PGA West and my theory on two kinds of difficulty

[Matt_Cohn]

I don't suppose this is a new theory, but I've never heard it stated quite this succinctly.

One kind of difficulty is when the shots themselves are hard - for example, off of a downhill lie to an elevated target, or a long iron to a firm, crowned green.

Another kind of difficulty has to do with the consequences of a bad shot, such as water, sand, or some other situation from which scoring is difficult. Executing the shot correctly, however, might not really be that hard. An island green on a calm day would be the extreme example.

The Stadium Course at PGA West has always intrigued me in this way. The shots themselves aren't really that difficult: flat lies, nice grass, ample targets. Plenty of guys in Q-School cruised around in 70 shots or fewer the last few days.

Yet it's always on the lists of everyone's hardest courses, because the consequences for missed shots are so bad.

Obviously the hardest courses combine both kinds of difficulty - shots that are hard to execute, with severe penalties for not pulling them off. Oakmont seems like the poster child for this.

Am I on to some significant distinction here? Or does it exist already by another name?

[Kalen Braley]

Matt,

That makes sense.  I would put IC in that 2nd category.  The fairways are pretty flat and they aren't especially narrow, even normal width.  The penalty comes by missing them by much more than 3-5 yards...and your looking at a lost ball almost with exception.

Additionally the sheer amount of forced carries is pretty insane on that course as well.

[Tommy Williamsen]

I agree with your distinction.  I would much rather play a course where the shots are difficult yet a stray shot is playable than a course where a stray shot is stroke and distance or a ball in the water.  I did, however, find that PGA West has a nice combination of both.

[BCrosby]

Not to discourage original thinking, but I think yours is a distinction without a difference.

If you go to the next level of abstraction, all of the things you describe as making shots difficult are architectural features. Some are about the routing of a hole, some are about individual hazards (read: bunkers), some are about hole length, etc., but they are all architectural features chosen by an architect to influence play.

Seems to me that there is a another distinction that might be made. You could distinguish between 'internal' difficulties - those inherent in executing the golf swing and 'external' difficulties - those that you find on a golf course, weather or conditioning. One is constant, the other will vary depending on the course, day and maintenance.

Bob 

[Ian Andrew]

The lost ball and excessivly difficult go hand in hand for most.

[jeffwarne]

The lost ball and excessivly difficult go hand in hand for most.

The latter feeds exponentially on the former.

[BCrosby]

I have played golf with Jeff Warne. Only in his memories of the distant past does he know what it feels like to lose a ball.  

[jeffwarne]

I have played golf with Jeff Warne. Only in his memories of the distant past does he know what it feels like to lose a ball.  

Your brother could tell you differently