Stunning Pacific Coast Finish

Half Moon Bay Golf Links:

A Pacific Coast Beauty That Can't be Missed.

Posted by: Rick Parnham

A short drive down the coast from San Francisco's seemingly endless cityscape is the quaint seaside community of Half Moon Bay. This stretch of coastal plain, wedged between the battering waves of the Pacific and the western slopes of the Santa Cruz Mountains, draws visitors to the miles of pristine beaches and some of the best surfing on the continent. This charming and relaxed community is home to a variety of wonderful experiences boasting a massive marina, miles of beaches, boutique shopping, varied dining options and on the edge of town overlooking the ocean you will find the golf courses of Half Moon Bay Golf Links.

Northern California is filled with spectacular golf facilities boasting many of the world's most highly regarded courses and Half Moon Bay Golf Links is not out of place when included in any conversation about the areas courses of stature. When you are surrounded by the iconic golf courses of San Francisco and Monterey it is easy to get overlooked, however, Half Moon Bay manages to poke its head out from the crowd and shine. Perched high atop a bluff with steep cliffs dropping to a seemingly endless chain of sandy coves and beaches sits this unique 36-hole facility’s championship layouts and the stunning Half Moon Bay Ritz-Carleton.  

Old Course 18

Location: Half Moon Bay, California

The facility opened in 1973 with an original Palmer design. The Old Course was built as part of a bustling real estate development and the routing now weaves amongst the luxury home sites. Typical of Palmer’s style the layout follows the contours of the land using the elevation to present a formidable challenge. Meandering doglegs, heroic driving holes and exacting green sites provide a variety of shot opportunities as expected of a design by the King. The course is a rolling layout featuring the majority of the holes playing as doglegs, making effective shot shaping a must. Bold and dramatic in design the demanding routing plays inland until the final two holes. The iconic closing hole complete with the backdrop of the luxurious Ritz-Carlton behind and Pacific Ocean to the right is one of the most spectacular finishing holes on the west coast.

Editor's Shot Maker's Picks: Old Course

Feature Holes Descriptions:

The downhill par 5, fifth hole is a delicate risk / reward hole that teases you to play aggressively. The hole doglegs left with a pair of steep faced bunkers guarding the inside corner. The considerable drop in elevation tempts the bombers to attack the nasty traps leaving a long iron or less into the shallow green. The safe play is to stay clear of the sand and leave yourself choice to go for the green with a longer club or layup to a comfortable number for your approach. The sharp dogleg right par 4, 14th hole displays the true character of the layout. A demanding tee shot through a chute of trees must be long enough to clear the corner, straight enough to avoid the bunkers on the right of the landing area and short of the bunker through the fairway. A mid iron approach must be delicately struck to clear the pair of fronting bunkers, but also stop short of the mound behind.

The 16th is a devilish par 4 that is all about finding the fairway with your drive and then standing over a knee-knocking approach.  A long straight drive will set you up for the most daunting green on the course situated precariously behind a wide wetland and short of a steep back slope. Pay close attention to the pin location and be conservative in your desire to attack the hole. A green in regulation and two putt is a terrific outcome. The final hole plays along the coastal cliffs and with a backdrop of wonderment. The downhill drive is best played to the longer left side of the fairway to avoid plunging to the white sandy beach below. The approach must clear a gulch 100 yards short of the green that slopes considerably from back right to front left. Bunkers back and front complete the challenge to be navigated. If you are lucky you will have a gallery cheering you on from the hotel's expansive terrace for a finish hard to forget. 

Course Stats:

Arthur Hills was selected to design The Ocean Course as the Old Course’s sister at Half Moon Bay. Opened for play in 1997, the Hills routing is a completely different experience from Palmer’s design. The Ocean Course is aptly named as many of the holes play steps from the coastline or have stunning views of the Pacific. Compact in design the course features no home sites and only minimal trees giving it a windswept links-style feel. Buffeted with ocean winds and filled with exposed tees and greens a round played here offers a taste of a seaside links and will give you all the challenge you can handle.

Ocean Course 16

Editor's Shot Maker's Picks: Ocean Course

After playing inland away from the crashing surf and gusting winds the par 5 Number 8 takes you to a corner of the course with one of the only tree lined holes on the layout. A drive across the course's solitary pond is the beginning to a lengthy meandering double dogleg. The drive must be threaded between the heavily wooded Canada Verde Creek on the left and thicket of trees and slope on the right. The second shot must account for two staggered pot bunkers and rolling fairway from the 150 marker in. An expansive greenside bunker protects the front right and mounds make anything struck long a difficult chip. The Pacific Ocean is the reason for the course's name and the par 4, 16th begins a cliff side stretch that plays to all the splendor and strife the winds and coastline can muster. This dogleg right plays downhill and into the teeth of the Pacific winds. Take your drive at the distant aiming bunker on the left and account for the wind. Two menacing bunkers right of the landing area are waiting to collect any shot pushed that way. Not a long hole, finding the fairway is a must to have a reasonable chance to attack the green set on the other side of a crossing barranca.  

The par 3, 17th is a cliff side treasure. The green is perched tight to the bluffs with white sand beach below. Playing a long iron shot the ball flight will be dictated by the winds. With an ocean gale, you might have to start the ball over the surf and rocks below to shape the shot back to the green. With two pot bunkers guarding the bailout right this exacting hole is both visually stunning and a supreme challenge. The final hole is a risk / reward par 5 that gives the big hitters a chance close the round with panache. The drive must navigate a deep barranca. The second shot presents options in how to attack the raised green surrounded by expansive bunkers cut into the fronting slopes. A safe play is to layup past the fairway bunker left leaving a wedge for your third. For those looking for a memorable finish a wood purely struck could find the wide and shallow green rewarding you with a chance at birdie or better. Framed with a backdrop of the spectacular Ritz-Carleton Half Moon Bay behind and the Pacific waves to your left, this hole is a fitting finish to a most enjoyable and challenging round.  

Course Stats:

In a region known for its coastal golf experiences, Half Moon Bay Golf Links is a short drive from San Francisco tucked in a most idyllic setting. The two premiere championship courses crafted by Arnold Palmer and Arthur Hills are polar opposites in design style but equally grand. The Old Course with its collection of sharp doglegs and shot making demands combined with the Ocean Course and its stunning links-style design make for a world-class golf experience.

Drive Times: San Francisco 50 mins, San Jose 55 mins, Oakland 1 hr

Contact:

Two Miramontes Point Road,

Half Moon Bay, CA

94019   

650.726.1800

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