Extreme 19th hole - Talk about something "new" in GCA

[Chip Gaskins]

OK, this takes the cake.  You take a helicopter to the top of the mountain and play a 900 YARD par three.

Tee Box is on top of mountain and you can just make out the green at the bottom of the pic:


Green Site (which actually looks pretty cool):


The uniqueness of Legend Golf and Safari Resort is reflected in the spectacular Extreme 19th hole which is the longest and most dramatic Par 3 in the world.

Set high up on the impressive Hanglip Mountain and accessible only by helicopter, this par 3 hole measures 830 metres from tee to green and is played from a vertical height of 430 metres. After a short, breathtaking helicopter flight, golfers have the opportunity of teeing off from one of three tee boxes, high up on the escarpment. With advanced technology in the form of four separate cameras and the latest tracking equipment, the golfer can follow and capture the tee shot and the flight of the ball.

The fairway is seeded with Cynodon grass and contoured to funnel the ball to the green below.
In celebration of the African Renaissance, the green has been shaped like the map of Africa and is protected by a large waste bunker.

Golfers can choose to play this challenging hole in addition to their round of 18 holes, or as an experience on its own. A hole-in-one earns the lucky golfer one million US dollars!. Conceived by Graham Cooke of the UK, embraced by CEO, Peet Cilliers, and designed by David Riddle, the Extreme 19 is truly unique - an unforgettable golfing experience!

http://www.legendlodges.co.za/golf_19hole.htm

[Bart Bradley]

Wow Chip.  Any idea how long the hole actually plays...what sort of club do people hit? 

Bart

[jeffwarne]

well that tops the 19th hole alternate shot scramble we played off the halfway house roof last night


sure must be a hard ballmark to fix

[Bart Bradley]

well that tops the 19th hole alternate shot scramble we played off the halfway house roof last night


sure must be a hard ballmark to fix

What is the terminal velocity of a golf ball?  How far does it have to fall to reach terminal velocity?

Bart

[Phil_the_Author]

Man, I wonder if my ball would stay in the air long enough to slice it completely around the mountain! 

[Matt_Cohn]

http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/2004-08/1091747977.Ph.r.html

"There we find that a golf ball is supposed to be no more than 45.93 grams in mass and no smaller than 42.67 mm in diameter. Using these as nominal dimensions in the calculator above we obtain a terminal velocity of 31.24 meters per second. [There is one fine point that one needs to know in order to be able to use the calculator. It does not directly accept a value for the mass; the mass is a computed value from the radius and density. So, we need to calculate the density. The volume of a golf ball of radius 2.1335 cm is 40.6786 cm3, and since the mass is 45.93 g the density must be 45.93 g / 40.6786 cm3 = 1.12909 g/cm3. Put that value into the density textbox.]

Now, what you really want to know is how far the golf ball has to fall before it reaches that terminal velocity. In a previous answer that I wrote for MadSci I worked on an Excel spreadsheet that calculated, using numerical simulation, the trajectory of shot from a shot shell. Your problem is actually easier because we only have to consider one dimension. So, I altered the spreadsheet to calculate only the y velocity and distance, using the appropriate size and mass for a golf ball. If you look at the data and the graphs you will see that the velocity is getting very very close to the terminal velocity after about 10 seconds, and by that time the golf ball has fallen only about 244 meters. In your question you were wondering about the difference between 1 and 2 miles high. It turns out that the terminal velocity is reached in only about 0.15 miles!! "

or, in short, yes - 244m.

[Mike Benham]

... a terminal velocity of 31.24 meters per second ...
 

if my calculator works right, that is about 70 mph

[Kalen Braley]

Assuming no wind and a normal 70 degree day..or in other words not having to make other adjustments, what does the hole effectivly play with the drop?

I could go work it out, but sounds like we have some gents who are more motivated to me to go do it.

P.S. And more importantly has the hole ever been aced?

