Top 20 Expensive Golf Courses You Can Play in California
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How much money would you spend if you played each of the 20 most expensive California golf courses? Somewhere in the four to five grand range, most likely, never mind the room and travel expenses. As they say, after a while, it’s real money.
1. Pebble Beach Golf Links, $475-530, Pebble Beach, CA
A part of the AT&T National Pro-Am since after WWII, Pebble Beach Golf Links has hosted US Opens won by Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Tom Kite, Tiger Woods and Graeme McDowell.
2. CordeValle Golf Club, $360 – $390, San Martin, CA
CordeValle opened in 1999 in San Martin, 30 minutes south of San Jose. Today it is host of the Frys.com Open which Tiger Woods will play for the first time this fall.
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3. Spyglass, $315-385, Pebble Beach, CA
Seldom mentioned, but beautiful in its own right, this Robert Trent Jones monster-piece has been bringing professionals and amateurs to their knees at the AT&T National Pro-Am for decades.
4. Links at Spanish Bay, $260-$295, Pebble Beach, CA
Spanish Bay was a collaboration of Tom Watson and Sandy Tatum, former president of the USGA, and Robert Trent Jones, Jr., but you do not have to wear a blue blazer to play the course.
5. Trump National Golf Club, $160-$275, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA
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Before The Donald put his mark on this coastline property, it had another name, Ocean Trails, designed by Pete Dye. Just a few weeks after the grand opening, after being pummeled by winter storms, the 18th hole fell into the Pacific. To say that was a disaster is an understatement. Trump was able to pick it up for a mere $27 million, the story goes.
6. Pasatiempo Golf Club, $220-$250, Santa Cruz, CA
Pasatiempo was designed by Alister MacKenzie, architect of Augusta National, Cypress Point and others in the US, and Royal Melbourne and Royal Adelaide in Australia, among others. However, his favorite seemed to be Pasatiempo because that’s where he lived until his death in 1934. Roger Maltbie has played many a round at the course which has a dangerous exit on Highway 17. He once said that he and his friends had to give up adult beverages after their rounds because leaving the golf course was so treacherous.
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7. Torrey Pines Municipal Golf Course South, $183-$229, La Jolla, CA
In the 1980s and early 1990s, it was hard to get a good field at Torrey Pines, now the Farmer’s Insurance Open. Then came Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods and a course lengthening for the US Open. The rates went up, and so did the quality of the field each year at the PGA Tour event. There are 36 holes at Torrey Pines, and the South course is the longer and harder of the two. They are both scenic, with many holes along the high cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
8. PGA West Stadium, $229, La Quinta, CA
In 1987 the Bob Hope Classic was played for the first time using the PGA Stadium Golf Course in the rotation. Corey Pavin won. Amazingly enough, even though a short hitter was successful, the professionals demanded that the course not be used in subsequent years because it was so much harder than the rest of the courses. The skins game was played there for about six years until it moved to Big Horn.
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9. Aviara Golf Club, $215-$235, Carlsbad, CA
A stone’s throw, or a gutta percha’s throw from La Costa is Aviara, a relatively new resort and club built on the hills above the Lagoon that fronts La Costa Resort. It is the only Arnold Palmer-designed course in San Diego.
10. Half Moon Bay Golf Links, $80-$205, Half Moon Bay, CA
There are few golf courses along the ocean, and the 36-hole complex at Half Moon Bay just south of San Francisco has everything a golfer could want. Wind, weather and scenic golf holes. Bring your sweater.
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11. Monarch Beach Golf Links $175.00 – $200.00 Dana Point, CA
Located between Laguna Beach and San Clemente, Monarch Beach has everything going for it, including practically perfect weather. If is just north of Camp Pendleton along the I-5 corridor. The Pacific Ocean can be seen from all the holes.
