[Mark Brown]

My Choice: Black Diamond Ranch - Quarry Course - Holes 13 -17 offer stunning beauty and a great variety of strong risk-reward holes.

13th: 190-yard, par-three: about 25 feet downhill with a carry of 170 yards over a 100 foot deep limestone quarry.

14th: 500-yard, par-five cape hole around the edge of another 100 foot deep quarry. One of the most fun risk-reward holes anywhere. If you gamble on the tee-shot it is reachable in two and there's several other ways to play it. I love the green which can be all or partially blind that is tucked down in a hollow next to the quarry.

15th: 385 yard, par-four. One of the most photographic holes in the world. Fazio did an incredible job on this stunning hole.  
Being able to focus on making a good swing is the key on the tee-shot that plummets 80 feet to a fairway line by a pond and strip bunker on the left. The approach shot is a mid or short iron over the edge of the pond. One of the most initmidating and beautiful holes in the world.

16th:(new back tee) 440-yard, par-four that doglegs slightly left and skirt the edge of the Quarry, and far right is OB. One of the best and most demanding holes in golf. The green is 45 yards deep with an unbelievable back left pin next to the quarry.

17th: 225-yard, par-three. One of the most challenging long par-threes in golf. Plays downhill about 40 feet and plays over the quarry with only about a 170-yard carry to grass. Very deep green (40 yards) with a ridge across the width of the green about half-way back. To the left is the quarry wall and to the right is a fairly generous bail-out area about 15 to 20 feet below the putting surface.

An additional plus of the Quarry Holes is the variety of distances and routes of play.

Pebble Beach is great, but in my humble opinion nothing matches the Black Diamond Quarry holes.

Check out the website for photos of the holes at www.blackdiamondranch.com

The other 12 holes, while not nearly as dazzling are very solid championship holes with alot of change in elevation and relatively small angled greens. Could host a major if it had all the parafenalia that's needed for a major venue.

Also there's another 27 holes of very enjoyable Fazio-designed golf that features frequent changes in elevation up to forty feet and good strategy. Would make a good trip or outing with World Woods just 15 minutes away.

What is your favorite stretch of holes?
 

[kgrace]

Hey, who does the PR for Black Diamond?

Any home sites for sale?

I prefer Pacific Grove 11-15.

[Bob_Huntley]

MPCC Dunes.

10 through 14.

Par three... 167 yards from the back. Stunning views of the ocean, Spanish Bay and a MacKenzie/Hunter/Raynor hole of incomparable beauty.

11.

Par four of 400, yards an elevated green, well bunkered with dunes on the left to catch the hooked drive and bunkers on the right for the wayward slice.

12.

A superb par four with a view to infinity out to Hawaii. A green complex that looks out to Spanish Bay and Pacific Grove surrounded by flora and fauna second to none.

13.

A fairly short par five of five hundred and twenty yards going out to the Pacific, nothing heroic but a good test in the wind.

14.

A par three of 177 yards, across the rocks to a green perched on the edge of the ocean. A soul stirring hole that few courses can emulate.


These may not be the greatest holes in Christendom, but I'd like my ashes to be scatterred on a couple of them.

[Scott_Burroughs]

Pebble, 6-10.

Cypress, 13-17.

[Doug Siebert]

Old Head 2-6 or 12-16 are pretty amazing to look at, and it has all the challenge anyone can handle.  Hell I even wimped out and played the blues instead of the blacks.  There are a lot of amazing shots in those stretches, but there are two that stick in my mind the most.

The tee shot on #12 is the most intimidating I've ever seen.  It makes #18 at Pebble Beach look like teeing off on a driving range by comparison -- you hit over the ocean, only it is 300 feet below you and the landing area is above you and therefore totally blind!

The approach to #4 is pretty awesome as well, though I'm not sure if it was more intimidating from where I was with a lateral hazard drop after hooking my 1 iron off the cliff to the left or if it would have been worse from the fairway in perfect position being unable to miss left due to the ocean and unable to miss right due to the 20' high rock wall that runs up immediately against the green on the right side.

[Mark Brown]

Kevin,

I must admit that I did all the marketing for Black Diamond until May,2004, but that just gave me the opportunity to play them a lot and it was a thrill every time I played them.

[David Kelly]

Basically the whole front nine at Crystal Downs but in particular holes 5-9.  

[TEPaul]

I think that certainly in the past anyway, the final stretch of #14-18 at Merion East was always considered perhaps the finest and certainly one of the very toughest stretches of golf holes anywhere. That final stretch in combination with the so-called "short stretch" of the 6-7 holes that precede it is much of what makes Merion East and its routing so unique and so great. I've played a lot of tournament golf at Merion East over the years and that final stretch is pretty much in your head all day long as you understand you have to be in pretty good shape score-wise (perhaps make up some ground on the "short stretch") before you cross the road on the clubhouse side of the course and tackle that brutal final stretch of holes (#14-#18). It's a great stretch of holes anyway but it's made even better by the fact that like a lot of the holes of Merion East it just reeks of some of the greatest tournament history in golf!

