Pebble Beach Flyovers: Eleventh And Twelfth Holes

Back in 1929 this well-bunkered green was created think of 3 iron approaches, now of course it’s little more than a flip wedge for the players who hit driver. Probably the smallest and least-functional green on the property due to hears of flying sand shots and faster green speeds, the 11th is down to about 100 square foot area to place holes at the traditional U.S. Open pace.

The overall architectural deterioration here gives critics of the inland holes very reasonable ammunition in making their case against Pebble Beach. It doesn’t have to be that way.

The fairway contour has been significantly reduced since this flyover and hugs the right this time around:

The par-3 12th is another odd one when the U.S. Open comes and firms things up. The bunker face is at its highest and most penal on the right portion where most daily-fee golfers have hit the ball over the years. It’s a pretty common sign of age and should have been addressed long ago since it discourages a direct shot at the center hole locations, while the more left the pin goes, the more accessible it becomes all due to the bunker face build up.

There can be a bit of a Redan component here but the opening is so slight that modern players seem to just take their chances getting up and down from the front bunker or from the rear rough. The green has also lost many great wing hole locations due to a square footage deterioration.