by Gary Williams | Mar 27, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 5 – 545 yards
In major championship golf history, there are few holes more famous than the 13th at Augusta National. Alistair Mackenzie and Bob Jones used the lowest point on the golf course for their most brilliantly designed hole. They utilize the tributary to Rae’s Creek that meanders all the way down the left-hand side of the hole before it cuts across in front of the green on a diagonal. The fairway sweeps consistently from right to left through the turning point and the slope of the fairway effects the execution of many shots because of the uneven lies. The fairway is very generous for a lay-up, but again you could be faced with a lie above your feet or down. The swale beyond the green leaves a treacherous pitch back on to a green running away from you towards Rae’s Creek. Even with the new tournament tee as of 2023 measuring 545 yards, for the best players in the world it is still a half par hole of 4 1/2 and embodies risk and reward as much as any hole played in major championship conditions.
by Gary Williams | Mar 13, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
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.
by Gary Williams | Mar 6, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 4 – 415 yards
The punchbowl is one of the most famous design concepts made famous in the United States by C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor. I would argue there is no more famous or special punchbowl than the 16th at National Golf Links of America. It’s really hard to say what the crescendo is when you play National. I could walk off the fourth green and be totally content, not really, but the point is the golf course keeps hitting you with memorable moments. The climb up the 16th is majestic and mind-numbing. The signature windmill sits above the green and is one of the most powerful landmarks in the world of golf. The fairway has width, but your eyeline makes you want to cheat the hole up the left side and that is a fatal mistake. Right center of the fairway is the ideal line to play to the highest point and to also get the most reasonable view of the depressed green that sits below in the hollow. You have the target at the rear of the green to give you perspective on your line and you know that anything around the perimeter of the green will gather toward the middle. The green has more pronounced slope from the rear of the green to the front. The climb up the fairway is dramatic and severe for the further left you venture. Make a point to look back as you crest the fairway toward the redan green on the fourth hole because it is one of the finest viewpoints on another jaw-dropping hole.
by Gary Williams | Feb 29, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 3 – 160 yards
When Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner designed CapRock Ranch the use of the Snake River Canyon was going to be the most prominent and spectacular feature of the experience. It is very challenging to identify definitively the best hole “in the canyon” but the 6th is the first of the blow your hair back visuals, not that you don’t “touch” the canyon on holes 4 and 5. You also close with 15 to 18 giving you the ultimate crescendo.
The 6th is the second par 3 on the outward 9, and the 3rd hole is special, in its own right. The designers toiled with the idea of fronting the green with a bunker but leaned on a little outside advice that reminded them of the look that fronts the 16th at Cypress Point. The 6th at CapRock is a modest length from the tips and the green has real depth. The green is pitched back toward the tee and there is ample “pinable” area in every quadrant. Naturally the hard right pin is the most dramatic on the canyon’s edge. The green sits atop the white rock of the canyon facade, 300 feet above the floor of the Snake River. CapRock Ranch launched itself inside the Top 50 of virtually all the Top 100 lists in the U.S. and we’re of the belief that there are not 20 better golf courses in America. It’s truly an amazing walk.
by Gary Williams | Feb 20, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 5 – 595 yards
Congaree was constructed on sandy soil in the low country of South Carolina. Located northwest of Ridgeland, Tom Fazio envisioned a blending of the sand belt of Australia and the sand hills of North Carolina. The 2nd hole is a glorious representation of the land and the visual from the tee is stunning. The edgy bunkering on the left and native areas on the right provide a summation of the terrain. There is plenty of width off the tee with right center being ideal to open up the hole on your second shot. A beautiful live oak sits on the left side at the crest of the hill, and it must be navigated from the left side of the fairway. The green side bunkering right and left brackets the putting surface and there is a reasonable size gap between the two bunkers that allows for fairway woods and long irons to be chased into the green. The putting surface is raised slightly from the fairway and has subtle but impactful tilt from back to front. The left/right and rear of the green, like so many at Congaree, has significant run off that allows for any type of shot to be executed from the tight turf conditions. The 2nd hole is the first of three par 5’s on the opening nine and is a wonderful display of design concepts.