[Steve Lapper]

 Tom Paul had it right for tournament golf alright. Merion East after crossing the road is about the most memorable sub-set of grouped holes that fills my little cranium. No other grouping so sets the tone for segregating one group or stretch of holes to determine your final and total rounds experience. Perhaps the  threesome at Cypress makes a permanent mark in a golfer's head, but they don't inspire the fear and excitement combination quotient that Merion does.

Yet, another set or stretchs comes to mind: 10-16 at Shinnecock or 14-18 at Friars Head. Aren't those pretty capable of grabbing great superlatives?

[A_Clay_Man]

The best stretch of holes in the world is...

Starting at #1 at Wild Horse and culminating on the 36th at Sand Hills.

6-10 at Pebble ain't bad, and Mr.Brown's homerism, is duely noted.

Cypress Point Club; 7-18

The closers (orig) at Banff along the river, are hard to rival for sensual overload.

The reality is, any stretch of holes can be great, if you have considerate and enjoyable playing partners.

[wsmorrison]

Steve, I'd vote 9-16 at Shinnecock over 10-16 any day  

[JDoyle]

How about 3-5 at Fishers Island?  I have only played golf on the east coast in the US and therefore cannot comment on Pebble or Cypress.  That being said, I found Fishers 3-5 to be one of the best three holes anywhere, especially with them all being on the water.  Raynor's dramatic green complexes in combination with the setting is awesome.

Oakmont 2-5 is also comes to mind as a personal favorite stretch.

[Steve Lapper]

Steve, I'd vote 9-16 at Shinnecock over 10-16 any day  

Wayne:

    Okay...I relent to the "splitting hairs" correction.


PS...I would throw 14-18 at Sand Hills in and would argue that Merions closing three and Sand Hill's closing trio do eclipse the final 3 at TPC Sawgrass... gotta give mother nature the nod over designing Dye!

[Mark Brown]

Addendum: The 15th at the Quarry is the most stunning hole I've ever seen especially with the morniing dew -- even better than the second shot on No.8 at Pebble. The tee shot never gets any easier because it's hard to concentrate, but when you hit one and it flies, taking about 2 minutes to land it doesn't get any better.

Let's add your most stunning hole.

[Chris Kane]

3-7 at Royal Melbourne West
14-18 at Commonwealth
11-15 at Victoria
8-12 at Kingston Heath
11-15 at New South Wales
14-18 at Royal Melbourne East

[Mike Hendren]

I like nos. 12 through 14 at The Honors, with 15 thrown in for good measure.  12 is a beautiful short par-four pictured in the profile on this site, 13 is straight forward but has a tremendously quirkly green and 14, also pictured, is on my short list of favorite one-shotters anywhere with its rugged appearance sequestered in its own clearing.  I have never finished 15 with the same ball I started it with.

Mike

[michael j fay]

Tough to beat # 12-14 at Fishers Island, maybe 2-5 at Fishers Island.

[Steve Lapper]

Steve, that's a great compare/contrast 16-18 at SH vs. 16-18 at TPC Sawgrass.  I'd probably give it to SH, but that's why I asked for 3 "clearly better" holes.  I don't think I can say that the closers at SH are clearly better.

Shivas,

   I am going to go check my "coif" right now for "split hairs"
You are actually and semantically correct...."clearly better" SH may not be, but for my lowly tastes, they work perfectly....however, I am constantly reminded by all those who know me that I rarely see anything "CLEARLY!"

[Mike Nuzzo]

Best stretchs on the canadian trip...

13-18 Banff - Old Configuration - finish at the Hotel.

Jasper 8-15 included Cleopatra, the Maze and The Bad Baby.

11-15 at Blackhawk

[Steve Lapper]

3-7 at Royal Melbourne West
14-18 at Commonwealth
11-15 at Victoria
8-12 at Kingston Heath
11-15 at New South Wales
14-18 at Royal Melbourne East

Can't argue with those.......maybe needs a whole new category...Best Stretches 10 miles of each other (ex -NSW).

[Travis Ripley]

3-11, Turnberry Ailsa.  (15-17, pretty nice too.)

[Stan Dodd]

6-9 at Royal Aberdeen.  In fact 1-9 is not a bad stretch.

[Michael Dugger]

Name that film:

Seven minute abs!  

There is Something about Mary

[Michael Dugger]

Name this one......

"You can get a good look at a t-bone by sticking your head up a bull's ass but wouldn't you rather take the butcher's word for it??"

and.....

"go a little heavy on the pine tree air freshner this morning boy?"

[Michael Dugger]

My answer is Pine Valley, 1-18

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