The 3-Shot Hole, RIP
Rees Jones, the golf course architect, was saying the other day that in flat, still conditions, a true par-5 for a Tour player must be at least 600-yards long, and even that might not be enough. The traditional post-War World II American golf course -- par 72, with four par-5s -- is now dead. The South Course at Oakland Hills, which Jones reworked for the PGA Championship next month, has no par-5s. Yes, it's a par-70 and No. 2, at 529 yards, and No. 12, at 593 yards, are listed as par-5s, but the fact is nearly every player in the field will be able to reach those two greens in two if they drive it long and in play, including Rocco Mediate.
"To have a true par-5 for the Tour player," Jones said, "you have to present them with something very penal in the landing area of the missed second shot, water or waste bunker or something else, at about the 575 mark." That, Jones explained, is how you get the hole in the head of the elite player. Otherwise, it's bombs away.
The three-shot par-5, after hitting a drive in the fairway, is dead, as dead as wooden heads and leather grips and Balata balls. Among Tour players, there's less of a gap between long-hitters and short-hitters than there has ever been. Correspondingly, there's less of a gap between younger players and older players. As the kids say, it's all good -- but the game Jack Nicklaus conquered is gone and it's not coming back. A par-70 course at 7,400 yards is way too short for the 330-yard driver who hits a nuked 5-iron 220, but nobody wants to see the 8,000 course. There's not enough daylight for that, on Thursday and Friday especially.
Posted by: Dan | Jul 13, 2008 12:37:45 PM
Wes has the right idea .... more turns in getting to the hole, more bends requiring draws/fades.
I guess that is too obvious though :ros:lleye
Posted by: Jim | Jul 13, 2008 10:59:33 AM
maybe make the greens tougher. my course has greens that move so much that many holes are no gimmie at 1 foot. But then the big babies would have something new to cry about
Posted by: Wes | Jul 11, 2008 12:46:27 AM
Here is another idea. How about you bend the hole either to the left or right. Oh yeah, they used to have that on the old golf courses it was called a dogleg! Why is it that no one does this anymore? I can remember a lot of the courses I grew up playing had 90 degree doglegs and a lot of them the fairway ran out at about 230 yards. You used to do this thing called layup!
Posted by: Roscoe | Jul 10, 2008 11:15:39 PM
I like Darren's idea. Here's another one: Shorten the courses and make them much more narrow with more hazards. That way length won't matter; accuracy will.
Posted by: Darren | Jul 10, 2008 7:14:05 AM
Stop the fairway dead at 300yards!
Let the rough grow deep and thick right across the fairway for 50 yards.
Do the same in the 50 yards in front of the green.Give the pro the opportunity to fly it 350, and if they miss they have to hack out with a wedge. Same with the rough in front of the green. Give them the chance to fly it 280 off the fairway onto the green but if they miss they are in grass up to there knees and will struggle to the clubhead on the ball.
I still cannot believe I have heard so much about this and no one seems to give any warrant to this idea. You can't just keep making holes longer and longer. Get with the program!!!
Length is not a penalty these days.
Deep heavy rough is. Watched any US opens lately!!
The courses don't need to be like this all year round for the members just at tournament times.
And for anyone who says that may be too hard has got no idea.
IT is a lot easier to let a fairway grow for 2 months before each tournament than making holes longer and longer. And I know in some cases it would take more than just letting a fairway grow but in this day and age with the best greenkeepers with the best fertilises and equipment it would be easily done.
Pretty simple fix to a problem that seems to be so big for some.
Funny thing is I don't hear too many fans complaining about pros making eagles. It's normally pretty exciting stuff for the fans.
As for the course designers worried about their course being plundered by the pros or the older players being worried about their records, just jump off your ego for a minute and everything will be alright.