One of the things I liked about Sebonack was the divergent design of the par 5's, they're all different.

Like the par 3's at Pacific Dunes, they're concentrated in the last 10* holes of the golf course.

The first par 5 is the 9th, an uphill, North, blind hole that plays longer than it's 549-532, partially because of the terrain and partially because of a prevailing wind.  The bunker complex in the LZ is interesting and can befuddle the golfer.
Despite fairway width, the bunkers seem to make the hole play tighter.
The green is sloped, without major internal contouring.

The 13th is also semi blind off the tee, heads east and is in an S shape for most.  It has water to the right and short of the green.  At 550-529 with a prevailing wind it can be reached in two if the golfer gambles.  The green plays small and is well contoured.   The fairway is also wide, but, there's a blind to semi-blind bunker on the left side in the DZ.

The 15th is semi blind, runs west, and doglegs slightly to the right.  The green is relatively small, slightly sloped and well bunkered in the narrow rear (think pear shaped rear).
At 616-580 into a prevailing wind, it presents a distinct challenge, especially as the playing corridor narrows as you near the green.
There's a diagonal cross bunker across 2/3 to 3/4 of the fairway that challenges you to bite off as much as you'd like.
However, there's not a great advantage for taking what may be perceived as a short route as balls hit to the center to left center have a better angle of attack on the second shot.  The fairway is very generous off the tee.

The 18th is simply a spectacular finishing hole.
The tee sits majestically, high up above the fairway, which sits dangerously on the bluff overlooking the Bay.  (Think # 4 or # 13 at Pacific Dunes.)  At 560-525 it's reachable in two.
The hole runs west.
But, a prevailing left to right wind off the Bay is intimidating, especially in combination with the fairway sitting right on the bluff just a few feet from a steep drop to the beach.
From the tee, the DZ seems narrower than it really is, as trees on the right obscure additional fairway.
But, shots hit right must then be hit back toward the bluff.
Shots not intended for the faint of heart.
A cross bunker awaits the long hitter who shies away from the bluff, with a prevailing wind pushing his ball toward that bunker.
The green is well bunkered and contoured.

At many golf courses the par 5's are the weakest holes on the golf course.

I think they've been successful in designing and building par 5's that are challenging, interesting and fun to play.

It's a nice combination of diverse Par 5's.

Mike Cirba,

They're different holes.

As you know, I too could play # 18 at NGLA and never get tired.

One of Sebonack's assets is that it didn't try to mirror any of its neighbors.

# 18 at Sebonack differs from # 18 at NGLA in that it's essentially downhill with the drive then flat, where as # 18 at NGLA is uphill with the drive and second and then flat.

# 18 at Sebonack is a far scarier tee shot.
The tee sits high above the hole, not unlike # 17 at NGLA, except that the Bay is immediately to the left with the wind whipping off of it.  You hit down to the fairway which sits on the bluff, immediately adjacent to the sharp falloff to the beach below.

With # 18 at NGLA the right side brings disaster, at # 18 at Sebonack the left side brings disaster.

The internal putting surface of Sebonack's 18th is more severe than at NGLA, but the surrounds at NGLA are more severe than at Sebonack.

The mid section of the hole provides bunkering and interest.

They're both great holes with their own distinct personalities.

Since they play in opposite directions, the direction of the wind has the opposite affect on the play of these holes.

A fun day would be 18 at NGLA and 18 at Sebonack,

A great day would be 18 at Southampton, Shinnecock, NGLA and Sebonack.

I think those clubs should start an annual interclub tournament, The Southampton Bowl.  What a treat.

Mike,

I think it's purely site happenstance.

In viewing the site one would have to think that a hole, especially a finishing hole was the perfect fit for that bluff.

Tom, Jack and Mike got it right,  as did CBM.

"A great day would be 18 at Southampton, Shinnecock, NGLA and Sebonack.

I think those clubs should start an annual interclub tournament, The Southampton Bowl.  What a treat."


I think the members at Southampton would enjoy it the most.....!

Patrick,

Thanks again for your vivid descriptions.

A "fun" day would be seeing and walking any of the courses you mentioned.

I'm sure a "great" day would be playing any one of them;  playing all four in a day would be some type of sensory overload approaching euphoric combustion.  One couldn't be faulted for just impaling themselves on their putter, hari-kari style at the last hole simply because it ain't ever gonna get any better than that!