The Pinehurst Dream 18: The best holes you can play in the Pinehurst region
Ah, Pinehurst. To serious traveling golfers, the very name conjures up images of reverence and awe, commensurate with the very best in golf. Just about every great stick, from Bobby Jones and Ben Hogan to Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, has competed and won at a Pinehurst-area course, and each has gushed praise for the virtues of golf in the Carolina Sandhills. The Pinehurst/Southern Pines/Aberdeen region is sprinkled with stellar public-access layouts, but which holes that you can play are the best of the best in Pinehurst? We compiled a blue-ribbon panel of architects, club champions and design scholars, all with deep familiarity with golf in and around Pinehurst and had them handpick the best in show. The result is the Pinehurst Dream 18.
NO. 1 Talamore Golf Resort, Southern Pines 1st hole, par 5, 623 yards
The most memorable, and perhaps most daunting opener in town is this gargantuan three-shotter from architect Rees Jones. Mature pines, wetlands that intrude into the fairway on the right, a stout bunker front-right of the green and a large green framed by mounds place a premium on accuracy, yet its massive length means you better be ready to smash away right from the opening bell.
NO. 2 Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, Southern Pines 2nd hole, par 4, 481 yards
Donald Ross’ 1927 masterpiece has hosted three U.S. Women’s Opens, won by Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb and Cristie Kerr, all of whom faced a demanding early-round test at the second. Its shot value recently restored by architect John Fought, this sturdy par 4 calls for a drive to a plateau, followed by a well-gauged
downhill approach to a green that slopes beguilingly away from the player.
NO. 3 Southern Pines Country Club, Southern Pines 3rd hole, par 3, 198 yards
Formerly owned by the Elks Club, this Donald Ross original bares its antlers at the third. From an elevated tee, it’s easy to see what’s ahead—a healthy long iron to a well-bunkered green that slopes sharply from back to front. It’s tough to chase a ball to a back pin, with a fear of airmailing the green giving pause. Yet a front hole is cut in the narrowest portion of the green. Find the middle of the putting surface and you still face a tough downhill putt. Simple in plan, stupendous in execution.
NO. 4 Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club, Southern Pines 4th hole, par 4, 330 yards
A unanimous selection by our panel, this mighty-mite bears the architectural footprint of Donald Ross in 1921, but not until Kyle Franz’ 2013 restoration did its star truly shine. The ideal layup drive to a left-to-right tilting fairway will hug the sandy hazard on the left, which affords a great angle and look into the green. A precise approach is a must, as the shallow, plateau target slopes away back-right, so any indifferent wedge will spin off the green. It’s drivable, but miss in the wrong place and face 5 or worse.
NO. 5 Pinehurst Resort (No. 2), Pinehurst 5th hole, par 4/5, 481/576 yards
As one of our panelists put it, “one of the top five holes in the world—as a par-4. Now it’s an ordinary par-5.” A par 4 for the 1999 and 2005 U.S. Opens and a par 5 for the 2014 U.S. Open, either way, it’s memorable. A right-to-left fairway tilt suggests keeping the drive up the right side, but too far right and the ball will be well above your feet for the long, demanding second. The same vicious tilt at the throat of the green will repel all but the most skillfully judged approaches.
Shared from GOLF
By Joe Passov
