Pop Quiz: Strategic Bunkering - Answers Please!!!

[PCCraig]

For perspective, here is a historical aerial look of the hole and its bunkering from the 1920's:

[John Percival]

Does it have to be bunkers? How about a hardwood about 50 yards from green on right side of fairway. Affects plays safe down right (when mature, one could opt for over or under!) or bombers who push. Seems to fit into the landscaping. Then place a bunker at the green's left side and done. Of course, factor-in crown width to determine planting space from fairway. Could leave a neat goal post effect like Doak's 11(?) at Black Forest (it's been some time. LOVE the bunker shaping, Tom)
Another important element to consider is where and how the hole falls in play. Is the previous hole easy? Hard? Does the player need to be soothed or egged? That is what makes the great courses (or books, or symphonies, etc) great. An ebb and flow.
Bruce and I were asked about strengthening CC of Lansing's 5th hole, a 5 par. On paper, there were many things that could have been done to toughen it, but when playing the course, one finds immediately that the 5th is a respite after a stringent first four holes. A place to re-group, especially with the tough 6th ahead. So don't just look at one hole, look at the sequence before and after.

[Garland Bayley]

Does it have to be bunkers? How about a hardwood about 50 yards from green on right side of fairway.
...

Is there a barf emoticon?

[Nigel Islam]

I want to thank Pat, as this was one of the more interesting threads I've read recently. I really loved seeing all the different solutions to the hole, and especially the reasoning behind them.

[V. Kmetz]

I know this is moldy, but I saw it and wanted to contribute:

So I grabbed the actual hole from GoogE and did a bit of markup



First of all, it's a 360-65 yard hole, but that is balanced by the parallel OB left, the entirety of the hole.

So that leads me to think that any deployment of bunkering has got to be for bigger hitters looking to avoid the OB sentinel.

1. Hence, my largest bunker is along the right--made large for tee visibility and for capture of the sneaky who think that something 250-275 "over there" will do.  The basic reasoning is that if the hole is to be improved strategically by bunker addition, the hole must not be the one trick pony/and fortune of OB...I would like players to consider:

a. that going straight down the left center side is a risk worth taking (for both visibility, shortness, and better lie[better than on the right low flats])
b. that perhaps a driver bomb somewhere right side must be scaled back to 3 wood, hybrid, long iron right side

2.  My small center bunker is 295 from the tee, so...

a. For most, it'll be a visual aid and aiming point.
b. For gorillas, it will give them pause before launching a no-spin ball behemoth thing
c. For shorter tacking players, it'll give pause to plot their next movement carefully

3.  My near-right side fairway bunker is 150 carry from near the back of the tee box, so it's primary function is:

a. to provide a 3-D layer effect, visually, of the new bunkering (near, middle, and far) in staggered echelon. It's all frank and visible from the tee, so it's not intended for a camouflage of a sort, but to create a pleasing pocket of where the safe tee shot should be directed.
b. to lend a very solvable "steeplechase" element to the tee shot.  I think it may have been Ross who refers to easily conquered driving hazards breeding pleasant confidence in the mind of the player.
c. to really distinguish/direct the senior's/ladies'/short hitter's strategic choice of where they will place their tee shot.

I tend to agree with others that the hole doesn't "need" more than one bunker to add strategic interest to the tee shot

cheers

vk