Inside the course: Pebble Beach Golf Links

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Badz/PGA TOUR

The U.S. Open will take place at Pebble Beach for the fifth time this week.

Jun. 17, 2010

The TOUR heads to Pebble Beach, Calif., this week for the U.S. Open.

Expert's Overview

John Stahlschmidt, Head Instructor at the PGA TOUR Academy TPC Scottsdale, analyzes this week's course:

The U.S. Open returns to majestic Pebble Beach this week for the second major of 2010. This will be the second event that Pebble Beach has hosted this year after the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am made its annual stop in February. Expect the course to be playing considerably different, though, this week as the rough will be thicker and the greens harder and faster.

The eventual winner will have to accomplish a variety of tasks this week, including driving the ball in play, holing many 6-8 footers for par and staying patient. These are always essential ingredients needed to win the U.S. Open.

The main thing that will allow the players to accomplish that task is a rock solid pre-shot routine. I have listed key components that make up a successul rountine. Watch for almost every player this week to follow the below steps to a tee.

1. Start behind the ball and take a few practice swings.
2. Pick an intermediate target -- a spot 3-5 feet in front of your ball. This will help with your alignment.
3. Grip the club from behind the ball and walk into your shot with your grip already assembled.
4. Always aim the club face at the intermediate target before you set your feet.
5. Remember to breathe so you can stay relaxed.
6. Strike your ball and hold your finish until the ball lands.

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PEBBLE BEACH GOLF LINKS

Fast facts

U.S. Open at Pebble Beach

Course Superintendent	Chris Dalhamer
Original architect	Jack Neville and Douglas Grant, 1919
Redesign	Ed Conner and Jack Nicklaus, 1991; New fifth hole by Jack Nicklaus, 1998
Par value	71
Number of TOUR events as host venue	65* (including 2010)
Yardage history	6,815 yards (1972, 1982)
	6,809 (1992)
	6,846 (2000)
	7,014 (2010)
Grass	Perennial ryegrass (tees, fairways, rough); Poa annua (rough)
Tournament Stimpmeter	10 ft
Sand bunkers	111
Water hazards	Ocean on nine holes
Course tour	Click here

* Includes the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am

Course record*

Player
Tom Kite
David Duval

Year
1983
1997

Round
3rd
3rd

Finish
1st
T2

* Set during the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am

Holes-in-one

There has been one ace recorded at Pebble Beach Golf Links during a U.S. Open:

Player	Hole	Year
Todd Fischer	No. 7	2000

2000 Rankings

Most Difficult Hole at the 2000 U.S. Open

	The par-4 466-yard 9th This is the toughest hole on the golf course. Because the fairway slopes severely toward the ocean, the approach must be hit from a hanging lie. What usually happens is that the player leaks it to the right a little or overcompensates and ends up in the left rough or the greenside bunker. The approach to No. 8 may be the most critical on the course, but the approach to the ninth is just as difficult and if you've missed the eighth, the ninth is not place to pick up lost strokes. 2000: 0 eagles, 16 birdies, 213 pars, 165 bogeys, 37 double bogeys, 6 other.
Easiest hole at the 2000 U.S. Open
	The par-5 524-yard sixth This hole demands the driver. That's because a ball not hit far enough probably will prevent the player from reaching the second landing area, past the swath of rough, on the second shot. That will mean a lay-up and a blind third shot to a small green with a long iron. That's not something to look forward to, so expect to see the field cranking driver here. 2000: 6 eagles, 137 birdies, 228 pars, 60 bogeys, 4 double bogeys and 2 others.