12. La Costa Resort & Spa, $195, Carlsbad, CA
Some say that La Costa is the best luxury spa in the world. For sure, you can get a pampering every place but on the golf course. Resort golfers typically play the championship course in reverse of the tournament play, which is a shame because the four finishing holes, the longest mile as it was called, play into the damp wind off the Pacific making them longer and harder.
La Costa hosted the Tournament of Champions, the Mercedes Championships, and the Accenture World Match Play. The course plays through the canyons similar to Riviera CC in Los Angeles (Brentwood).
13. Carmel Valley Ranch Resort, $85-$195, Carmel, CA
Carmel Valley Ranch Resort is an unusual Pete Dye design squeezed into the valley and along the slopes east of the village of Carmel. Resort guests will find a fireplace in every guest room with exceptional service. The golf course has nine holes in the flat and nine holes on the slopes. One tee shot is so precariously above the fairway that it’s important not to have a strong follow through or you could roll off the cliff. Another has a green that is 100 yards wide, with a left-to-right slope. It’s said that nobody can putt from the lower right to the upper left portion of the green successfully.
14. La Quinta Resort & Club Mountain Course, $189, La Quinta, CA
Host to the Senior Skins Game, The World Cup of Golf and numerous senior amateur events, The Mountain Course is a top 100 experience. It weaves among the base of the Santa Rosa Mountains in La Quinta. The 14th hole plays uphill into the rocks above the valley. The 16th, a par three, tees off on a mountain goat perch above a green that is surrounded by rocks.
15. The Classic Club, $115-$189, Palm Desert, CA
Host club for the Bob Hope Classic for three years, The Classic Club was designed by Arnold Palmer. In addition to being one of the King’s good works, it includes 30 acres of water features, 14 bridges as well as pine trees, which must have been imported from elsewhere as they are not found on the desert floor. There are five sets of tees on each hole
16. Old Greenwood, $90-185, Trukee, CA
Situated near I-80, just north of Lake Tahoe, Old Greenwood is among towering pines in the mountains. It is a Jack Nicklaus design, and if you have played his courses, you know they are not a walk in the park, no matter how beautiful the setting. Also on-site is Gray’s Crossing by Peter Jacobsen and Jim Hardy.
17. TPC at Harding Park, $150-170, San Francisco, CA
Harding Park hosts many San Francisco City Championships, but it has become better known in recent years for hosting the WGC events and more recently as the site of the Presidents Cup. It was renovated by the city and now has a TPC distinction. It is operated by the PGA Tour so it’s perfect for getting logoed merchandise. If you look around the grounds, you’ll find the bench dedicated to Ken Venturi’s parents. Venturi has said his ringer score at Harding Park is 36. He’s made a two on every hole.
18. SilverRock Resort, $165, La Quinta, CA
Arnold Palmer’s last PGA Tour victory was at the 1973 Bob Hope Classic, and so it is fitting that he has designed another course that is included in the tournament rotation. Silver Rock was a part of the tournament beginning in 2008. There are plenty of mountainsides at the edge of the course, and—unless Cal Tech has removed them—there are also earthquake monitors.
19. Sonoma Golf Club, $160, Sonoma, CA
The Sonoma Golf Club is set on 177 acres of rolling terrain highlighted surrounded by live oaks, complete with sweeping vistas of the Mayacamas Mountains and vineyards. If you don’t like the round, there’s always a glass of wine. Just be sure to get a designated driver. Don’t we wish we could do that on the golf course as well?
20. Sandpiper G.C., $139-$159, Santa Barbara
Who can forget Guido Sarducci’s famous SNL skits that sometimes included Santa Claus and Santa Barbara? Or that Ronald Regan’s ranch was located in Santa Barbara? It’s the perfect climate, much like San Diego. It’s also far enough away from Los Angeles to be a small town, and close enough to have southern California weather. That’s today. In 1927 ARCO used the site for oil refining. In 1942, the Japanese Navy shelled the refinery site. In 1965, oil production was phased out, although some infrastructure remains. The only bad view is the inside of your car on the way out.