"No two holes are the same, and it's a great mixture of short holes and long holes. It just has a good flow."

MPCC's Par-3 9th (click to enlarge)Ron Kroichick reports on day one of Mike Strantz's Monterey Peninsula Shore Course debuting as part of the AT&T Pro-Am:

Phil Mickelson (2-under) called it a "terrific track" and instantly elevated it among his favorites on the PGA Tour. Jason Gore (1-under) described the Shore Course as one of his top 10 layouts anywhere, though he acknowledged it wouldn't make his top three on the Monterey Peninsula (spots reserved for Pebble, Spyglass and Cypress).

But all the twisting fairways and stirring aesthetics couldn't stop players from wading in red numbers. Thirty-three of the 52 pros who played the Shore Course on Thursday eclipsed par.

"This course is all based on wind - if you get wind coming off that water, it's going to be brutal," Gore said. "The course has a great feeling to it. No two holes are the same, and it's a great mixture of short holes and long holes. It just has a good flow."

Said Maggert, who hit 12 of 13 fairways while coasting to a bogey-free 65: "I think the biggest thing is the fairways are pretty wide. When they're soft, it's pretty easy to drive the ball in the fairway - so if you can hit your irons close to the hole, you've got an opportunity to make some putts."

I wonder how long before the fun police start demanding changes at MPCC Shore? Well if they do, they'll have to lump Pebble Beach in their remarks as well:

This week, tour officials converted two par-5s (Nos. 1 and 16) into par-4s, turning the Shore Course into a par-70. (Pebble and Spyglass are par-72 for the AT&T). Pebble played the easiest in relation to par Thursday, at 70.89, with the Shore Course at 68.98 and Spyglass at 71.52