Source: The Herald (Monterey County, Calif.)
In the past, days of heavy rains and winds like those recently experienced on the Peninsula nearly always made an impact on the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.
But recent renovations, along with a whole lot of work by the maintenance crews, have allowed the AT&T courses -- Pebble Beach, Poppy Hills and Spyglass Hill -- to, umm, weather the recent storms. That's good news with the first round of the AT&T looming Feb. 10.
At Pebble Beach, the worst that occurred during the recent storm was the loss of a chunk of the rough alongside the oceanside portion of the 18th hole bordering the fairway. The lost section, which has always been a no-man's land, is 200 square-feet situated about 290 yards from the tee box and more than 200 yards from the green.
Other than that and a tree that fell, Pebble Beach has come through fine.
At Spyglass Hill, a few trees fell and have cleaned up. As for the rains, thanks to recent drainage work the downpours were never a factor.
Among the holes at Spyglass that have in recent years been modified for better drainage are No. 1, No. 6, No. 7, No. 8, No. 11, No. 13 and No. 16.
On No. 1 a few years ago, course officials added a massive drain curtain down the right side of the hole that prevents water from seeping below the surface and then reappearing later on downhill.
To make things even tougher for runoff, the entire fairway from about 125 yards out to the green is now also sand-capped and protected by even more drainage.
As for the par-5 11th and par-4 16th, the two holes that became unplayable during the 1996 Pro-Am, massive curtain drains such as those installed at No. 1 were also put in.
Poppy Hills also felt the effects of the recent weather. Like Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill, however, those effects are also for all intents and purposes "down the drain" thanks to recent improvements.
Only a few years ago, longtime superintendent Manny Sousa and his crew installed an immense drainage system that covers the entire golf course. There are drainage pipes in every 15 feet along the fairway.
"We lost a few trees during that last spell, but overall we did great," Sousa said. "Right now we're ready to go."
