The Quest for the Best Buddies Golf Trip
We rate golf courses according to how many “buckets”. 0 Buckets through 5 buckets with 5 being the top bucket list score.
Pebble Beach is undoubtedly the crown jewel of public golf in the jewel festooned necklace that comprises the public golf scene on the Monterey Peninsula. For many, this once in a lifetime trip to Pebble Beach Resort will create memories for years to come.
There is no way to overstate it: Pebble Beach Golf Links is the very yardstick by which all other bucket list golf courses should be measured. There are better golf courses in the world, for sure, (hell there are better golf courses in the Del Monte Forest), and there are courses with more history. But when it comes right down to it Pebble is the pinnacle of the public Bucket List Golf. The only other course that comes close? The Old Course St. Andrews.
It’s very possible that the first five holes of “Spyglass” golf course are the best consecutive opening holes on any public golf course, period. It’s after the opening 5 when you take a right turn and head into the Del Monte Forest that things take a more ominous turn.
Opened in 1966 the Robert Trent Jones course design was developed under the name Pebble Beach Pines Golf Club, but was re-monikered Spyglass Hill Golf Course by the founder of the Pebble Beach company.
The significance and history of Pasatiempo golf course simply cannot be overstated. When you visit and play the course, the morsels of history (and impact on golf) will be discovered while you stroll along the Santa Cruz hills routing like carefully placed Easter eggs. We understand that you might be somewhat confused as to why we are writing about a Santa Cruz golf course when we are in the middle of a series on Pebble Beach. However, the answer is somewhat simple. This is one of the only (well maintained) examples of any Alastair MacKenzie designed golf courses that the public can readily play. Yes, that Alastair MacKenzie, the one that designed Cypress Point and Augusta. Probably the most influential golf course designer since Old Tom Morris. Since most people headed to their bucket list Pebble Beach trip will be landing in the Bay Area, this golf course will literally be on the way. Given the history and significance of it, you should seriously consider adding it the mix.
The tagline for Bandon Dunes Golf Resort is “GOLF AS IT WAS MEANT TO BE…”. While this may be true, we think the better tagline should be “The Buddies Bucketlist Golf Trip: As it was meant to be… Full Stop”. Bandon Dunes sets a bar by which every other bucket list golf trip will be measured. The nice thing about Bandon is that it just fits the bill. Everything, every detail is thought through with a lens of making it the most enjoyable buddies golf trip experience that can be. With this Big Ball First guide on to how to best plan your trip, we hope it will be just that much better.
All of the courses at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort are truly bucket list golf courses, and they all have their own unique personality. A few weeks back I likened Pacific Dunes to the “Star Quarterback”, handsome and the most popular kid in High School. While that is true, Pacific Dunes must have also been voted “Most likely to punch you in the face” during senior year. You see, this golf course is just a little bit louder than the others. The greens are harder, the bunkers are gnarlier, the wind feels windier and the gorse seems gorse(ier). This golf course goes to 11, for sure. Don’t get us wrong, the other courses all have elements that are this hard, this fantastic, and this majestic. It’s just the way Pacific Dunes is assembled from start to finish that can be the most completely enjoyable wire-brushing you’ve ever experienced.
In our review a few weeks ago of Old Mac, we referred to Bandon Dunes as a “Stiff upper lipped dad” kind of golf course, when comparing it to its other family members. It’s clear we wrote that review the morning before before we played Bandon Dunes for what would be the fourth time, and honestly we don’t think we could have been more wrong. This is the golf course that started it all, if you think about the accomplishments at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort (4, soon to be 5 public golf courses in the top 20 public golf courses according to Golf Digest, then Bandon Dunes deserves some serious street cred, if for no other reason, it’s O.G. full on original gangster.
This being the newest course of the bunch at Bandon Dunes Sheep Ranch feels like it has something to prove. Opened in June 2020, it comes out of the cuts trying to set itself apart and feel different. And that it does. Although it’s set at a higher elevation the overall angle of the golf course creates a very different feel from the other courses on the complex- as though you can just reach out and touch the water- from everywhere on the course.
This course came to life in 1998 rising from the ashes of a former Army base that was along the shores of Lake Michigan east of Sheboygan, Wisconsin. This is a truly epic golf experience. A links style golf course along the shores of Lake Michigan, Pete Dye did his best to capture the feel of golfing in the UK, and he did a fantastic job. In the process he has created a world class golf course that is beautiful and absolutely brutal if you get out of position.
