This $5 greens fee might be the greatest deal in golf
spyglass hill golf course

At Spyglass Hill Golf Course, on the Monterey Peninsula, greens fees are normally $495. A new arrangement lets kids play for much less.

Joann Dost

They say that youth is wasted on the young. But here’s something that ought to give the kids perspective — and if it doesn’t help them see how good they’ve got it, we don’t know what else to say.

The news comes from Spyglass Hill Golf Course, one of the celebrated courses at Pebble Beach Resorts. Designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., Spyglass opened in 1966. The following year, it became part of the rota of the multi-course AT&T Pebble Beach Championship (at the time, the event was known as the Crosby Clambake). It has retained that role ever since.

Aside from its resort sibling, Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass is the most prestigious public course on the Monterey Peninsula, and it charges accordingly. Greens fees are $495 for resort guests. Non-resort guests pay that plus a cart fee.

But that all changes if you’re a youth golfer — because kids can now play Spyglass Hill Golf Course for just $5.

There are caveats, of course, which require some context.

This steal of a deal is the result of a new three-year partnership between Pebble Beach Company and Youth on Course, a nonprofit that gives kids 18 years old and under access to a range of opportunities through golf.

With the partnership, Pebble Beach has become the new national headquarters for the Careers on Course internship program, which offers hands-on training for Youth on Course members in various aspects of golf-course management and operations. The aim is to foster social and academic growth, while helping prepare young people with future career opportunities in the game.

The internship program runs for six-to-eight weeks in the summer — but not the greens fees discount, as that’s available year-round (barring an event).

With the new partnership, Spyglass Hill Golf Course has joined a network of thousands of courses in the United States, Canada, and Australia where Youth on Course members can play for $5. Parents are allowed to accompany kids, but only Youth on Course members can play. Three other courses at Pebble — Spanish Bay, Del Monte and the par-3 Hay course — are already part of this network.

As part of the arrangement, Spyglass is now setting aside one tee time a day (four players) for Youth on Course members. The times are updated on a nightly basis and can be booked a week in advance, which means the next available day is normally a week out. As one might imagine, the times book up quickly. To snag one, users must go through the Youth on Course app and reserve on the GolfNow platform.

Growing old has some advantages. It confers wisdom and, in some cases, senior discounts. But not $5 greens fees at Spyglass. Ah, to be young again.