Great Golf Courses in the Bay Area

	Tee Off at Harding Park
	Photo: harding-park.com

Not much ever changes at Northern California's iconic courses.

The 17th hole at Cypress Point in Monterey remains one of the world's most daunting tee shots. The monstrous 16th hole at the Olympic Club in San Francisco is still, for average mortals, pretty much impossible to reach in two. A few years back, the tree guarding the 18th green at Pebble Beach blew over in a windstorm. But not to worry; management replaced it with a prickly twin.

But while consistency is the theme at these timeworn courses, the same can't be said for the rest of the region.

Like the earthquake faults that underlie the land here, the golf scene has been in a state of flux. As a committed golfer and longtime Bay Area resident, I've been following these changes with the interest of a duffer tracking his tee shot. And, like an erratic player, sometimes I've been elated, and other times I've been dismayed.

Now, with the arrival of fall, a prime season for golf around these parts, I offer a snapshot of some of these golf course's shifts, along with thoughts on what there is to like (and what we should lament).

Harding Park Golf Course

Unless you've been following shuffleboard instead, you've probably heard about the remake of this grand old San Francisco course. Left to rot for decades by the city, it was finally salvaged by renovations, a return to glory that culminated in 2005 when the PGA Tour held the American Express Championships here.

Not everyone was thrilled with what went down at Harding. Spiffing up the course took more money than expected, and greens fees rose. Weekend fees for San Francisco residents went up from $33 to $46, while out-of-towners now pay as much as $155. Some longtime regulars were miffed -- they didn't mind playing on the rundown fairways, but they did mind coughing up more cash.