Hi, I'm Cassie, and this is my first post here. What a wonderful site, and what a wonderful thread!
I was thinking about Tim's setup - the tricky 14th at Hidden Creek, and how difficult it is to judge the placement of the pin - and what I'd do in his situation. Mind you, I'm not a 1 handicap (9 more like), but I can handle myself around the course. Looking at the hole and the description, I can already think of three different strategies I'd consider.
First, though, I think what's great about this hole is that it actively promotes different strategies, which can be especially unsettling for the scratch player who's used to shooting for every pin in the quest for birdie. Where the architect really gets you, I think, isn't the blindness of the hole so much as the expectation that it suggests by being labelled a par 3. How unnerving for the birdie shooter, that you don't know exactly where the pin is! I love it.
Yes, it's a par 3, but it's a blind and tricky par 3, and long to boot for those of us not used to booming every shot. In this case, par is a good score! Who's going to get birdie here? Only the lucky, and in my experience luck balances out over time. So I'm not going to worry about possibly losing a hole to birdie. Rather, let's consider - in what ways can we get a 3 here?
First, we already know the distance to the front and back of the green, and presumably the center. The first strategy is to just go for the center, leaving no more than a seventy foot putt. Me, I wouldn't choose that, since I rarely if ever practice seventy foot putts. Likewise for Tim, whose putting is his weakness, another strategy is in order.
Well, what about laying up? Me, I like my chipping game, so getting to the front of the green gives me a great up and down opportunity. I'd rather chip or pitch from fifty yards than putt from thirty.
Finally, per the description, I don't have to worry about bunkers left. Depending on what the ground is like on that side, I could also play left for a short pitch-and-putt par.
All three strategies can reward a good player! In this case, the hole challenges the short game, not the power shot. What a refreshing change! Over time, the player who has great putting or short game skills is rewarded.
Tim, I think in this case some more creative thinking is called for, starting with reframing what you want to get out of the hole. Rather than lamenting the lack of a good yardage for birdie, look for all the different ways you can fashion together a very fair 3, and work on that short game.
Yours,
Cassie