The Scariest, Most Nerve-wracking Par Three on the Planet

[Mike_Cirba]

This past weekend, while visiting Pocono Manor and killing time waiting for check-in, I played Mount Pocono GC, which may or may not be the one designed by Walter Travis in 1904. 

The sign said the course was "open", and after driving up to the clubhouse, another sign asked to slide $5 in the crack in the door.  No flagsticks, but with about 43 degrees and winds approaching 30mph, it was going to be some fun.   The fact that I had the course to myself didn't help my sense of frigid isolation.

I had played there once many years ago, but had largely forgotten the fact that the course features what has to be the most scary, intimidating, swing-shortening par three on the planet.

The third hole is 141 yards long, via Google Earth.   It runs parallel to Route 940, a BUSY four-lane highway which intersects with BUSY routes 611 and 191 just beyond.   It is a MAJOR intersection with near-constant weekend traffic.

Yet, somehow the 3rd hole remains.   The green is literally right to the edge of the property on the right side, and your second step off the green would send you down a three foot embankment onto and into incoming traffic on Route 940.   Just beyond the green less than 5 yards is a parking lot to a busy diner.    Left of the green, overhanging trees not only force shots over to the autobahn, but can also act to deflect balls in that direction.

The green itself is probably about 30 feet wide and 40 feet deep, and lays at the point of a V in the property, as isolated and foreboding as a thin swath of green into a dark, dangerous forest.

THERE IS NO FENCE ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THIS HOLE OR BEYOND!   

I have no idea how this hole has been grandfathered into existence, or what the liability issues are, but the fact is that this is the only 141 yard hole on the planet where the prudent play is to lay up with a sand wedge and then try to chip-on.

If anyone knows of a scarier, more dangerous hole anywhere, I'd love to see it! 

By the way, this image is misleading because all of the traffic when the photo was taken are in the further away, eastbound lanes.   Rest assured that there are usually that many cars coming the other way, right along the hole!



Thanks to Joe Bausch for hosting this image for me.

[Bill_McBride]

 

[rjsimper]

"Club selection is critical on this challenging par 3..."

[cary lichtenstein]

At Casa De Campo, I think the hole is 16 or so, a par three, a severe right pin placement, with a left to right wind for a guy who can only hit a draw, the ball must be started off over the ocean and only hope niether the wind counters the draw or the draw fails at this particular time.

To the right of the green is the Atlantic Ocean.

[rjsimper]

At Casa De Campo, I think the hole is 16 or so, a par three, a severe right pin placement, with a left to right wind for a guy who can only hit a draw, the ball must be started off over the ocean and only hope niether the wind counters the draw or the draw fails at this particular time.

To the right of the green is the Atlantic Ocean.

Nobody can sue you for hitting a ball into the ocean, though...unless your friend George is a marine biologist...

[Kalen Braley]

That is pretty nuts...

At 141 yards, gotta be the worlds shortest par 4, because I doubt I would play it much differently than a layup and a chip.

[Jon Wiggett]

There seems to be plenty of room south of the road for the green

[Mark Pearce]

At Casa De Campo, I think the hole is 16 or so, a par three, a severe right pin placement, with a left to right wind for a guy who can only hit a draw, the ball must be started off over the ocean and only hope niether the wind counters the draw or the draw fails at this particular time.

To the right of the green is the Atlantic Ocean.

That's tough (rather than scary in the way the 141 yarder under ciscussion is scary) but not as tough as the 5th at Anstruther which BUDAites may play in June.  235 yards into the wind with the North Sea hard on the left and a hill jutting out into the fairway on the right turning this into a 235 yard dogleg par 3.  When I played it last summer with the wind in and from the left the only shot at the green was to try to fade a driver.  I put 4 balls in the sea.  My 11 year old son played it as a par 4 (he can't hit it 235 yards) and made 4.  I suspect most members including the low handicappers would play it as a 4 in most conditions.

[Jeff Doerr]

As one who has hit OB and cracked the windshield of a passing car (your home owners does pay for it), I would humbly layup.

[D_Malley]

mike,
i have driven by that intersection and wondered about that hole many times during my years working at the manor. thanks for the info, i never did play that course. what is going on up at Pocono Manor?  i have been hearing some rumors about work on the golf courses.

[Ed Oden]

I learned to play as a kid at Madison Golf Club, a 9 hole course in Madison, NJ.  It had 2 holes (the par 3 7th and the par 4 5th) that played OVER Greenville Avenue, which by Madison standards is a pretty busy road.  I doubt they were as scary as the Pocono Manor hole Mike describes since the road and passing cars really only came into play on topped shots.  Regardless, the potential for collateral damage never left your mind.  Here is an old google earth picture I saved on my computer showing these holes (the 5th runs from the center tee just right of the road to the fairway top left and the 7th played through the shoot in the trees center left of the road to the green bottom right).



But here is the current google earth view.  Looks like they've reconfigured everything.  Anyone know what happened?

