[Craig_Rokke]

Where has the short par 3 gone? This quiery crept into my mind the other weekend after tapping in on scruffy Pocono Manor-East's partially-obscured 78 yard drop shot par 3. A hole like this would never be built today, yet it remains a popular hole on the unusual Ross layout, garnering as many bogeys or doubles , as pars. (Did Ross or his associates ever do another similar hole?)

I'm glad a few guys like Gil Hanse are not obsessed with hitting 7300 yards on their blue prints. The 5th hole at French Creek would probably not be there if he were. But what
an interesting hole it is. The wind was calm when I played, but I'm sure members have used half a dozen different clubs, depending on the breeze. Looking back from the
elevated green, the abyss of a "pocket quarry" gouged out below made me quite pleased to holding my putter. I appreciate the extra measure of "danger" often paired with these types of holes.

The 11th at Applebrook, the 5th at Inniscrone, and the 8th at Rustic Canyon are all interesting holes in the 125 yard-or-less range, that add variety to Gil's layouts.

So who else is still incorporating the short par 3 into their course design work? (I don't seem get the chance to get out and see as much of the newer projects as I would like these days.) I know some of Coore and Crenshaw's courses also utilize them. But I imagine the list is a short one. Any good examples out there?

[wsmorrison]

Craig,

The 7th at Pocono Manor is a Flynn hole (circa 1920) as are the 8th through sixteenth.  These were Flynn's holes 3 through 12.  The other eight holes were from Ross.

[Jfaspen]

The 9th/10th at Caledonia Golf and Fish club is a wonderful short par 4 of less than 100 yards..  A tough green surrounded by deep bunkers made for a more thrilling shot than some of the other par 3's.

[Craig_Rokke]

That's interesting to hear about the origins of the holes, Wayne. The totally blind, punch bowl-shaped par 3, is also Flynn's (#3?). I've played just 2 of Flynn's courses,but those 2 holes seem unusual for him--or anyone else, for that matter.

[Craig_Rokke]

Jeffrey-
Agreed on the 9th at Caledonia, my favorite Myrtle Beach course. Just 92 yards from the white tees. Mike Strantz
did some great work there...

[Forrest Richardson]

I believe there are several designers today who agree with John Low — that "...the short hole should not be long."

A few of our short par-3, or as we call them "short hairs" —

Links at Las Palomas (Mexico) — No. 7 at 110-yards
Coldwater (AZ) — No. 8 at 95-yards
Coyote Lakes (AZ) — No. 12 at 100-yards
Arizona Biltmore Adobe (AZ) — No. 9 at 130-yards
Phantom Horse (AZ) — No. 12 at 120-yards
The Hideout (UT) — No. 3 at 130-yards
Buenaventura (CA) — No. 17 at 115-yards
Wigwam Blue (AZ) — (new) No. 15 at 120-yards

A quick survey of work on the drawing board shows a host of short holes. I like them very much because I see the thoughtfulness that gets acted out when I play with people at the short 3s. Club selection becomes fun to watch — placement becomes a reality, even for the lesser golfer.

As putting is a great equalizer to playing skills; the short par-3 is also a great equalizer among golfing competitors.

[David_Tepper]

I think every course should have a short par-3, with an elevated tee and a well-bunkered green, that requires only a pitching wedge or 9-iron.  There is something neat about watching your tee-shot hang in the air, for what seems like a very long time, and wondering where it will land.

The #13th hole (now the 4th hole) at the Presidio in San Francisco is such a hole. Claremont CC and Orinda CC in the East Bay have similar ones as well.

The only problem with short par-3's is that the greens take a beating from all the ball marks they absorb. If your golfers are not good about repairing their ball marks, the green can get ugly.


 

[Forrest Richardson]

Greens at the short par-3 are typically large — "greens within greens."

At No. 7 (The Links at Las Palomas) our green is 15,000 s.f. — huge. It's really three greens ties together over humps and hollows.

[tonyt]

I think every course should have a short par-3, with an elevated tee and a well-bunkered green, that requires only a pitching wedge or 9-iron.  There is something neat about watching your tee-shot hang in the air, for what seems like a very long time, and wondering where it will land.

