The Quail Golf Club

Picturesque and always in excellent shape, The Quail Golf Club is a must-play in the Monterey Peninsula area. The Robert Muir Graves layout is eminently walkable, challenging, and enjoyable. Though it plays just 6,500 yards or so, this par 71 presents plenty of challenges. The course is routed around 10 lakes, and the Carmel River also comes into play. There are also plenty of strategically placed bunkers that add beauty and difficulty to the course. Gently rolling hills and valleys encourage golfers to shape their shots with the terrain and pin positions. The greens are smooth and can be tricky with their many undulations. Among the highlights of The Quail Golf Club, which is open to the public and also offers membership, are its excellent set of par 3 holes. Three of them from the back tees play in excess of 200 yards, including the 12th, which is 227 yards over a barranca. But the fifth might be considered the course's signature hole. At just under 200 yards, there's a pond to the right of the green. And the shortest hole on the course, the 154-yard 17th, has several greenside bunkers golfers will want to avoid. The course has five sets of tees, which start out at around 5,000 yards. The Quail Golf Club also offers excellent practice facilities as well as one of the most respected golf academies in the area. The clubhouse has a well-stocked golf shop and Edgar's Restaurant and a halfway house at the turn If you're taking a trip to the Monterey Peninsula, The Quail Golf Club is more than a worthy candidate in the 'other courses to play' category.