Indulge me while describe the most disappointing shots
The first time I played at Pine Valley, I was cruising around in decent shape through the 13th. I smoked my drive on 13, and because it was so burnt out it ran to the split in the fairway. On the walk to the ball, my caddy was telling me the story of Jack's first trip around PV. When he got back to the clubhouse everybody asked him what he thought of 13, to which he replied "its a pretty big green to be hitting 7-iron into" which was more of an expression of Jack's length than anything else. What does my caddy hand me when we get to my ball? yup, 7 iron, whereupon i deadblock it behind the small tree to the right of the green. Luckily I make a pretty good recovery through the branches of the tree and escape with a bogey. But my confidence is clearly shaken.
At 14 i become positively unglued. With the flag up front I dump my tee shot short, and then try to get cute with a sandwedge only to end up in the same watery grave. I finally take the safe route - way over the the green to the back bunker. This is before their recent tree clearing program, and i couldn't make a swing at the ball. Back to the watery grave, redrop in the bunker, and finally make it to the green. Two putts later I was the proud owner of a "Moose" (hands spread attached to head, indicating a "10").
My friend/host was getting quite the kick out of my misery, and had sent his caddy out to 15 tee to reposition the markers so they point to 16 green. When we walk to the tee, my host turns to me and says, "just another little short par 3." Weary from my drubbing on the prior hole, I peer toward the 16th green thinking it must be a 300 yard carry, oblivious to the remainder of the 15th hole. I thought to myself, this must be why everybody thinks this place is so tough. My caddy handed me my driver and I took 3 cuts, each with twice as much strength as the last, and watched as each ball splashed down in the middle of the pond.
Unable to contain themselves, the rest of my group erupted in laughter and let me in on the ruse. I was on the verge of tears. I had somehow added 8 extra strokes in relation to par, after playing the first 12 in 4 over, and had lost 6 balls in the last 1.5 holes. I was utterly broken, and in the remaining four holes, i would add another 8 strokes above par. My visions of a sub 75 round in my first trip to PV, had nightmarishly turned into a 90.