Indistructibility

[Tom MacWood (Guest)]

John Low used this term to describe certain holes on the Old course, that dispite the advent of longer Haskell retained their quality--the Road hole imediatley comes to mind.
Darwin thought the 17th at Worplesdon was an example, he described its green as being very narrow and on a plateau. I've never seen the hole, but his desciption reminded me of Riviera's 10th and its indistructibility. What are other examples of industructible golf holes?

[A_Clay_Man]

I guess that leaves off most of the coast line holes. Maybe that's why we are so enamoured with them, subconsciencly we know they will never withstand the elements indefinitly, so we savor them for all of this blip.

I remember Johnny Miller talking about the right side of the eighth green at Pebble actually slipping cliffward. I have no idea if that wasn't millerspeak but I can tell you that right rear is severly wicked steep.

Are there really any that are indestructible?

[BCrosby]

Any really good short hole would probably qualify as indestructable.

No. 12 and No. 3 at ANGC
No. 17 at TPC
Eden and no. 18 at TOC

Great holes like no. 16 at Cypress might not qualify. I can imagine the day when pros are hitting 7i/8i into the big green there. At that point the hole (though not the view) will have lost its luster.

Bob

Bob

[guest]

Wasn't the Road Hole a par 5 at one point?

[Tommy_Naccarato]

Great thread Tom.

#14 on the Old Course is another that has stood the test of time pretty good. Of course, someone will undoubtedly bring up a certain Tiger's name invoking question.

Does anyone have any recollect how he played that hole all four days in 2000?

[TEPaul]

Speaking of attempts at hole indestructibility I remember an architect (can't remember who now) at the Bandon Dunes archipalooza that put up a slide show of a hole he did in Japan that got clobbered by the sea. Not to be deterred the green was rebuilt, clobbered again, rebuilt, clobbered again, rebuilt, clobbered again, etc, etc, etc.

I'm not sure what the golf course cost to build but I recall at that time that hole was up to about $4.5 million and they hadn't even thought yet to negotiate with Mother Nature!

[Tom MacWood (Guest)]

guest
Yes the Road hole was a par-5 originally, I think that is Low's point the hole remained interesting dispite equipment advancements. Another similar example is the 13th at ANGC that hole was originally planned as a par-4, what ever the par its still a great hole.

The 12th at The Addington strikes me as an industructible hole. I would think PV has a number of industructible holes.

[guest]

The good thing about par 5's is that they will for the most part be industructable despite players hitting it further and further. We can just make them par 4's. If the golfer starts to hit the ball 400 yards, that may change. So there are thousands of industructable par 5's out there, if nothing else. There is still hope.

[Tom Doak]

Tom P:

The architect you referred to was Robin Nelson, and the golf course is in Guam.  Can't remember the name of it, unfortunately ... it was a par-3 hole a bit like the 3rd at Mauna Kea, but it's been wiped out repeatedly, twice by typhoons and also by other high seas.

That was quite a story.

[Tom MacWood (Guest)]

guest
You can think of an example of uninteresting par-5 that became an interesting par-4?