[Chris Cupit]

I don't think the first has to be easy but I agree that a hole that is a potential "disaster" wouldn't be a great choice either.  #1 at Winged Foot (w) is tough but you really shouldn't make more than 5, WF (E) is a nice medium length start.  Oak Hill is tough but the creek crossing is well short and again, more than a bogey is the player's fault for most likely trying to get across the creek after a poor drive instead of accepting a longer third shot.

Again, as long as it isn't OB lined or blind with hidden hazards right off the bat, and as long as it is a good hole, I don't see that it matters if it is hard or easy.

Wasn't Oakmont #1 a Par 5 for regular play at one time?

[Jason McNamara]

Hadn't seen this mentioned above (apologies if I missed it), but doesn't it make a difference what kind of course it is?

Shouldn't the first be reasonably easy at any place likely to have pace issues (resorts, munis)?   I could also see it at older Euro courses without ranges.  But I agree it could well be a total non-issue at many (most) private clubs.

I usually play a course with a nasty opening par 5, but with 14K rounds/yr (in Texas), who cares?

I am blanking on the name of the GCA poster who owns the pace-of-play consulting outfit... if you're out there, what have your studies shown?

Jason

[Doug Siebert]

I never warm up before a round but I find it sometimes takes 2-3 holes to get myself into the round properly.  So if you are making #1 easy, can you do the same for #2 and #3 also please?

There is a certain logic to Jon Wiggett's post, if I'm going to go a couple over in the first three anyway due to not warming up, they may as well be hard holes that I would be more likely to bogey even after being warmed up.  I'd hate to have an easily reachable par 5 as the first hole, because I'm going to hit that great a lot less often than I would if it came later in the round.

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

John I think the tee shot on the first hole should be relatively easy or open just to get play moving. TOC does this and then you better get ready. CPC has this feature as well. Olympic and Sf both start with par 5's which let you ease of the tee then you better wake you up or bogie is your name.

[tlavin]

The easy answer is "because most golfers suck," but I think a lot of architects do it to allow a player to ease into the match, which is a peculiar form of benevolence.  Butler National is one of the toughest courses I have played and its first hole is a cupcake, although the second shot has to be pretty precise.  I've played a lot of old courses with easy first holes, but Olympia South has a first hole that is 445 into the prevailing wind with a huge swale in front of the green.  

I've played Doak's Lost Dunes a number of times and the short par-4 opener is really a beauty, giving the player a relatively do-able drive, but requiring a wedge into the right part of the green in order to make birdie.

[Phil Benedict]

A related question is should the last hole be hard?

[Mike Hoak]

The opening hole at Bethpage Red is about as tough as any opening hole I have personally played.  It's 470 yards and the green sits a good 40-50 feet above the fairway.  The fairway is relatively tight and you really need to be on the left side of it.  I thought it was the toughest hole on the entire course.  It might even be tougher than any hole on the Black.

[Kalen Braley]

For you bay area boys...

The 1st hole at Tilden Park in the Berkeley hills is pretty beastly. 415 yards straight up a steep hill where bogey is a good number.

[Kirk Gill]

I've only played one course that opened with a par 3. Was that course breaking some kind of unwritten rule?

As others have stated on this thread, that the purpose of an opening hole is to get people out there with minimal waiting, would a par 3 not do that, and create proper spacing between groups? Or is it better (as is the case with a local public I used to play a lot) to follow a nice opening four with a very long par 3, so  you get to do your waiting on the second tee instead of up at the clubhouse?

Are there any examples of "great" courses that begin with a 3?

[Tim Pitner]

Are there any examples of "great" courses that begin with a 3?

Royal Lytham & St. Annes.

[David Mulle]

"The opening hole at Bethpage Red is about as tough as any opening hole I have personally played.  It's 470 yards and the green sits a good 40-50 feet above the fairway.  The fairway is relatively tight and you really need to be on the left side of it.  I thought it was the toughest hole on the entire course.  It might even be tougher than any hole on the Black."

Mike,
I agree with you up to a point.  However, the green is very benign and is not guarded by any bunkers.  I used to play it as a par 5 and lay up at the bottom of hill.  But then I realized that I could be aggressive with my second shot because an errant shot into the green is not punished.

Having said all that, I'm still perfectly happy to start my round there with a 5.

[bbarkley]

Walton Heath (Old Course) has a lengthy par 3 (235-195yds) opener.
 
I dislike opening holes that...
1) have a forced carry
2) Are Short Par 5 - I hate waiting on the first tee only to see the golfer duff their second shot into a par 5 green.  On the other hand, i feel like a a$$ when I hold up the group on the tee and duff my second into a par 5 opener.
3) have a forced water hazard carry
4) don't allow you to hit driver

[Russ Miller]

A related question is should the last hole be hard?

Phil:  I was thinking of the same question as I read this thread.  I have often wondered why so many courses end with a killer hole.  I believe in Anatomy of a Golf Course, Tom Doak, mentions that a common practice used to be to make the 17th a difficult test, but to ease up somewhat on the 18th to give the golfer a chance to leave on a high note (if I remember right he cited the 17th and 18th at TOC as an example).  I think this makes a lot of sense.  I wonder why we don't see it on more courses?

[Mike_Trenham]

Starting with say the hardest par four on a course causes problems with net matches that go extra holes.  If two players are nearly equal they could be getting very few shots in match yet start the playoff with a big advantage.

[Mark Pearce]

The Blue course at the Berkshire opens with a 200 yard par 3 with a 180 yard carry over all sorts of crap in a ravine.  Tough after a good lunch, a couple of beers, wine and a Kummel or two.

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