Sebonack 2nd Hole

[John Sabino]

I was fortunate enough to play Sebonack recently and was very impressed with the second hole. The tee shot reminded me a bit of the 12th hole at Prairie Dunes with the trees on either side of the fairway. The hole requires a precise tee shot into the middle of the fairway or the hazards come into play with a ton of sand all around.



The shot to the green is a demanding shot as well with a false front and sharp fall-off from the green for shots that are hit short. This green reminded me a bit of the severe 8th hole at Crystal Downs.



Overall, this hole is an instant classic and in my view the best one on the course. The trees apparently were around the former Sabin estate "Bayberry" land, adding a nice historic dimension to the hole.

My hats off to Tom and Jack on the great job they did at Sebonack.
 

[Jim Franklin]

Joe -

I agree. What a great hole and a very challenging green. The pin was back right when we played it and my guess is back right is the easiest on the green. Unfortunately we played the course in a complete opposite wind than it normally plays so #2 was dead down wind. I had sand wedge to the back right pin. Now #3 was brutal into the wind though.

[Matt_Ward]

Joseph:

Agreed.

A superb hole -- whether downwind, headwind or no wind.

The green ABSOLUTELY DEMANDS a STELLAR approach.

Toughest pin placement, I believe, is extreme far left.

[Adam Clayman]

This is another in a series of "new" golf holes that have the feel of holes at Prairie Dunes. I don't personally see it, with this photo presentation, so i'll take Joe's word for it.

The conclusion i'm formulating is Prairie Dunes was well ahead of it's time.

[Alex_Wyatt]

My own view was the green was way too severe given that the hole is long, has central hazards off the tee, plays uphill and into the prevailing wind.  I never wanted to play the hole again.

[Steve Lapper]

Prairie Dunes was indeed, way ahead of its times, as was Sand Hills.

The 2nd here is a very, very unique and strong hole (a 4.5) and one that helps define the brillance attributed to Sebonack. The "open field" exposure to the water and the prevailing breeze (SW over the 18th and across the 2nd) helps to stiffen an already testing four par. The green is great and certainly demands a tough second shot, but is that sufficent reason to hate it? Ignore par and play it as best you can. It's really a ton of fun when you take that approach.

 The pair of trees don't really come into play other than to present framing. I don't really see this hole bear any resemblance to PD. I think it's green placement and difficulty strikes me as much more similar to some of the longer holes at Ballyneal & Stone Eagle with a distinct Doak-style flair.

 Matt, I think the much harder pin is on the far right, tucked into the corner...impossible to shape a very reliable shot into and NO bailout area (found on the left side).

[John Sabino]

Matt - agree that the toughest pin placement would be on the far left, basically makes that part of the green as big as a postage stamp. Although there is a bit of a back-stop on the back of the green on the left side that does feed the ball back down to the middle if you hit if far enough. Short on the left side is coming back to your feet.

Jim - it's interesting, when I played it as well the 2nd played down wind and the third was quite difficult back into the wind up that big hill into the green

[Jim Franklin]

Steve -

One of the guys in our group hit a hybrid for a second shot and the ball rolled along the contours and back down for a 3 or 4 foot birdie putt. I can't see that happening on the left of the green. If I had known about the contour on the back right, I could have thrown my sand wedge behind the hole and brought it back to the hole. I think it is a tremendous green with loads of options, but back right is easier than back left IMO.

[Matt_Ward]

Steve:

The far right is far more accessible since you have a clear backstop to help you whether it be deep or a bit to the right.

The far left is not so protected. In fact, should you pull the approach and stay on the fairway cut the pitch from that side to a pin on the left requires nothing less than a Tiger touch to have a remote chance for a par putt. Ditto should you hit it a tad short.

Steve, you refer to the bail out area on the left as being a help -- it's fool's gold to rely on that side for the reasons I indicated. The far right looks harder but plays easier than the far left IMHO.

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

I must be in the minority who felt this was one of the few holes that did not out well. I found the green to be too small and severe for the uphill long shot coming to it.

[Steve Lapper]

Matt & Jim:

   You guys might well be right and I could stand corrected, but the day I last played there 2-out-of-# of us made par or better into a left pin and we remarked that getting to the right corner would appear tough. In any case, I'll take you words for it as that green is tough regardless of the pin location...great hole IMHO!