[Mike_Cirba]

In a moment of temporary insanity, and having played the first two holes well, I thought...oh...it's only 140...I can just pitch a little 9-iron down there and favor the left side...

My first attempt, with a 25mph left-to-right wind, started at the left edge of the green, but veered quickly and eventually bounced into the Burger King parking lot on the other side of Route 940.   

My second attempt was a layup sand-wedge well left. 



George....Mark Fine is probably the best guy to update what may or may not be happening at Pocono Manor.   I know there's a master plan.

[David Stamm]

Mike, I'll need some time to think about a contender, but I doubt I can come up with anything that rivals this. Holy cow!!!

[Joey Smith]

# 14 at Selma Country Club in Selma, Alabama.

It is a very small green tilting from back to front.  I would guess less than 1100 square feet.  Sand left, front and right.  140ish from the back tee.

When the greens are quick, (Bermuda) the easiest 3 putt in the world.  One of the hardest greens ever to hit and hold.

I'd love to see the best players in the world play this hole.

[Garland Bayley]

That is pretty nuts...

At 141 yards, gotta be the worlds shortest par 4, because I doubt I would play it much differently than a layup and a chip.

And this from one of the persons that made fun of me for laying up on a 135 yard hole. As I recall you and Bill maintained that at 135 yards it is always a go for the green! Neither of you seemed interested in asking a single detail about the hole.
 

[Kalen Braley]

That is pretty nuts...

At 141 yards, gotta be the worlds shortest par 4, because I doubt I would play it much differently than a layup and a chip.

And this from one of the persons that made fun of me for laying up on a 135 yard hole. As I recall you and Bill maintained that at 135 yards it is always a go for the green! Neither of you seemed interested in asking a single detail about the hole.
 

Lol...

Garland, this may very well be the case.  By all means please share with us the hole, description, aerial view, etc.

But for the record, this is the first instance I've ever seen of a short part 3 where laying up is the prudent play.

[Tim Gavrich]

What about a shot at The Reverse Jans National?  Isn't there one over a busy street AND a set of raised train tracks AND a police car?

[Garland Bayley]

That is pretty nuts...

At 141 yards, gotta be the worlds shortest par 4, because I doubt I would play it much differently than a layup and a chip.

And this from one of the persons that made fun of me for laying up on a 135 yard hole. As I recall you and Bill maintained that at 135 yards it is always a go for the green! Neither of you seemed interested in asking a single detail about the hole.
 

Lol...

Garland, this may very well be the case.  By all means please share with us the hole, description, aerial view, etc.

But for the record, this is the first instance I've ever seen of a short part 3 where laying up is the prudent play.

For the hole in question, if you miss the green by three paces, your ball goes OB and into the street. It is a quiet residential street, so there is little chance of the liability issues of MC's hole. However, for his hole, I have to wonder if it is just a matter of waiting for the light to be in your favor to avoid the liability issue.

[Mark Chaplin]

#9 at Durness on the far north west tip of Scotland is pretty nerve wracking especially in a breeze as a bit of lost balance could see you down the cliff.

[Kalen Braley]

Garland,

Any more details to add? I've played holes where the green was 3 paces from an OB boundary, yet still played for the green.

I think Mike Cirbas example is more extreme due to the absolutuly teeny size of the green, tree situation on left, situated in a small V piece of property, lack of containment fence to busy street, and 2/3rd of green surrounded by OB. Other than that, seems like a simple easy hole!!   

[Garland Bayley]

Kalen,

It looks to me like Mike's hole is a simple ground option hole. Simply run the ball onto the front of the green or the left side, and there are few issues there.

My hole is fronted with steep bunkers that wrap around the sides with a small neck between them. Most people who lay up on the hole try to run the ball up to the neck so they will have a chip that can access most pin positions. Over the green is a steep bank, which is for most pin positions a nearly impossible up and down as the ball will run down to the front of the green. Fortunatly the build up of sand over the years typically, but not always, keeps the ball from running into the fronting bunkers.

[Mike_Cirba]

Garland,

Deciding on trying the ground game option on the hole in question requires wrestling with the moral dilemma of the increased odds of hitting the windshield, as opposed to the roof of the car.

[Garland Bayley]

Garland,

Deciding on trying the ground game option on the hole in question requires wrestling with the moral dilemma of the increased odds of hitting the windshield, as opposed to the roof of the car.

I guess that means that the course does not play fast and firm. Why on earth would the ball be in the air long enough to endanger windshields otherwise?

[Mike_Cirba]

I guess that means that the course does not play fast and firm. Why on earth would the ball be in the air long enough to endanger windshields otherwise?

Simply because the green is elevated about 3 feet above the surface of the road. 

[Chris_Blakely]

Mike,

How do you like the par 3 before it that if the pro shop were open, you would most likely have seen signs that said "home of the grand canyon" par 3 hole.  This is the nickname for the hole.  My brother just sent me something poking fun of this hole!!

Chris