Holein1
France |
Posted: Sunday, March 31, 2024 @ 6:39:14 AM at |
IP Logged |
|
This TPC at Country Valley GCC course is quite pretty with very colorful flowers, and really tough, with plenty of elongated bunkers, and small water hazards all along the fairways and around the narrow greens. In fact, on this short par 69, you will have to be very patient and choose the right clubs if you don’t want to end up in big trouble, as you will find out with the left dogleg par-4 1st hole, with a small pond in the right corner, midway, and a tinier one to the left of the small undulating green, and the very short (about 120 yards) par-3 2nd, pretty with deep rough and shrubs all the way to the green, but very risky with a wide bunker in front and a tiny pond, right behind the green. More tiny ponds are next to the greens of the right dogleg par-5 3rd hole, and the dogleg par-4 4th, bending sharply to the left (with plenty of shrubs and trees in the corner, over which you might be tempted to hit your tee shot), but the toughest hole is the left dogleg par-4 6th, with a tiny pond, in the right corner, and a small hilltop, filled with trees (on the opposite side), and a flag, at the tip of a tiny green, surrounded halfway behind by water. As for the par-3 7th hole, you will need to hit a blind tee shot over a small mound, filled with deep rough, downward to reach the green. The back 9 starts with two tough holes, the right dogleg par-4 10th, with a blind tee shot over a small mound, landing between an elongated bunker (behind) and a small elongated pond (on the right), and another approach over a little bit of water in front of the green, and the very scenic, and quite short (about 115 yards) par-3 11th, with a blind tee shot over tall grass and shrubs and, again, more water to deal with to reach the green. Then, after the right dogleg par-4 12th hole, with an elongated bunker, midway on the right (facing an elongated pond) and a blind second shot toward the green, you will move on to the beautiful par-3 13th, with a blind tee shot over an inverted L-shaped pond ending to the left of the green, before heading for the right dogleg par-4 14th, similar to the 12th hole. Of the last four holes, my favorite is the gorgeous par-3 16th, with a tee shot over a big elongated lake and a... wide green, but you will be happy to know that the right dogleg par-4 17th, with an elongated pond, midway to the left (facing an elongated bunker), has a green, with no water or bunker around ! You will complete your round with the right dogleg par-4 18th hole, with a blind tee shot over trees landing near elongated bunkers (on both sides of the fairway) and, surprise, more water halfway around the green. Overall, despite a couple of small designing flaws (grass “poking out” on the bunker in front of the green on the 15th hole, and a few creases in the panorama), I like this course with all its risk/reward holes (especially the very short par-3s), thanks to skydoral’s imagination...
|