Holes that would be better played backwards?

[Ruediger Meyer]

I am just going through pictures I took last year and found one I made at #7 of We-Ko-Pa Cholla. And I remembered after playing it, I stood on the green, looked backwards and thought "Wow. This hole would have been really special, if it had been routed backwards". It is a decent hole as it ist, but I think the other way round it might have been really great, since it would run downhill and you would have to think really hard which club to hit to no run through the fairway. The way it is, you almost can do no wrong with your tee shot.


I don't know if anyone agrees with that (and it doesn't matter for this topic), but this moment got me thinking which examples there are for holes that might be really special if you would play them backwards.


This is the hole in question (unfortunately I forgot to take a picture in the other direction)

[Andrew Buck]

Number 3 at LACC immediately jumps to mind.

[John Kavanaugh]

The 4th at Pacific Dunes.

[jeffwarne]

1 at nearly every course...

[Matt_Cohn]

1 at nearly every course...

How so?

[jeffwarne]

1 at nearly every course...

How so?

#1 that is
puts you at the 19th sooner

[Kyle Henderson]

Cypress Point #18

[Eric Smith]

The 15th at Falsterbo might be a candidate If only because play would be toward the lighthouse rather than away from it.

[Ian Andrew]

Here's the issue, you can't turn one hole ...
A routing is a series of connections that collectively make up a journey.


So if you're really going to do this - do this right.
Turn all the holes necessary and present your alternative.


Paul Cowley did a wonderful one for the back end of Pebble Beach.
The one I think people should do is Spyglass Hill, to see if they could find a better routing.

[Tom_Doak]

The 4th at Pacific Dunes.

As an example of Ian's example:  on my first routing for Pacific Dunes, the 4th played backwards from today, with the water on the left and the green where today's middle tee is located.  At the time, I had not been able to walk the hole I'd put on paper, because it was solid gorse all the way across to what's now Old Macdonald.


After the gorse burned and we could get out to walk the hole, I could see it didn't work as well playing from south to north, because unless you drove to just the right spot, it was hard to tell where the coastline jogged in to the right.  Plus, our client's one piece of input was that the summer wind is a bitch, so he thought we shouldn't have all of the holes right on the coast playing to the north.  Today's 11th and 13th were much better playing north than south, so our biggest puzzle for the routing was figuring out how to get over to the coast to play #4 to the south, in between the two other holes that played to the north.


P.S.  I think many of the holes at The Loop play better backwards!

[Jeff_Brauer]

Agree that the knee bone connected to the thigh bone when considering reversing holes.


RTJ once said something to the effect that the last test of a good golf hole is that it could be just as good played backwards.  Obviously, that would depend on design features, but I think the point is he tended to route from hilltop down and then across a valley back up.  In such cases, with minor tweaks to tee and green placements, many holes can work equally well back and forward.  Many Ross holes would be similar.


I know I look back when on the green (usually in disgust after missing a putt.....) and do notice many holes are pretty attractive backwards.

[Ruediger Meyer]

Here's the issue, you can't turn one hole ...
A routing is a series of connections that collectively make up a journey.

Of course. Those things happen out of necessity. I don't doubt that overall the courses work better the way their are. Nevertheless, to me it is was an interesting question since I didn't have that feeling very often after playing a hole.

[Ari Techner]

Eugene Country Club

[Joel Pear]

When I moved out to the western suburbs of Chicago back in the early 90's, there was a muni course near me (Fox Bend GC, Oswego, IL) that after the close of their season, set the course up backwards for winter play.  It was a blast!  The tees were in front of the green and you played back to the tee where they had cut a hole an placed a flag.  There was no charge, just show up and play. 


One cold, windy, rainy, winter's day, I went out and played.  After a few holes, I looked back and saw a twosome, and thought, who is as crazy as me and is out playing golf.  After a closer look, I realized it was my new next door neighbor and his brother.  Needless to say, a terrific friendship was born!

[Will Lozier]

Eugene Country Club

That's the first thing I thought of as soon as RTJ came into the conversation! Well done Ari!


Cheers,
Will


PS - Gonna be at SCGC anytime soon? Am planning on taking some buddies up to see it shortly?

[Alex Miller]

Number 3 at LACC immediately jumps to mind.

Why's that? I can't imagine it working better than it does now.

[Joe Leenheer]