After a somewhat challenging drive with a driver who struggled to get around the road closures for the Bay to Breakers fun run in San Francisco, we arrived just in time for our first tee time, and ran to the tee.
The greenside bunker here at the par four 2nd gives a great indication of what is to come.
As is the case with a lot of MacKenzie courses, Pasatiempo has a stunning set of par threes. Above you can see Michael Green pitching down to the par three 3rd green. A 200 plus yard brute.
This is the approach into the par four 5th.
The par five 6th hole holds quite a bit of significance. Not only is it a narrow testing drive, leading into a well bunkered green complex, but it is also the location of Dr. MacKenzie's residence. It is located approximately 100 yards short of the green on the left.
Appropriately, Dr. MacKenzie is pictured here in front of Dr. MacKenzie's residence.
The view down to the green on the par three 8th.
Pam MacKenzie rips another drive down the fairway of the par five 9th.
The back nine starts with some more challenging holes. The par four 10th starts with a carry across the ravine that continues across the front of the 18th green.
The bunkering up at the 10th green is spectacular.
Hole 11 can play as a real beast. Fortunately we did not have any wind to contend with. A drive down the fairway is required to be accurate, as another ravine runs down the left hand side. The fairway ends at around 220 metres, and then the approach needs to travel over the ravine to an elevated green.
The bunkering here at the par five 13th gives us a very strong reminder of home.
One detraction, is that two of the last three greens can be almost unplayable. This is the view into the green at the par four 16th. A massive 3 tiered creation, that requires the perfect weight for the approach. If not, the ball will return all the way off the front of the green.
The 18th is a short par three, that requires a shot over the ravine. Sharon Marks is pictured here preparing for a very well executed shot. Again if the distance is not right, the ball will come back down off the front of the green (as i found out twice!).
I was impressed with Pasatiempo (much more impressed than I was with the bus driver) and felt that it had improved in condition and feel quite a bit in the 3 years since I last visited. A very enjoyable day.
After watching Jason Day lose the playoff to Billy Horschel, we headed down to the Monterey Peninsula ready to play at Spyglass Hill tomorrow.
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