The new Annandale Golf Club course and club house at San Rafael Heights was formerly opened on April 10, 1907. The 18-hole golf course was 5,417 yards long, and ran north from the new club house following the routing of the existing Campbell-Johnston golf course before crossing Eagle Rock Road (Colorado Blvd) and heading further up into the foot hills.
A drawing of the Annandale course layout, circa 1907
“The opening was most auspicious and the finest club house and the finest golf course on the Pacific coast were liberally praised by the hundreds who attended the opening.” (L.A. Herald –April 11, 1907)
The new Annandale Golf Club was three years in the making and the third attempt by hotel and real estate men to take over the Campbell-Johnston’s historic San Rafael Ranch golf course, the first golf course in California and possibly one of the first in the United States. The oil and sand-green links was laid out before 1890, and was counted as one of Pasadena’s five pre-1900 courses, even though the ranch was in Los Angeles at that time. When the new club chose to be supplied with electricity and gas from Pasadena, rather than from the L. A. Gas & Electric Co., the course was set for its future annexation to Pasadena.
By 1906, the Pasadena Country Club course at Oak Knoll and Pasadena’s Hotel Green links were being lost to residential development. A new golf course was badly needed for the throngs of millionaire tourists visiting Pasadena.
The Hotel Green, Pasadena, circa 1895
A new organization, the Pasadena Golf Club Association, was a land company formed in 1906 by Hotel Green manager J.H. Holmes and owner G.G. Green, Colin M. Stewart and Colonel Wentworth of the Hotel Maryland, D.M. Linnard of the California Hotel Co., Conway S. Campbell-Johnston (land owner), the C.L. Hunter golfing family of Chicago, Pasadena real estate men E.H. Strafford & James Campbell, and R.H. Hay Chapman and E.B. Tufts of the Los Angeles Country Club.
The Annandale Golf Club house, circa 1907
$100,000 was raised to buy 127 acres from the Campbell-Johnston’s to build a club house and expand the old course to 18-holes. Once completed it would be leased to the new Annandale Golf Club, which was made up of the same directors and officers as the Pasadena Golf Club Association, but with Colin Stewart the club president, and James Campbell the secretary and head of the promoting company.
The association hired Hotel Green Golf Club professional Al Naylor, George O’Neil of Pasadena Country Club and Arthur Rigby of Los Angeles Country Club to lay out the links. Charles Orr and E.H. Strafford led the of the Annandale Golf Club green committee.
In April 1959, six foot five inch George Bayer won the long driving contest on the first fairway at Augusta National for the second straight year. Bayer was last to go, and his first drive went 304 yards, but his second went 321 yards. In 1959… here is a link to an S.I. article about George’s long-drives.
George Bayer winning the 1959 Masters long-drive competition
Two years earlier, in 1957, Mike Fetchick won the Master’s long drive when he hammered his ball 351 yards from the 1st tee. In 1957…
Jack Neville teeing off from the first hole at Pebble Beach in March 1918
“Undoubtedly the golfer on his first visit to Pebble Beach has a delightful surprise in store, for he will find an all-grass links, tees, fairways, and greens.“ (R.H. Hay Chapman, April, 1918)
The story of the Hotel Del Monte No. 2 golf course at Pebble Beach has been smudged into propaganda, which is not likely to change, especially in 2019, with the onslaught of publicity for Pebble Beach’s “100th anniversary,” and the holding of the U.S.G.A.’s Open Golf Championship in celebration thereof.
The Hotel Del Monte circa 1900
The truth is, the Hotel Del Monte was the grandest resort in California history, and the center of California golf competition since the Del Monte Cup in 1899. The Pacific Coast Golf Association was founded at Del Monte in 1901, and the California Golf Association in 1911, by which time the all-grass Del Monte No. 1 golf course had become overly congested with golfers.
1925-26 map showing the sand dunes at Moss Beach.
