The PGA Tour heads north up the Pacific Coast to the Monterey Bay Peninsula for the year’s second “Signature” event featuring the iconic Pebble Beach Golf Links and the challenging Spyglass Hill course.
Last year’s tournament saw the beginning of numerous changes to the event’s structure that will continue this year. The field size was sliced in half to 80 golfers with only two courses in play. On Thursday and Friday, thirty-six holes will be played between Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill with each of the PGA Tour golfers paired with an amateur. Similar to last year, there is no cut, and the final two rounds will be played solely at Pebble Beach and only by the pros.
Both courses are exposed to the Pacific coast, where the weather can change quickly and influence the outcome of this tournament. However, they also share other similarities. Each is among the shortest courses on Tour, at under 7,100 yards. They also have among the top five smallest greens, with Pebble Beach having the most minuscule greens on Tour, at an average of only 3,500 square feet. Finally, each course has the same agronomy, with a blend of Poa annua and Ryegrass in the fairways and rough and pure Poa greens.
While Spyglass Hill is scenic in its own right, Pebble Beach is the crown jewel of this tournament. The way the jagged coastline meets the cliffs is beyond words. It truly is the greatest meeting of land and sea in American golf. Said Jack Nicklaus, “If I had only one more round to play, I would choose to play at Pebble Beach. I loved this course from the first time I saw it. It’s possibly the best in the world.”
Having hosted this event since 1947, past winners are a historical “who’s who” of golf including Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Billy Casper, Ken Venturi, Johnny Miller, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Davis Love III, Vijay Singh, and Tiger Woods.
A second-shot course if there ever was one, players will be provided with a challenging test of patience, pitching wedges, and Poa putting. For those who played last week at Torrey Pines, the emphasis shifts from distance and long-iron play to short-iron precision on equally difficult greens. Since 2010, winning scores have averaged 18-under par.
Last year’s event was shortened to 54 holes due to persistent rain and high winds, and Wyndham Clark was declared the winner at -12. With warm days and no rainfall leading into this week’s tournament, expect both courses to play firm and fast.
The Field
In recent years, this tournament has struggled to attract an elite field. Things changed completely last year when it became a Signature event. This year, 27 of the world’s top 30 golfers are in attendance and will compete for the $3.6 million winner’s check (from a $20 million purse). The only players missing are world No. 2 Xander Schauffele (rib injury) and LIV golfers Tyrrell Hatton and Bryson DeChambeau.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler makes his season debut following a holiday kitchen hand injury and No. 3 Rory McIlroy is in the field after starting his year in Dubai. Jordan Spieth is also making his first start after having surgery last August on his left wrist. He is in the field on a sponsor exemption, along with Rickie Fowler, Harry Hall, and Gary Woodland (who won the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble). Past winners of this event who are participating this week include Justin Rose, Tom Hoge, Nick Taylor, and Spieth.
Pebble Beach Course History
Pebble Beach Golf Links was built by Jack Neville and Douglas Grant during the golden age of golf course architecture in 1919. When it opened for play on February 22nd, it measured slightly over 6,000 yards. “The big idea was to get as many holes as possible along the bay,” Neville said. “Nature had intended it to be nothing else but a golf links.”
The San Francisco Chronicle said the course was opened “somewhat prematurely.” At a time when golf balls cost more than the greens fee, the course was deemed too difficult. The California Golf Association, however, did not believe the course suitable to host even the state amateur. Improvements were continually made over the next decade, culminating with a renovation to prepare Pebble Beach to host the 1929 U.S. Amateur, which was the first of the United States Golf Association’s major championships to be held west of the Mississippi.
Neville’s and Grant’s routing provided the framework for today’s course, but H. Chandler Egan is most responsible for how the course plays today. In 1928, he extensively revised the layout by replacing 16 of the 18 greens and completely reconfigured the bunkering on the course bringing much more strategy into play. Other architects who have helped to renovate the course in different ways include Alistair MacKenzie, Robert Hunter, Arnold Palmer, and Jack Nicklaus (who created the new 5th hole in 1998).
The Pebble Beach National Pro-Am was originally called the Bing Crosby Pro-Am, and it has been held at Pebble Beach Golf Links every year since 1947. This year’s tournament notwithstanding, this event has typically had a trio of courses in play for the week. Along with Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and Monterey Peninsula – Cypress Point and Poppy Hills have also been utilized in years past. Along with all of the legendary golfers who have walked its fairways, it has hosted six U.S. Opens and one PGA Championship.
