A Fan's Photo Tribute to Pacific Dunes - 18th hole commentary now in progress

[Tom Huckaby]

Mike - you never actually played from that tee, did you?

Driver is the right play from there, as cold as one might be.

But driver is way too much club for you from either of the other tees.

Your caddie here was obviously way too into his own world to stop you from your madness.

TH

[Kirk Gill]

As someone who hasn't played the hole, the thing that sticks out to me (other than that difficult view from the back tee!) is the knob in front of the right side of the green. From a playing standpoint, it's in a very interesting place. How does it affect the ground game? Does it complete the "if you're right, the next shot's blind" package?

[Kalen Braley]

Mike,

Great shot of what it looks like from that tee....a tough shot indeed, especially without a few warm-up balls.

Kirk,

That knob does indeed make the approach in blind if coming from the right side of the fairway as I speak from experience on that one!!

[Dan Herrmann]

I took a caddy the last time I was there.  He saved me at least 2 strokes on this hole.  I too was blocked by the knob, but he knew the exact line to play to get the ball in there.  Started with a 3, thanks to Mankato Andy.

[Joe Bentham]

Your caddie here was obviously way too into his own world to stop you from your madness.
TH

First hole, first day, the caddie had no idea how Mike hit it.  And if the wind is up then even from the up tee driver is the play.

[Tom Huckaby]

Your caddie here was obviously way too into his own world to stop you from your madness.
TH

First hole, first day, the caddie had no idea how Mike hit it.  And if the wind is up then even from the up tee driver is the play.

Joe:

That was an inside joke between me and Mike, who discuss these types of things way too often, with me taking the role as his caddie.  I meant that I was way too into my own world to help him from himself.

We did not take caddies when we played there.

TH

[Brian Noser]

I must say I too enjoyed the course. I hit driver one day and 1 iron the other times. Driver was short in the dunes in front. 1iron was 100 or so yards out i think this was the play. As many have said the play is to aim left. There is much more room up there then it looks like. It was a fairly intimidating first tee shot of the day i can only imagine starting on the tee by the club house now that was intimidating...

[Dan Herrmann]

A 1-iron?  A 1-IRON?

[Mike Benham]

First hole, first day, the caddie had no idea how Mike hit it.  And if the wind is up then even from the up tee driver is the play.

I can't remember if it was cold and wet, cold and windy, or wet and windy but Mike also had no idea how he was going to hit it ...

[rjsimper]

A 1-iron?  A 1-IRON?

And now you know why Mr. Noser is a 3 handicap and not a +3

[Tim Bert]

One more photo of #1 to try to give folks a sense for how the approach from the right can be blind.  This isn't a shot from the fairway but from up on the dune.  From this angle I think you can see how far down the green sits.  The other photo to consider is the one I already posted that looks back to the fairway from behind the green.  The dune on the left side of the green from the perspective of the photo is blocking the view of a good portion of the fairway.



#2 Photos coming up!

[Tim Bert]

#2 is a par four. 
368 yards from the black tees.
335 from the green tees, according to the card.

I say "according to the card" because I marvel at how short the hole is based on the scorecard every time I play it.  When you play it in the summer wind and then reflect on the round weeks or months later, the hole feels like is plays much closer to 400 yards.  Shoe bunker grabs your attention right as you step to the tee.  It's small, it's deep, it's right where you want to hit the ball in the middle of the fairway, and it is penal.  Based on the yardage on the card, it doesn't seem like carrying it should be an issue from the green tee.  As a moderate hitter (with no wind, I'm generally a 230-250 guy with best drives going 260 or 270) I can tell you that the carry isn't a foregone conclusion.  Into the wind, I've carried the bunker, I've landed in the bunker, and I've come up short of the bunker.  Carrying the bunker and placing your ball on the left side of the fairway is ideal in my opinion.  There's plenty of room out to the right, but you get a less visible, more challenging approach shot.  Coming up short and left makes the approach long and potentially blind as well.

This hole has one of the best greens on the course in my opinion.   

This is the first of many GREAT par 4s on the front nine.

View from the tee


A bit wider view from the tee.  I like the look of the giant dune on the right, though it really isn't in play.


A look at the right side of the fairway - the safe landing area


Come up short of the bunker on the left side and you are left with this dreadful approach


Challenge the bunker and this can be your reward on the left side


or this


One look at the wild green (with #6 green in the distance)


A look back on the hole.  This is one of my favorite photos.  The shadows really compliment the green contours.  This is a prime reason this course must be experienced at least once early in the morning (for the front nine) and once in the late evening (for the back nine)



Discuss!

[Kalen Braley]

Tim,

Once again really good photos.  They really reminded me just how good this hole is, I had partially forgotten.  The right safe side really is blind and a very tough approach in with the bunker on the ridge to be carried and the angle of the green. 

Hitting a big one left and getting to the bottom of the big ridge that runs diagonally thru the fairway is a huge reward with a short and clear approach into the green.

Nothing short of a fantastic hole!!

[Matt OBrien]

Another great post Tim. I had the pleasure of hitting my drive into the left bunker. That bunker may be the worst bunker i have ever been in and my only choice was a lob wedge out. The second day with less wind it was easier to carry and made the hole alot different. I thought this was one of the better holes on the course and its a shame its so early in the round because the next 16 almost make you forget about it.