After taking advice from numerous golf experts, who were unanimous in their opinion, plans were announced on December 26, 1915, by Hotel Del Monte manager Carl Stanley for building a Scottish golf links on the sand dunes at Moss Beach early in the New Year. New manager Stanley was an ardent golfer known for developing the Hotel Virginia and the Virginia Country Club at Long Beach. His son Ashton Stanley was California’s first Junior golf champion in 1919.
Carl Stanley, the golfer, and S.F.B. Morse, the poloist.
As fate would have it, over New Years 1915-16, Del Monte property company manager, and ardent polo player, Sam Morse arrived to look over development plans for his Del Monte Unit. Strangely, Morse soon sent a telegram to the Universal Film Company at Universal City, Los Angeles, offering 20,000 acres of the Monterey peninsula to Hollywood as a movie set. This, thankfully, never happened!
After consulting with Carl Stanley and Del Monte golf manager Jack Neville, Morse shelved plans to spend $250,000 on the golf links at Moss Beach and decided that Pebble Beach was a much better and far more affordable location, as it already had a club house, the Hotel’s electric bus service, and Jack Neville’s real estate office, which needed a lot of help!
Aside from being the manager of Del Monte’s golf division and the Pebble Beach subdivision, Jack Neville was also the secretary of the California Golf Association, and publisher of their organ, Pacific Golf & Motor magazine, as well as a legendary multiple championship winning amateur golfer, and coincidently, chairman of the Del Monte Golf and Country Club green committee along with amateur champion Douglas Grant and club president, and California golf legend, Charles Maud.
Douglas Grant, Ashton Stanley, and Jack Neville in 1918 at Del Monte.
In January 1916, Stanley and Neville hired professional golfers James Donaldson (Scotland), Wilfrid Reid (England), and Walter Fovargue (U.S.A.), to remodel the Del Monte No. 1 golf course for the Western Amateur Championship in July. In February, Donaldson and Reid began laying out holes at Pebble Beach, and by March 1917, Neville and Grant had chosen the final layout from six different plans, and the new Del Monte No. 2 golf course at Pebble Beach was born.
Jack Neville at Del Monte in 1914.
Jack Neville was indeed the true “architect” of the Pebble Beach golf course, as he planned and superintended every detail of its construction, and by February 1918, the all-grass course had the best tees and fairways in the State of California. It had cost the company $100,000, with $22,000 spent on underground piping for the 450 outlet irrigation system, which in 1918 was “the most up to date and efficient water system in the United States.“(W.A. Buckner, Golfers Magazine 1921)
The Pebble Beach Forest Lodge was north of 17-mile drive (Cypress), facing Pebble Beach.
Unfortunately, on December 16, 1917, just eight weeks before the opening, fire destroyed the Pebble Beach Forest Lodge club house, which was a huge blow to the company. As soon as possible a new golf shop and lockers were constructed, and plans were drawn by Lewis Hobart (who also designed the old Lodge) for a new and much larger lodge, which wouldn’t open until 1919.
William Tucker
With the Pebble Beach golf course opening delayed until March 1918, Stanley and Neville had a chance to do more work on the greens, which had grown poorly over the wet winter. They hired America’s turf and grass expert, William Tucker, who rebuilt and re-seeded the troubled greens, but it was too late for them to be fully ready for opening day.
Pebble Beach hole #8 in 1918
Del Monte No. 2 at Pebble Beach (Pebble Beach Golf Links) opened for play on March, 30, 1918. The new golf course was 6,588 yards, par 74, from the championship tees, and 6,188 yards from the alternate tees. It is interesting to note that the original eighteenth hole was a 575 yard, par 5, which must have been altered by the construction of the new lodge, which was built on the south side of 17-mile drive (Cypress), across the road from the old lodge.
The opening card, with the back nine yardage added up incorrectly.
“Natural Hazards abound and the ocean hazards, while not difficult, will be real mental hazards for all the challengers of ‘Mr Par’. Whether the second rater or dub golfer will be able to get around the course in respectable figures without the loss of half a dozen balls is something that can only be answered when conditions are more normal.” (“Bobs” – San Francisco Chronicle, March 31, 1918)
The first golf tournament was a Four Ball “foursomes” match with teams of amateurs against professionals and was played on the following day (March 31).
