European Club hole #12 Green - 127 yards deep!

[Jeff Schley]

For those that have played there, does anyone know the history as to how and why it got so damn big? I met Pat Ruddy’s son who was working today and he said his dad designed, built and the owner of the course to this day. I have never heard of a green that deep and putted it from the front to the back which was slightly uphill but wow.
Anyone know if there is a story as to how it got so big?  Actually I think 13/14 also has a bunker in the middle of the green basically.  Pretty memorable holes for sure. Not sure about greatness, but extreme yes.

[William_G]

hahaha


beautiful place Pat has there and the kids are really nice folks



because you can is the answer


7A 12A, because you can


you route 1, 10, 18, 18 like a 4 lane highway to and fro the clubhouse


place over 300 Hell Bunkers throughout epic links land


swing and miss


cheers

[Joey Chase]

I would certainly agree with William having met Mr. Ruddy.  The course may not possess everything I would want, if it was my property, but it's not.  He designed and built everything he wanted, which is likely what most on this site could only dream of, myself included.  I found him to be quite charming and has a strong sense of what he wants in a golf course. 

It is quite a green, certainly, and absolutely forces you to not under/over club, based on the pin position unless you want a really long putt!  I have yet to see a green that works like a RTJ runway tee in a backwards sense.

[Tommy Williamsen]

First of all, Pat Ruddy likes to have fun and the twelfth green is fun. The following is from Pat's book on TEC.
"The idea for the green came from an evolutionary design process that I have been engaged on with the links for a quarter of a century and it is a fine example of the benefits of such a long and unrelenting approach to design. The thirteenth green was at first located on a mound beside the beach on the approach to the 12th green and the tee sho was up along the beach over much of what is now the long green."


Pat wanted to build a par three into the dunes which he calls 12a. Instead of going right from the 12th green to the 13th tee players would go left to 12a. 12 plays in the direction of the 12th tee. A new back tee for 13 was built near 12a green.
This meant that the area on the first half of the old 13th hole was freed up. He thought about building a second green to be used periodically which would make the hole longer, but he worried about players hitting wedges from one green to the other. The hole measures 459 yards to the center of the green and over 500 yards to the back. A front hole location is about 350 yards. He wanted the green to be longer than the widest green at TOC. It is at 127 yards long. I have played TEC dozens of times and only rarely see it all the way back. Beyond that it is an extraordinary green, full of humps, bumps, narrow skirts, and a smattering of bunkers. I suspect there are very few who don't try to putt the length of the green. What was gained was a beautiful par three set in the dunes.


The Ruddy family is a gift to golf. Pat had been ill for about 18 months and is now out and about. He is irrepressible and a dear man who loves golf and his course.

[Scott Warren]

Jeff, IMO the answer to your question is that the 12th green is so long because Pat Ruddy — first and foremost — understands how marketing/PR works.

[Ally Mcintosh]

Last time I played said green - which I love - my playing partner holed a 204 foot putt, caught on video I believe.


Terry Wogan would have been proud...

[Ed Brzezowski]

The answer was already given, fun. Played the course a few years ago and we had a chance to sit down with Pat, over a pint or two, and go over what he tried to do when building the course. We asked about that green, he chuckled and asked" did you enjoy it".


He built it to be enjoyed and talked about among golfers. A very nice gentleman and a great memory.