OVGA Amateur Golf Tour

I’ve been picking difficult holes just about every week. It’s been suggested that I keep up that practice, as some people like the advice. This week brings us to The Links at Grand Victoria in Rising Sun, Indiana for the second major of the season, the Tri-State Open. And this week’s Hole Of The Week is probably the only practical par 6 we will ever play. I say practical, not because it can’t be reached in 3 shots, but because almost no one can get a shot to stop on the firm, table top green. At 612 yards from the gold tees and 552 yards fom the blue tees, the 1 HDCP Par 5 12th hole requires many players to hit an approach club too long to stay on the surface. The fairway wraps around the green, and shots missing short, long or right will roll down into a deep valley where usually only half the flagstick or less is visible. This makes getting up and down very difficult. It is not uncommon for a player to go from one valley to another just trying to pitch onto the green. The safest place to miss the green is to the left, where the fairway is nearly level to the putting surface. Also, the green is longest from this angle.
Players might be tempted to hit their tee shots and layup shots as far as possible to leave the shortest possible approach. However, for some players, the approach shot will still be so long that the better strategy might be to plan on missing the green left, and to keep it in play until you get there.

Last year’s results (The Grand Victoria Casino & Resort Championship - Playoff event):
Nicklaus flight (Gold tees)
Avg Score    6.29
Hole Rank    2nd most difficult

Palmer/Hogan flights (Blue tees)
Avg Score    7.46
Hole Rank    1st most difficult