Monterey Peninsula CC Shore Course renovation almost finished

Zinkand Golf Design is nearing the completion of a renovation project at Monterey Peninsula Country Club’s famed Shore Course in Pebble Beach, California. The Shore Course opened in 1962 and received critical acclaim after a significant 2003 reimagining by the late golf course architect Mike Strantz.

Led by golf course architect David Zinkand, ZGD’s multi-year master plan respectfully pays homage to what Strantz and his co-designer, Forrest Fezler, created two decades ago while also evolving the design to enhance aesthetics and adapt to modern expectations.

The current project — the third phase of the master plan — touches all of the course’s bunkers and waste areas. Each is receiving new drainage and capillary flow liners. New sand will be laid in formal bunkers, while existing bunker sand will be screened and placed within the waste areas. Some strategically imperative hazards are also being repositioned, frequently toward the line of play, to encourage decision making on the tee and advance the course’s challenge relative to modern play and equipment.

“The Shore Course is rightfully regarded as one of the world’s most beautiful locales for golf,” Zinkand said. “Our team has remained true to what Mike created, while ensuring the course’s eminent playability and seaside character continue to shine through.”

The current work is expected to be completed in June and follows two earlier renovation phases. The first was a turf reduction and waste area expansion project that further elevated course aesthetics by increasing the prevalence of native areas featuring unmown fescue grasses. This also reduced the course’s water consumption. Overgrown coyote bushes were also thinned and replaced to improve vistas and highlight the property’s native cypress trees and seaside aesthetic.

More recently, a tee renovation project included leveling, refurbishing and regrassing all teeing areas. Select tees were also repositioned. This was in response to advancements in equipment and also provided additional strategic options created by the turf reduction, waste area expansion work and the current bunker renovations. 

“Throughout the entirety of the project, we’ve viewed our work not only through a strategic lens, but also an aesthetic one,” Zinkand said. “For example, we’ve made a concerted effort to pull elements of the seaside holes into the inland stretch of the Shore Course as a means of creating a heightened sense of place. This respect for a golf course’s aura and ecology, leaning into the natural ‘genius loci,’ is a core tenet of our firm.”

Monterey Peninsula director of grounds Chris Dalhamer added that, “Dave and his team are experts at their craft and a pleasure to work with. We knew they were right for our club when it quickly became clear how much their plans prioritized both current course agronomy and future maintenance needs.”

Prior to founding ZGD, Zinkand was a long-time design associate with Coore & Crenshaw, and before that worked on projects with Pete Dye, Gil Hanse and Mike Devries. These experiences gave him an in-depth understanding of how the classic courses utilize strategy and the natural terrain to instill atmosphere, fun and intricacy into a round of golf. ZGD is currently engaged with a wide variety of projects across the United States, ranging from restorations and renovations of Golden Age courses to new builds with routings that push the creative envelope.