by Gary Williams | Aug 27, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 5 – 515 yards Ballyneal is one of the fabulous golf courses built this century. Cast among the endless chop hills in eastern Colorado, Tom Doak let Mother Nature direct him to create a flow of holes that match the tilt of the land. The texture of the fescues, sage and yucca are on display everywhere but especially on the par 5, 8th hole. The ripples and rolls from tee to green are tremendous as is the grand bunkering on the right side of the fairway and left short of the green. The green is on the wild side… Read more
by Gary Williams | Aug 20, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 4 – 456-504 yards There is likely no other hole at the Country Club that more accurately represents the roll, contour, and landforms of the property than the 3rd hole all the way down to the pond in the rear of the hole that really isn’t in play. The pond is used by members in the winter for ice skating and the small building on the pond houses the skaters to get warm during skating breaks. The hole has so much contour and texture throughout. The new championship tee is further left and almost makes the hole appear fairly… Read more
by Gary Williams | Aug 13, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 3 – 194 Yards Winged Foot is the soundstage for the great American golf club. The setting, the clubhouse and the holes are optimum for all that golf can be. The 10th hole on the West Course is masterclass. The tee is the center of everything at Winged Foot so your tee shot is a baring of your soul to one of the golfiest clubs in the world. Its location is a showpiece and it’s as fine a par 3 as A.W. Tillinghast ever designed. The home behind the green was referenced by Ben Hogan more than 60 years… Read more
by Gary Williams | Aug 1, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 5 – 535 yards The 14th is the final par 5 and the last hole at Friars Head that runs along the dramatic dune that separates that stretch of holes from the final four holes. Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw have always constructed holes that fit into the land. The 14th appears to have always lived where it lies. The hole plays up the entire way and playing to the high side of the hole shortens it but requires taking on the large bunker down the right-hand side. The green complex is naturally tilted back toward the fairway and… Read more
by Gary Williams | Jul 17, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 4 – 351 yards I’m a firm believer that Chicago Golf Club possesses the finest set of greens of any golf course in America, and further, every hole could be on a “best” list. The 14th, Cape, has its origins in C.B. Macdonald’s original “Cape” the 14th at National Golf Links. It was wholly a Macdonald creation, and it features a green surrounded on three sides and a carry over a hazard off the tee which is set at an angle. I marvel at this hole because the green appears to have been floated into the tiny northwest corner… Read more
by Gary Williams | Jul 17, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 3 – 229 yards Royal County Down is consistently ranked among the 5-10 best golf courses in the world. Its brawny make up is matched by its sheer majesty as one of the great golf canvases on the planet. The 4th hole is the greatest representation of all that RCD is for the golfer. After playing the first three holes down the shoreline you turn back towards the Mourne Mountains and take in the breathlessness of the golf course from a higher elevation than the first three holes. From the back tee at 229 yards, you play down to… Read more
by Gary Williams | Jul 4, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 4 – 283 yards A.W. Tillinghast designed three separate 9-hole sides at Ridgewood CC and members play the sides accordingly: East Center; Center West; West East. When Ridgewood was chosen to host a FedEx Cup playoff event they created a composite championship routing that utilizes holes on all three sides so the 6th hole on center is the 12th on the championship course but its affectionately known as 5 and dime or nickel and dime since you might make a 5 or a 10 on this devilish uphill drivable par 4. Tillinghast originally named the hole “Scoonie”. I’ve played the… Read more
by Gary Williams | Jun 27, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 4 – 391 yards The roll and tilt of Old Sandwich is only matched by the optimum sandy soil to give the course the perfect ingredients for a wonderful golf course. What Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw created with the stewardship of Andy Neher is one of the finest courses built in the last 75 years. The 7th hole is an up of the tee to a cresting hill and then down to a sloping fairway toward the green. T rusting your line off the tee is essential and ideally left center of the fairway will give you the… Read more
by Gary Williams | Jun 19, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 4 – 342 yards The Misquamicut Club was founded in 1895 and the golf course was influenced by Tom Bendelow, Willie Anderson, Seth Raynor and Donald Ross. Playing it is like experiencing three different golf courses. The 11th is just the most spectacular. After 10 holes on one side of Ocean View Highway the tee shot on 11 literally takes you right over the road that sits below. It’s one of most scenic tee shots in New England. Greed is an operative word for the line you choose which might include the lagoon to the right of the fairway… Read more
by Gary Williams | Jun 7, 2024 | Great Golf Holes
Par 4 – 454 yards Perry Maxwell was bestowed a superior piece of ground to design a golf course on in 1939. The resulting work is arguably the finest routing of a course in the golf rich state of North Carolina. The 12th hole embodies so much of what makes Old Town special. The tilt of the hole requires you to trust your starting line from the tee because of the severe canting of the fairway from left to right. An uneven lie for your second shot is fairly likely although you can find the flat part of the fairway… Read more
