As you step onto the 2nd tee, your mood and outlook with respect to your play of the 2nd hole may have been predetermined by what took place on the 1st hole.
Typically, in tournaments, there's a back up on the second hole, so you get to watch the golfers playing to the 1st green.
# 2 plays at 330/270, uphill, considerably uphill, then somewhat downhill.
The tee shot is completely blind.
Fortunately, the tee has been properly sloped, uphill, to assist with getting the ball airborne. This is a very helpful feature. However, golfers who don't properly shift their weight back to their left side on the downswing, usually fan their tee shot.
As the golfer stares up at the horizon/ridge confronting them, there used to be a tuft of wild grass sitting atop it, that was a great directional marker for the center of the green. This was sometimes refered to as Don King.
This feature has been removed, but, most caddies position themselves at a location that gives the golfer an aiming point.
While the carry is only 200/150 yards, it plays much, much longer.
In addition, a prevailing wind is often in your face.
Almost everyone I know tries to drive the green.
The ridge line is a diagonal, with the longer portion of the diagonal being the best line to the green.
Beneath the ridge, facing the golfer are a series of bunkers cut into the rising hillside.
Once the ridgeline has been cleared a plateau greets the golfer, but, that plateau falls off sharply to the right and to the left.
The fairly large mildly undulating/sloped green, at about 13,000 sq/ft sits on a plateau that's lower than the fairway plateau in the DZ.
Thus, balls off line on the drive will end up in a deep hollow to the right, leaving the golfer with a blind approach from deep rough. A similar, but not as pronounced fate awaits the golfer who goes left. Balls hit long, over the green, drop off the planet to much lower terrain.
The tee shot must be well struck and aligned commensurate with one's ability. Failure to do either can produce disastrous results.
However, the short distance on the approach, even for mishit or misaligned shots, combined with a very large, fairly benign putting surface create broad margins of error.
Hole location is a huge factor when the greens are fast and firm.
Any location near the perimeter of the green is beyond dicey.
Drives not reaching the fairway plateau are left to the mercy of random lies, some of which can be very difficult. Thus, there's no guarantee that the approach will find the green. Drives hit right invariably run down the sloping plateau to a deep hollow of knee deep rough, leaving the golfer with a blind uphill approach. Drives hit left have to carry a greater distance and as such don't suffer such a dire fate as drives hit left.
Drives coming to rest on the fairway plateau have an interesting dilema based on hole location.
One of the neatest, most subtle feature is found just short of the green.
The fairway plateau, in a ramp like movement transitions down to the green, flattening out just short of the green. The subtle feature is an almost invisible, slight uphill front to the green.
This front, only a few feet in length, completely frustrates approach shots hit short of the green when the hole location is toward the front of the green.
It's an insidious feature since the golfer knows that if his approach lands on the down sloping ramp leading to the green, the ball will hurdle forward, rapidly moving toward the back of the green, possibly going over the green. So, even though a very short shot remains, those two features combine to frustrate the golfers attempt to get close to the hole.
Balls hit directly to the green will probably come to rest in the middle or toward the back of the green leaving the golfer with a very long putt.
Bump and run approaches are tempting.
However, the wind can be a determining factor in club selection and play.
Do you want to get the ball up, with good spin, or do you want to play a lower shot with high rpms, or, do you want to play along the green ?
The choices are many.
Once on the putting surface, distance is usually the determining factor, although the green does have contour and slope, and when it's at pace, putting is a challenge, and, if the golfer is above the hole, the ball can get away from the golfer leading to a three putt.
So, here you are, back at the tee with a wall of tall, thick fescue, bunkers, a hillside and berms in front of you, and, you're disoriented. Where do you aim ?
Even when the caddy shows you the line, you're still insecure about the play of the hole and that insecurity can translate to a poor swing or poor judgement.
A good drive elates the golfer because a birdie is now a strong possibilty in his mind back on the tee. A really good drive can follow the terrain on the plateau, down the ramp and onto the green.
A bad drive means that a birdie is still possible, with a little luck, but, the golfer may be fighting for a par, or worse, so, the walk up the hill is either one buoyed by great expectations or great trepidation.
Once your ball is found, and you see for the first time, where you are, relative to where the hole is located, you begin to formulate your attack or recovery.
Blind recoveries from poor lies in the rough are always challenging, especially to a slick green.
A golfer who has found the plateaued fairway can find his euphoria short lived if the hole is cut in a dicey location, for even though he could throw his ball on the green, the approach must be well thought out and well executed, otherwise this short hole, a potential birdie in almost everybody's mind, can turn into a very disappointing score.
The golfer can't ignore the score he made on the first hole, for if he bogied it, the fear of bogeying the second hole and starting the round two over par is very annoying.
So, care must be exercised to plan and execute a good shot, one that makes sure that a high score will not result from a marginal miss.
Choose the right club, the proper shot, but make sure that the worse you'll make is a par.
Often, golfers who drive the green are so excited at the prospect of making an eagle that they three or four putt the green.
It was on this hole in 1996 that I came to understand that Tiger Woods was special.
The hole was playing into a misting/drizzling wind.
I hit my best drive, I killed it, and just made it to the very front of the green, a green that's about 30 yards deep. Tiger Woods hit it to the back of the green ...... with a 3-iron. That's when I knew that he was different.
On the 1st tee, the golfer thinks that the early holes can get him under par.
Walking off the 2nd green either confirms that belief or dashes one's hopes for a good jump on the golf course.
Pictures from the tee, plateau and most importantly, from behind the green, would be appreciated, as would pictures of the terrain right, left and behind the green.
Thanks