[Matt Varney]

I am all for 19th holes on courses to close out bets and get one extra hole but, this extreme 19th hole is crazy.  I mean really 900 yards who thinks for something like this?  The only thing I might enjoy would be the helicopter ride because it would cost a ton to play this one hole and it has no point at all other than to be over the top.

I looked at the website and it says you can play the 18 hole championship course and the 19th hole or just the 19th hole as an experience by itself.  If I had tons of money I would never pay to play this hole.  I just played The Olde Farm the other day and they have a great 19th hole that finishes at the rear of the clubhouse overlooking the golf course.   The hole was 140 yards uphill slightly to a nice rolling green with a couple big trees flanking the hole on each side.   I can appreciate the idea but, the fact they even built this hole is beyod comprehension.  

[Wade Whitehead]

I just played The Olde Farm the other day and they have a great 19th hole that finishes at the rear of the clubhouse overlooking the golf course.   The hole was 140 yards uphill slightly to a nice rolling green with a couple big trees flanking the hole on each side.

Ditto.  I'd rather play The Olde Farm's press hole any day.

WW

[Peter Wagner]

About a lob wedge!  Gentlemen, please remember to repair your ball marks.

I love that they have three sets of tees... real men from the back and ladies tee on the edge of the cliff?  And a thoughtful touch to add the bunker as it increases the difficulty.  Sa-weet!

[Bart Bradley]

About a lob wedge!  Gentlemen, please remember to repair your ball marks.

I love that they have three sets of tees... real men from the back and ladies tee on the edge of the cliff?  And a thoughtful touch to add the bunker as it increases the difficulty.  Sa-weet!

Do you think your ball would bury in the bunker?  Could you even find it without a shovel?

Bart

[John_Conley]

P.S. And more importantly has the hole ever been aced?

I was wondering if anyone has ever hit the green.

If I go to the tee by heli you can rest assured I'll knock a small bucket at the target.

[Jed Peters]

I think it's cool as hell.

[Tom Huckaby]

I think it's cool as hell.

I'm with Jed.  I want to hit that shot!

But of course, it's bad for golf, Kavanaugh is gonna tear me a new ass again for being selfish, it's stupid to maintain, the gas used by the helicopter is wasteful, it's a microcosm of capitalist excess and the world of golf and humanity will end if too many people play it.

So let's talk about the course it's attached to... from what I could find, it's 18 holes, one each designed by a "championship golfer", one of whom is Retief Goosen.  Can anyone find the complete list?   Then anyone know who did the real work?

TH

[Matt Varney]

I wil say this and be done about this 19th hole

Is it cool sure tell your friends you went to Africa and played a 900 yard par 3 from the top of a cliff.  I can tell you this much if they fire up the helicopter and take you to the tee box and then fly you down to green you are looking at minimum $200 to play just this hole.  

I am not sure what club you would hit but I bet you could take a small bucket of balls up to that tee and never hit that green from that high up.  The wind the drop and the size of your target from 2,700 feet away is so small you would have almost zero chance of hitting the green.  Think about it guys 5,280 feet is a mile and this is a half-mile long golf hole.

Try doing this - tee up a ball at the end of a small airport runway and imagine a green is at the end and swing away with your driver for a couple hours.  Your ball will bounce and bounce and then bounce off the runway to the left or right in the grass.  I would bet my house that almost nobody on GCA could get a ball to bounce the entire length of the runway to the end where a green would be located and hold the green on a 5,000' long runway.

In essence this is what this extreme 19th hole is requiring you to do with the drop and length.

[Tom Huckaby]

I wil say this and be done about this 19th hole

Is it cool sure tell your friends you went to Africa and played a 900 yard par 3 from the top of a cliff.  I can tell you this much if they fire up the helicopter and take you to the tee box and then fly you down to green you are looking at minimum $200 to play just this hole.  

I am not sure what club you would hit but I bet you could take a small bucket of balls up to that tee and never hit that green from that high up.  The wind the drop and the size of your target from 2,700 feet away is so small you would have almost zero chance of hitting the green.  Think about it guys 5,280 feet is a mile and this is a half-mile long golf hole.

