Plan your round at Pacific Dunes

A short opener with a generous landing area and a green tucked into the dunes slightly to the right. A drive left of center gives the best angle; the resort suggests a tee shot that leaves about 100 to 125 yards in. The fairway feeds toward the green, so a running approach works.

The left side of the fairway gives the best angle in but also holds most of the trouble, including bunkers in the landing area. Check the wind to see whether you can carry the middle bunker. Mounds on both sides of the green tend to funnel balls toward the center.

A par 5 from an elevated tee heading toward the ocean, with bunkers scattered through the fairway. Pick a line left or right of the second bunker depending on the wind, then favor the left-center with your second to open up the raised green. Take enough club on the approach, since short shots kick right toward a bunker.

The whole hole runs along the bluffs above the Pacific, so the miss is left. Aim just right of the left fairway bunkers off the tee. On the approach favor the left side of the green, because a slope at the front left pushes balls to the right.

Usually plays downwind and shorter than the card, so club down. A shot landing slightly left of the green can feed onto the putting surface. The green is two-tiered and narrow, and long putts are difficult.

A short par 4 with a very wide fairway. Carry the fairway bunker on the right and play to the right-center for the best angle into a slender green that falls off sharply to the right. From the large left greenside bunker, the sensible play is often sideways.

One of the hardest holes on the course in any wind. If you have to lay up, the resort suggests leaving about 85 yards to stay clear of bunkers. Heavy contours in front of the large green punish approaches that are off line, and natural sandy blowouts line the left side.

Usually plays into the wind. Drive down the left side to avoid the fairway bunker on the right and get the best angle. A false front and a deep pot bunker guard the green; long right is the bail-out, where a slope can feed balls back onto the surface.

There are two greens; check the sign on the tee to see which is in play. To the lower left green, drive a little left of center and let the slope help; to the upper right green, aim at the tallest mound in the fairway. The lower green has a large mound in the middle and the upper green slopes away.

A par 3 to a green on the ocean, played from an upper or lower tee with a big drop in elevation. Wind makes club choice hard, so keep the ball flight low. Thick rough and mounding left of the green are the main trouble; short of the green is the safe miss.

A short par 3 along the cliffs to the smallest green on the course, ringed by beach grass, bunkers and gorse. Ignore the flag and aim for the middle. A mound behind the right side can kick long shots back toward the center. The area near the cliffs is a no-play zone.

A par 5 into the prevailing wind. Aim the drive at the cross bunker in the middle of the fairway, then make sure your second either clears it or stays well away from it; there is room on both sides. The green sits against a big dune and looks flat, but putts are tricky.

A long par 4 north along the cliffs into the prevailing wind, finishing at an elevated green beneath a huge dune. There is more room right off the tee than it looks, though a line closer to the cliffs gives a better angle. The green is very deep, so check the hole location before you hit; short shots can roll back off a false front.

The shortest hole on the course, usually downwind and fully exposed to the wind. The green is small and falls away on all sides, so a miss leaves one of the hardest up-and-downs on the course. Play your yardage to the front edge, since the ball will release toward the hole.

A par 5 with a generous landing area that is reachable in two with the wind behind you. Penal fairway bunkers and gorse on the left are the trouble off the tee. Collection areas surround the green, so short-siding yourself leaves little chance of getting up and down.

A short dogleg right. Check the yardage to the corner; a long iron or fairway wood to the left side of the fairway opens up the green. The green runs from front to back and the approach is downwind, so holding it is hard, and misses short or right roll well below the green.

The longest par 3, played across a deep hollow to a large green benched into a gorse-covered hillside. Deep bunkers guard the front and gorse waits long. Aiming short and right lets the slope kick the ball onto the green.

A long par 5 that plays through a valley toward a rise beside an enormous left fairway bunker, with the fairway sloping toward it, so the drive matters. Favor the left side with your second to avoid trouble right. The green is slightly bowl-shaped and feeds toward the center, but the greenside bunkers are severe.