Sand and sea for five holes, then the forest closes in.
Spyglass Hill sits a mile or so inland from Pebble Beach Golf Links, in the Del Monte Forest, and many good players rate it the harder of the two. It opens with five holes that run out through white sand dunes towards the Pacific. The remaining thirteen climb back through Monterey pines, with greens that rarely give you an easy putt. Unlike Pebble, you do not need a hotel room to secure a tee time weeks ahead. That makes Spyglass the most practical big round on the peninsula for golfers who are not staying with the resort.
Spyglass Hill Golf Course green fees and tee times.
If you are not staying at The Lodge at Pebble Beach, The Inn at Spanish Bay or Casa Palmero, you can reserve Spyglass up to three months before your round. Resort guests book golf together with their room and can plan further out. The resort’s availability page asks you to telephone Resort Reservations for Spyglass, which is staffed 7 am to 6 pm Pacific time on weekdays and 8 am to 5 pm at weekends. Reservations at Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and Spanish Bay can be cancelled without charge up to 14 days before play. The green fee is the same for everyone, but non-guests also pay a cart fee per player. Northern California Golf Association members have a US$375 rate until 31 March 2027, bookable no more than 10 days before play.
INDICATIVE GREEN FEE · CHECKED NOVEMBER 2026From US$550
Green fee from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. Golfers not staying at a Pebble Beach resort hotel add a US$60 cart fee per player. Caddie fees and gratuities are extra.
Resort guest
US$550
Non-resort guest (green fee plus cart fee)
US$610
Prices change by season and booking route, so confirm the current rate with the operator. Official rates ↗
The round, in perspective.
Robert Trent Jones Sr designed the course, which opened on 11 March 1966. The Northern California Golf Association helped build it, and Bob Hanna, the association’s first executive director, named most holes after people and places in Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island; Stevenson is said to have walked these dunes. The 1st, Treasure Island, is a par five of almost 600 yards that turns hard left down to a green ringed by sand. The 3rd drops about 170 yards into the dunes. The 4th, Blind Pew, is a short par four to a long, thin green set among ice plant, and Jones called it his favourite par four. Inland, Jones used ponds in front of greens much as he had on the 16th at Augusta National. From the back tees it measures 6,960 yards, par 72, with a slope of 145.
Know before you go.
Booking window
Up to 3 months ahead for non-resort guests
Cancellation
Free up to 14 days before play
Cart fee
US$60 per player for non-resort guests
Caddies
Optional; request at least 72 hours ahead
Make the trip work.
Plan the day around the opening stretch, because the five dune holes are the part people travel for. Choose tees with care: the course rating from the back is 75.1, more than three shots over par. If you expect to return to the area, the Duke’s Club at Del Monte costs US$595 a year and gives a US$320 Spyglass rate when booked 30 days ahead, subject to space, for you and up to three guests. The Spyglass Hill Grill sits beside the 9th green, so you can stop for breakfast before you tee off or for lunch at the turn.
Monterey Regional Airport (MRY) is the nearest, roughly a 20-minute drive to the course on Stevenson Drive inside the Del Monte Forest. San Jose (SJC) is about 75 minutes north and San Francisco (SFO) about two hours, depending on Highway 101 traffic. A hire car is the easiest way to move between the resort’s courses, Monterey and Carmel.
Staying at The Lodge at Pebble Beach, The Inn at Spanish Bay or Casa Palmero removes the cart fee and gives you the longer booking horizon, but nightly rates there are high. The Inn at Spanish Bay is the closest of the three to Spyglass. For lower prices, look at Pacific Grove’s inns and bed-and-breakfasts, a few minutes from the forest gate, or at the hotels along Cannery Row and in downtown Monterey. Carmel-by-the-Sea suits a quieter stay with restaurants you can walk to.
Make a trip of it.
Pebble Beach Golf Links is a short drive away, though it needs a resort stay to plan ahead. Poppy Hills, the NCGA’s own course in the same forest, is a sensible third round. Pacific Grove Golf Links is a municipal course whose back nine runs through dunes near Point Pinos Lighthouse at a fraction of the price. The Links at Spanish Bay is closed for a Gil Hanse redesign and is due to reopen on 17 April 2027. Off the course, Point Lobos State Natural Reserve and the Monterey Bay Aquarium both justify a half day.
Find your season.
Spyglass is one of the courses used for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am every February, so expect closures that month. Summer mornings often start under fog, while September and October tend to be clearer and busier. The U.S. Open comes to Pebble Beach in the week of 14–20 June 2027, with championship rounds from 17 June, and Spyglass will host the U.S. Senior Open and U.S. Senior Women’s Open in consecutive weeks in 2030.
Can you play Spyglass Hill without staying at Pebble Beach?
Yes. Non-resort guests can book up to three months ahead by calling Pebble Beach Resort Reservations. You pay the same US$550 green fee as hotel guests, plus a US$60 per-player cart fee that hotel guests do not pay.
Is Spyglass Hill harder than Pebble Beach?
On paper, yes. Spyglass carries a course rating of 75.1 and a slope of 145 from the back tees. Phil Mickelson shot 62 here in the 2005 Pro-Am and Luke Donald matched it a year later; that pair share the course record.
Which tournaments have been played at Spyglass Hill?
It has been part of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am rotation since 1967. It shared stroke-play duty at the U.S. Amateur in 1999 and 2018. In 2030 it will stage the U.S. Senior Open and the U.S. Senior Women’s Open in back-to-back weeks, a first for one venue.
Why are the holes at Spyglass Hill named after Treasure Island?
Robert Louis Stevenson spent time on the Monterey Peninsula in 1879, and local tradition holds that the dunes here fed his novel. Bob Hanna of the NCGA chose names such as Billy Bones (2nd), Blind Pew (4th) and Long John Silver (14th).
Last checked 10 November 2026. This is an independent planning guide, not a first-hand review or a booking service. Check live availability, access, fees and travel details with the operator before booking. Airport suggestions are starting points for route planning.
