Winding in spirals up the hill, twisting and turning among the beauty of the ìmountain peak,î one will forget that the University of California at Berkeley is only minutes away. As a matter of fact, I usually forget that anything is only minutes away ñ except what I consider is one of American's finest public golf courses.

The professional reviewers usually give Tilden ìbest public course in the bay areaî ratings. There is a good club-house café, three tiered driving range, pro shop, putting green, and 18 holes of challenging golf. The course is only six miles from Oakland, so you have choices of two cities for activities, dining, and lodging. With more than 90,000 rounds played annually, you know there is something special that brings the golfers.

There are 18 special things to bring the golfers! Picture-perfect fairways from every tee box! Beautifully, naturally tiered, tree lined fairways constantly vie for your attention - as does an occasional deer standing at the fairway's edge .

Standing in front of the pro shop, teeing off at #1, is the 411- yard, uphill first hole, with a trademark ñ a very elevated green, rated the toughest on the course. The second hole, a 399- yard dogleg left ñ between the dogleg and the hills, the green stays pretty well hidden for a good part of the play. With the slopes on most fairways, many holes at Tilden, demands a little local knowledge of what awaits you over the next hill. The golf carts are equipped with computerized caddies to help you accurately figure a club to use for the often misjudged distances. On your approach shots, Tilden demands that you keep the ball below the hole, and put well.

The fourth hole only measures 143 yards to an elevated green, and you best enjoy this par three, because the remaining three all measure over 200 yards from the back tees.

On #10, a tee shot to a fairway 100 feet below, and a fairway that slopes from right to left, will keep the ìfirst timerî wondering ìwhat went wrong.î

On the back nine the ground levels out and staying down the center of the fairways will keep you ìin the parsî with an occasional birdie.

Remember, this is a busy course with Tuesdays and Wednesdays being the slow days, and the morning is your best bet as far as playing at a reasonable pace. Friday through Sunday demand as far in advance as possible tee times.

Watch the course when there has been rain. With the steep grades such as on #2,  a cart on wet grass can quickly turn you into a stunt driver. Tilden is a course, that at the end of the round, you always find yourself feeling you need to play again the next day, now that you know the course better!

 http://www.golfguideweb.com/california/berkeley/bbaei.html

MAP TO Tilden:http://www.smcgc.org/starttimes/maps/tilden_park.gif

Happy Traveling and Happy Golfing.

 Location Grizzly Peak and Shasta Road
Berkeley, California 94708
United States

Tel: 510-848-7373

“To The Ends Of The Earth And Then Some.”
E-mail jones@photoandtravel.com
You may e-mail travel questions to me free of charge.