This summer, I was lucky enough to cross two courses off my "hope to play someday" list.
In the spring, I was absolutely blown away by Pebble Beach. Everything about it exceeded my expectations. Because of heavy rain prior to my visit, the course didn't play quite the way I expected. It was so soft that it was impossible to land an approach short and have it run onto the green. Everything else about it ... the scale, the setting, the tiny greens ... far surpassed my expectations.
Yesterday, I got a chance to play Newport Country Club. It was an overcast day, 20 mph winds, humid ... a perfect setup for this seaside course. It too absolutely blew me away. From the opening hole to the climb up the 18th, I wasn't disappointed by a single hole or shot out there. With sprinklers located only at tee boxes and greens, the fairways were rock hard. On a downwind 540-yard par 5, I had an 8 iron for my second shot from 190 and rolled it up to the middle of the green. As was discussed on a previous thread, most holes are either directly into or directly with the prevailing wind. Very few shots were affected by crosswind. Greens were in great shape but not overly fast, which was important given the strong winds.
Between the two, I would say that Pebble is obviously more jaw-droppingly dramatic. But if I were picking one course to play every day, it would be Newport without hesitation. I wish I had photos to share of Newport, but I wasn't comfortable busting out a camera as a guest. Sorry.