Ballyneal Par 3's

[Doug Wright]

15-3-5-11

I like the blindness and randomness of 15 and the natural dell greensite of 3. Sort of a toss-up re 5 and 11 for me; both are quite a bit lower ranked in my view. Perhaps a slight edge to 5 because of the green contours.

[Brad Isaacs]

Number 15 is the proverbial box of. Chocolates. You never know what you are going to get .

#17 Sandhills is my least favorite 3 par hole there. One shot dictated to you. Little creativity in your game, just, can you hit my shot.

All of  the par threes at Bally offer creativity, and are fun, not punitive in nature.

[Scott Szabo]

5-3-11-15

I'd suggest trying hole #5 from the left of #4 green.  It plays about 220 or so and that little pot bunker definitely comes into play even more so from that distance.  It's also a great hole to close out a match on.

[Jerry Kluger]

Scott: I totally agree with you. It is common for different length or height for tee boxes but the different angles on #5 make for a unique and very special hole.

[Bill_McBride]

5-3-11-15

I'd suggest trying hole #5 from the left of #4 green.  It plays about 220 or so and that little pot bunker definitely comes into play even more so from that distance.  It's also a great hole to close out a match on.

You closed out the match 5 up with 13 to play?   

[Scott Szabo]

5-3-11-15

I'd suggest trying hole #5 from the left of #4 green.  It plays about 220 or so and that little pot bunker definitely comes into play even more so from that distance.  It's also a great hole to close out a match on.

You closed out the match 5 up with 13 to play?  

We did ..... We started on the back nine, so we won 5&4.  I played so poorly in the ROTA that my partner and I were relegated to starting our final match on hole number 10.  

[Jaeger Kovich]

The only weakness in Ballyneal's Par-3's that I see is that they are all odd numbers... but you probably wouldn't notice unless your playing alternate shot! (credit to Clyde)

[Scott Szabo]

Funny you should mention that.  We did play alternate shot, and I had the pleasure of teeing off on all the par threes.  We played 15 from just left of 14 green.  What fun!

[Bill_McBride]

5-3-11-15

I'd suggest trying hole #5 from the left of #4 green.  It plays about 220 or so and that little pot bunker definitely comes into play even more so from that distance.  It's also a great hole to close out a match on.

You closed out the match 5 up with 13 to play?  

We did ..... We started on the back nine, so we won 5&4.  I played so poorly in the ROTA that my partner and I were relegated to starting our final match on hole number 10.  

Ballyneal is a GREAT match play course!  During my only visit my partner and I were being pummeled, 4 down after 10.  We rallied and won 2&1.  Our comeback started when Matt stuck one on 11 for a gimmie.   

[John Kirk]

I disagree with the notion that one's result on the 15th hole is a matter of luck.  In general, there are two ways to get the ball close for each pin position, with the exceptions being the middle right pin on the plateau, and the back left pin.  Club selection, shape and trajectory are always important.

The 11th hole appears the consensus choice for least favorite, while I selected it for my favorite.  Perhaps I am biased, as I love the feeling of hitting a well struck, longer iron (which only happens about 1/4 of the time for me these days) and watching it soar against the sky in the proper direction.  This hole is subtly sloped from back to front, and uphill putts are more uphill than they look, one of the few places where putts at Ballyneal are deceiving.

Steve Lapper made a hit-and-run comment about Sand Hills on page 1, then disappeared.  I can't get it out of my head, probably because Steve and I have gone back and forth about the two courses forever.  I may start a Sand Hills Par 3s thread, to try and provoke some thoughts about the par 3 holes there.  If Ballyneal's par 3 holes are its weakest component, I'd say the same is true of Sand Hills, as well as maybe every other great course, as longer holes to me are by nature more interesting.

[Jerry Kluger]

John: I think that sometimes the sequence of the par 3s can affect how they are viewed as a whole.  For example, I really like the par 3s at SH but they would be more highly regarded if 12 and 17 were on different sides of the course because they both play uphill and have visually very similar green sites.  3 is always a special challenge for me because the wind always seems to blow hardest on that hole and the direction can change dramatically from morning to afternoon.

[Scott Weersing]

This is harder than I thought. I am going with no. 15 as the best because it is different than any other par 3 I have played. You can go right at the flag or bring it in from the right or the left. I like the variety of tee boxes that can make the hole stretch from 150 yards to 210 yards.

I would then say 3, 11, and then 5. Why did I rate five the lowest? It prevents a run up shot when the pin is in the front. But that is not really a fault. And the bunker in the front can have too much impact.

This is liking saying, what is the best par 3 at Pacific Dunes? They are all great