Changes since last year’s tournament at Pebble Beach include a rebuilt 6th green which was expanded by 1,200 square feet providing more pin locations. 50+ trees were also planted on the course. At Spyglass Hill, December storms took out 30 trees including the featured Cypress in #16 fairway.
Finish Position and Strokes Gained History at the AT&T Pro-Am (2016-2024)
This includes the average finish position and Strokes Gained per round. Players are sorted by SG: Total.
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Pebble Beach Golf Links – Course Features
Pebble Beach is perhaps the most visually mesmerizing course in the world. It hugs the rugged California coastline along the cliffs of the Monterey Peninsula with wide open views of Carmel Bay and the Pacific Ocean. As you would expect, coastal winds are one of the course’s main defenses. In 2023, winds were a factor for every round with gusts over 30 mph each day. High winds along with wet course conditions forced a rare Monday finish. And then last year’s storm forced the tournament to end after 54 holes. Overall, Pebble Beach rates as the 17th toughest course on Tour averaging 0.37 strokes under par per round since 2019.
Unlike the U.S. Opens that were held here, the course is usually set up with wide fairways and non-penal rough so that the amateurs playing in the pro-am can get around the course in a timely fashion. With last year being a Signature event with a stronger field, the rough was grown out an inch longer (2″-3″) than in past years.
As for the course itself, as a par-72 that measures only 6,972 yards, Pebble Beach is the 2nd shortest track on Tour. Other than Congaree, which has the most acres of sand (they are not called bunkers there), Pebble has the most bunkers on Tour with 118. The ones around the greens are notably tricky. From an agronomy standpoint, the fairways and rough are a mixture of Poa and ryegrass while the greens are the famous bumpy California Poa annua.
One of the main reasons this classical course has remained challenging and stood the test of time is the ingenious way it uses the expansive slopes that traverse the property. Most of the fairways tilt toward the ocean and are set across the holes. This results in players often hitting their approach shots from uneven lies with the ball above or below their feet. As you can imagine, this only adds to the challenge of trying to land second shots on its diminutive greens.
After an undemanding 7-hole opening stretch where four of the holes average under par, things toughen up quickly with three of the most difficult and scenic par 4s in the world. Many believe this stretch on the front nine constitutes the greatest sequence of holes found anywhere. The back nine does not get any more comfortable with seven of the holes averaging over par.
The par 4s and 5s play as the third shortest group on Tour averaging only 443 yards per hole. In keeping with the short theme, three of the par 5s are under 545 yards and six of the par 4s are under 400 yards. The par 5s are no cakewalk, however, as both the 14th and 18th holes present a challenge. The 14th scores over par and ranks as one of the most challenging par 5s on Tour. It plays uphill away from the water before doglegging to the right. The 18th is a risk-reward that dares players to flirt with Stillwater Cove along the coastline.
Strokes Gained Analysis
Off the Tee
Due to the numerous angles faced off the tee, players are forced to use “less-than-driver” on many holes. Because of this, along with its lack of length, Pebble Beach has the shortest average driving distance on Tour averaging only 273 yards which is well below the Tour average. Longer hitters have a minimal advantage here.
Because fairways are wide and the rough is fairly average, accuracy off the tee also lacks importance. Throw in the fact that players are clubbing down, and the result is driving accuracy above 72%. Fairway bunkers litter the course and the ocean threatens beyond the cliffs, but thanks to all of the forced layups these areas are mostly avoided.
With Pebble Beach being a clear “second shot” course, the only relevant OTT metric to analyze is Good Drive %, which measures how often a player hits the green on their second shot no matter where their tee shot landed.
Approach
Overall, Pebble Beach has the smallest greens on Tour at an average of only 3,500 square feet compared to the average of 6,200. With a GIR rate below the Tour average at 63%, golfers who can find the green and get close to the pin should create the most birdie opportunities on the tricky Poa surfaces. On average, over 46% of approach shots are under 150 yards. Expect wedges galore this week. Jordan Spieth summed it up best by calling it “a dart-throwing contest to see who can make the most putts”.
With wide fairways and non-penal rough making off-the-tee impact minimal, players can separate from the field with pinpoint accuracy on approach shots. This is much easier said than done. Besides facing many sidehill lies, many of the greens are also elevated. All of these factors combined, along with the effects of the wind, make Pebble Beach the sixth toughest annual ShotLink-measured course in which to gain strokes on approach.
