TheNEW
HILLS POPPY
G
lorious photos of the new Poppy Hills have been floating around since Joann Dost made her first site visit to the renovation in November of 2013. You’ve probably seen the magnificent vista of the
Monterey Bay and Santa Cruz Mountains that the new 12th tee produces. Or maybe the brand new 11th hole, a precise par 3 snuggled between majestic Monterey pines to the left and an enchanting grove of Gowen cypress to the right. Or perhaps the new ninth green, pressed dangerously
against a resurrected creek, setting up a dramatic approach shot into the slightly less mysterious par 5. The evolution of these new holes at Poppy Hills is
striking and obvious. Each gives Poppy Hills something the Robert Trent Jones Jr. design never had: an ocean view in Pebble Beach, a bite-size par 3, a meandering creek. Other flashy changes will bedazzle you the first time
you play. The fifth hole transformed a punishing pond into a hillside of hurt, creating a new native waste area filled with fescue. You will see these native waste areas seeping out from
the forest floor throughout the course, adding strategic and aesthetic value to tee shots such as Nos. 4, 8 and 15— although many of the grasses will continue to mature for another three to four years. You will notice the vast canvases of fairway that blanket
the course, since there is no longer any rough to contain them, nor any unnatural nobs to obscure them. Tee shots are instantly more inviting, while approaches are endlessly more interesting, bringing every type of shot imaginable into play. Of course, you can look at a scorecard and compare the old course to the new. Despite par dropping from 72 to 71, the yardage from the back tees has increased from 6,863 to 7,002.
The opening stretch has become quite the gauntlet, as
new tees add between 30 and 40 yards on each of the first three holes, a whopping 80 on the par-5 fourth, and another 50 on No. 5. The result is a front nine that is more than 400 yards longer than the back—the rainbow at the end of a stormy start. But the rating and slope for the entire course managed
to drop (rating from 74.4 to 73.5; slope from 140 to 135), as widened playing corridors, no rough, firm and fast sand- capped conditions, simplified bunkering and softer contour- ing all promote a friendlier playing experience for every ability. There are now five sets of tees instead of four, with yardages also at 6,672, 6,299, 5,799 and 5,215. The old Poppy Hills was bold and brash, with heaving mounds and wild greens lurking around sharp doglegs. You
SPRING 2014 /
NCGA.ORG / 27
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