Oracle Park is trading foul poles for flagsticks this week. The home of the San Francisco Giants has been transformed into a nine-hole golf course for the Ballpark Back 9 presented by Zoox, running November 4 through Sunday, a run that CBS News correspondent Drew Andre captured on video as crews reworked the ballpark into a fairway-filled playground.
The event, organized by Giants Enterprises, sends foursomes and pairs across nine holes threaded throughout the ballpark, with caddies stationed at each tee box to help golfers find their way. Giants Enterprises describes the event as having become a signature fall tradition in the Bay Area, marking a return engagement rather than a one-off experiment.
How the Course Winds Through the Ballpark
Rather than a single flat layout, the temporary course sends players between tee boxes set up on multiple levels of Oracle Park, according to sanfranciscogolf.com. Target greens are set up out in the outfield, and the round wraps with a putting challenge on a 10th hole after golfers finish the front nine. The same outlet reports the Giants estimate a round will take golfers between 1 hour 45 minutes and 2 hours 15 minutes to complete.
Ticket prices for players start at $99 plus fees per person, a package that includes a round of golf, clubs and balls, and access to The Gotham Club, per the event organizer. New for this year, golfers will also be able to step inside the Giants Clubhouse, described as one of the ballpark's most exclusive spaces, and visit a course bar set up for the event.
Not the Only Stadium Going Golf This Season
Oracle Park isn't the only big-league ballpark getting a temporary makeover. The Toronto Blue Jays' Rogers Centre was slated to become a nine-hole golf course of its own, with play set for January 20 to 24, according to kelo.com. There, golfers were set to start their 90-minute round on the stadium's 200 Level and work their way up to the 500 Level by the finish, with standard tee times priced at C$125 per person, or roughly $88.
The side-by-side events suggest ballpark golf is becoming something of a trend for MLB venues during the off-season stretch, when the diamonds would otherwise sit empty. For San Francisco golfers eager to play a round beneath the bay breeze blowing through Oracle Park, the window to tee off closes Sunday.
