Monterey Peninsula Country Club (Shore) Course Review & Photos

56. Monterey Peninsula Country Club (Shore)

Mike Strantz (2004)

Mike Strantz was battling cancer while transforming the bland, low-budget Shore Course into a scenic and strategic marvel that rivals next-door neighbor Cypress Point. Strantz reversed direction of the fifth through 15th holes to provide a Pacific Ocean backdrop to most of them. He weaved fairways among trees so players could “dance among the cypress,” and added native grasses for a coastal prairie look. The stunning landscape would be Strantz’s last work of art. He died six months after completing the redesign. Former PGA Tour player Forrest Fezler, who was Strantz’s associate on the project, later served as a consulting architect in order to retain the Strantz vision.

100 Greatest History: Ranked since 2007. Highest ranking: Current ranking. Previous ranking: No. 65

Panelist comments, Monterey Peninsula Country Club (Shore):

“Mike Strantz’s last course, and most assuredly his best. There really is only one hole I thought was just OK and that was No. 2, but all the rest are so good you just forget about it. It was only a transition to all the great ones. Certainly Strantz put everything he had into the Shore course, and the result was spectacular.”

“Soaking in the sun on these greens, looking out to the Monterey Peninsula, was a truly magnificent experience. This is a setting that I wish most golfers could enjoy.”

“The thing I liked the best about the Shore course was its variety. Every shot was different. It was forgiving off the tee, to a point, but the green complexes were amazing.”

“Natural rock formations make for amazing locations for tees and greens, playing off this setting to make for truly unique holes with outstanding backdrops to the shots into the greens. While the holes aren’t truly on the water, the views play off the Pacific Ocean and the waves crashing in the background.”

“Visualizing what the course looked like, and then what Strantz changed it to, makes it evident at what a remarkable job of using the terrain this was. Truly a masterpiece in my opinion.”

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LC Lambrecht/Courtesy of Monterey Peninsula CC

Hole No. 3