Sorry folks but Spyglass is better than three of the four courses at Bandon. Also, you can take a cart with all of Monterey's public courses which makes them more accessable.
Tim,
You're right to call out Spyglass' greatness. Pebble is a world-class golf course and Spyglass isn't far behind. The first five holes are simply awe inspiring and the rest of the golf course is terrific. It surely lacks the drama of the seaside holes and maybe it suffers by comparison as a result, but individually each hole is great. I'm not sure that I'd go as far as you and say that Spyglass is better than three of the Bandon courses, but it's better than one and pretty equal to another, in my opinion.
To me there is one major difference between the two resorts that ensures that Bandon is a far superior resort, and that is the absence of carts at Bandon and the overabundance of cart golfers who would ONLY play Pebble if they had a cart. You get a different type of golfer, number one. But you also get an entirely different vibe on the resort. There's a lot more adventure, sport and exercise at Bandon. You're doing something that is pretty much against "type" at any other resort in America, by playing links golf and walking with a caddie. I have seen some really horrific golfers riding carts and playing Pebble and the other courses there on the resort. I once got hooked up with a guy who was by himself, but had his wife on the cart with him (paid for the "privilege") and he shot around 150, with the wife constantly barking instructions from the cart. That just doesn't happen at Bandon. I'm sure they get groups that play one day and say "forget it" because the walk is too arduous, the holes too quirky or the wind too strong, but anybody who stays and plays three or four days is the kind of golfer that I like to meet, not somebody who knows full well that he couldn't walk the course if he had to.
And then, of course, there's Carmel. There ain't no Carmel near the Bandon resort. For playing 18 holes and grabbing dinner off the resort, Pebble is really hard to top. But I digress...