Pebble's (1929) 7th In Living Color: "Bring it back"

When the photos of Pebble Beach’s 7th were shared via my Golden Age of Golf Design book and initially online, the reaction was typically immediate condemnation of the unmaintainable nature of its original “imitation sand dunes.” Those were created by Chandler Egan, Joe Mayo, Robert Hunter and a team of artisans trying to reverse the Pebble Beach narrative from one of artificial to natural when the course underwent massive change for the 1929 U.S. Amateur (where Egan reached the semi-finals at age 45).

Today, the chorus is nearly unanimous: “bring it back” say the commenters on this fascinating post by the Pebble Beach official account showing what the old hole would have looked like in living color. The post does not credit the source, but whoever it was did a sensational job.

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The color restoration of this previously black and white photo provides a glimpse into what it might have looked like to stand on the 7th tee in the early days of Pebble Beach. Chandler Egan created these extensive man-made bunkers, designed to mimic sand dunes, around many of the course's greens in preparation for the 1929 U.S. Amateur Championship. The artificial dune bunkering proved difficult to maintain, however, and eventually gave way to more defined and manicured bunkers. • • • • #mypebblebeach #attproam #arnoldpalmer #pebblebeach #pebblebeachgolflinks #pebblebeachgolf #pebblebeachgolfcourse #golf #golfaddict #golfcourse #golfheaven #golfisfun #golfisgreat #golfislife #golflife #golflifestyle #golfstagram #ilovegolf #instagolf #top100golf #whyilovethisgame #colorized #colorizedhistory #historic #historical #historicgolf

A post shared by Pebble Beach Resorts (@pebblebeachresorts) on Dec 21, 2019 at 2:51pm PST

We examined the issues with restoring this look earlier in 2019 when Pebble Beach hosted the U.S. Open:

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