The first thing one notices as one makes his way to the clubhouse is the bunkering. They re flashy, dramatic, and force you to hit the ball to a certain point if one wants to score well. I have Mackenzie's "Spirit of St Andrews" book and I misunderstood his design philosophy til I played here. When he talks about the handicap golfer avoiding a trap, he's suggesting giving a wide berth to obtain an angle. Theres no running the ball up on the green here!
The second thing one notices is how hilly the terrain is. Pasatiempo is located in the Santa Cruz mountains. From the clubhouse veranda, one can view Monterey Bay in the distance, and on a clear day, can see all the way to Monterey itself. It's such a beautiful place MacKenzie made this his home.
Pasatiempo is a tale of two golf courses. The front nine is good but there's a few holes I think are pretty ordinary. The course gets off to a strong start with a couple long par fours followed by the best hole on the front, the par three third. The 235 yarder is uphill to a well bunkered green set at an angle. It's very difficult to get the ball on putting surface and it usually plays as the toughest hole in the Intercollegiate Championship.
After the short par four fourth, the player comes to the difficult fifth, an uphill 190 yard par three. A central bunker fronting the green influences all pin positions including a flag located in the tongue. Then we come to the MacKenzie hole, a par five that literally has OB and a net to keep balls from going into other peoples yards just feet away from the fairway. It s shocking when you see it. And this is a very narrow hole too. Seven is another very narrow hole. I felt MacKenzie was trying very hard to fit three holes into this space of land. A cool green on seven is the redeeming factor as it pinches in the back right tween the sand. A pin located here requires a deft shot.
Eight is the just off the side of seven. In fact, my playing companion nearly drove his ball onto the eighth green from seven tee!! It's a downhill par three with a big green that has a lot of slope in it. The ninth is an uphill par five that plays in front of the crowd watching from the veranda. It was the only time I had an "Augusta" feeling.
The back nine at Pasatiempo is excellent and is the reason why this is considered one of the top courses in the country. It has three par fours that are world class, two very intriguing par threes, and one of the coolest hazards I've seen. This is the genius of MacKenzie. And it starts on ten.
Ten is a long par four whose drive must carry over a deep barranca. The barranca is so cool. The only unfortunate thing is it doesn't influence the drive like it used to do. Players now can carry it up and over the hill. The green is wider than it is deep so you have to control a longer iron to hit it. Eleven is then an uphill par four with the barranca splitting the hole right down the middle. The closer you hit to the hazard, the better angle you have to the green. Shy away and the angle and carry over the barranca becomes more difficult. It is the best uphill par four I've ever played.
Twelve plays back down the hill and the green sits on the other side of the barranca. It s just short iron if you hit a good drive, however, the ball is below your feet, making it somewhat tricky. Thirteen is par five with some great bunkering. The green is heart shaped with narrow pin positions in the back right and back left corners. I'm surprised by the shape of some of these greens. Not what I would considered classical. Gives me new insight.
After the fourteenth, the golfer comes to a pitch of a par three. The green is sited in the loop of creek. Three bunkers add to the overall danger of the shot. It's a great lil hole. Then we come to sixteen, the hole MacKenzie declared to be his best par four anywhere. A hill in front of the tee rewards a well struck draw. The green is located across the creek on the hill. It has five tiers and is dramatically bunkered. Tiger Woods five putted this green to give an example how tough it is.
Seventeen is the only average hole on this side. It's slightly uphill and has no green side bunkers! Finally eighteen is a rare par three ending hole. It plays across barranca to green set into the hill. It has a severe slope in it and three putts are a common occurrence. It is an awesome shot! It's commonly thought of as the best ending par three hole in the country!
Everyone should try to play Pasatiempo. It's a real eye opener to see how Alister MacKenzie designed his greens and used his bunkers to influence play. I wish the greens would've been in better shape when I played it. The back nine was excellent and made up for an underperforming front side. Yes I felt holes 6-9 were average. Nonetheless it's a great course. (7 rating) It's easy to see why it's one of the top courses in the country.
(Golfweek has Pasatiempo as the 31st best course in the country and the 3rd best course you can play in California )
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