Biarritz style greens on a short par 4?

[Grant Saunders]

Is a Biarritz style green a suitable form of challenge on a short par 4?

First, to qualify my question, I am not looking to debate the exact features which form a true Biarritz.

Second, I have not played a Biarritz so I am purely speculating.

During a recent reconstruction project in NZ, a short par 4 (approx 330 metres I think) was built featuring a Biarritz style green. The hole has no bunkering and plays to a slight dogleg left from the tee. The safe play is a long iron leaving a full approach shot to the green. Of course, there is the option to take driver and try to get down as close to the green as possible.

This picture shows the approach from approx 60 metres



As you can see, the risk with driver is turning it over too much and having to deal with the left hand trees.

This photo shows the preferred angle of approach. To achieve this position, the out of bounds on the right must be flirted with.


You can just make out the swale running through the width of the green

To me, trying to approach this green (particularly a back pin) with a short wedge would be incredibly difficult. The bisecting swale runs right across the green at the point where you would seek to land your ball and have it release to the back hole location. You now have to attempt the shot with less loft and land on the front portion of the green and judge the weight and spin to have the ball run out to the back. Alternatively, a front pin is guarded by a slight false front which demands a ball either played short and run up or a shot that pitches on and doesnt run into the swale.

The next 2 pictures show the extent of the swale when viewed from front left and the back of the green





To me, a Biarritz requiring a long approach with an iron or wood, in theory seems easier as the shot will naturally release. Trying to play to such a green with a short club you are having to deal with the spin characteristics of the shot as well which further challenges the players ability to calculate how the ball will react with the ground.

Hopefully someone has played both and can offer a solid opinion on this.

I havent as yet played this hole but am hoping to next weekend. I will elaborate on its playing characteristics further then.

[Sam Morrow]

I've always thought that would be a cool feature on a short par 4 or 5 for that matter, it would make the player think.

[Mark Saltzman]

There is a course near Toronto called National Pines (Architect Tom McBroom) that has a Biarritz green on a par-5.  It is really interesting playing to that green with a wedge.  The fear of finding the swale makes it very difficult to get to front pins, and the fact that there is a false-front adds to the precision requirement.  

Back pins are by far the best.  From 100 yards, so few players ever think to try to run the ball to the back portion and nearly everyone ends up in the middle swale.

The only issue is that from 100 yards out, getting the ball near the pin when it is at the bottom of the swale is VERY EASY.  Though, I guess there is a pretty large penalty if you fail to find the easy target.

[Mark Saltzman]

Here are a couple more non-par 3 Biarritz greens:

Lookout Point (Walter Travis), Hole 6?, Ontario - A long and difficult par 4:







CC of Florida (Lester George), Hole 10, Florida - A long and difficult par 4:

[BCrosby]

Biarritz greens work really well on short par 4's and most any par 5. Mike Young has done a couple of each. They also would work well on shorter par 3s, though I've never seen one. Seems to me that they work least well in the template version, long par 3's. Which is why, I'd guess, its the template hole that is copied the least.
 

Bob

[Tim Nugent]

What about #16 at North Berwick?  I know the angle is different and the valley is askew, but I always thought this hole was great fun, especially if you had the misfortune of ending up short and the pin was back.

Mark, thanks for the pic of #6 @ LO Point.  I'm during something similar on a long par 4.  Had never seen one like it before (that I can remember).

[Robert Mercer Deruntz]

15th TPC Hartford is an excellent version.  You will often see the pros play a shot from 80 yards that lands in front and skips and rolls through the swale and then up to the pin.  Among the more intersting shotmaking seems to be seen on this hole yearly.

[Tim Martin]

15th TPC Hartford is an excellent version.  You will often see the pros play a shot from 80 yards that lands in front and skips and rolls through the swale and then up to the pin.  Among the more intersting shotmaking seems to be seen on this hole yearly.

Robert-Besides having water left the green turns this short par 4 into a really fun hole both for spectators and players alike. The back left pin creates quite a challenge for those that don`t go for the green.

[Mark Johnson]

16th at Minnesota valley.  A very good hole

Very good risk reward hole.  About 370 with a narrow fairway.   Challenges you to take a driver if you want to spin a wedge close

http://sports.webshots.com/photo/2864421490100544033vTTAOD

[Tyler Kearns]

The Biarritz green is interesting in terms of watching an approach shot run through the swale or not, and the myriad options available on recovery shots played around the green that need to engage with the prominent swale. Therefore, I think this type of green is interesting and enjoyable for any hole length, add to that the ability to rotate the swale so that it is not always perpendicular to the line of play, and you've got even more versatility.

TK

[Keith Williams]

Mike Dasher on the 16th at Highlands Reserve outside of Orlando, very good hole on a really good golf course.  Also, Windswept Dunes in the panhandle of Florida has a good Biarritz green on the 10th, a real long par 4.

[Dan Kelly]

Jeff Brauer built a short-par-4 Biarritz green at The Wilderness at Fortune Bay (Tower, Minnesota).

Bobby Weed built a mid-length par-4 Biarritz green at StoneRidge (Stillwater, Minnesota).

[Ronald Montesano]

Home cooking on this one, as KLynch and I cannot remotely suggest that any esteemed golf course architect was ever within thirty miles of this course...322/308/220

Tee shot deep


Tee Shot close, green around corner


BiaRedan green from rear


Warts and all

[Adam Lawrence]

Steve Forrest built a Biarritz green on the first hole of the new Tournament course at Vasatorps in Sweden. Tough hole - from the yellow tees is was 440 yards or so, and when you get there you ind a fifty yard long green with a big swale in the middle. I asked Steve if this wasn't just a tad unkind the next time I saw him, and he laughed - turned out the club had decided to reverse the nines, so he'd intended it as the tenth...

[David_Tepper]

Forrest Richardson designed a "horizontal" Biarritz-style green on the short par-4 (under 300 yards) 7th hole as part of his renovation at Peacock Gap (San Rafael, CA). The green is much wider than it is deep and has a channel/swale running front-to-back in the middle.