David:
I'm just curious: in your five rounds, how many hole locations did you see? Which ones? I ask because I know they don't change the hole locations very often out there.
It is a difficult green for sure, but much more so when the flag is on the right half and you aren't hitting it on the right half. If the flag is on the left half, and you miss right, it can also be a difficult-to-impossible two-putt, but that's a really bad miss if you understand the green and the hole location -- all you have to do in that case is hit it in the bowl on the left, short or medium or long, and it's a pretty easy two-putt.
So many people make their judgments based on their own limited playing experience ... I suppose it's inevitable, but it's sad. Of all the holes to not like, you picked what I think is one of the very best holes on the course. The fact that a 380-yard hole is "in your head" is a good sign, to me.
Tom,
I saw two hole locations, and both were on the right half. And like I said, I could not keep my short irons on the right half, although I admit I also was comng in from the right side 4 out of 5 times. Three times I ended up in the back left bowl, once it bounced over the green, and once when I tried to get too cute it ended up in the front bunker. So, my only experience for the most part is trying to two-putt from the back left to a right-side hole location.
Perhaps the conditions contributed as well. I hit the ball pretty far, but because the wind was always into us on the tee I did not think I could hit driver and pass the trouble on the left, which obviously would give me the best angle to attack the green. I decided to hit driver and play to the right side of the fairway...I kept thinking that even though I would have a bad angle, I would be hitting such a short iron I could hold the right side of the green. And every time, I couldn't. My stubbornness may have played a factor
Like I said earlier, #12 and I never learned to love each other. Perhaps we need to re-introduce ourselves!