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Matt_Cohn

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A few Spyglass pictures
« on: May 15, 2012, 01:21:27 PM »
I took these at various random moments over the past few years. Just thought I'd post them for whoever wanted to see!


1 tee




4


6, with 1 in the far background


7 tee


10 tee


10 from 18


11 long approach


12 green


13 tee




14 long approach


14 short approach


16




17 from near 18 tee


18 approach

« Last Edit: May 15, 2012, 01:23:23 PM by Matt_Cohn »

Mike Hendren

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #1 on: May 15, 2012, 01:43:25 PM »
I don't recall the ice-plant being cut back at the front portion of the 4th green. Is this new?

Matt, thanks for the photographs.  While a minority opinion, I find Spyglass Hill to be under-rated.

Mike
Two Corinthians walk into a bar ....

Bill_McBride

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Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #2 on: May 15, 2012, 01:46:35 PM »
Loved the first five, the rest was unrelenting brutality. 

And that was back when I could hit the ball.   ;D

David Ober

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #3 on: May 15, 2012, 01:50:40 PM »
Loved the first five, the rest was unrelenting brutality. 

And that was back when I could hit the ball.   ;D

I concur wholeheartedly.

I carry driver 235 to 240, and at Spyglass I get very little roll like I do in SoCal. I'm playing in the NCGA Masters Division Championship coming up in a few weeks, and I may not break 80 at Spyglass either round!!! LOL!!

Tim Leahy

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #4 on: May 15, 2012, 02:02:22 PM »
I would love to see a major played at Spyglass. Maybe a PGA or at least a Senior Open or Women's US Open.
I love golf, the fightin irish, and beautiful women depending on the season and availability.

Matt_Cohn

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #5 on: May 15, 2012, 02:31:48 PM »
I don't recall the ice-plant being cut back at the front portion of the 4th green. Is this new?

Mike, there isn't really any iceplant anymore. It's all been replaced with either sand or grass in various locations.

Mike Nuzzo

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #6 on: May 15, 2012, 02:32:50 PM »




This looks like such a nice area for a golf hole.
Is this green/hole good?

Looks like a 4 wood - 7 iron to the middle of the green and no reason to hit near the native areas.
The green looks like it has only long slopes.

Cheers
Thinking of Bob, Rihc, Bill, George, Neil, Dr. Childs, & Tiger.

Matthew Petersen

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #7 on: May 15, 2012, 02:36:53 PM »
Thanks for the pictures. I will be playing Spyglass for the first time in July and love getting a sneak preview like this.

Stephen Davis

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #8 on: May 15, 2012, 02:42:23 PM »
Great pictures, thanks for posting them! I hope to play here someday. #4 looks particularly beautiful!

Matt_Cohn

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #9 on: May 15, 2012, 02:50:34 PM »
Looks like a 4 wood - 7 iron to the middle of the green and no reason to hit near the native areas.
The green looks like it has only long slopes.

It's a fantastic hole. You wouldn't want to have a 7 iron in if you could help it - the target is just so narrow and it's so hard to control where your ball is going to bounce and roll with a club like that. And the slope and angle go across, not just away, so it's anything but a straight-on shot. Not even close actually! There are also a bunch of smaller slopes within the green that give you some really unexpected movement. The fairway narrows as you get closer to the green. It's super wide 160 from the green but that makes for a scary approach. If you want to get within wedge range you have to play to a pretty narrow area.

Kris Shreiner

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #10 on: May 15, 2012, 08:16:59 PM »
Matt,

Thanks for bringing a smile to my face. That epic track was my home course for 11 1/2 wonderful years. She doesn't have quite the teeth she used to bare, but it's still a monster in the wind. It's firmer now on a daily basis than when I was there which is good. I've always felt the greens were very challenging at SPY. Some on this site don't care for it. That's a strange one to me. It's a stiff, fair test and badass in my book.

Tiger didn't break par there the first 5 rounds he teed it up in competition. Case closed.


Mike N. ,

SPY's #4 Hole is in the Top 5 short 4's in the world for me. There are more options to attack it than would appear, but a misque can lead to a number...in a hurry! Wind direction has HUGE implications on any club selection when it is up at all.  Into the fan, I prefer to come in to that hole from a little further back to control the flight better. It's hard to hold a good line with lofted irons on the lower end of a partial shot in my view.
When it was surrounded with iceplant it was really a fearsome prospect coming into that green. My advice was always to land about 5 paces on at the right, front edge cut line of the green. That way you take long and dead out of play. If it hangs up you have the whole green to work with, though to a bottom left pin from there it is dang hard to get up and down. If you push it coming in, it stays short of the back bunker and usually kicks left onto the green. A hook in has you safe unless you really snap it.

Some guys try to hit their drive way down there and parachute a sand wedge in tight or bump a little knock-down wedge into the belly of the green's top tier. Those options can be done, but if you flare or hook the tee shot, the narrow depth of that green presents major problems on your second shot coming in from awkward angles.

For my money, that hole is ALWAYS one to play with RESPECT. A par or even bogey is FINE. You may get fortunate and card a birdie; but bold play on that hole generally gets punished...often. Of course, you could do what J. D. did when he played that World's Best 18 golfing jetscapade years ago...grip and rip driver right at the green...think he made triple!

