© Joann Dost

Spyglass Hill's demanding opener (center) opens up to the Pacific Ocean.

If you’re like me, your best-laid plans to leisurely browse the pro shop and spend quality time on the practice range before a highly anticipated round of golf invariably become a shirttail- and shoelace-flapping sprint to the first tee (damned snooze button!).

Well, if you’re playing Spyglass Hill Golf Course on your Pebble Beach golf vacation, you’d be wise to use your cell phone’s alarm clock as a backup to the hotel’s and spend every spare minute grooving your swing because the course features the Monterey Peninsula’s toughest opening hole (the first hole at Pebble Beach Golf Course doesn't event come close!).

At 600 yards, it’s the course’s longest, a stat that contributes to plenty of over-swinging and mis-hitting. From the tee, you’re asked to produce a skillful, left-bending drive down an alley lined with Monterey Pines. What’s more, the tee box happens to be located right next to clubhouse and usually draws a crowd of onlookers. Combined, it’s enough to turn a breakfast ball into an all-out breakfast buffet.

After the drive, the hole descends a bit but still requires two well-conceived and well-executed shots to avoid its cavernous bunkers and reach the large, wavy green in regulation. Throughout the affair, you’re treated to postcard-like views of the Santa Cruz Mountains and Monterey Bay, creating a stiff and stunning test on your Pebble Beach golf vacation.

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