Cypress Point and the Big Sur Marathon

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Author

Sean Melia
September 12, 2025

Hey Everyone,

I’m still processing the trip to Monterey for the Walker Cup. Cypress Point Club was incredible (no duh, Sean…). I wrote a bit about the experience and paired it up with the Big Sur Marathon, which Tiff and I ran back in 2022.

Let’s get to results and my thoughts on a trip to one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Have a great weekend!

News and Notes

Pro Golf

🌽 The Korn Ferry is back. Richy Werenski, Davis Chatfield, and Rob Oppenheim are in the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedecker Fund. Live Scoring.

🇨🇦 Chris Francoeur is playing in the ATB Classic and hunting a Korn Ferry status for next year. He started this week 14th in the PGA Americas Point List; the top 10 earn a spot next year on the Korn Ferry. There are just two events remaining. It will probably take a win or two very high finishes to leap frog the players ahead of them. Live Scoring

College Golf

⛳️ College golf is so back. In fact, it’s so back that it would, frankly, make this section massive. I have compiled the schedules for the Massachusetts Division 1 men’s and women’s programs. I will add individuals who flew the Bay State coop and are playing around the country very soon.

Amateur Golf

🏆️ Nick Maccario shot 72-69-69 (-3) to win his second Mass. Mid-Amateur championship. It’s been a solid summer for Maccario; he won the Joseph Healey Memorial and finished 4th in the John T. Lupton Memorial. MassGolf Recap.

🇺🇸 The U.S. Mid-Amateur starts on Saturday in Scottsdale, Arizona at Troon CC and Troon North. Eight players from Massachusetts will play in the national championship that grants a Masters invite to the winner. I previewed the event and highlighted the Bay Staters in the field.

Plugs

I put together a video of my round at The International Pines Course.

Cypress Point and the Big Sur Marathon

In 2022, I ran the Big Sur Marathon with my wife, Tiffany. Three years later, we returned to the area to watch the Walker Cup at Cypress Point Club.

Both experiences had similarities.

Both are stunning.

Both are bucket list items.

Both have a sense of place.

The best golf courses in the world fit into the landscape and feel like they belong.

So do the greatest marathon routes. Whether you’re running through New York City’s neighborhoods, into Boston after surviving Heart Break Hill, or along the Pacific Coast Highway, it makes the experience more powerful when a participant feels like they are in a distinct place.

In the case of Cypress Point and the Big Sur Marathon, they both dip into and out of the woods, along the dunes, and to the coast.

The Big Sur Marathon’s start line is tucked in the woods, as is the opening stretch of holes at Cypress Point.

The beauty of The Walker Cup is that fans can walk the course, right down the middle. We walked the fairways and stood on tee boxes watching the best amateurs in the world compete at one of the best, if not THE best, golf courses in the world.

The course starts with the first two holes out in the open, the second hole provides a stunning view of the ocean and the dunes. A preview of what’s to come, however, golfers have to play the third hole, a superb par 3 (they’re all great), and then wind through the trees for the fourth and fifth holes.

The sixth hole delivers players to the dramatic dunes and then climbs up to the seventh, eighth, and ninth holes.

The Big Sur Marathon’s running route doesn’t deliver ocean views until about mile 5, with small peaks through the dunes as runners emerge from the forest.

The highlight of Cypress Point is the stretch of 15-17, but holes 12-14 are quite an appetizer.

The 14th hole climbs through some trees, and the walk from 14 to 15 is a spectacular reveal only to be followed by another reveal walking from the 15th to 16th tee.

The risk of sensory overload is real. There is so much to take in. I’m not sure what it’s like to play Cypress Point, but the Big Sur Marathon is the type of race where your race time doesn’t matter. Not once did I look at my watch to check my pace. It was all about the experience.

There’s a man in a tuxedo playing a grand piano at the Bixby Bridge. There’s an opportunity for a picture every half mile.

It’s the kind of marathon that no one tries to run fast. It’s the kind of marathon that is to be enjoyed, not endured.

I’d imagine most guests don’t care what they shoot at Cypress Point. It’s about the experience - registering memories and maybe hitting a few memorable shots.

The stunning view of the 16th green

The final connection of between the Big Sur Marathon and Cypress Point are the finishes.

The 18th hole at Cypress Point is polarizing. Some would say it’s unpopular. It’s a hard dogleg right with massive trees choking out the uphill approach shot to a sloped green.

Looking down the 18th hole

The final miles in the Big Sur Marathon go through neighborhoods and farmland. It’s still lovely, just like the 18th hole, but it’s not the crescendo that many want after such an epic experience.

However, the 18th hole at Cypress Point and the final miles of the Big Sur Marathon still connect to the experience of the previous four hours.

Having a sense of place doesn’t just mean it has to be on the water or in a beautiful setting. A dive bar or a city block or a house can be more pleasurable if it fits into the surroundings, too.

It’s why people seek out the restaurants that the locals love instead of the tourist traps that feel sterile. It’s why Fenway Park and Wrigley Field stir emotions.

Running the Big Sur Marathon and walking Cypress Point Club are two experiences I won’t forget.

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When I’m not golfing…

I’m reading…

🏊️ Ben Proud is a 30-year-old swimmer who announced he would be joining the Enhanced Games, the new contest that allows players to use steroids or HGH to try to break world records for $1 million. He sat down with The Athletic to talk about his decision. Read it here.

I’m Drinking…

🍺 Alvarado Brewing makes a great Monterey Beer.

🍻 We stumbled into some bottles of Russian River beer while roaming around Monterey. Pliny the Elder is awesome.

☕️ We discovered Mad Dogs and Englishmen during our stay out in Carmel. Might have been the best iced coffee I’ve ever had. We went every morning we were there. Bonus points for opening at 7:00am every day.

🍸️ Bud’s, a bar inside the La Playa Hotel, was incredible. They made some delicious cocktails, and the scene was something else with wedding parties and Walker Cup visitors.

I’m eating…

🐟️ I had a very good fish and chips at Brophey’s Tavern in Carmel.

😋 The blueberry muffin at Mad Dog and Englishmen was very good.

🐔 The chicken pita at Tatte.

I’m watching…

Another banger from No Laying Up…

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