Add Dwyane Wade to the list of former athletes who have been bitten by the golf bug.
As if being a three-time NBA champion, 13-time All-Star and one of the greatest shooting guards of all time wasn’t enough, Dwyane Wade had to go and get good at golf, too.
Showoff.
That may sound harsh, but as a lifetime golfer I’m still without a legitimate hole-in-one. The 41-year-old Wade, who had a 16-year Hall of Fame career on the court, already has me beat on the course after his recent trip to Pebble Beach.
Wade made a hole-in-one on the picturesque and far-from-easy par-3 7th hole at Pebble Beach this weekend and is now “locked in for life” when it comes to golf. We don’t blame him!
Wade played 14 of his 16 seasons in the NBA with the Miami Heat, where he won three titles in 2006, 2012 and 2013. He also won a gold medal at the Olympics in 2008 and was selected as a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
Two of the hottest designers in golf will rework one of the main layouts at Pebble Beach Resorts.
Pebble Beach Company has hired the team of Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner to redesign The Links at Spanish Bay in Pebble Beach, California.
Opened in 1987, the original layout was designed by the trio of architects Robert Trent Jones Jr., former USGA president Sandy Tatum and PGA Tour player Tom Watson. Situated between the Inn at Spanish Bay and the Pacific Ocean, the course was built on the site of a former sand mine with ocean views on nearly every hole.
Hanse and Wagner have become one of the most in-demand architecture teams in recent years, with original designs such as Ohoopee Match Club in Georgia and the Black Course at Streamsong in Florida. They also have completed historic restorations to many highly ranked courses including Los Angeles Country Club, site of the 2023 U.S. Open.
The Links at Spanish Bay at Pebble Beach Resorts in California (Courtesy of Pebble Beach Company)
Details on the timing of the renovation were not included in a media release announcing the news.
“The Links at Spanish Bay possesses nearly every raw element you’d want in a golf course, from expansive ocean views to rolling, sandy terrain,” Hanse said in the media release. “With these natural attributes already in place, our team will have a significant head start on delivering a final product that will be in the top echelon of ‘must-play’ courses.”
Pebble Beach Company also operates Pebble Beach Golf Links, which ranks No. 10 on Golfweek’s Best list of classic courses in the U.S., and Spyglass Hill, which tied for 26th on the list of top modern courses in the U.S. The company’s Pebble Beach Resorts also operates Del Monte Golf Course and The Hay, a par-3 course designed by Tiger Woods.
