Week 5: The 5th at Oakmont

[George Pazin]

I didn't spend too much time on this one, so I can't add a whole lot.

From the Oakmont website:

Green     382
Blue       349
White     347
Red       275



Use a long iron off the teeing ground and approach this green with short irons.  This very udulating green makes putting difficult, but there should be some birdies here.

From my memory, the one thing that sticks out is the hole does not seem nearly as straight in person as the diagram indicates. From the tee, it feels like it goes right, and then back to the left. The fairway also features a slight rise that obscures the landing area a bit. It's another sub-400 yard par 4 that still plays tough, mostly because of the well-defended green.

The approach to the green features one of the few true forced carries on the course, playing over a gulley. The green looks miniscule from the fairway, unless you hit it long enough or far enough right, then it opens up a bit.

I think I have a photo from the 5th fairway, I'll try to find it and post it shortly.

New feature: the overhead course diagram, with the hole in question highlighted:

[Matthew Hunt]

The bunkers on both sides of the fairway are almost like the churh pew bunkers.

[Garland Bayley]

That bunkering scheme is beginning to get boring already.

[Garland Bayley]

I didn't realize it before, but the overall diagram seems to show two sets of church pew bunkers!

[George Pazin]

From the left side of the fairway (note the cant left)



From the leftside fairway bunkers (I'm assuming most of those trees are gone):

[Geoffrey Childs]

How is the driving "option" on this hole different from the much maligned 18th at Bethpage Black?

How far to lay up short of the bunkers?

How far to carry them entirely?

Thanks

[George Pazin]

That bunkering scheme is beginning to get boring already.

The visual from the tee certainly feels quite different than the overhead indicates. The smaller right side bunkers, when contrasted with the larger left side bunkers, look much further away. In fact, I really thought they were, so that shows how closely I studied this hole in the past.

The fairway short of the bunkers seemed wider as well. I have a shot looking right from the left side bunkers, across the fairway. It seems about as wide as you'd want on a 380 yard hole. You can also see how the left side fairway bunkers cut into the fairway:

[George Pazin]

How is the driving "option" on this hole different from the much maligned 18th at Bethpage Black?

How far to lay up short of the bunkers?

How far to carry them entirely?

Thanks

No clue on the first question, but here are the yardage stats, circa 2003, via yardage book scan. Looks like 234 to the left bunkers, 242 to the right, 275 to get past them:

[George Pazin]

I didn't realize it before, but the overall diagram seems to show two sets of church pew bunkers!

There are a set of restored Church Pews left of the 15th fairway, if that is what you are noticing. The other ones that appear somewhat Church Pew-like are multiple bunker configurations.

[Geoffrey Childs]

So just like Bethpage Black 18 you hit a 225 yard tee shot to the widest part of the fairway avoiding any chance of going in the fairway bunkers and you are left with a 160 yard approach (8-iron for pros).

Will anyone attempt to either drive over the bunkers or thread between them for a wedge approach? Is their much/any advantage to this for certain pin positions?

Thanks for the tour George.

[Tommy Williamsen]

As a short knocker, I hit driver off this tee.  It is, to say the least, exciting.  Thanks for you work.  It is nice to refresh my memory, for it has been a few years since I last played there.
For some reason I seem to hit my shot  into the green into the right bunker, even from the fairway.

[Garland Bayley]

I didn't realize it before, but the overall diagram seems to show two sets of church pew bunkers!

There are a set of restored Church Pews left of the 15th fairway, if that is what you are noticing. The other ones that appear somewhat Church Pew-like are multiple bunker configurations.

If this is a recent restoration, then that would explain why I didn't see them on Google Earth.

[Gordon Oneil]

My favorite green complex at Oakmont and one of my favorites anywhere.
I'd love to stand out in that fairway and hit bucket after bucket of short irons at any front or back left pin.

[JohnV]

I didn't realize it before, but the overall diagram seems to show two sets of church pew bunkers!

There are a set of restored Church Pews left of the 15th fairway, if that is what you are noticing. The other ones that appear somewhat Church Pew-like are multiple bunker configurations.

If this is a recent restoration, then that would explain why I didn't see them on Google Earth.

