A rolling dogleg right presents a an immediate choice as to how close to the corner bunkers on the right you wish to play. The hole doesn't get tricky unless you get too greedy. The second shot presents the first striking view of the landscape, but pay attention to keeping the approach shot below the flagstick on this heavily-contoured green.
The tee shot is a forced carry over a ravine that is habitat for some of the sensitive native vegetation and wildlife that are protected around the course. When downwind, a long iron or fairway wood is plenty, but the current dictates club selection. Bunkers guard both flanks of the fairway, leading to a green that is elevated front-to-back, with grass hollows on all sides.
Waving mounds of native grasses create a visual hazard and a very real one as well for an errant tee shot. There are three bunkers on the left with bailout room on the right. While the hole is short, a precise shot to the humpback green is imperative. Shots off center, either too far left or right, will trickle off the green, leaving an uphill chip back to the hole.
Normally downwind, an opportunity to reach the green in two shots opens up, but is not a must to make birdie here. The bunker complex on the right deserves respect, as does the OB all along the tee-to-green left border of native grasses. A center fairway bunker at 100 yards out must be negotiated on the way to a small but receptive green surrounded with grass hollows.
On this turnaround hole into the wind stretches parallel to No. 4, the ocean stares you in the eyes at the elevated tee. So do the bunkers that were to the right on the previous tee shot - which again come into play on the right. Without two solid shots, reaching the long, narrow green in regulation is unlikely. Getting up-and-down for par is always a welcome result.
The premium from the tee is on placement, rather than distance. A grouping of five bunkers on the right can't be ignored, but there is plenty of landing room. Grass mounds on the left can block the view to the sunken green crafted into a hillside on the right that is covered with native grasses. That artful hump on the left side of the green is better to be admired that negotiated.
Water becomes a vital part of the equation on this short-iron, downwind hole. The serene setting disguises the strict demand for a carry over the pond from all tees. Shots that are short, or left, are wet. There is room for error short and to the right - and a cleverly placed bunker, too. A pocket swale fronts the green, which is subtle but accepting.
Splitting the fairway is a good idea, as native grasses on the right hillside and eucalyptus trees standing at the left are waiting to swallow up mistakes. Look for the red-tail hawks that nest in the trees and quail that scurry about the area. Two good shots can reach the long green that runs right-to-left away from the fairway, however a coyote bush has been left in place, 60 yards out, as a distinctive barrier to run-up shots.
A hilltop green surrounded by native grasses and protected naturally by a right-to-left wind, this uphill tee shot requires power and poise. The deep bunker on the right is visited often. The best advice here is to take a bit more club out of the bag to battle the breeze before the ball reaches the sloping but accessible green.
The farmland the borders the left side and is OB, but during the spring and summer is a reminder of the fertile coastline's variety of uses. The hole plays into the wind, with high grass mounds on the right and hard face that separates the landing area from an elevated "second fairway." The green slopes down back-to-front, with a nice view of the hotel in the distance.
Regardless of which tees you play, stop at the back area just for the 360-degree panorama of the golf course. When ready, do not hit left. There is comfortable space to land and more room to miss right. The slightly elevated green is still reachable from the 10th fairway on this downhill, downwind hole with the coastal range as its backdrop.
Perched on a hillside, the green appears to have been waiting there for generations until a course was built around it. Gauge the wind and figure that being short is fine, because the green slopes to back, accelerating overcooked tee shots. Missing right may leave you on the down along the edge of the 8th fairway, but par is negotiable from there.
Another photo-album view from the elevated tee, picture your drive running between the grass mounds as the fairway funnels toward the green. The subtly-tiered two-level green welcomes a run-up shot, which may be a good choice because the headwinds that affect this hole can make the two bunkers on the left and third bunker front-right a factor.
If you have been waiting to let loose off the tee, the wait is over on this uphill climb. The bunkers on the left are not hazardous on a fairway that only appears to dogleg left, but is fairly straightaway. Another hard face - or "eyebrow" - in the fairway raises up about 60 yards from the green, which is shaped by three humps that test the best of putters.
There are strict orders to play it straight at what is one of the tightest holes on the course. There is OB all along the left and each shot normally plays into the wind as you head toward the ocean. There is an escape to the right side, which falls downhill into the 14th fairway, but that can make handling the humpback green far more of a challenge.
This breathtaking classic on the ledge of the Pacific starts a finishing leg that is almost mythical in its link to the game's origins. The slightly dogleg-right fairway seems to shrink as the wind picks up, but in reality it is more than reasonable. You can aim at the left bunker without fear. The second shot is almost heart stopping and must carry a naturally sculpted gorge into a shallow green, with room to miss beyond the back edge.
This is a confluence of man, nature and the spirit of the game. The tee shot is one to relish, regardless of result. Depending on the day's disposition, it can be a short iron to fairway wood to the green, which shapes the hole's personality. Flirt with the cliffs if you dare, but there is comfortable landing space on the green and back right, over the two inland-side bunkers.
A magnificent closing to the round, with the Pacific still on your left and the hotel more distinctly in the backdrop, the first order of business is to overcome the tee shot. The protected wildlife in front of the tee is only a framing point, rather than an obstacle. The fairway is roomy - just enough to entice the greedy to try to finish too strong. Caution is rewarded here, however, particularly on the approach and around the green.