This time, let's talk about the walls in the golf course.
Walls, as immovable obstacles, are a common element in the pitch. When they appear on the tee or outside the green, they often exist as a landscape; but when they appear in the hole, or even separate the fairways, things become complicated and interesting. All we have to say is the wall behind it.
Most of the low stone walls in the stadium are left over from history. Thoughtful designers, like jade carvings, bring these age-old walls to life and merge with the holes. Similar to the island greens, the walls in the stadium often play a punitive role, which tests the player's ability to hit the ground game; the difference is that these walls do not directly incur penalties, but often require the player to adjust the distance and angle of the shot, playing a strategic role.
St Andrews Old Stadium no. 17 hole
The player is kicking off at the billboard of the old stadium hotel
The 17th hole of the old course is famous all over the world, nicknamed the "Road Hole", and it is one of the hardest holes in the whole course. In this par four hole, which is nearly 500 yards long, the low wall behind the green and the wall surrounding the old stadium hotel form a "Z" shape, and the best route for golfers to kick off is to aim at the dark green old stadium hotel billboard inside the wall. Before the 2010 British Open, the road hole's tees were stretched back nearly 40 yards, making the road hole bunkers and low walls at the right rear of the green so that only 38 percent of the players were on the greens with pars, with an average of 4.665. In order to avoid road hole bunkers and prevent breakdown of the green, many players even opted for the three upper.
The low wall behind the green, some people avoid it, and some people use it rationally. On Saturday, the 2010 British Open, Simones shot the ball for the second time on the hole, about 20 yards from the green, right next to the base of the wall. In the hopeless situation of normal swing, the veteran broke the boat and simply hit the ball against the low wall. Luckily, the ball not only bounced up the green, but was less than 5 yards from the flagpole. Although Simmonis scored two strokes above par in that round, this shot became the most classic scene in that British Open.
North Beric West Links 13 holes
The stone walls cling to the greens
Imagine if you hit a green and put the ball on a green ring 12 feet from the flagpole, but the ball is next to a wall, so that you can't even make amends. At this time, will you cry and laugh? This kind of thing that sounds ridiculous is entirely possible at North Berwick West Links.
North Berwick West Links, typical of the Scottish Links, is also one of the most influential courses in the world. The famous "Redan" par three hole has become the prototype of many holes, and the rare stone wall is not so easy to copy. The most interesting stone wall on the course is on Hole 13, a par four hole less than 400 yards long nicknamed "The Pit." The intermittent stone wall resembles a long sword, inserted almost vertically into the hole and separating the green from the fairway.
If a small section of stone wall outside the bunker on the left side of the fairway is just a landscape decoration, then the stone wall of more than 100 yards in length in the back section poses a real threat to the players. Because the smallest green in the whole course is located on the other side of this stone wall.
Such a layout gives players a dilemma. If the first shot is safe and hits the ball to the right side of the fairway, then the shot to attack the green must be particularly accurate in terms of flight altitude and distance; if you want to calmly attack the green, then the two circular bunkers on the left side of the serve will pose a great threat to the kick-off.
Stonewall Links Northcourse Hole 8
Stone walls divide the fairway into two segments
Stonewall Links, just from the name of the club, you can know what its characteristics are. The Pennsylvania club, usa, consists of two 18-hole courses, the Old Course and the North Court, built in 1998 and 2008 respectively, all by Tom Docker.
In the course, some old buildings have been preserved, such as the 1st hole tee and the 18th hole green of the old course, which are facing the clubhouse with heavy stone walls and once used to be a farm barn; in the north field, those old stone walls and churches have become important reference elements when designing the hole route, and also add a lot of wild interest to the course.
Hole 8 of the Northcourt, over 600 yards long, is the longest hole in the entire course. In this right dog-legged par 5 hole, the stone wall acts like a "less than number", separating the four serves in the back from the fairways and dividing the fairways into two segments. Compared with the stone walls in the "road hole" and the "deep pit", the stone wall here is relatively less threatening to the players, and what really requires the player to make a decision is to adjust the direction of the tee shot according to the flagpole position of the day, or to approach the stone wall, or close to the fairway bunker, so that a safer batting line can be found on the second stroke.
Richland Country Club No. 7 hole
The course retains the stone walls from the Battle of Nashville period
Richland Country Club is a purely private membership club in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, founded in 1901. Over the course of time, the club has been divided and merged, with ups and downs. The course portion was once the centerpiece of cavalry operations at the Battle of Nashville in 1864, an important battle in the American Civil War. In 1985, during the excavation of land and the construction of a new clubhouse and stadium, a large number of fragments of old ammunition and artifacts were found. The tee marker on the tee table of the stadium uses replicas of old cannonballs, and next to holes 8 and 9, there are also replicas of the cannons of the war.
The stadium opened in 1988 and was designed by Jack Nicklaus. During the design, Nicklaus encountered a winding stone wall that was a defensive area built by the Union army during the battle. Instead of laying the fairway along the stone wall, the designers let it cross the fairway, cutting the 520-yard No. 7 hole in two. Since the stone wall traversed was only about 120 yards from the green, it posed a serious threat to the player's second stroke. If the tee shot goes well, hitting the ball over the stone wall is not a big problem; if the kick-off is not a good point or the wind direction is unfavorable, then it is wise to adjust a shot.
Anahita Golf Course 14 holes
The two stone walls in the fairway make the hole dangerous
Located within Four Seasons Resort Mauritius, Anahita Stadium was designed by Ernie Els. The course not only has excellent ocean views, but it is also very challenging. It was the site of the 2018 Mauritius Open and the home of Nicolas Kaussets.
The 14th hole in the course, nicknamed "Taste of Scotland", is a par 458-yard par four. The half-meter-high, black stone wall is divided into five sections, appearing on the left side of the tee, in the middle of the fairway, on the left side of the green, and on the left rear end of the hole. Unlike the stone walls that appear in other courses, the two sections of stone walls in the fairway here are almost parallel to the fairways, dividing it into two parts, left and right. This means that the seemingly wide fairways are actually in danger, and every shot of the player has to make decisions around them.
The stone wall to the left of the green bears some resemblance to the "deep pit" of North Berwick West Links. When the flagpole position was placed behind the left side of the green, the players had to plan the batting line as precisely as mathematicians do.
The walls in the golf course are of various colors and variety. If you're lucky enough to meet them, accept the gifts of history, the ingenuity of designers, and the challenges they bring.
Source:
① richlandcc.com
② golf.anahitamauritius.com
③ northberwickgolfclub.com
④ stonewalllinks.com
Written by 丨 小舟
Photo 丨 This magazine database
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