Funhouse Greens

[colin007]

The 13th at Lake View CC:

Could you take a more straight line at the hole if you wanted to?

[barbm12thtee]

This is the 17th green at Black Creek In Chattanooga. It's a par 3 with a swale in the middle of the green. It essentially cuts the green in two. If you're putting from from the front of the green to the back the ball goes downhill to the bottom and starts climbing up back never makes it up the hill. So you have to putt again from the bottom of the swale to the back half of the green. I guess you could pitch it over the swale, but that would tear up the green. Crazy! Hmmm photos kind of small....

[barbm12thtee]

Bigger!

[Golfingdad]

Bigger!

Couple courses the pros play have one of those (greenbrier is one) and just learned this year that its called a Biarritz (not sure of spelling) ;)

[barbm12thtee]

@Golfing Dad: Thanks for the information. I looked it up. You're spelling was spot on. Definition: A biarritz, or biarritz green, is a putting green that features a deep gully, or swale, bisecting its middle. The gully, which is manicured the same as the rest of the green, usually runs from side-to-side, but sometimes runs from front to back. A biarritz is especially challenging when the hole is cut on one side of the swale and your ball is sitting on the other side, requiring a long putt that must travel down the gully then up its other side to reach the hole. Some golfers choose to pitch over the gully rather than putt through it. Obviously, when approaching a biarritz green it behooves the golfer to get his ball on the same side of the swale as the flagstick to avoid having to putt across the gully.

[RayG]

12 Hole at Long Island National is similar, except that it runs back to front. Only ever made one putt across "The Valley of Doom".

[jamo]

12 Hole at Long Island National is similar, except that it runs back to front. Only ever made one putt across "The Valley of Doom".

Do you have or know of a picture of that one? I've played the course but don't remember the specific hole. I remember 10 is the straight par five, 11 is the par 3 with the approach over water. 12 is a short par 4 with the tee shot over water, but I don't remember the green.

[RayG]

This is the only picture I could find online. It isn't a very good angle to show the ditch. But it appears that they have reduced the severity of the Valley of doom recently. It certainly was much more severe than it shows in the picture and probably looked even worse from the actual green. They certainly NEVER put the flag in the bowl before that I could remember. It was always on one side or the other. I would have LOVED having it on the center like that when it was deeper. Going to be tougher to check it out, though, it was recently bought out of receivership and will be going private next year. We haven't played it in quite awhile because it was the pricier option in the area and a bit of a drive during the gas price upswing.

[David in FL]

We have one such green at one of my favorite local courses. We refer to the gully as the valley of sin. Never see the pin down there, unfortunately. Playing there Sunday. I'll try to remember to snap a pic!

[iacas]

Originally Posted by colin007

Could you take a more straight line at the hole if you wanted to?

Yes, but that's no fun. It's a bit of a bowl. If they put the pin anywhere but in the bottom of the bowl, it's VERY difficult to stop the ball anywhere near the hole. Three feet past the cup is about as good as I could do given where the hole was cut on that day. And as you saw it required hitting the ball roughly 90° away from the hole.

[phan52]

A pin should never be in a spot where, if you are putting uphill toward it and you get it to the hole, it comes back at you.

[saevel25]

Those type of putts are fun. There are a couple of holes on the course i play weekly that have that type of action. Hole number 15, if the pin is anywere at the back of the green, and you are pin high and towards the middle, you have to turn your back to the hole and putt up the slope to take some speed off the putt. If not you will end up 15' or more, maybe off the green. Its not unfair, because the ball will stop, you just have to know how to putt it. Not many people can trust themselves to take that much break.

[phan52]

Originally Posted by Golfingdad

Couple courses the pros play have one of those (greenbrier is one) and just learned this year that its called a Biarritz (not sure of spelling) ;)

Here is a Biarritz green on Old MacDonald at Bandon. Picture doesn't do it justice. It's pretty severe.

[saevel25]

I wonder what its called if you have an inverted Biarritz. There's a course in Canton, ohio that has a nice big mound running through the center of the green from front to back. It really turns the green into two greens. We played it once, and our shamble group was uptop of the green and had to put over the mound, down to the front of the green. It was pretty crazy putt.

[cipher]

A pin should never be in a spot where, if you are putting uphill toward it and you get it to the hole, it comes back at you.