Top Courses/Relatively Weak Opening Holes

[Tom_Egan]

We're always talking about great holes, and especially great 1st and 18th holes.  I always enjoy these discussions, but wonder whether anyone shares my feeling that some of our top courses have RELATIVELY weak openers.  For the sake of getting a discussion started, I'll submit the following:
  
   1.   Pebble Beach
   2.   Somerset Hills
   3.   T.P.C. Sawgrass
   4.   L.A. North
   5.   Bel Air
   6.   Crooked Stick
   7.   Medinah
   8.   San Francisco GC
   9.   Interlachen
  10.  Winged Foot (East)

Other than the point that these holes "get the round started", I can't see that they are up to the standards of the rest of the courses.



  


    

[J_Olsen]

FENWAY.

[ted janeczek]

waterville is about as uninspiring as it gets. also, seminole, maidstone.

[M.W. Burrows]

The first at The Country Club of Brookline is pretty uninspiring.  I believe the fairway was once a polo field so it's about as flat as can be.  Simple dogleg left into an uninteresting green with a couple of shallow bunkers framing it.

I don't think too much of the opener to Bethpage Black.  The elevated tee shot is nifty but other than that it's pretty vanilla.

J Olsen,

I happened to like the first hole at Fenway.  It's a good start, short and if played smart yields birdies. If one gets over confident double bogey is a definite possibility.  What don't you like about it?

Does anyone know if they ever put the fairway bunkers in that pinch the approach?

[Solario]

Crooked Stick's first hole is definetly weak.  Hell that hole doesn't even match the other 17 holes on the course!