[Lou_Duran]

SERENE, BEAUTIFUL, FEARFUL?

AND IF YOU MISS:



TAKE YOUR MEDICINE.

[A_Clay_Man]

Totally recoverable from. Devoid of bogus trees, everywhere.

I'd say these grounds are better for golf than 90% of the 17,000. But, I'll hold off til Ive seen'em all, since I may be mis-construed as biased.

[Dunnyboy]

Lou Duran,
The surrounding land in the photos really shows how alien golf courses look in the high desert.
The bunkering seems superflous in conjunction with the sandy, rocky, scruffy terrain.
Very alluring though.

[Norbert P]

Lou, may we have more information please?  Thank you.

[THuckaby2]

#8 at Black Mesa, outside Santa Fe, NM.

This is just about the weakest hole on the course... and by my take it's still damn good.

Grounds for golf?  Heck yeah.  But don't ask George Pazin.

[Lou_Duran]

Goes to show how much I know.  I thought that #8 was the strongest of a nice set of par 3s, with maybe #11 being my favorite.  As I recall, the hole is a bit downhill west to s.west, about 230 from the far back tees.  The green itself has considerable movement, specially for a hole that long and all the trash around it.  It was a 5-wood for me from the backs in the early round, and a 7-iron from the second set in the p.m. after the winds picked up from behind (north, northeat).

The second picture is of Bill McBride, I think on his approach shot to the long par 4 #10.  We all hit numerous shots into the natives.  I suggested that the course provide a rock club to each group and waive the 14-club limit with a local rule.

No question, fun challenging golf that can also be a bit frustrating.  

[Matt_Ward]

The 8th at Black Mesa is indeed a solid hole. At 235 yards in change from the back tees the hole cqn play in a variety of ways with the wind deciding your line of attack.

From an elevated tee with no wind the hole is quite straightforward. When the pin is placed on the right side you face a demanding approach. Why? The simplest push to the right is headed into the local equivalent of the "Valley of Sin." Playing a recovery from that side is almost impossible because of the angle and loft you need to hit.

In mild or no wind the hole for strong players can be a mid iron like a 4 or 5. When the wind does blow hard in your face I have hit as much as a 1-iron from the tips to keep the ball down and hope for a favorable bounce.

I agree with Lou -- the 8th is a good hole although I also agree with him that the 11th is just a bit better.

[Bill_McBride]

The box canyon par 3's are so good and exciting at Black Mesa that it's easy to overlook #8 and #15 which are just as strong.  I'm not sure which tees Mr. Huckaby played #8 from if he recalls it as an easy hole!

It's no fun playing #10 from the left rocks.  I think I had that shot on #18 as well!  

I had so much fun playing in Santa Fe (Las Campanas, Black Mesa, Pa-ako Ridge) that I'm thinking of a return trip next summer.  Maybe we can assemble a group to check back on Black Mesa!

[THuckaby2]

By "weakest" I meant in a design/fun way... Oh shit yes, it's a very difficult golf hole, without a doubt.  It sure as hell took it's pound of flesh from me.  Sorry for the confusion.  

I'd rate each of the other par 3's above it in that sense, and in fact, if I had to go over all 18 holes in this way, #8 would be way down at the bottom, if not the 18th ranked.

And you know what?  It's still a damn good hole, as these gents have attested.  That to me is a testament to how great this course is, and answers the question quite emphatically that hell yes these are grounds for golf.

TH

[A_Clay_Man]

Wind has become key, in more ways than one, for this hole. The gaps in the ridge play havoc with not only the golfers mind but also the water coming from the sprinkler head. The sshorter smallish teeing grounds, to the right of the cart path, have difficulty getting watered sufficiently enough with higher winds.

I understood what Tom H meant when he called it "weak". But the right bunker is too cool when compared to the pond, on 15. Plus, to cal either hole weak, demonstates the quality of the entire package.

[THuckaby2]

Your last line was really my sole and only "point", Adam.  If this hole is "weak", than what must the course as a whole be... pretty damn great, that's what.

Good call re bunker here as opposed to pond on 15, btw.  The latter did just have an out of place "look", alhtough I do understand why it has to be there... Man that green on 15 is so wild and so great though, they could fill that with day-glo slime and I'd still like the golf hole.  What a green....

[A_Clay_Man]

Black Mesa #15

The pond is pretty much a non-issue, unless, one aims for it to attempt to draw a ball in there. The protecting bunker makes it almost impossible to find aquatic doom.

I can attest to the strength of the front or frnt left pin position during these winter months, on 15. The hole actually goes from being considered for one of weakest to being considered for strongest. Emmas.

[Matt_Ward]

Gents:

Re: 15th hole -- Any pin position to the left of the spine that runs through the middle of the green is quite demanding. I have seen people attempt to "bounce" the ball in from the left fringe and the ball will simply gather pace and run all the way down to the far right side of the green.

I concur with Adam in one respect -- with the pin front left it becomes a test of wills -- whether the player has the "will" to tempt success or simply bail out.

The quartet of par-3 holes at Black Mesa make for a solid unit. Each is different from the other and the green designs by Baxter Spann only add to their allure.

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