Try doing this - tee up a ball at the end of a small airport runway and imagine a green is at the end and swing away with your driver for a couple hours.  Your ball will bounce and bounce and then bounce off the runway to the left or right in the grass.  I would bet my house that almost nobody on GCA could get a ball to bounce the entire length of the runway to the end where a green would be located and hold the green on a 5,000' long runway.

In essence this is what this extreme 19th hole is requiring you to do with the drop and length.

I get all of that. 

I still think it would be very fun to try the golf shot.

Don't you?

Note I didn't say I wanted to pay $200 for the privilege; nor that I have any confidence whatsoever that I could get a golf ball anywhere close to that green.

TH

[Matt Varney]

Tom,

I get it totally it tugs at the inner idiot in all of us golfers that will try anything once.  I would just like to be the guy selling Titleist golf balls standing on that tee box.  Its kind of like eating chips you can't have just one.  Golfers would stand on that tee pay $300 for the privilege then spend another $100 blasting 2 dozen Pro V1's into the jungle.

I will pass on this opportunity!

[Tom Huckaby]

Tom,

I get it totally it tugs at the inner idiot in all of us golfers that will try anything once.  I would just like to be the guy selling Titleist golf balls standing on that tee box.  Its kind of like eating chips you can't have just one.  Golfers would stand on that tee pay $300 for the privilege then spend another $100 blasting 2 dozen Pro V1's into the jungle.

I will pass on this opportunity!

Well said!

 

[jeffwarne]

I just played The Olde Farm the other day and they have a great 19th hole that finishes at the rear of the clubhouse overlooking the golf course.   The hole was 140 yards uphill slightly to a nice rolling green with a couple big trees flanking the hole on each side.

Ditto.  I'd rather play The Olde Farm's press hole any day.

WW

Umm, I think to do that would be really expensive (a jet to Olde Farm but I guess no chopper needed)

[Matt Varney]

Jeff,

Depends on where you live if you need a jet.  The Olde Farm is in Bristol, VA about 2 hours by car from Knoxville where I live so it was an easy drive.

[Kalen Braley]

I'm with the other guys as well.

Sure its a gimmick, but it does look like darn fun.  Its pretty much those golf calendars that show prepsterous courses playing alongside the ocean cliffs come true in small part... and can be had for little green rectangles.

I'm still curious what club is the right play there.     (asumming now wind, and 70 degree temps)

[Brent Hutto]

Golfers would stand on that tee pay $300 for the privilege then spend another $100 blasting 2 dozen Pro V1's into the jungle.

Once, I remember, we came upon a man-of-war anchored off the coast. There wasn't even a shed there, and she was shelling the bush. It appears the French had one of their wars going on thereabouts. Her ensign dropped limp like a rag; the muzzles of the long eight-inch guns stuck out all over the low hull; the greasy, slimy swell swung her up lazily and let her down, swaying her thin masts. In the empty immensity of earth, sky, and water, there she was, incomprehensible, firing into a continent. Pop, would go one of the eight-inch guns; a small flame would dart and vanish, a little white smoke would disappear, a tiny projectile would give a feeble screech—and nothing happened. Nothing could happen. There was a touch of insanity in the proceeding, a sense of lugubrious drollery in the sight; and it was not dissipated by somebody on board assuring me earnestly there was a camp of natives—he called them enemies!—hidden out of sight somewhere.

[Tony_Muldoon]

Brent in some strange way we are (distantly related) brothers.

"The Horror, The Horror."

[Brent Hutto]

Tony,

And apparently Craig Disher was also separated from us at birth if I recall our discussion in the Walton Heath clubhouse correctly. That was two years ago this week, come to think of it.

I most often think of Marlow's description when I see every bay at the local practice range filled with double-digit handicappers, incomprehensible, firing range balls with their drivers.