Holein1
France |
Posted: Friday, November 12, 2021 @ 6:58:18 AM at |
IP Logged |
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With its gentle rolling hills as a panorama, small elevation changes, water hazards and its numerous and shallow wide bunkers (with deep rough around), this par 73 is a beautiful course to watch and play... as long as you don’t look at that big white hotel, “spoiling” the view of the countryside ! On the front 9, I like the right dogleg par-4 1st hole, very pretty with its tee area surrounded by nice flowers at the bottom of high walls, and where, after a downhill tee shot landing near a big pond on the right, you will need to hit an uphill approach to the elevated green. The par-3 3rd hole is quite scenic too, with a tee shot over a small serpentine river, just like the right dogleg par-5 4th, where you will have a choice of two fairways, with the one on the left being safer than the one on the right (where you will have to hit a very precise tee shot over a small bridge and the winding river), before hitting your approach to the green, with a big lake behind. If the par-4 5th hole is short (less than 330 yards), reaching the green with your tee shot won’t be easy with a wide lake to fly over, whereas, on the right dogleg par-5 6th, you will need to hit precise shots to avoid all those scattered wide bunkers all the way to the green, before moving on to the cute par-3 7th hole, next to a road on the right, with, again, plenty of wide bunkers and a couple of small rocks to watch for. You will then reach my favorite hole, the gorgeous and short (about 325 yards) par-4 8th, with a blind tee shot slightly downhill to a heart-shaped island green, quite risky to reach with, guess what, a big bunker, right in front, and a couple of thin trees on the right. As you get ready to hit your slightly-downhill tee shot on the straight par-4 9th hole, you will then see that big hotel, at the end of the road (on the right), behind the nice clubhouse (and parking lot) and the slightly-elevated green, guarded by a few bunkers in front. The back 9 starts with the short (less than 500 yards) and nice right dogleg par-5 10th hole, with a tee shot over a gentle slope (on the right), with a big bunker below in the corner, and an approach shot over a lake, and is followed by another short hole (about 305 yards), the straight par-4 11th, with more wide bunkers to watch for, should you try to reach the green with your tee shot... Then, after the left dogleg par-4 12th hole, uphill all the way, with a tree-lined fairway midway ending near the green, slightly downhill, you will reach the cute and short par-3 13th, with a blind tee shot downward to the green, with a tiny pond in front and a nice wooden farm (with a small windmill) behind. The left dogleg par-4 14th hole is quite short too (about 315 yards), but reaching the slightly-uphill green is out of the question with small trees in the corner and a couple of wide bunkers in front. Then, after the right dogleg par-4 15th hole, with its rollercoaster fairway, and a... pot bunker on the left of the green, and the par-4 16th (with a big vending machine on the right near the tee box !), and its green, slightly to the right, you will reach the left dogleg par-4 17th hole, with two big rocks across the fairway midway and an uphill and blind approach to the green, with another small rock in front. You will finish with the nice right dogleg par-5 18th hole where, after hitting a downhill tee shot (hopefully) landing between four wide bunkers, you will need to hit a tricky and long second shot to reach the green, with two big ponds in front and behind, before heading for the clubhouse... or that hotel and its tennis courts ! Needless to say, you will need to bring you bucket and spade as this Sand Piper Farm course, one of the best designed by Bullpupp2, has plenty of sand traps ready to welcome your errant shots. But it is a delighful course to keep (despite that hotel not belonging there in the middle of that very scenic landscape...).
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