Cheers,
Kris 8)
« Last Edit: May 15, 2012, 08:23:55 PM by Kris Shreiner »
"I said in a talk at the Dunhill Tournament in St. Andrews a few years back that I thought any of the caddies I'd had that week would probably make a good golf course architect. We all want to ask golfers of all abilities to get more out of their games -caddies do that for a living." T.Doak

Jim Hoak

  • Karma: +1/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #11 on: May 15, 2012, 09:21:56 PM »
Still one of my favorite courses anywhere!  And greatly improved by the drainage work of a few years ago.
Really a shame that the PGA won't hold its August tournament there.  I believe their reaction to the idea is that Pebble Beach gives their best course to the USGA and the PGA doesn't want to settle for second-best.  Too bad that egos affect this decision!

Gary Slatter

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #12 on: May 15, 2012, 11:17:48 PM »
thanks for the pictures Matt!   I am one who always enjoyed playing Spyglass, to me it`s as good a test as Pebble, second only in scenic views.
It is one of the many under rated courses available for all to play.
Gary Slatter
gary.slatter@raffles.com

Joey Chase

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #13 on: May 15, 2012, 11:40:14 PM »
That photo of the 4th reminds me a bit of Troia in Portugal.  RTJ used the angles and unusually narrow greens to interesting effect there.  I am getting more excited to play this coming January!

Adam Clayman

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #14 on: May 15, 2012, 11:44:39 PM »
Mike Nuzzo, As Kris, and Matt said, it's a great hole. Not so arguably, One of Mr. Jones best he ever designed. (Or so i'm told, doncha know) I know it from a different perspective than Matt. It actually was a different era. The first several times I played the hole, I had 200 yards in. But even from there, far right of the preferred line, there was a playable shoulder, right, and in front of the bunker, cut into the hill (not pictured), short of the front of the green. It was a unique flat bunker, perched above the grade of the apron, and, well above the fallaway green. But you could play the shoulder from 200+ yards away, with the right traj.  This is what I loved about the front of this green. If your approach was short, you could play any shot you wanted to, off either the mound on the front left, or the hillside, and shoulder to the right. The green's serpentine nature, allowed for, and inspired, creativity.  It's the epitome of non dictated gca.  

« Last Edit: May 15, 2012, 11:53:25 PM by Adam Clayman »
"It's unbelievable how much you don't know about the game you've been playing your whole life." - Mickey Mantle

Ben Jarvis

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #15 on: May 16, 2012, 06:03:16 AM »
I was fortunate to play Spyglass on a beautiful July afternoon in 2011. Like everyone, I loved the opening holes and as a whole, enjoyed the remainder of the course. Although I hit it really well and scored ok, it was getting a little repetitive hitting long irons into smallish greens. The course was in great shape, although the ball wasn't running out, as I'd imagine is common. Combined with the heavy air late in the afternoon, it was tough!

Matt, I hope you don't mind me sharing a few photos I took from the opening holes....

Looking back to the 1st - note the bunker renovation




2nd tee




2nd green, looking down to the 4th hole




Looking back from behind the 4th green (day after my play)

   
Twitter: @BennyJarvis
Instagram: @bennyj08

Mike Hendren

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Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #16 on: May 16, 2012, 09:22:22 AM »
I apologize for the poor image (cell phone photo of a photo):



With the encroachment of the ice-plant around the green, the player absolutely had to sling his tee shot as far right as the fairway would permit as the angle of approach became almost mandatory.  I hit a nice drive down the middle of the fairwway and the only reasonable approach was to play one less club at the extreme front right edge of the green.  By clearing the ice-plant - and it appears cutting it back on right end of the dune fronting the green, the hole becomes more strategic and slightly less penal.       

I prefer the new version.  You?
Two Corinthians walk into a bar ....

Mike Benham

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #17 on: May 16, 2012, 12:23:47 PM »

From the fairway, with a short iron approach, the front of the green looks quite narrow:

"... and I liked the guy ..."

Michael Wharton-Palmer

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #18 on: May 16, 2012, 12:35:52 PM »
I am one of those who love Spyglass and think it vastly underated.
A very tough course but ultimately very very fair and a great test. Number four does not look as fearsome without the iceplant, a shame they decided to do that, but sure it speeds up play at that portion of the course that can easily get a backlog with twp par threes so close together.
Number 16 is one of my all time favourite par fours, visually beautiful whilst playing so damn tough.

Adam Clayman

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #19 on: May 17, 2012, 09:13:25 AM »
Strangely, #8 was not included in the photos. IMO, It's a world class hole.

MWP. Were fortunate enough to play the 16th before it's emasculation?
"It's unbelievable how much you don't know about the game you've been playing your whole life." - Mickey Mantle

Mike Hendren

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #20 on: May 17, 2012, 09:36:10 AM »
I too liked the 16th, particularly how it lays on the land, but I understand many consider it to be a shadow of its former self.  

Adam, please elaborate on the changes.  

Thanks.
Two Corinthians walk into a bar ....

Michael Wharton-Palmer

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #21 on: May 17, 2012, 10:23:16 AM »
Adam,
I presume you are talking about "the tree"...yes I played it before that great loss, it certainly is not the same without it.
I think the stretch of holes from 13-17 is wonderful..well the entire course is.
I think it gets a bad rap from many, whether that is its unfortunate comaprisons to its neighbours or just its difficulty, but I really like it.
I still cant imagine how Mickelson shot that ridiclous low number a few years back, and early in the year when it is  arel slog as well. :P

Matt_Cohn

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: A few Spyglass pictures
« Reply #22 on: May 17, 2012, 01:01:56 PM »
Strangely, #8 was not included in the photos. IMO, It's a world class hole.

Agreed. I was too busy playing it to take a picture.

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