that the Green's Fee was an outrageous $54 - Highway robbery I say.   It is a gorgeous place but I'd prefer the Scotland or Ireland trip thank you very much.

[russtopherb]

I voted "other" just because none of those felt like anything I'd do with $3k.

Nearly $600 for a few hours of golf? Don't care where it is or what the views are, that's nuts. No thanks.

[PlaidJacket]

I purchased a $3,000 gift card from Pebble Beach this past summer. It provided for 1-round for two players at each of the three courses -  Pebble, Spyglass, and Links + two nights lodging at the Inn at Spanish Bay. No date or time restrictions. We raffled it off at a charity fundraiser. Not a bad deal. 3 rounds of golf + lodging. For two! (travel arrangements were left to the raffle winner) 

[StrokerAce]

10 minutes ago, PlaidJacket said:

I purchased a $3,000 gift card from Pebble Beach this past summer. It provided for 1-round for two players at each of the three courses -  Pebble, Spyglass, and Links + two nights lodging at the Inn at Spanish Bay. No date or time restrictions. We raffled it off at a charity fundraiser. Not a bad deal. 3 rounds of golf + lodging. For two! (travel arrangements were left to the raffle winner) 

WOW!  What a deal!

[Kanoito]

I chose other: either a LM (is it even possible with 3K?) or just buy some extra golf gear (doens't have to be PXG) and still have enough left to play some pretty good courses.

[golfinnut]

The Golf Academy would have access to a Launch Monitor, yes?  That's why I'm a little surprised at those results.  

As long as those green fees stay up where they are for Pebble, I won't be playing there.  It's just a golf course.  I couldn't fathom going out & shooting 90 & having to pay $500 for it.  It's not like you're walking away with a set of new clubs or anything.  If I wanted to spend $100/hour, I would get lessons from Michael Breed or someone like that.  Not hacking around a course .... "Well there goes another $5.50."  (each time you swing the club) 

[Letthebigdogshunt]

It would not be 3K for me since I would take my wife it would be 6K. I don't think it is worth that amount of money. 

[yungkory]

Definitely a LM/sim combo in the house! Hitting shots all day while I work from home? Sign me up!

[Shankster]

There are several courses I could play for $3000... and I would do that over Pebble.  
 

Now,  if someone is looking to get me a 37th birthday present (in May) I’d gladly go play the iconic place.  
 

Until then, I’ll wait till I retire maybe to play it, when the wife and I are in full AirStream living mode.

[GB13]

Of course I’d love to play Pebble, it’s every golf addict’s dream. But that said, I’d have a real hard time dropping my 3k on just one round of golf. And, there are probably another dozen courses I want to play just as much. I’d either go with a golf academy (still a once in a lifetime experience in my book) or an in home golf studio. 

[fixyurdivot]

On 2/4/2020 at 12:40 PM, daviddvm said:

I paid $525 at Pebble and $375 at Spyglass.

I met a guy from Houston when we were waiting for our flight to Santa Clara that was headed to Pebble with his family ( he's been going annually since the 70s). He say back in the 70s he and his buddies would rent a house on Spyglass for $150 / night and the green fee at Spyglass was $25 and Pebble was $40  

I played Spyglass in the late 70's with my Dad when we lived in Sacramento.  Short family weekend getaway to Carmel; which became an annual event.  No idea what the green fees were but recall my Dad's friend, who we met there and was a near scratch golfer, saying that SG was better than PB with respect to layout and challenge.  A quick look shows a round at SG to be $460 for non resort guests.  Be it PB or Whispering Straits, green fees in excess of $150 stirs the frugal helix in my DNA.  Courses requiring caddie/forecaddies are just not my style.

[StrokerAce]

A pretty good breakdown of the costs here - https://www.golf.com/travel/2020/02/07/pebble-beach-golf-trip/

for some reason they don't breakout caddie fees or tips and also don't include souvenirs.... so add a little extra in for that.

