Players Reveling in the Pebble Beach Vibe on Eve of Historic U.S. Women's Open
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Curious what the women competing in the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach think about the first-of-its-kind opportunity? Just take a look at Instagram.
Known as “the greatest meeting of land and sea,” the splendor of Pebble Beach Golf Links has taken over the social media accounts of those competing in the 78th U.S. Women’s Open. The United States Golf Association received a record 2,107 entries ahead of the major’s debut at Pebble Beach which, by the end of qualifying, was capped at 156 players.
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“Staple” was the only word that Megan Khang needed to caption an image she shared while standing on the tee at the iconic par-3 7th hole. The same hole where Tom Kite chipped in for birdie en route to winning the 1992 U.S. Open.
“Couldn’t ask for a better night,” posted three-time major champion Anna Nordqvist as she dined seaside at nearby Spanish Bay while being serenaded by the bagpiper who makes a nightly procession along the property’s Pacific coast.
In the age of social media, no course has garnered the attention from the LPGA’s finest like the affection they’ve shown for this week’s venue. And they’ve played some remarkable courses in recent years, including Muirfield for the AIG Women’s Open in 2022 and Baltusrol Golf Club just two weeks ago for the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. And while players doled out praise for these other illustrious layouts, they pale in comparison to the reaction from players getting to compete at Pebble Beach.
“I was having lunch behind the 18th green and it was so cute because the players were doing the selfies on the 18th green and taking pictures of themselves next to the U.S. Women’s Open logo on the side and parents were taking pictures,” said three-time U.S. Women’s Open champion Hollis Stacy while on Golf Channel on Monday. “They’re very excited.”
This year’s U.S. Women’s Open marks the first of four women’s majors scheduled at Pebble Beach over the next 25 years. And since the announcement was made in 2017, not just women’s golf, but the golf world at large has been abuzz with the chance to see the best female golfers in the world test their talents at the popular venue. For many in the field, like top-ranked American Nelly Korda, they’re getting to play the course for the first time during the week of the championship.
“It's crucial to hit the fairways. The rough is pretty thick in some areas. It's a little bare in others. Knowing where to miss it is a proper—to be around the golf course where you don't short-side yourself. I think that's very crucial around here, too, is just knowing where to miss, which is hard,” Korda said Monday. “I think that all kind of needs to come together, but probably the smallest greens I've ever seen. It's an amazing golf course. I think every part of your game has to really click.”
Korda is describing a test not that dissimilar from one the men experienced during the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in 2019.
The USGA says they want to deliver a championship for the women equal to the one the men experienced when they competed at Pebble Beach. In an effort to do so, the USGA followed a plan similar to the one that guided their setup for the women who competed at Olympic Club in 2021, in which they relied on their course notes from the 2012 U.S. Open.
But given the disparity in length between men and women there will be some inherent differences, too.
This week’s championship will play to a par-72 with a yardage of 6,509. The men played to a par-71 at 7,075 yards in 2019.
The 2nd hole is the only one on the golf course that will play to a different par for the women than the men. In 2019, the hole played as a par-4 but will be a par-5 for the women with a yardage of 509 and an alternate tee that allows the hole to play much shorter at 465 yards.
In preparation for the U.S. Women’s Open, USGA officials say they’ve tweaked every fairway, many of which were narrowed to place a premium on accuracy. And the rough will be penal with an intermediate, primary, and secondary cut that at 3.75 inches in max height will gobble up the most wayward shots. Fairways will be mown into select bunkers that will force players to carefully select their lines off the tee. And players who catch one of the bunkers will notice they’re more rugged than years past as the grasses have been allowed to grow up in an “eyelash” style around the sand traps.
Before the changes were made to the course, Stanford’s Rose Zhang set the women’s course record with a 9-under par 63 in the Carmel Cup in 2021. The LPGA rookie has made quite an impact early into her professional career with a win in her pro debut at the Mizuho Americas Open in June and a tie for eighth at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in her second start just two weeks ago.
“I've been playing a couple tees that were further than what I had at the Carmel Cup. You have longer irons in, and I think the greens are going to be a lot more firmer and quicker,” Zhang said about how the course has changed in its setup for the major. “By the time it comes to Thursday we are going to be having some quick greens, so that's definitely going to change up a lot of how we're playing this week and how we're going to use numbers and figure out bounces.”
Zhang has been documenting her first U.S. Women’s Open as a pro by sharing her practice round preparations on social media. The video shared online of her on the tee at the par-3 7th hole in which her tee flipped into the air and into her back pocket, with her ball nearly finding the bottom of the cup has become the ultimate “did you see that?” moment of the week. At least so far.
There has been an excitement surrounding the U.S. Women’s Open since the USGA announced six years ago that the major would make its debut at Pebble Beach. Come Thursday, the women at the top of the game will be a part of history as they’ll get a chance to compete for one of the most coveted titles in women’s golf at one of the most popular venues in the world. It’s a moment players have been eager to not only document but to share with the world. Just look at social media.