In the feature match of the Four Ball, Jack Neville teamed with Fred Reilly and beat professionals Mike Brady & Tom McQuarrie, 4 and 3.
Neville and Reilly also had the low best ball score of 71.
Champion Mike Brady and Fred Reilly of Burlingame
On April 1st, 1918, the Hotel Del Monte held an Open tournament over thirty-six holes, medal play, for amateurs and professionals. Many amateurs chose not to lose any more golf balls and joined the gallery. Bets were laid that no player would beat 160 for two rounds from the championship tees. Instead they saw the hottest golfer in America, Mike Brady of Boston and Brentwood Country Club, Los Angeles, play like a machine and score 79-75, for 154, winning over runner-up and Pebble Beach professional Harold Sampson by thirteen strokes! Low amateur was a tie for third place between State amateur champions Jack Neville and Dr. Fredericks on 168. Other than Brady’s blistering golf, course knowledge was a big factor in the low scoring.
Other professional competitors included Tom Hughes, John Black, Tom McQuarrie, Harold Clark, Bob Clark, Peter Hay, George Turnbull (new Del Monte No. 1 pro), and amateurs Arthur Vincent and Fred Reilly.
“Few people as yet realize that one of America’s best golf courses has been built at Pebble Beach.” (R.H. Hay Chapman, August 1918)
Harold Sampson in 1919
Harold Sampson scored a course record 70, in July, 1918, the same month that alcohol was banned at the Hotel Del Monte, at Pebble Beach, and over the rest of the Monterey Peninsula until the War ended, which was another huge blow to the Del Monte company’s business. In September, Sampson left his shop to take over from Walter Fovargue in San Francisco. He didn’t return until 1919, when the new Del Monte Lodge was opened on Washington’s Birthday.
Jack Neville joined the United States army at Camp Lewis in September 1918, as World War I took over everyone’s lives
“Yes.” he said. “they were the most brilliant players we ever had arrayed against us. I never saw such magnificent golf in my life. Their driving was almost incredible. Almost invariably they reached the green in one. And then their putting. Such marvelous putting I never saw. It was unique. You will never believe that such magnificent play is possible until you see them.” They listened to him, lost in wonder. “And how did your match go?” said one. “Oh,” he answered, modestly, “we beat them by four up and three to play.” (From Newcastle Leader) – July 4, 1902 – Golf Illustrated
“There is an old Scottish superstition that the person standing 2 up and 5 to play will never win out in a match, and it is also said to be bad luck to win the first hole — “winners, first; losers, last.”
The 18th tee of Rancho Park golf course, at the re-dedication of the Arnold Palmer plaque, May 17.
On Wednesday last, a new Arnold Palmer plaque was dedicated, commemorating his score of 12, on Rancho Park’s par-five 18th hole, during the first round of the 1961 L.A. Open. The original plaque was dedicated in 1963, and later stolen. A replacement “stone” was installed by the Recreation and Parks Department.
This beautiful new plaque, designed by graphic artist and Rancho Park golf club champion, Ed Passarelli, is the permanent replacement, being a combination of a re-creation of the original plaque, plus a map of the hole, with a description of the strokes taken by Mr Palmer, plus an embossed photograph.
The idea for replacing the replacement of the original plaque, and the execution of the plan to use it to raise money for junior golf, was all Phil Baugh, of the First Tee of Los Angeles.
Arnold would be proud.
After her speech, golf legend Amy Alcott, tee’d up a ball, and played the 18th hole, with a gallery of supporters and guests, she made some beautiful strokes, easily scoring a par 5, with never an inclination of the “heart warming” 3-woods that Arnold experienced in January 1961!
From left to right in the photo:
Amy Alcott – LPGA & World Golf Hall of Fame member
John Jones – Rancho Park GC Historian & Grammy Award winner
Phil Bough – ED LAJCC Charity Foundation/The First Tee of Los Angeles
Ed Passarelli – Plaque Designer
Laura Bauernfiend – Golf Manager, LA City Rec. & Parks
