Jay
Nice piece.
Although, I would question Pebble as the only public access host of a major venue for decades. Pinehurst hosted the PGA in 1936 - long before Pebble ever got hold of what we call a major today. Although I spose teh US Am wass a major when Pebble hosted for Jones' famous first round loss, but that wasn't decades before Pinehurst.
BTW - what is the significance of the courses listed on your tag line?
Ciao