Pebble Beach Golf Links			2000 rankings		Last 2 U.S. Opens at Pebble Beach
Hole	Par	Yards	Average score	Rank	Average score	Rank
1	4	381	4.151	12	4.537	2
2	4	484	4.421	4	4.506	9
3	4	390	4.215	10	4.452	8
4	4	331	3.943	17	3.443	17
5	3	188	3.38	5	4.351	10
6	5	524	4.831	18	5.329	14
7	3	106	3.037	16	3.327	12
8	4	418	4.54	2	4.304	16
9	4	466	4.556	1	3.252	5
10	4	446	4.38	5	4.205	11
11	4	380	4.16	11	4.194	3
12	3	202	3.357	8	5.131	18
13	4	406	4.114	13	4.117	13
14	5	573	5.378	7	4.095	15
15	4	397	4.064	15	4.090	1
16	4	403	4.309	9	3.034	7
17	3	208	3.435	3	3.960	4
18	5	543	5.089	14	4.809	6

Course origins

The par-three 5th hole at Pebble Beach was rebuit and reopened in 1998. The redesign was performed by Jack Nicklaus and is located along the pacific coastline on a 50-foot cliff. At a cost of $3 million, No. 5 is possibly the most expensive new hole in championship golf.

Pebble Beach was the site of the 100th U.S. Open Championship in 2000, which produced a record-setting 15-shot victory for Tiger Woods at 12 under par. The U.S. Open returns to Pebble Beach again this week.

