Pelican Hill Suits Golfers to a Tee
Pelican Hill, the newest jewel in Orange County’s links crown, is putting a unique slant on the term “computer golf,” one that has nothing to do with Nintendo or video arcades.
The carts used by players are being equipped with individual computers that diagram holes and make suggestions on how to play them and provide exact distances from the cart to the center of the green.
If that sounds pretty fancy, well, that’s what Pelican Hill itself is--even a little pretentious in spots, with its valet parking, human greeter on the first tee and $95 to $125 greens fees.
But it is a spectacular golf course with breathtaking ocean vistas, abundant wildlife, challenging holes, immaculate greens and plush carpet-like fairways.
It’s also a golfer’s dream that can become a nightmare when the wind whips up off the ocean or a shot strays into one of the canyons, lakes or deep bunkers.
And, despite the state’s crippling economic recession, there are enough people around with deep pockets to make it difficult to secure a tee time. “We’re full all the time,” says head pro Rob Ford.
Ford points out that the course, owned by the Irvine Co. in Newport Coast just south of Corona del Mar, was designed to be luxurious, with amenities found on few other courses. In addition to the computers, for example, carts are equipped with built-in ball-washers and wire brushes for cleaning spikes.
While incomplete (a clubhouse won’t open until a second course is completed next year), Pelican Hill offers all the basics, albeit expensive and with some twists. Unlike other courses, the driving range ($6 for a bucket of balls) is available only for people playing that day--unless you’ve forked over $750 for an annual pass.
Motorized carts, meanwhile, are mandatory and are included with the greens fees.
And if you choose not to use the computer, or draw a cart that doesn’t yet have one, the yardage on all holes is well spelled out, both on the cart paths and on most fairway sprinkler heads (which also contain such messages as “You’re the Man” or “Not in Your Dreams” for those who wonder if they should go for the green).
Each hole has been given a name, too, that provides a hint of what you’re facing. The 18th, for instance, is “Double Cross” because you must hit over a canyon twice. The seventh, a long par three over a lake, is aptly named “On the Rocks.”
Pelican Hill is surrounded by a 7,000-acre nature preserve, so wildlife is abundant (one foursome recently came across a rare golden eagle dining on a rabbit at one tee).
It’s everything a golfer could want--and a little more.
The Good: Spectacular vistas, challenging holes.
The Bad: Bring a thick wallet.
The Ugly: Too many golfers seem to think that for 125 smackers someone else can repair their divots, rake the traps or fix their ball marks on the greens.
A Matter of Course
* Pelican Hill Golf Course, 22653 Pelican Hill Road South, Newport Coast, 92657. (714) 640-0238.
* Distance: 6,634 yards from gold tournament tees.
* Par: 70.
* Greens fees: $95, Monday through Thursday; $125 Friday through Sunday. Discounts: After 4 p.m., $50 Monday through Thursday; $60 Friday through Sunday (becomes 3 p.m. when Daylight Savings Time ends in late October).
* Carts: mandatory; included in greens fees. Lessons: $40 to $60.
* Driving range: $6 per bucket of balls.
* Reservations: one to six days ahead, no extra charge; $20 extra per golfer for times made seven to 14 days ahead.
This column appears regularly in OC Live!
