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This magnificent pair of 18-hole public courses situated on a dramatic bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean ranks with Pebble Beach as one of California's top golfing destinations. Yet despite higher fees and advance-booking surcharges most nonresidents pay at this municipally owned facility, Torrey Pines remains an amazingly affordable course for those who are lucky enough to get in.

The South Course measures 7,227 yards from the blue tees and is the more challenging of the two, though the design includes a good selection of tee boxes and yardages to make the course more accessible to less accomplished golfers. The North Course is shorter and more forgiving overall, and is generally deemed to be somewhat more scenic, particularly at the signature sixth hole. Hole-by-hole descriptions of both courses are available online at www.torreypines.com.

There are several ways to get onto the Torrey Pines courses, including a call-in lottery held every evening at 7 pm for tee times exactly seven days in advance. Times sell out quickly, so program your phone to dial 619-570-1234, cross your fingers and start hitting the redial button at the stroke of 7. For those who don't get lucky in the lottery, it's possible for solo golfers to show up in person and get on a waiting list to join a threesome, and it's not uncommon for locals to spend the night in their cars in the parking lot hoping to land an early-morning opening. Stand-by golfers should arrive early and bring plenty of provisions for what could be a long and possibly fruitless wait.

A better bet for visitors is to pay extra for an advance reservation package with a guaranteed tee time. A limited number of these packages, which also include cart rental, light instruction and a voucher worth $10 at the pro shop, are available up to 60 days in advance via an independent service called San Diego Golf Reservations. The company also offers call-in lottery packages in which local surrogates work the seven-day advance booking line on your behalf. If they succeed in getting you a tee time on the day you request, your credit card is charged the full package rate, which includes cart rental. The surcharge for either package is about $50 on top of the basic green fees. For information and booking requests, visit www.sandiegogolf.com or call 866-701-4653 or 858-964-5980.