Seaside
– Bayonet Golf Course has undergone half of a facelift. Golfers
who play the popular public course at Fort Ord Military Base can
expect to deal with the old and new, beginning Saturday.
Seaside – Bayonet Golf Course has undergone half of a facelift.
Golfers who play the popular public course at Fort Ord Military Base can expect to deal with the old and new, beginning Saturday.
The front nine has been transformed by renowned golf course designer Gene Bates, who is working in a “counter clockwise direction” as he moves on to the front nine of Black Horse for the next redesign. Whereas the Bayonet front nine is open for play Saturday, the back nine of Black Horse closes that day.
Bates, a West Palm Beach, Fla., resident, says the total 36-hole transformation will be completed by the end of 2008.
Ambitious? You bet! But Bates says that because the foundation is already in place, the nine-hole redesigns can generally be completed in six months.
Bates’ challenge is “maintaining the tradition and adding a different dimension. The routing stays the same, the length stays the same.”
Everything else, however, changes. Bates is no Johnny-come-lately to the area. He and PGA professional Fred Couples designed San Juan Oaks 10 years ago. His signature is at Carmel Valley Ranch, Monterey Peninsula Country Club and Poppy Hills golf courses.
Bates says he was always intrigued by the golf courses at Ford Ord.
“I heard about them forever,” he said, “about this mystery on the military base. To get an opportunity to work here, to take a golf course revered by so many good players was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
The front nine at Bayonet stretches from 3,591 yards at the back tees to 2,730 up front. Now, however, rather than playing through and around trees, golfers will find many more strategically placed bunkers.
The greens have all been rebuilt. They are bigger with a premium on approach shots. Go long and you could end up in thick blue rye that makes chipping difficult.
“We thought the greens needed special attention,” Bates said. “We built big greens and made very distinctive (pin) placements, like Augusta National. We put a premium on putting, as well as the second and third shots to the green. The bunkering was putting the tie on the tuxedo, adding white sand to replace the brown sand.”
Here’s a brief synopsis of the new holes, including those that have changed numbers:
1-The tee shot on this par-5 from elevated tees stretches straight-away to a landing swale and then is uphill all the way. The putting area is divided into three main sectors.
2-A par-4 with a narrow landing area that slightly doglegs right.
3-The former No. 9 hole, a relatively short par-4, is straight and narrow, with cypress on the left side. The green is two-tiered and wide but is surrounded by deep bunkers.
4-Former No. 6 is perhaps the most deceiving hole on the front nine. This par-3 plays a full club longer than its measured length despite being downhill.
5-Depending on the wind, big hitters may be tempted to go for the green on this short par-4 that was formerly No. 7 and has a low front edge leading to a slight rise in the back.
6-High-faced bunkers on this slightly uphill par-3 that is the former No. 8 hole can create a visually intimidating shot. One of the trickier greens with a hump in the middle that creates a higher shelf in the back left and falloff on the right.
7-A par-4 (formerly No. 3) that is relatively short and yet plays longer because it is uphill virtually all the way. Avoid the right side because of cypress that guards the front-right entrance to the green and is above a deep bunker.
8-Formerly No. 4, the longest hole on the side offers ocean views backward from the elevated tees. Accuracy is a must and this is not a reachable par-5 in two shots.
9-Formerly No. 5, this is the longest par-4, uphill all the way with a dogleg right. You’ll be thankful to have the wind at your back. Beware of the three bunkers leading to a large green cut into a hillside.
Nobody expects Bayonet and Black Horse to replace Pebble Beach and Spyglass. And yet the ultimate goal for those involved with the courses is that they will be at worse a second choice.
“We want to be recognized as one of the great courses of Monterey Bay,” said Joe Priddy, the director of golf at Bayonet and Black Horse. “We want to pleasantly surprise golfers where they will capture their second round (here) instead of wanting to go somewhere else.”