Correct, Google Earth's picture is from when they were renovating the church pews between 3 & 4.  They basically went in order around the course so that picture was taken early in 2005 or late in 2004 I believe.

[JohnV]

Below are some pictures of #5 that I took yesterday, 1/2/2007.

It was a beautiful day, 43 degrees and breezy.  Our foursome had the course all to ourselves.

First, from the center of the fairway:


Next the green from just in front:


Here is Mark Studer hitting his second shot from the left rough on #5.  The knob behind him is all that can be see from tee.  The previous picture from the fairway was taken 20 yards to the right of where Mark is standing.


Finally, this picture was taken from one of the forward tees on #4.  4 fairway is on the left and 5 is on the right:


Larger versions of these pictures:
5 Fairway

5 Green

5 Studer

4 Tee

[Mike_Cirba]

Having only been to Oakmont back in 1983, I am still amazed every time I see another picture of the tree clearing.

It's incredible how different, and how much better (the STARK look is perfect for the terrain and course personality) everything looks.

Just fantastic!!  

[SPDB]

I don't remember the aiming pole and don't understand the need for it.

[TEPaul]

One of the most interesting tee shots at Oakmont, in a sense perhaps the most effectively blind and hard to manage for that very reason.

Just an incredible green that fits so well for the basic length of the approach shot.

I can't imagine why that green and surround has not been more copied in golf---it would be so easy to do almost anywhere.

It's one of those fairly short holes that're so good for the simple reason something could go seriously wrong throughout it in a heartbeat, and it's just not that easy to tell why.

It just may be the one that can and does lull golfers into a sense of false security the most on the course, although #2 and #14 may beat it out in that regard.

[Garland Bayley]

Below are some pictures of #5 that I took yesterday, 1/2/2007.

It was a beautiful day, 43 degrees and breezy.  Our foursome had the course all to ourselves.

First, from the center of the fairway:

...

Is that a flagstick on top of the hill? (No not, the tall pole.)  Is #6 going to be an uphill par 3?

[Garland Bayley]

...
Here is Mark Studer hitting his second shot from the left rough on #5.  The knob behind him is all that can be see from tee.  The previous picture from the fairway was taken 20 yards to the right of where Mark is standing.


...

If I were to walk just off the border of the course, would I find terrain like that shown above?

[Mike_Cirba]

Garland,

Only if you were in the Oakland section.

[JohnV]

Garland,

Six is a downhill par 3.  The only thing at the top of the hill are the third green (well to the right of that picture) and the 4th tee.

If you mean the mounds, no you wouldn't.  The mounding around the bunkers is artificial as it was in many courses back in 1903.  The dirt that was dug out of the bunkers was piled behind them to make mounds.

SPDB,
The aiming pole lines you up with the middle of the fairway from the tee.  That and the knob mentioned before are all you have to help with alignment.

Geoffrey,

Having not played Bethpage, I can only describe the choices I had yesterday.  We were playing from the monuments which are at 347 yards or so.  I had three choices.  
1) I could layup with a 5-iron to a wide part of the fairway, leaving a 160 yard shot.  

2) I could layup with a fairway wood along side the bunkers leaving a 130 yard shot.

3) I could take a driver and hit past the bunkers to a narrow part of the fairway and possibly bring the ditch short of the green into play, leaving a lob wedge.

I chose to hit 4-wood in the slot, hit it perfectly and was left with a pitching wedge to the green from the middle of the fairway alongside the bunker Mark is above.

[George Pazin]

...I can only describe the choices I had yesterday.

What a way to start the New Year!

This is a hole that I think could be easily overlooked, yet, as Tom P points out, is probably a hole worth replicating.

I can't get over how different this hole is from my memory. Perhaps you have to see it in person to really understand it.

[Peter_Herreid]

Something that struck me was how sharply canted that end of the fairway is after the bunkers and before the creek.  It is pretty well-banked right-left and downhill.  It was pretty firm and fast in September and a couple of shots that were just inside the right bunker complex wound up running off the fairway left...

[Adam Clayman]

Looks grand, Thanx George.

Love the sharp drop offs into the bunkering.

It begs the question for pictures of Oakmonts claustrophobic period. Does anyone have pics from when this course was choked? Was it choked?