Half Moon Bay Golf - Old Course

Arnold Palmer and Francis Duane opened the Old Course in 1973, and it was only Palmer's second design project as an architect — a fact worth knowing because the routing shows a confidence and strategic intelligence that belies how early in his design career it came. Palmer's firm has since built more than 200 courses around the world, but the Old Course at Half Moon Bay holds up as one of the more enduring early examples of his design thinking. The course sits 30 miles south of San Francisco, and over the decades it has hosted Bob Hope, Joe DiMaggio, Stephen Curry, and generations of Bay Area golfers who make the drive specifically for that 18th hole.

For the first 16 holes, the Old Course is a parkland-style layout winding through a residential development — tree-lined, dogleg-heavy, with multiple water hazards that require strategic thinking and controlled ball flight. The routing rewards a golfer who can work the ball both ways, and the stout par-4 eighth and risk-reward par-5 fifth are genuinely strong holes. Then at 17, the Pacific appears for the first time. At 18, it takes over completely. The closing hole is a 405-yard downhill par 4 with ocean cliffs running the entire right side of the fairway, a jagged creek crossing the fairway that forces a lay-up or carry decision, and the Ritz-Carlton tower framing the approach. On weekends, a bagpiper plays at the 18th as the sun goes down. Whether that's your thing or not, it is a moment.

The Old Course plays to 7,001 yards from the back tees with a slope of 132 and a rating of 74.4 — numbers that reflect a genuine championship test, not just a resort layout. Both Half Moon Bay courses are bookable for public play. You do not need to be a Ritz-Carlton guest, though staying on property adds a different dimension to the experience. Book in advance.