[George Pazin]

I still think it would be very fun to try the golf shot.

Don't you?

Nope, I don't think I could hit off a cliff that high. My bizarro vertigo would kick in and I just don't think I could draw the club back.

Kinda looks like the ultimate in gimmicky holes, I will grant you that.

[Tom Huckaby]

I still think it would be very fun to try the golf shot.

Don't you?

Nope, I don't think I could hit off a cliff that high. My bizarro vertigo would kick in and I just don't think I could draw the club back.

Kinda looks like the ultimate in gimmicky holes, I will grant you that.

George:  I have pretty bad fear of heights myself.  I fairly freaked out at Old Head in Ireland.  That being said, it does look like a golf shot I would love to try.  And dammit I'm gonna strap you in the copter and make you do it too.

It is hellaciously gimmicky and stupid, without a doubt.  But like Matt said, I have a rather large inner idiot wanting to try anything once.

[Peter Pallotta]

A golf hole so special it took one man to conceive it, another to embrace it, and a third to design it.

Yes. Indeed.

Peter





 

[Kalen Braley]

Huck,

We're set...all we need is a couple more guys and a sponsor and we'll be on our way over to go play it!!

Any ideas for a benfactor?  Didn't the Mrs. just get a raise?  Mine did, pehaps we an tap into that too...   

[Tom Huckaby]

Huck,

We're set...all we need is a couple more guys and a sponsor and we'll be on our way over to go play it!!

Any ideas for a benfactor?  Didn't the Mrs. just get a raise?  Mine did, pehaps we an tap into that too...   

The Mrs. raise is as likely to be used for golf adventures as I am to soon go sky-diving.

Of course never say never.

And I have never been to Africa.  I certainly would love to fix that.

So does anyone know anything about this course designed by 18 of the world's top golfers?

http://www.legend-resort.com/

Some interesting choices there...



TH

[Peter Wagner]

After playing with the numbers a little, as near as can tell the shot is a 3 wood or driver for most players.  The ball will be airborne for about 20 seconds and the impact speed will be about 196 MPH and the ball will be coming almost straight down.  I don't know much about ballistics but I'm guessing the ball mark would be substantial.

The green is about 50 yards deep and about 45 yards wide so your chances of hitting this Africa shaped green would be about the same as hitting a mid-sized normal green from 270 - 300 yards. 

All of my assumptions are based on zero wind. 

- Peter

[jeffwarne]

Jeff,

Depends on where you live if you need a jet.  The Olde Farm is in Bristol, VA about 2 hours by car from Knoxville where I live so it was an easy drive.

Matt,
It's a 19th hole.
It's presumed you played the 18 hole resort in Africa-thus needing a jet to play the 19th at Olde Farm.

My point is you wouldn't play 18 at Pine Valley and say you'd prefer to play the 19th at Augusta-they're in different places.

It looks like a very cool option.

[Matt Varney]

I see where you are coming from and I get your point about 2 different courses. 

[Mark Smolens]

After playing with the numbers a little, as near as can tell the shot is a 3 wood or driver for most players.  The ball will be airborne for about 20 seconds and the impact speed will be about 196 MPH and the ball will be coming almost straight down.  I don't know much about ballistics but I'm guessing the ball mark would be substantial.

The green is about 50 yards deep and about 45 yards wide so your chances of hitting this Africa shaped green would be about the same as hitting a mid-sized normal green from 270 - 300 yards. 

All of my assumptions are based on zero wind. 

- Peter

You, sir, have way, way too much time on your hands.  Hats off to you.

[Kevin Pallier]

I hate it - any golf hole that you cant walk to (not hikng) isn't worth playing

[Matt Varney]

Peter,

I would make a prediction then that if the club off the tee is driver or 3 wood and the shot would be in the 270-300 yard range the average player even a scratch handicap pro would never hit this green shaped like Africa.

If the ball hits the ground at terminal velocity going some 196 mph that you calculated it would bury itself in a green surface easily 3-6 inches deep.  Now factor wind and what you are doing is playing a big ass driving range on a cliff hitting shots with mega hangtime.   For some reason I feel they should just build the green area with this synthetic grass turf that would look like a green but requires no maintenance or watering.

[Peter Wagner]

Hi Matt,

I would expect the ball to bury in the green on each successful attempt but I have no idea how deep the ball would imbed.  Too many factors for me to guess at.  Also don't forget that in the final 8 seconds of the balls flight that gravity overtakes lift and the ball starts accelerating downward at 32 feet per second per second (at impact = 256 feet per second).  In the interest of time I did not take into account the altitude differences (air is 3 degrees cooler and slightly thinner at +1400 feet).

Also of interest, there is a tee on top of the mountain that is 440 yards from the same green.  Off the top of my head this would probably be about a 7 or 8 iron for most players and the target would appear quite large at maybe 40% larger than a regular green.

My guess is that they take you up in the helicopter with a bucket of range balls and the players pound away from the different tees for fun.  The huge ball marks on the green wouldn't be a problem as this is expensive and probably done infrequently.  And I'll guess that the 'green' isn't built on top of a thick layer of sand but more likely hard ground.

The offer by the club of a million dollars for a hole in one is pretty safe as you would have zero roll meaning you'd have to dunk it to win.

- Peter

[Kalen Braley]

After playing with the numbers a little, as near as can tell the shot is a 3 wood or driver for most players.  The ball will be airborne for about 20 seconds and the impact speed will be about 196 MPH and the ball will be coming almost straight down.  I don't know much about ballistics but I'm guessing the ball mark would be substantial.

The green is about 50 yards deep and about 45 yards wide so your chances of hitting this Africa shaped green would be about the same as hitting a mid-sized normal green from 270 - 300 yards. 

All of my assumptions are based on zero wind. 

- Peter

Thanks for that Peter, I knew you would come thru in the clutch.    Remind me to buy you a drink next time we meet for a round of gawf!!!

So with a 3 wood or driver, that is for sure a very dicey proposition to hit that green in regulation.  But it would be fun taking a bucket of balls up there to try it.  For the price I would certainly hope that would be allowable.

[Doug Siebert]

The writeup does say that the fairway is contoured to funnel the ball towards the green, though it doesn't look like there's much of a fairway, and it has some trees to avoid.

I think based on the terminal velocity being only 70 mph (see Matt Cohn's post) that the worries about embedding the ball in the green are overblown.  70 mph is about what you'd get off a shot hit with a 55-60 mph clubhead speed.  Think about skulling a half wedge from a bunker, that's probably leaving the face at 70 mph.  You sure don't want to be hit by it but it would take a pretty soft bunker lip for the ball to embed in it.

[Matt_Cohn]

I say there's no way to reach this green.

After 400-500 yards the ball would be dropping straight down due to air resistance.

There is no way to keep a golf ball going forward for 800 meters.

[Chip Gaskins]

I say there's no way to reach this green.

After 400-500 yards the ball would be dropping straight down due to air resistance.

There is no way to keep a golf ball going forward for 800 meters.

from what i can remember from engineering school i think this is correct.  even at a slight elevation the sheer air resistance would push the ball back down, no?

either way, yes the 18 (19) hole course looks to be designed by 18 different pros?  is that the way everyone else reads the Legends website?  it does look like a very nice piece of land.

[David_Elvins]

Thank god this hole wasn't around 150 years ago.  Can you imagine how much earth Raynor and MacDonald would move to make a template version?

[Pete_Pittock]

It is a driver, even in the hands of Padraig Harrington. Here is a link to you-tube. Not quite sure of the location for the ladies tee.

http://www.compleatgolfer.co.za/new_site/content/news/singlepage.asp?id=856

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