I'd also be rapt if at least every third or fourth course I played had a well designed fun pitch one-shotter. At a place called The Dunes near Melbourne, there is a solidly very good 18 hole public access course, with an accompanying shorter 9 hole course of similar maintenance standards though lesser overall quality and complexity as it caters for the older/beginner/junior/leisure market. It has a drop shot 60 odd yard par 3 which is a flip gap wedge or lob wedge, and yet it is the most eagerly anticipated shot in the 27 holes on the whole complex.

[Doug Siebert]

For any such holes built in the past say 20 years or so, how many were really designed to be such, versus just having the choice forced on the architect?

A course here in town called Brown Deer that was originally a 9 hole housing development driven course was remodeled and expanded to 18 holes.  There were two "problem" holes on the original nine that were doglegs around housing that weren't good designs in the mid 80s but were terrible with today's equipment creating long carries off the driver for anyone with a speck of athletic ability.  To solve them, the first and second holes were combined to create a short par 5 of about 480 yards that doglegs right around a lake (mid to short iron for a good player, torture for the water fearing and slicing hacker, but whatever...at least they were smart enough to make this #10 and not leave it as #1)  The old 5th, a 310 yard uphill hole that doglegged 90* right at about the 210 mark, was split into a strange but wicked 270 yard ultra-steep par 4, and a tiny par 3 that used the green of the former hole, that's 90 yards from the regular tees and 110 from the tips.

Every time I play that hole, I think of the missed opportunities to have done something interesting there.  True, it saved money to reuse the existing green as-is, but if they just spent $2.95 million on the fancy new clubhouse instead of $3 million, they could have redone the green with some dramatic contours, a fallaway or deep bunker on one side.  Or just made the green more "postage stamp" in size.  Something, anything, to keep it from being one of the most boring par 3s I've ever played.  That's the danger with the really short holes in my mind -- if they don't offer something of interest, they stand out too much in a negative way.

Really a shame too.  If they'd either made that hole more interesting, or built 10 new holes instead of 9, the overall course would be rated more highly in my mind because the new nine is pretty good, and the remodeling otherwise made the most of the pre-existing nine.

[peter_p]

Coore-Crenshaw Bandon Trails #5, 133/124/110.

[Forrest Richardson]

Doug — "...just having the choice forced on the architect..."

While chopping up a decent routing or existing course is never good practice, the constraints forced upon a golf course architect are often the opportunities that make magic. Nearly all great golf course architecture is a product of using natural obstacles — including limiting nooks and crannies — to the advantage of the golf.

That's how I came to love the par-2 concept.

[paul cowley]

....or the half par concept where a two on a par two and a half is a half bird, and where a three would be a half bogey.

Its best to balance a nine with two half pars....it creates some very interesting competition scoring opportunities, and lets us build courses in those half par distance zones....I want to build a 65 yard, par two and a half that gets some respect!

...or a 540 yard, par four and a half.

I'm not holding my breath ...but par is such a silly thing, all about score , not about design really.....tsk tsk.

[Phil_the_Author]

Do all short par-threes need go downhill? The 3rd hole on the Green Course at Bethpage (this hole designed by Devereau Emmet) is 120yards at best that can be as little as 105 yards & is straight UPHILL! It is a totally blind shot and fun. I have never seen another par-three like it, but wouldn't be surprised to learn of others.

Any architects out there ever been at least tempted to design one like this?

[Scott Witter]

Forrest,

You stated that "Greens at the short par-3 are typically large"

Why do you believe this is so?  Is this your design approach?  I do understand how this can be very affective, as well as interesting, assuming the pinning areas on the putting surfaces are strategic and fit the surrounding features, but I am not sure this is typical, at least from my experience, nor do I believe this to be necessary.

Yes, there are the maintenance aspects, ball marks etc., but I look more at the design and playability...

[Tom_Doak]

Coore and Crenshaw do a par-3 under 150 yards on most of their courses, although they did not at Friars Head.

Pacific Dunes has two of them (in opposite directions, so that one is always into the wind and one downwind), and we've also done good ones at Stonewall North (the 6th), Cape Kidnappers (#13), and my favorite, the Little Devil at Barnbougle (#7).