 

[THEZIPR23]

1 hour ago, fixyurdivot said:

I played Spyglass in the late 70's with my Dad when we lived in Sacramento.  Short family weekend getaway to Carmel; which became an annual event.  No idea what the green fees were but recall my Dad's friend, who we met there and was a near scratch golfer, saying that SG was better than PB with respect to layout and challenge.  A quick look shows a round at SG to be $460 for non resort guests.  Be it PB or Whispering Straits, green fees in excess of $150 stirs the frugal helix in my DNA.  Courses requiring caddie/forecaddies are just not my style.

I have been lucky enough to play Spyglass 5-6 times and Pebble once, IMO Spyglass is a better challenge and overall golf course. SG didn’t used to be outrageous. When it had a membership it was pricey but not anywhere what it is now. When it opened they sold 50 year memberships, once those expired Pebble Beach Co came in and bought the course.

[daviddvm]

43 minutes ago, fixyurdivot said:

I played Spyglass in the late 70's with my Dad when we lived in Sacramento.  Short family weekend getaway to Carmel; which became an annual event.  No idea what the green fees were but recall my Dad's friend, who we met there and was a near scratch golfer, saying that SG was better than PB with respect to layout and challenge.  A quick look shows a round at SG to be $460 for non resort guests.  Be it PB or Whispering Straits, green fees in excess of $150 stirs the frugal helix in my DNA.  Courses requiring caddie/forecaddies are just not my style.

I totally get where you're coming from. I play in a weekly foursome where we play local courses with green fees that range from $25 to $65. But on a destination family trip once every ten years or so I will splurge and never regret spending a wad of money on a memorable moment on a unbelievably spectacular place like the Monterey Peninsula and all of its magnificence.

Just look at the expressions on my families faces!

[PMookie]

Since I have a friend with a condo at La Quinta that I could use for free, I would fly out there and play all of the courses in that area. Then I would take whatever is left over, and use it on lessons with this Pro in Dallas whose teaching style I really enjoy. At $200 an hour, I could get at least 5 to 6 more lessons.


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[Pandaman]

At $575 greenfees, if you get round in 72 then you are looking at nearly $8 each time you hit the ball.  Using that logic at least high handicappers will get better value for money.

[HardcoreLooper]

I'd rather do a longer trip to Bandon or Cabot, so I voted other.  But if money were no object, why not?

[HardcoreLooper]

On 2/5/2020 at 9:19 AM, release said:

In a free market world, if there is not enough support for the hiked green fee, it'll either up for sale or become a public park.

Many of our local golf courses are facing the same dilemma of whether to hike the green fees to maintain the service level or keep the green fees at the current economic level for the middle class.

Hmmm...  Not sure about that.  A local public course trying to decide between $50 and $65 is often a matter of survival.  A proportional drop in greens fees at PB would probably still keep them in the black, just a little less black.  I don't know how much PB makes, but seeing as how the shares in the partnership have tripled since 1999, I imagine it's doing OK.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-clint-eastwood-arnold-palmer-and-820-million-took-pebble-beach-off-the-auction-block-11560175200

[Kenny B]

11 minutes ago, HardcoreLooper said:

I'd rather do a longer trip to Bandon or Cabot, so I voted other.  But if money were no object, why not?

There are a lot of people in the world that can say... why not?  I wish I was one of them.

[Mr. 82]

Having spent all day Friday in a friend's simulator, you're gonna need more than $3k to make that option reality.  His isn't totally current, but he spent $30k on the simulator alone, and spent another $35k building an addition on to the side of this garage just for this room.  After hitting upwards of 1,000 balls there on Friday I simply told him, "If I had one of these in my house, I would never leave home."  We played rounds on Cabot Links, then went to Spyglass Hill, and then went down to PGA National and took on the Bear Trap.  

The only negatives to a simulator is that it didn't simulate wind, and it didn't simulate actual turf conditions.  And putting and chipping are not realistic IMHO, as in you can't putt from fringes or it just goes like 2 feet.

