Pebble Beach

Pebble Beach is an exclusive community found on the Monterey Peninsula in California. It is a truly picturesque place, with granite-rock outcroppings resisting the beating waves of the Pacific Ocean, and the native Monterrey Cypress trees which grow naturally only here. Robert Louis Stevenson supposedly described it as the “greatest meeting of land and sea in the world.”

The most famous example of a Monterrey Cypress can be found along the scenic 17-Mile Drive. This route hugs the Pacific coast line and runs past some of North America’s finest golf courses. Some of the most famous sights in California can be found here, including Bird Rock and the Lone Cypress. That solitary cypress stands out on a rocky outcrop, a symbol of rugged resistance against the elements. It might even be the most photographed tree in the US.

On the other side of the 17-Mile Drive are rather a lot of golf courses. Pebble Beach in fact has no less than eight 18-hole courses, some more prestigious than others. The Pebble Beach Golf Links is among the finest courses in the world; it is certainly the most famous course in the Western United States. The US open has been held there five times, and is due to be held there again in 2019.

Hella Hollywood

Pebble Beach is a favourite for North America’s elite. Actors are drawn here after the lure of Hollywood slackens (a little): Clint Eastwood, Bill Murray and Jack Lemmon are all regulars. Jack Lemmon was famous for taking the charity golf tournaments very seriously indeed: one time, he went so far as attempting a perilous shot from the edge of a cliff while his playing partners formed a human chain and held onto him by his belt!