. Turning the hole or not? Preference?

[mike_malone]

I imagine a straight hole provides more choices for design. But dogleg holes provide a challenge off the tee that runs  many more yards which is its own allure.


Doglegs can attract shots near to or over trouble to gain an advantage whereas a straight hole usually just collects bad shots into penal areas.









Of course there is the mildly turning hole which may be the best of both worlds.








Changed the title to “ turning the hole” to allow for slight changes.

[Tom_Doak]

I generally prefer a hole that's straight enough that you can see the flag from the tee.  Partly that is the photographer in me.


Beyond that, I would rather the fairway twist a bit to the left or right so that there is some tension between the SHORTEST line and the BEST line.

[Matt Schoolfield]

Doglegs allow the architect to control the distance off the tee, this allows for more interesting tee shots, especially in match play where the architect can neuter the bomb-and-gouge player's tactical advantage.

Functionally, I do think the binary of "dogleg" and "straight" is problematic, in that there are wildly different types of "straight" holes and "dogleg" holes. E.g. many "dogleg" holes allow players to cut the corner, acting as an optional forced carry rather than a true dogleg.

In the end Wethered and Simpson convinced me long ago that the dogleg is generally superior when players are concerned with strategy. The idea is whether or not you realize there is a dogleg on the hole you're playing:

Is the example on the right a dogleg? Is the road hole a dogleg?

[Thomas Dai]

What about holes that arc gradually?
Atb

[mike_malone]

What about holes that arc gradually?
Atb

I spoke to that at the end of my initial post. Number two at Rolling Green is a great subtle turn from right to left. It’s not really a dogleg but the ground slopes from left to right to make it harder to hit on the right side of the fairway. There is also a left bunker complex that is more visual than penal for most but it does play on the mind.


There is rough left but the hole can be played straight from the tee to the green. But the best line is from the center and right fairway   


Of course the green is angled and sloped left to right to create menace for shots from the left.


The slight jog makes for interesting design.

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