SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA DREAMING...BAYONET GOLF IN MONTEREY

SAN FRANCISCO - There are few things in life better than a driving tour of San Francisco.

A buddy came in Sunday on our way to, sorry about this, Pebble Beach (we're teeing off noon EST today at Pebble and can be seen at www.pebblebeach.com on the webcam, I'm told) so we spent the day

touring around the city. I usually give folks a tour that includes a visit to Haight-Ashbury, a tour through Golden Gate Park, then along the coast past the historic Cliff House and the old Sutro Baths to the headlands west of the Golden Gate Bridge. Great views from Lincoln Drive near the Palace of the Legion of Honor, for sure.

Then we go over the bridge, through the lovely, bay-side town of Sausalito and up to the vista points above the Golden Gate, where you get those iconic "car commercial" shots of the bridge from above with San Francisco in the distance.

Then we do a cable tour ride, a visit to the Ferry Building and a check on Fisherman's Wharf. If time allows, it's great to do the chic shops on Union Street or something in Hayes Valley and to check out the
awesome City Hall and Union Square, and Coit Tower, where there are great Golden Gate views (best in the morning) and views of Alcatraz, the Bay Bridge and the Berkeley Hills.

That's my basic guide, anyway. I suggest folks take a couple days, at least, so they also can do Alcatraz or at least take the ferry to Marin and glide past the old prison. It's a powerful, eerie place.

But even if you can't do all that, just checking out the Bridge from the west and from Marin and driving over it is wonderful. I always feel this great surge driving over it; an awesome power and a real sense of "wow."

An engineering marvel, it is.

BAYONET GOLF

We took in a course near Monterey on Monday called Bayonet/Black Horse. There are 36 holes and we played Bayonet, located on the grounds of what used to be a U.S. fort, Fort Ord.

It's a nice piece of property with not much length in the par-fours. But they make up for thelack of length with some pretty severe greens. They're pretty hard and don't hold approach shots very well, and they're harder to navigate than an L.A. freeway map. A buddy who's a two or three handicap three-putted several greens and had no idea where the ball was going on several holes.

I'm a hacker and was almost clueless at times. Great condition, and it's only about $60 for the twi-light rate, but a little too tricky in the putting category for my taste.

Anyway, onwards and southward we go today to Pebble Beach. Can't wait. Check for a report tomorrow. No scores, though, sorry. It might too be too much for women andchildren to see such a thing.