Tournament course history

Year	Course	Location
1895	Newport GC	Newport, R.I.
1896	Shinnecock Hills GC	Southhampton, N.Y.
1897	Chicago GC	Wheaton, Ill.
1898	Myopia Hunt Club	Hamilton, Mass.
1899	Baltimore CC	Baltimore, Md.
1900	Chicago GC	Wheaton, Ill.
1901	Myopia Hunt Club	Hamilton, Mass.
1902	Garden City GC	Garden City, N.Y.
1903	Baltusrol GC (Lower)	Springfield, N.J.
1904	Glen View Club	Golf, Ill.
1905	Myopia Hunt Club	Hamilton, Mass.
1906	Onwentsia Club	Lake Forest, Ill.
1907	Philadelphia Cricket Club	Chestnut Hill, Pa.
1908	Myopia Hunt Club	Hamilton, Mass.
1909	Englewood GC	Englewood, N.J.
1910	Philadelphia Cricket Club	Chestnut Hill, Pa.
1911	Chicago GC	Wheaton, Ill.
1912	Country Club of Buffalo	Buffalo, N.Y.
1913	The Country Club	Brookline, Mass.
1914	Midlothian CC	Blue Island, Ill.
1915	Baltusrol GC (Lower)	Springfield, N.J.
1916	Minikahda Club	Minneapolis, Minn.
1917	No Tournament
1918	No Tournament
1919	Brae Burn CC	West Newton, Mass.
1920	Inverness CC	Toledo, Ohio
1921	Columbia CC	Chevy Chase, Md.
1922	Skokie CC	Glencoe, Ill.
1923	Inwood CC	Inwood, N.Y.
1924	Oakland Hills CC (South)	Birmingham, Mich.
1925	Worcester CC	Worcester, Mass.
1926	Scioto CC	Columbus, Ohio
1927	Oakmont CC	Oakmont, Pa.
1928	Olympia Fields CC	Matteson, Ill.
1929	Winged Foot GC (West)	Mamaroneck, N.Y.
1930	Interlachen CC	Hopkins, Minn.
1931	Inverness Club	Toledo, Ohio
1932	Fresh Meadows CC	Flushing, N.Y.
1933	North Shore CC	Glenview, Ill.
1934	Merion Cricket Club	Ardmore, Pa.
1935	Oakmont CC	Oakmont, Pa.
1936	Baltusrol GC (Lower)	Springfield, N.J.
1937	Oakland Hills CC (South)	Birmingham, Mich.
1938	Cherry Hills CC	Englewood, Colo.
1939	Philadelphia CC	Gladwyne, Pa.
1940	Canterbury GC	Beachwood, Ohio
1941	Colonial CC	Fort Worth, Texas
1942	No Tournament
1943	No Tournament
1944	No Tournament
1945	No Tournament
1946	Canterbury GC	Beachwood, Ohio
1947	St. Louis CC	Clayton, Mo.
1948	Riviera CC	Pacific Palisades, Calif.
1949	Medinah CC	Medinah, Ill.
1950	Merion GC	Ardmore, Pa.
1951	Oakland Hills CC (South)	Birmingham, Mich.
1952	Northwood CC	Dallas, Texas
1953	Oakmont CC	Oakmont, Pa.
1954	Baltusrol GC (Lower)	Springfield, N.J.
1955	Olympic Club (Lake)	San Francisco, Calif.
1956	Oak Hill CC	Rochester, N.Y.
1957	Inverness Club	Toledo, Ohio
1958	Southern Hills CC	Tulsa, Okla.
1959	Winged Foot GC (West)	Mamaroneck, N.Y.
1960	Cherry Hills CC	Englewood, Colo.
1961	Oakland Hills CC	Birmingham, Mich.
1962	Oakmont CC	Oakmont, Pa.
1963	The Country Club	Brookline, Mass.
1964	Congressional CC (Blue)	Bethesda, Md.
1965	Bellerive CC	St Louis, Mo.
1966	Olympic Club (Lake)	San Francisco, Calif.
1967	Baltusrol GC (Lower)	Springfield, N.J.
1968	Oak Hill CC	Rochester, N.Y.
1969	Champions GC	Houston, Texas
1970	Hazeltine GC	Chaska, Minn.
1971	Merion GC	Ardmore, Pa.
1972	Pebble Beach GL	Pebble Beach, Calif.
1973	Oakmont CC	Oakmont, Pa.
1974	Winged Foot GC (West)	Mamaroneck, N.Y.
1975	Medinah CC	Medinah, Ill.
1976	Atlanta Athletic Club	Duluth, Ga.
1977	Southern Hills CC	Tulsa, Okla.
1978	Cherry Hills CC	Englewood, Colo.
1979	Inverness Club	Toledo, Ohio
1980	Baltusrol GC (Lower)	Springfield, N.J.
1981	Merion GC	Ardmore, Pa.
1982	Pebble Beach GL	Pebble Beach, Calif.
1983	Oakmont CC	Oakmont, Pa.
1984	Winged Foot GC (West)	Mamaroneck, N.Y.
1985	Oakland Hills CC (South)	Birmingham, Mich.
1986	Shinnecock Hills GC	Southampton, N.Y.
1987	Olympic Club (Lake)	San Francisco, Calif.
1988	The Country Club	Brookline, Mass.
1989	Oak Hill CC	Rochester, N.Y.
1990	Medinah CC	Medinah, Ill.
1991	Hazeltine National GC	Chaska, Minn.
1992	Pebble Beach GL	Pebble Beach, Calif.
1993	Baltusrol GC (Lower)	Springfield, N.J.
1994	Oakmont CC	Oakmont, Pa.
1995	Shinnecock Hills GC	Southampton, N.Y.
1996	Oakland Hills CC	Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
1997	Congressional CC (Blue)	Bethesda, Md.
1998	Olympic Club (Lake)	San Francisco, Calif.
1999	Pinehurst Resort (No. 2)	Pinehurst, N.C.
2000	Pebble Beach GL	Pebble Beach, Calif.
2001	Southern Hills CC	Tulsa, Okla.
2002	Bethpage State Park (Black)	Farmingdale, N.Y.
2003	Olympia Fields CC	Olympia Fields, Ill.
2004	Shinnecock Hills GC	Southampton, N.Y.
2005	Pinehurst Resort (No. 2)	Pinehurst, N.C.
2006	Winged Foot GC	Mamaroneck, N.Y.
2007	Oakmont CC	Oakmont, Pa.
2008	Torrey Pines (South)	La Jolla, Calif.
2009	Bethpage State Park (Black)	Farmingdale, N.Y.
2010	Pebble Beach GL	Pebble Beach, Calif.

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