However I am not especially looking to include a hole like this in the eighteen, considering that good players are coming at nearly every par-4 and par-5 with a short iron or a wedge today.

[Joel_Stewart]

Coore-Crenshaw Bandon Trails #5, 133/124/110.

And its a tough little bugger especially with a front pin placement.  It should be noted that it has a biarritz green allowing much flexability.

[Ben Voelker]

I'm sure this is probably an obvious one to most, but the 10th at Wild Horse is 126 from the tips.  I thought that was a fun hole when I was there.

Also, although it's not new by any means, a course I play in Door County, Wisconsin called Peninsula Golf Course has a little 80 yard par 3 that is probably 50-60 feet downhill!  It's an interesting little hole and have heard of golfers hitting everything from driver all the way to putter to just sort of nudge the ball out over the hill.  The shot seems to give people fits, especially on the 1st time through the course.  Probably one of the more unique holes I've played.

[Anthony_Nysse]

Mr. Doak,
  Isn't #17 at Friar's only about 130 yards?

Tony Nysse
Asst. Supt.
Long Cove Club
HHI, SC

[Kyle Harris]

Do all short par-threes need go downhill? The 3rd hole on the Green Course at Bethpage (this hole designed by Devereau Emmet) is 120yards at best that can be as little as 105 yards & is straight UPHILL! It is a totally blind shot and fun. I have never seen another par-three like it, but wouldn't be surprised to learn of others.

Any architects out there ever been at least tempted to design one like this?

Phil,

The State College Elks club has a similar par 3 (the 2nd). Wedge shot to a green high above you. Quite fun. Not sure who did the design there though. Could have been Harrison and Garbin.

[Mike_Cirba]

Kyle,

I'm surprised at you!  How could you forget that most eminent of designers, Lowell Erdman?  

Actually, Alex Findlay designed a ton of short uphill par threes to blind or partially blind greens with superb examples found at Reading CC (PA), Llanerch CC, Pitman (NJ), Cohanzick (NJ), John Byrne (PA), Galen Hall (PA), Tavistock (NJ) (although longer than most), Manor (PA), and Middletown (PA) (formerly Langhorne CC).

He may have been king of the short, uphill, blind par three.

[Tony_Chapman]

I'm sure this is probably an obvious one to most, but the 10th at Wild Horse is 126 from the tips.  I thought that was a fun hole when I was there.

Ben - It's the 11th, but you are right that is a really fun hole.

I'm a fan of the 6th at Tobacco Road. The 17th is really short too, but that hole should be blown up in favor a par-3 between the current 12th green and the 13th tee.

[Andy Hughes]

The 17th is really short too, but that hole should be blown up in favor a par-3 between the current 12th green and the 13th tee.

Tony, interesting idea...why there? I don't recall any particularly interesting land between the green and the next tee, just a gradual uphill walk. Or do you find the 17th so bad that anything would be an improvement?
Now, we had fun playing from the 17th tee, over the bushes at the back of the tee, and back down to the 16th green with its slopes. That was a tricky and challenging short par 3!

[Jeff_Mingay]

Rod Whitman has a drop shot par 3 measuring about 100 yards on the drawing board at Richard Zokol's Sagebrush project in British Columbia.

[Tony_Chapman]

The 17th is really short too, but that hole should be blown up in favor a par-3 between the current 12th green and the 13th tee.

Tony, interesting idea...why there? I don't recall any particularly interesting land between the green and the next tee, just a gradual uphill walk. Or do you find the 17th so bad that anything would be an improvement?
Now, we had fun playing from the 17th tee, over the bushes at the back of the tee, and back down to the 16th green with its slopes. That was a tricky and challenging short par 3!

Andy - If you could think of one thing TR doesn't have that would be fun, what is it.

A wonderfully long par-3 that is a 1/2 par hole, right? That would be a fine piece of property to create something and heck you don't lose anything. In fact it's better for walkers because the 16th tee is closer to the 18th tee than the 17th green is.

[Tags:]

Tags:

[Tags:]

Tags:

Call to undefined function theme_linktree()