the golfer's playing skills, what part of the exam does the third hole at NGLA present ?
John Shimp's comment about the difficulty associated with playing # 3, the "Alps" hole for the first time got me thinking about playing it, for the first time and with repeat play.
The more I thought about it, the more I felt that playing the "Alps" hole, a hole that appears early in the round, was more of a mental test than a playing test.
"For the first time player, from the moment you leave the 2nd green and begin your walk to the 3rd tee, you start looking to see where the hole is/goes.
You see the 3rd tee, you see the large diagonal fairway bunker and the bunkers cut into the large hill, you see the fairway, you see the large hill covered in deep rough, but, where is the green ?
So, before you even get to the tee, elements of doubt have begun to creep into your head.
Where's the green ? Where do I drive my ball in that massive expanse of a fairway ? Should I cut the far side of the large diagonal bunker ? Can I drive far enough to cut the far side of the large fairway bunker ? Can I drive it through the fairway ? Should I drive left, straight, right, WHERE DO I GO ?
As the golfer stands on the tee, looking out into the unknown, those same thought cloud his mind.
I know what you're saying... sure, the golfer is confused the first time he sees/plays the hole, but, that all goes away with repeat play.
Fortunately, it doesn't.
One of the great assets of the 3rd hole is its massive green, a green that's fairly shallow at 27 yards, but, very long from far left to far right. A green that's really a "greens within a green" with different tiers, elevations and contours.
So, as the golfer stands on the 3rd tee, repeat golfers have an edge, a comfort factor in generally knowing where they'd prefer to hit ther drive.
So, they hit their drive into the massive fairway.
The beauty of that fairway is its slopes.
A golfer can have a downhill lie, an uphill lie, a sidehill lie or any combination of lies.
So now, the second uncertainty enters the golfer's mind, his lie and the lie's effect on his club selection and ability to execute.
The third uncertainty now enters the golfers mind.
Where the F*#@& do I aim ?
All the golfer sees is a massive hill covered in knee deep fescue, looming onerously in front of him.
Now, the fourth uncertainty enters his mind,..... I know my distance, but, with this lie, can I get the club I selected. up quick enough to get over that huge hill looming in front of me
The fifth uncertainty is, where's the wind ? Down here in this valley, I may not be able to feel it, but, I know it's up there, how will it effect my ball once it climbs that hill and is met with the full effect of the wind ?
So, having mulled all of the above, the golfer swings away.
His immediate thought is on the quality of the contact, the ball clearing the hill and the balls direction.
Distance, remains the next, the sixth uncertainty. If he hit the ball as intended, did he gauge all of the factors correctly, enabling his ball to reach the desired section of the green ?
He has no clue, only hope.
Many now walk, with great anticipation or intrepidation, up that big hill, hoping for the best.
Here's the best part, like Forest Gump, where your ball ends up is like a box of chocolates., you never know.
Sometimes as you crest the hill and gaze upon the green, you're shocked to see that NO BALL is on the green, BUT, you thought you hit a perfect shot. How in the F*#@ can your ball NOT be on the green. Oh wait, I did hit that shot great, maybe it's in the hole ?
Now, you're elated, an eagle on the 3rd hole, surely, you'll pick up 3 shots on the field. You walk briskly to the cup, you look in. F*#@, there's no ball in he hole, WHERE'S my ball. Now the search begins.
Only when you've crested the hole do you understand and appreciate the location of the hole as it relates to all of the other features at the green and back in the fairway.
The flight of your ball can have a huge impact on how it reacts once it comes back to earth and is influenced by the slopes and contourns that abound, in and around that green.
Many times balls are fed off the green, down to the left.
Many times, balls come up short, into the frointing bunker or swale, and, other times balls go long, into the berm behind the green, probably the worst of the options.
Now, you're depressed, and deeply stressed, you thought you planned and/or hit a good shot, how can the golfing fates have been so cruel ? And, how am I going to recover from here ?
The architecture has challenged you will, and, your ability to overcome adversity.
Whiners will think, "this isn't a good hole, this isn't a FAIR hole" poor me, blah blah, blah.
This will erode their chances of making a very good recovery, which isn't easy even with the best of attitudes.
And, here's the critical part.
That's a tough green to recover to. It's also a difficult green to putt, so, the unwary, the careless, the whiner, focused on his perceived bad break may not focus sufficiently, resulting in a marginal shot with his recovery, and, a THREE PUTT and a double bogey.
Now he's devastated, he hit a perfect drive, a good second and the perceived unfairness of this hole produced a double bogey, and, it's only the 3rd hole in the round, he thinks, "my round is ruined", and thus, the golfer begins his tailspin on the remaining 15 holes.
So, as much as planning and execution are minimum requirements for a good round, mental preparation and more importantly, mental toughness may be the most valuable asset a golfer can have when playing the "Alps" hole at NGLA.
The architecture at the 3rd hole at NGLA INHERENTLY crafts that scenario, it CREATES that test, an unrelenting test, a test of your will, at the tee, the approach, the recovery and putting.
And, since the test comes early in the round, it may determine the outcome of the entire day.
What other holes, and their component features, create that test, at the tee, approach, recovery and putts ?
Isn't it the totality of that test, the sum of the subset of tests, that make that hole so great, so memorable, for the first time and repeat golfer ?
Is there any other hole like it in the U.S. ?