Those greens are one reason Rich Beem, the 2002 PGA Championship winner, called Pebble Beach “one of the most intimidating golf courses I’ve ever played.” “You get caught up in the views so easily,” he said, “and all of a sudden you’ve got all of these difficult shots into greens that look like the size of dimes.”
Around the Greens and Putting
With so many players missing greens, scrambling becomes even more important, not just from the rough, but also from Pebble’s many difficult green-side bunkers. The good news is that it’s one of the easiest courses to gain strokes around the greens as chipping from the short grass and rough areas is very simple.
Once on the Poa annua greens, the complexes at Pebble Beach are traditionally some of the hardest to putt from within 15 feet. In fact, the greens rank as one of the five toughest on the entire Tour. Also, keep in mind that 3-putts are 26% higher here than average because of all the missed short putts. Even though they run slower at around 10.5 on the stimpmeter, strong putting splits on these bumpy Poa greens are a requirement when targeting players this week.
Spyglass Hill – Course Features
Often overshadowed by Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill is rated as the 11th-best public golf course in the U.S. by Golf Digest and is one of the most underrated courses in America. Designed by Robert Trent Jones in 1966, it is operated by the Pebble Beach Company and has been in the rotation for this event since 1967.
Spyglass Hill is a 7,041-yard par 72 course that most players agree is the more difficult test when conditions are calm. It averages 0.47 strokes over par per round which makes it the 8th toughest annual course. It is rated one of the most challenging courses in the world from the Championship tees, boasting a course rating of 75.5 and a slope rating of 147. When the wind kicks up, however, it tends to play easier because it is the most tree-lined and sheltered from the coastal breezes. Many a golfer has described Spyglass as relentless and a course that demands high-quality golf shots.
The first five holes are exposed to the coastline and are among the most beautiful in the area. Holes 6-18 are like stepping onto an entirely different course as they turn inland and wind through the Del Monte forest. Robert Trent Jones said that the opening coastal holes through dunes are supposed to bring memories of Pine Valley, while the rest were designed to mimic Augusta National.
Thanks to the tree-lined fairways, Spyglass Hill is better protected from poor weather conditions. Holes often contain dramatic elevation changes with a good number of them playing uphill with fairways substantially tilted in different directions. This makes Spyglass play longer than its measured yardage. Three of the par 3s play under 180 yards while four par 4s play under 400 yards. The four par 5s have an average birdie or better rate of 36% and are by far the four easiest holes on the course.
The biggest difference between Spyglass and Pebble Beach is that distance off the tee is a much more predictive measurement of success at Spyglass than it is at Pebble. Along with the sloping terrain, the 13 forested holes play very straight with few doglegs. The fairways also don’t bottleneck in as much as they do at Pebble Beach to force a layup. With straighter holes, golfers can swing away with driver at Spyglass much more than they can at Pebble Beach.
That being said, the average fairway width is much more narrow here at only 28 yards. The rough was also increased from 2″ to 3″ inches for this year’s event. These facts, combined with small greens at an average of 5,000 square feet per hole make Spyglass Hill one of the most stringent ball-striking challenges you can find.
With this being a Robert Trent Jones course, you had better believe there are some challenging bunkers. Elevated greens are protected by a cadre of large and deep sand traps, many of which lie well below the level of the green.
Greens are full of “sucker pins” in difficult locations. Players who simply aim for the middle of the green and feed the ball toward the hole have much more success than those trying to attack the pin. While the greens don’t have huge undulations, most have subtle ridges and tiers which make reading the breaks on many putts quite difficult.
Most Important Stats For Success at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
*In order of importance
- SG: APP
- SG: Putting (Poa)
- SG: Coastal Courses
- Proximity 75-150 yds
- SG: ARG/Scrambling
- Good Drive %
- SG: Short Courses
- Par 5 Scoring
- BoB%
- Bogey Avoidance
Unique Rabbit Hole Filters
- Course Region: West
- Scoring Conditions: Average
- Course Length: Short/Very Short
- Course Type: Coastal
- Field Size: Small Field
- Event Season: West Coast
- Greens Surface: Poa
- Bunkers #: High
- Greens Size: Small
- OTT Club Type: Less Than Driver
- Gain Approach: Very Difficult
- Sand Saves: Difficult
- Gain Putting: Very Difficult
- Putting Inside 15 ft: Difficult
- 3-Putt AVD: Difficult
Weather Forecast – Pebble Beach, CA
