Par 3 – 205 yards
“Redan” comes from the French derived term, “fortress defense”. The Redan design concept has been employed around the world on some of the finest courses beginning with the 15th at North Berwick in Scotland. A.W. Tillinghast’s version at Somerset Hills is unquestionably one of the most sublime creations of this template. The rolling land at Somerset Hills and the regal yet understated facilities at Somerset make it a special experience. Like the Redan at Fishers Island, you encounter it on the 2nd hole of the golf course. Somerset Hills’ Redan is a pronounced application of the green descending from front right to back left on the green complex. The steepness of the green is dramatic as is the bunker that guards the left-hand side of the green. Most of the green surface is hidden from the tee and the hole also includes three bunkers that bisect at the bottom of the hole well short of the front of the green. There is also one bunker recessed from the right front of the green that appears closer to the collar from the tee. Somerset Hills is one of Tillinghast’s greatest design triumphs and the Redan is an exclamation point on a superior golf course. If you make it there, pause on the 8th green to look back toward the 2nd, because it gives you an even greater appreciation of the steepness, contour and drama off the Redan green. It’s one of the very best holes in the world.