[Tim Bert]

Kalen -

I agree with you.  I sometimes forget how much I love this hole (it gets lost in some of the other greats) until I look back at the photos and reflect on my personal adventures at #2.

As an aside, if you want my photos from KP can you please IM me with your mailing address.  I've got a two CD set waiting with your name on it.  I tried to get in touch with you just after the trip, but I'm not sure my message reached you.  If you got enough photos on your own and don't need additional ones, then just let me know.

[Tim Bert]

One more shot of #2 green from behind

[John Sheehan]

Kalen -

I agree with you.  I sometimes forget how much I love this hole (it gets lost in some of the other greats) until I look back at the photos and reflect on my personal adventures at #2.

As an aside, if you want my photos from KP can you please IM me with your mailing address.  I've got a two CD set waiting with your name on it.  I tried to get in touch with you just after the trip, but I'm not sure my message reached you.  If you got enough photos on your own and don't need additional ones, then just let me know.

Tim & Kalen,
First, Tim, thanks again for posting this PD journey in the way you have chosen.  I'll be looking forward to the rest of your hole-by-hole posts. 

Second, I agree with both of you - this is a terrific hole that does get lost in the shuffle sometimes. One of the things I like about it is the extreme difference between the view from the tee, which is intimidating and "busy" (in a good way) and the serenity of the green complex itself. Especially from the left side, the reward for challenging those fairway bunkers makes the view even more inviting. 

Perhaps another way of saying it is that the tee shot is full of angst and exhilaration.  But once you have successfully negotiated those hazards, the view is so peaceful and inviting that it can lull you into letting your guard down.  A wonderful psychological hole, from my perspective.

[Matt OBrien]

I think the pin was position 3 both times i played it and position 3 happens to be behind the bunker. If you are right of the FW bunker it makes the approach shot very scary with a 20-30 mph wind in your face.

[John Sheehan]

I think the pin was position 3 both times i played it and position 3 happens to be behind the bunker. If you are right of the FW bunker it makes the approach shot very scary with a 20-30 mph wind in your face.

Matt,
Yes, not to minimize the difficulty of the approach and particularly when the hole is located where you describe it. 

We played in conditions where the wind was gusting at gale force and no shots were easy into that wind.  Once it reaches that level, I hesitate to even call it "wind."  It was more like a high-velocity wall.  But the design itself is wonderful in that by comparison to the difficulty of the tee shot, the approach shot from the left side can appear to be  easy when it is not.  That is a large part of its beauty, to me.

[Cory Brown]

What a great hole.  Anyone who doesn't like centerline bunkers has never played this hole.  Unfortunately when I played my drive ended up next to left bunker and my second ended up just short of the right greenside bunker.  I was extremely fortunate to bogey from there.  A couple of others in my group were not so fortunate after great drives and second shots over the green.

[Cory Brown]

I am still not sure how to post pictures.  I tried the search function and couldn't find any help.  Does anyone know a link to a thread explaining this?  I think my picture files might be too large.

[Tim Bert]

Just a head's up - I posted one more photo of #1 back on the original set of that hole on page one.  I found one that really brings home some of the contours in the first fairway.  I didn't want to interject the photo in the discussion of #2.

Someone just made a good suggestion to consider separate threads for each hole.  I though about that option in advance, but I'm going to see how the mega-thread works for a few reasons.  1) It will give us a nice, definitive thread for photos of the entire course for reference purposes.  2) We won't need to worry about keeping track of 18 threads that may get lost in the shuffle. 3) I don't want to hog up unnecessary space on the message board for the sake of those not interested in this photo journey.

Please bear with me as this one grows out of hand.  For me, it will be something nice to look back on and an easy reference to which I can point friends that are looking for information on the course.

[Matt OBrien]

I think thats a great idea tim. I think Pacific is worthy of a jumbo thread

[Tim Gavrich]

I love the concept of "hidden" tee boxes.  To me it adds so much to the sense of journey and mystery in a round of golf.  A bunch of the tee boxes at Caledonia, for example, are tucked away in shady corners, which adds a lot to the ambiance and greatness of the place, IMO.

[Alan Gard]

As a participant on Tim's (a.k.a. Snacks & Pants) three trips to Bandon, I have to vouch for his continued growth and ability in course photography.  As a playing partner, one hardly notices he is taking so many pictures. 

As one who has often taken the right (meaning incorrect) road on #2, I can tell you it is not where you want to be.  If you keep it short of the gorse, you can effectively navigate the hole in such a way as to avoid the big number, but par is no longer in play.

One time I hit a TITANIC slice left (I'm left-handed) and had to play three from the tee.  In our "free" round that evening, Tim actually found it (while playing #7 I believe) and used it as payment (I will relate the story later as he takes us on this Odyssey).  But trying to go left is also fraught with danger as I've been in that left bunker as well.  To me, this is just an extremely challenging tee shot.

What I always forget is the size and contours of this green and the relative openness left and behind the green.  I definitely feel that this is one where I will err on the long side in future plays.