Ghost Creek

At two, the hole requires a good tee shot because it is slightly uphill and there is a succession of trees both right and left. It is difficult to judge distance to the second green because the green is a few feet higher than the player. It looks smaller than it really is.

Three has some surprises because of the elevation change and the subtleties around the green are difficult to read from the elevated tee. Club selection is crucial. In the final round of the 1993 NIKE TOUR Championship, David Duval had a hole-in-one here on his way to winning the tournament.

Four is a definite birdie possibility if you position the drive and then don’t get too greedy with the second shot. It is not what it appears. The fairway is a lot wider than it looks, and it is a good idea to get within a sand wedge because the green plays like three different putting surfaces. If you’re going to birdie here, it will be because you played smart. Trying to overwhelm the hole may give you a big number because there is plenty of trouble left of the green.

Ghost Creek jumps up to bite at five, a big par three that played well over par in the Amateur. It will be a long iron and the green is immensely wide. It can be possible to have a 120-foot putt.

Six is a bit of a breather though a little nerve wracking with the creek and the woods. If the tee shot is too safe, the shot to the green is precarious. Missing to the left puts you 30 feet below the green. Missing right is in the creek. Play up to the bunkers in the fairway with whatever club you need to get close. From there it’s just a wedge.

Seven tee shot should turn a little left to catch the slope, and remember the bunkers at the green are “fore bunkers.” They are well short of the green and the purpose is to diffuse the perception of distance to the green. Since the bunker blinds the distance to the front collar, the tendency is to be a little short. No matter what your yardage chart says, the tendency will be to hit it softer. It’s just a curious little feature that Donald Ross liked and it might make you think a little harder.

Eight is a textbook par five. Put it by the bunker on the tee shot and the view to the green is complete. You will know what to do from there, but remember the green is the smallest on the course and looks a little farther than it is. There is plenty of trouble at the green so the best chance at birdie is to wedge it close enough to one-putt. Because of the green size, getting on in two is not a high percentage shot, and the hollows and bunkers at the green are tough enough to keep you from making birdie.

Nine is perhaps the most difficult hole on the entire property. The bunkers tell you the best angle to the green is from the left side of the fairway, unless you enjoy hitting it with a long iron or a fairway wood to a target with water left and slightly behind which is what you will have from the right side. From the left, the green is backed by dry land. The putting surface is somewhat forgiving with space to the right of the green. Be advised that the average score here for two years in the NIKE TOUR was a half a shot over par.

If you hit a good tee shot, the approach may well be with a medium long iron because you are with the prevailing wind. The creek winds its way across the fairway, but it is really not in play. There is some trouble around the green, but it is a definite birdie chance.

Eleven can be disastrous with the creek. It seems to break up the perception of length because it is slightly uphill. Beware. Club selection is everything, especially if the hole is back right. Much like twelve on Witch Hollow and that other twelve at Augusta, getting on the stick when the hole is back left takes some courage and talent.

Twelve shows you the line off the tee, but the tendency is to try to cut the corner that is not a high percentage shot. A little drifter down by the bunkers on the left side of the fairway works well. The green has a nose that juts into the putting surface from the left and separates the back flagstick. If you don’t hit it well off the tee and the flagstick is in the back you might be better advised to just play to the middle of the green and take four. When the hole is in the back, the best approach is from as close to the green as possible. In other words, grip it and rip it, or just play for par.

Thirteen can give up some shots, but don’t get it off line on the tee shot or you’ll find yourself hitting some trick shots to get on. If the flagstick is back, it’s best not to be too bold because over the back is a likely bogey. It falls away and when a shot comes in to a target higher than where the shot was hit, it’s in the top of the arc and hits the green at a lower angle, like a longer club.

Fourteen is the introduction to a stretch of holes that were designed specifically for championship use. It is a long downhill par three that plays tough. It is followed by three holes where the scores can go in either direction depending on the player’s courage or degree of desperation.

Fifteen can yield some birdies and your chances are enhanced if you play up around the tee shot bunker to the right fairway bunker on the second shot. This will put you in position to play into the slope of the green with a short iron. The green is not complicated.

Sixteen is intended to be one of those devilish par threes that entices you to shoot directly at the flagstick that might be just a little too dangerous (especially if the wind is blowing.) Over the back here is a sure bogey. It’s downhill so over-clubbing is a real possibility.

Seventeen is perfectly placed for championship use. Those who play safe may perhaps criticize the hole, commenting that it is too short. Those players will probably make a par. If you want to make three, you need to go after it with a driver. Players walk away from seventeen either completely pumped or totally devastated. At the 1994 NIKE TOUR Championship, Mike Schuchart double-bogeyed this hole in the final round yet still prevailed to win the championship.

On the tee at eighteen, all you have to do is hit a perfect drive about four miles and then a long iron into the prevailing wind with water on the right side of the green, just to get on the big dance floor and hope for a par. As a matter of fact, some may be more aggressive at seventeen just to make up for what they might do at eighteen. With daylight lacking, David Duvall drained a 17-foot putt for birdie to cinch the 1993 NIKE TOUR Championship. One other amazing feat is that he birdied this hole three out of the four rounds.