The 9th at TOC

[Anthony Gray]

 Flat, manufactured bunkers, relatively straight, gorse. Why do I like it so much?



   Anthony

[Matt MacIver]

Breather?  Straight-forward after so many blind tee shots?  Drivable? 

[Jon Wiggett]

Drivable and is very much reliant on the angle if not on the green.

[Melvyn Morrow]

Anthony

Like it because its on TOC it can be that simple



Melvyn

[Jeff Tang]

Anthony, good topic. I love TOC, one of my favorite courses. However, I didn't really understand 9 and for that matter 10. Seemed short and just blast it at the green. It's possible that because we played it so far up that some of the strategy was lost on me but I don't have multiple plays for comparison. I'm interested to see the responses on this thread.

[Anthony Gray]

I think the gorse down the left makes the hole a better challenge. That gorse can take away par.


  Anthony

[BCrosby]

During Edwardian times. John Low like the hole. He especially liked the challenge presented by the Kruger bunker. It played as a semi-centerline bunker at the time. It's not much of factor now.

There is still plenty of trouble left and over the green.

Bob

[Bill_McBride]

During Edwardian times. John Low like the hole. He especially liked the challenge presented by the Kruger bunker. It played as a semi-centerline bunker at the time. It's not much of factor now.

There is still plenty of trouble left and over the green.

Bob

Mrs Kruger still stands resolutely at her husband's side.   

During the 2005 Open we spent some time in a gap in the gorse front left of the green.   You could see the palpable disappointment on the faces of the players who made 4, and a couple of excited eagles.   

[Mike Nuzzo]

I drove the right side of the green down wind
It was a fun tee shot avoiding the bunkers - playing my Persimmon Driver
I 4 putted across the bland green
Breather yes
Enjoyable? - I didn't study the whole green - didn't see much

And it wasn't my play that left me empty
Had my best swing of the week two holes later @ 11: I hit a 3 iron into the wind flew it to 6 feet from a back left pin and bounced 6 feet high over the back
Now 8 feet below the green downwind - next shot landed in the middle of green and rolled into Shell
Made a 7
Loved High

[Joel_Stewart]

I drove it on the front edge.  Pin was on the right side, middle.  Had a 40 footer that went in the heart of the hole - 2.

The wind is everything.  I watched it during the Open, and players still hit driver just short.

[Adrian_Stiff]

I like the 9th more than the 10th. I like the town as a backdrop, the gorse, the pair of centre bunkers, deceptive roundish green just sitting there its tough to get the distance that green is unique to TOC.

[Mike Hendren]

As i've posted before, the hole's challenge is that left is jail.  This after 8 previous holes where the prudent play is to cheat left off the tee.  Not unlike defending a righty in the ring only to have him suddenly go southpaw.  The lack of definition around and on the green makes the simple pitch more challenging than it appears.  The End Hole Bunker prevents the player form a no-brainer lay-up from the tee.  Finally as a half par hole it puts pressure on the player to make 3.

A mundale hole made good by its place in the routing. 

Bogey

[mike_beene]

Hard to get any depth perception for the pitch or run up.Can make you look silly.Also,there is a hidden bunker left I never knew existed until I got stuck in it one day.

[Tom_Doak]

As i've posted before, the hole's challenge is that left is jail.  This after 8 previous holes where the prudent play is to cheat left off the tee.  Not unlike defending a righty in the ring only to have him suddenly go southpaw.  The lack of definition around and on the green makes the simple pitch more challenging than it appears.  The End Hole Bunker prevents the player form a no-brainer lay-up from the tee.  Finally as a half par hole it puts pressure on the player to make 3.

A mundale hole made good by its place in the routing. 

Bogey

This is absolutely true.  When I played in the Dunhill Links a few years back, they had the flag jammed way over on the left edge of the green, and my pro drove it left, leaving himself a nasty pitch over the edge of the gorse and the bunker at the front left of the green.  I'd never even noticed that bunker before!  Luckily, that was one of two holes I played well that day, and we made our 3.

[Gary Slatter]

It is amazing how many times you see 3-5 scored on these two breather holes.  Left is dead on 9 and 10, which differs from most of the other holes.
And the chance to get a banana and drink is pretty neat, considering where you are.

[Niall C]

It is amazing how many times you see 3-5 scored on these two breather holes.  Left is dead on 9 and 10, which differs from most of the other holes.
And the chance to get a banana and drink is pretty neat, considering where you are.

I three putted the 9th for my only bogey on the way out and birdied the 10th for a birdie. Wind had nothing to do with either.

Niall

[Anthony Gray]

It is amazing how many times you see 3-5 scored on these two breather holes.  Left is dead on 9 and 10, which differs from most of the other holes.
And the chance to get a banana and drink is pretty neat, considering where you are.

  Igot an iron brew and a hot dog there once. Or was that a brat.

  Anthony

[Sean_A]

I am hearing a lot talk (excuses???) defending a bland hole and comfortably the least interesting on the course.  The newish additional bunker centre-right makes the left side trouble more of an issue, but its not nearly enough for me to call this a good hole.  As much as the hole is bland, part of the problem is where it falls in the round.  If it broke up a tough patch I could get behind it more, but coming after a long succession of driver/wedge holes and with essentially two out of the next three being the same sort of thing in terms of lack of distance variety, I am sorry, the 9th just doesn't get it done.  I think it would be far better to finish the side with a tough hole to break up the breathers!

Ciao  

[Chris Kane]

Good post Sean. If the 9th was on any other world top 300 course, it would have been dug up decades ago - for good reason.

[Anthony Gray]

So it gets a pass? Not so fast my friends. Drivable par 4s are in style. And it's not that easy upon inspection. Centerline hazard and dead left. It can wreck a scorecard if not respected.

  Anthony

[Chris Kane]

Anthony, in my view, too many people manufacture virtues which don't exist in this hole, solely because its on the Old Course.

It has a fairway the size of a football field, and the least interesting green on the course. If there is a genuine advantage in hitting it close to the two fairway bunkers (or placing the tee shot in a particular part of the fairway), I'd like someone to explain it to me.

Is there a hole on the Open Championship rota which is easier? Just because its drivable with a penalty for missing left doesn't make it a good hole.

[Scott Warren]

What Chris said.

I'm not too fussed if a hole is "easy" or "hard", moreso I care if it is interesting.

As Chris asked, what is gained from driving it next to the centreline bunkers?

If the green is in range for a golfer from the tee, is there any more to the shot than "don't go left, anywhere else is fine"?

[Anthony Gray]

The second shot if you miss the green can be played with any number of clubs.

  Anthony

[DMoriarty]

During Edwardian times. John Low like the hole. He especially liked the challenge presented by the Kruger bunker. It played as a semi-centerline bunker at the time. It's not much of factor now.

There is still plenty of trouble left and over the green.

I assumed Low was referring to the end hole bunker.  He described it as pot bunker in the middle of the course at the end of a long drive.  I think the end hole bunker was about 200 yards from the tee at the time and fits the description perfectly, whereas the Kruger bunker was more in play after a long drive on the 10th, was it not?   

More to the point, what Low liked about the bunker (whichever it was) was that it challenged the better player to come just as close as  he dared. "The true hazard should draw the play towards it, should invite the golfer to come as near as he dare to the fire without burning his fingers."   

Not sure if this bunker (and its companion) still serves this purpose, but if it does, this may go a long ways toward explaining the appeal of the hole. 

[Kevin Pallier]

I dont mind 9 and for that matter 10. Granted they aren't great holes but both can be driven and if you dont birdie them you sort of feel you've given one back to the field in a sense.