Well, a few things got in the way but here is the 15th hole, just a bit late. Sorry for the delay, I look forward to continuing the discussion on this course.
Hole #15 -- Par 4
Cardinal: 361yds
Black: 347yds
White: 320yds
Blue: 299yds
In 1930: 355yds
Aerials:
http://stanfordmensgolf.org/aerials/aerial15.htmMissing quantity and quality in pictures of this hole. Help is greatly appreciated.
The 15th hole is a short par 4 that plays severely downhill on the tee shot, one you'll be hitting more than once if you're not careful. Out of bounds guards the entire right side of the hole, with native grass just a few yards off the fairway on the left. The aggressive play is hitting your drive along the tree line, likely leaving a wedge to the green. An easy play for the skilled golfer, but very intimidating for someone like me who sees the white stakes on the right. A layup with a fairway wood or long iron brings the native grass on the left into play (about a 40-50% chance of finding your ball in there). If you choose to lay up, you'll likely be surprised at the distance left to the green. The shot is not easy, even a mid- or short-iron is difficult from a downhill lie to a shallow green protected by a bunker in front.
Tee shot:
No pictures of the approach, unfortunately. Looking back from the green:
A severe back-to-front slope at the back of the green helps stop approach shots, but leaves some very difficult recovery shots from behind and left of the green (this photo taken from the back left):
A couple more pictures:
http://golfcourse.stanford.edu/hole15.htmLooking at the aerials, it's clear how drastically the hole has been narrowed down the left side, with native grass where fairway used to be and added bunkers "defining" the dogleg on the left. These changes make the hole more difficult for the average golfer but do nothing for the good player who is likely going over the trees on the right anyway. The reduced width lessens the strategy of the hole in my opinion.
I can't wait to hear how others have done on this hole. The hole looks easy on the scorecard, and certainly looks easier than #6 and #9, two other holes which routinely give me problems. I've had scores from 4 to 11 on this hole and still haven't decided on a particular strategy. I summoned the courage to take out the driver during my last round there and played it too safe, blasting it over the leftmost fairway bunker and into the trees. A pitch-out into another fairway bunker and a three-putt resulted in a 7. An added difficulty is that the tee shot usually plays directly into the wind.