But for full shots and playing famous courses, yeah, I'd wear that thing out.

[tortise]

They are a few things in golf that would replace a round at pebble beach. Maybe playing St.andrew or playing a round with tiger

[GaDawg]

On 2/4/2020 at 11:16 AM, sixcat said:

My dream golf experience is a lengthy trip to Scotland and Ireland.  I'm sure $3,000 wouldn't cover my dream but Pebble Beach has never been a "bucket list" item for me.  I'm not sure why except to say, I have always felt drawn to the origins of the game rather than the exorbitant Americanized version of the game.  The game is open and welcoming in Scotland and Ireland.  It's mostly closed, stuffy and elitist in the US.  And Pebble Beach is the poster child for that closed, stuffy and elitist mantra given it would cost over $800 after fees, taxes, caddie and gratuity for a single experience. 

I guess I'm not really playing along with the topic, as presented, but I would save the $3,000 until I had enough to fund my lengthy trip around Scotland and Ireland.

$3000 will get you a lot of golf in Scotland. The best golfing experience in my life. played St.Andrews, Kingsbarn, Gleneagles, The Dukes and several smaller golf courses. If someone offered me a free golf trip, I would take Scotland over Pebble Beach any day. Anyone interested in traveling to Scotland or Ireland for golf, I suggest getting one of Allan Ferguson's books. It will help you plan your trip and save a lot of money.

[Popeye64]

The gift that can transform your game and keep giving is the Launch Monitor home studio.
Everything else has a unique draw to it but the best money spent will be the LM. Knowing exactly how far your balls are going is invaluable.

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[Walkin]

On 2/4/2020 at 9:17 AM, vrnyn said:

I understand the arguments for and against the $500 green fee. I bet at $500 the Pebble tee sheet doesn't sit empty.

VRNYN    Bad memory here...……………...but, a retired officer friend of mine, and 2 others made the trip to the "peninsula" most every Monday. That went on

for at least a handful of years, and I'm fairly sure we never spent more than "about" $15. each + or -. I don't think we even had a tee time, as I don't remember

any type of stress, time wise to get there. From week too week we'd change venues. Spyglass, Fort Ord, or Pebble.

[ZenGolfer]

Id play St Andrews or any of the other famous Scotland courses before I played Pebble Beach.  PB is cool but its got nothing on Scotland.

Edited March 14, 2020 by ZenGolfer

[azstu324]

So I've played PB once, and paid the NCGA 'Winter Special' rate of $425 with a $75 pro shop gift card. To this day, it's one of the best golf experiences of my life even though we got rained on for 7/18 holes. When I was living in the area, I had already heard grumbles about the price and this latest price increase is insane IMO. I get it...Pebble Beach is public and exists to make money, but c'mon. It's one of the most popular golf courses IN THE WORLD. They could easily charge $250 - $350, still make an absolute killing and provide the same iconic experience. All that said, even with this price increase and the increases that will inevitably follow, people will still play it. 
As for the poll, I voted $400-$499 and LM/in-home studio. A guy has to have dreams, right? 

When you lived there did you ever get to PG golf Links? I was never able to get to pebble when we lived in Pacific Grove but played PG once a month and for $50, as far as I was concerned was the next best thing.

And to answer the actual proposed question: I'm on board with a poor man's golf trip and stretching the absolute hell out of that $3k on as many courses that I can.



the more I practice, the luckier I seem to get..

[azstu324]

I’ve been spoiled by my office building which has a full swing sim in the gym. I makes me wish I didn’t have a 45 mile commute or I’d come in the weekends too

It would be nice to have something at home where I could take full swings and see an accurate ball flight. Swinging the foam balls with my son in the yard is fun to really shape them, but isn’t really helping my game much.


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Maybe the 45 mile commute is a blessing in disguise. If I had a full sim within closer proximity, I would probably be served divorce papers and deemed an absentee father by CPS.

the more I practice, the luckier I seem to get..