Monarch Beach Golf Links

Monarch Beach Golf Links opened in 1983 as one of Orange County's first upscale public courses, laid out by Robert Trent Jones II on oceanfront bluffs off Pacific Coast Highway in Dana Point. Originally called Salt Creek Golf Course, the par-70 layout of roughly 6,600 yards was later folded into the luxury resort now operated as the Waldorf Astoria Monarch Beach. Jones routed the holes to deliver Pacific views throughout the round, with a pair of holes running right along the coastline near Salt Creek Beach after the highway was realigned. The course has earned Audubon International's Certified Cooperative Sanctuary status and recognition on resort-course lists from Golf Digest and Conde Nast Traveler. Compact but scenic, it threads between coastal homes and dramatic bluffs, helping define modern Southern California resort golf.