Carmel Valley Ranch Resort

Back along Snively’s Ridge on the eastern boundary of the Santa Lucia Preserve is a spot that is one of the great luxury getaways in the USA. It’s called Carmel Valley Ranch, and its Pete Dye par-70 layout is a very playable golf course that was voted one of the Top 100 Women-Friendly Courses in the country by Golf for Women’s Magazine.

Bayonet/Black Horse - The Bayonet Course

It was upon this land that General Bob McClure constructed the Bayonet Golf Course in 1954 and, due to Bayonet's initial acclaim, Fort Ord decided to expand the course. In 1964 a second 18-hole championship course named Black Horse was officially opened.

Chardonnay Golf Club

Sitting at the gateway to the renowned Napa Valley wine district, Chardonnay Golf Club meanders through acres of lush Chardonnay and Merlot vineyards dotted with sparkling lakes and wandering creeks.

Pacific Grove Golf Links

Originally designed by Chandler Egan in 1932, the first nince holes takes you through the forested areas of Pacific Grove. Egan's nine takes you through an inland terrain and reflects much of the charm of an English rural course done in the old style.

Bodega Harbour Golf Links

The Links at Bodega Harbour is conveniently situated along the Sonoma County Coast, only an hour from San Francisco and two hours from Sacramento. Its location perched above the Pacific also provides stunning ocean views. Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr.in 1978, the back nine was the original course before the front nine was added nine years later.

Bayonet/Black Horse - The Black Horse Course

Following a $13 million renovation at this 36-hole former military facility, Black Horse Golf Course was not only dramatically improved, but now comparable to its more revered sister course, Bayonet. Black Horse has long been considered the easier of the two, but that's not exactly a given now.

De Laveaga Golf Club

Perched in the hills above Santa Cruz, De Laveaga Golf Club features plenty of elevation changes as well as tight, tree-lined fairways making this short layout anything but a cinch.

Pasatiempo Golf Club

This classic golf course is arguably one of the top venues in the country. Pasatiempo was certainly one of designer Alister MacKenzie's favorites. The legendary architect made his home off the par-5 sixth hole and regarded the difficult, uphill 16th as one of the best par 4s ever designed by him or anyone else.

Seascape Golf Club

Originally Rio Del Mar Country Club, Seascape Golf Club is a classic 18-hole layout perched on the coast highlands of the Monterey Peninsula. Opened in 1926, the course was actually shut down during World War II when it served as a “victory garden” to help grow crops for the nation's war effort.

Eagle Vines Golf Club

Eagle Vines Vineyards & Golf Club is tucked away in the foothills of Napa Valley, offering one of the most scenic courses in the area. It is also considered by many locals to be one of the most challenging.

Rancho Canada - West

Once a prized portion of the 4,366-acre California Rancho "Canada de la Segunda," the West Course, one of two championship 18-hole layouts at Rancho Canada, will test your golf skills.

Salinas Fairways Golf Course

The Championship 18 hole course and driving range contains 140 acres adjacent to Salinas Municipal Airport. The course is a par 72 with a Blue Tee 69. 9 rating, a White Tee 68. 5 rating, a RedTee 67.

Pajaro Valley Golf Club

Originally designed by Floyd McFarkland, Pajaro Valley Golf Club has large Monterey Pines lining its generous rolling fairways. Elevated tees provide scenic views of the Pajaro Valley below. Opened in 1922 and redesigned in 1965 by Robert Muir Graves, the course features small bentgrass greens and four ponds with water in play on three holes.

Rancho Canada - East

Like its sister course, the West Course, the East Course at Rancho Canada was also once part of a of the 4,366-acre California Rancho "Canada de la Segunda. " As the shorter of the two courses, the East Course is a true shotmaker's course.

Ridgemark Golf & Country Club - Gabilan Course

Ridgemark Golf & Country Club is a 36-hole northern California club that has been around since 1974 and features two championship golf courses set beneath the Diablo and Gabilan mountain ranges which meet at Pinnacle's National Monument - all in view from the two golf courses.

Bolado Park Golf Club

The first course in Hollister, historic nine-hole Bolado Park Golf Club originally opened as San Benito Country Club in 1928. The golf course plays mostly flat and features one par 5 two par 3s, small bentgrass greens and just a handful of sand bunkers.

San Juan Oaks Golf Club

Northern California's San Juan Oaks Golf Club is located halfway between the Silicon Valley and Monterey Peninsula off Highway 101 near the historic town of San Juan Bautista in Hollister. Opened in 1996, the 18-hole golf course is Fred Couples' first signature design in California and features five sets of tees for varying skill levels.

Ridgemark Golf & Country Club - Diablo Course

Located in Hollister just 40 minutes south of San Jose and Monterey is Ridgemark Golf & Country Club, home to two 18-hole championship courses. The Diablo course is considered to be the more scenic of the two Ridgemark courses, both of which are named after the mountain ranges that protect the courses and help to yield ideal year-long golfing conditions on both of its courses.

Monterey Pines Golf Course

Eagle Ridge Golf Club

Located about an hour from both the Monterey Peninsula and the San Francisco Bay area is Eagle Ridge Golf Club in Gilroy, a city known as the "Garlic Capital of the World" and just east of Santa Cruz.

Poppy Hills Golf Course

Poppy Hills Golf Course in Pebble Beach is home to the Northern California Golf Association. It is the first course in the United States to be owned and operated by an amateur golf association.

Laguna Seca Golf Club

Laguna Seca Golf Club is a favorite destination for local and visiting golfers because it offers the well groomed amenities of a private facility at surprisingly modest daily fees. The golf couse will make you use every clib in your bag to conquer its ups and downs to well guarded greens while elevated tees treat you to impressive vista of the Monterey-Salinas corridor.

Gilroy Golf Course

It might not have a lot of competition, but Gilroy Golf Course dubs itself as the "Best 11-Hole Golf Course in America. " Built by local farmers and businessmen in 1923, this unique 11-hole routing east of Santa Cruz features small greens and wide, tree-lined fairways set along the Uvas Valley that has changed very little since its founding.