Monterey Pines Golf Club opened in 1963 as a nine-hole course designed by Robert Muir Graves to serve military personnel stationed on the Monterey Peninsula. A second nine was added in 1972 to bring the layout to its current 18 holes, and the property has been operated by the U.S. Navy's golf program ever since. Locals still refer to it as the "Navy Course," though it has long been open to civilian play, who now account for most of the rounds.

On the course

In 2009, architects Marc Messier and Kevin Tucker completed a year-long renovation that reshaped the course into its present form. The project flipped the front and back nines, rebuilt tees and bunkers, installed new irrigation, and resurfaced the greens with bent grass. The result is a relatively short par-69 layout measuring roughly 5,554 yards from the tips, sitting on flat parkland terrain bordered by the Monterey County Fairgrounds and the Monterey Regional Airport.

Who it suits

The routing favors accuracy over distance. Fairways alternate between open corridors and tight dog-legs framed by mature pines, and water comes into play on several holes. With five par-3s and modest yardage, it plays as one of the more approachable tracks in an area dominated by championship-length resort courses. Aircraft noise from the adjacent airport is a regular feature of the round.

Monterey Pines suits beginners, juniors, mid-handicappers working on iron play, and traveling golfers looking for an affordable round on the peninsula. Green fees run a fraction of what neighboring Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill, and Spanish Bay command, and the bent-grass putting surfaces are generally regarded as among the better-conditioned greens in the area. A practice range, chipping green, putting green, and a grill and bar round out the facility.

Architect: Robert Muir Graves · Opened: 1963