How Would You Play It? (1st Hole at Capital Hills)

[MSchott]

Based on my current game which is probably close to a 21 handicap, I'd hit driver off the tee (assuming I'm playing from 507 yards), then a hybrid short of the first set of bunkers then some sort of wedge to the green.

[DrvFrShow]

Okay seriously... 450 yds. from the reds. Playing this one smart. It's a narrow shot through the trees. The extra 10 - 20 yds is not worth the risk of a slice. I'm playing my 5 wood off the tee, and I'm playing it back to center and hitting a low fade. I'm not playing a fade but that's what it will do. I'll carry it 190 and it'll roll another 15. 205 from the ladies tees. I'll either be on the fairway or in the first cut on the right. Depending upon my lie I'll play a 3H or 5i. I can hammer the 3H for another 200 yds (carry + roll) - don't ask, I just can. It has to do with the swing weight of the club affecting tempo. Regardless of where it lands, unless I really screw up the shot I'm hitting a wedge onto the green.

I'll lag putt, and par or bogey depending upon how well I lag putted. If I hit a good wedge 10' from the hole, I'll miss my birdie putt by about three inches, swear under my breath, and tap in for a par.

Proceed to next hole and shoot an 8.

[LeftRightLeft]

Patch, that's great! I just bookmarked it for future use.  I will definitely play around with it.

dkolo, I also put my game plans into a Word file.  Then I will add to it after playing.  Example, Slight uphill approach, add half a club.  I didn't know about the elevation feature either.

I find mapping really useful, since a lot of the guys I play with are better (and hit longer) than me.  I need every fair advantage I can come up with.  I was playing a Nassau with a buddy a couple of weeks ago.  I was playing lousy and lost the front and was closed out for the 18 hole bet.  I needed to win the 18th to win the back nine.  It was dusk, and getting pretty cold.  The hole is a longish dogleg par 4 with two hazards.  The one on the left requires 230 yards to carry the hazard, but shortens the hole a lot.  No matter what, you have to carry a portion of this hazard.  If you play to the right, the hazard on the right comes into play, and the hole plays longer, and you have to carry more of that hazard on the approach.  Picking the right line can be difficult.  Because I mapped it, I hit a 4 wood to my target (a vent/chimney in the middle of the clubhouse) that leaves about 185 yards.  My friend tried to carry with his driver and splashed, but I would argue his club selection was wrong no matter what for those conditions.  If his drive would have gone right it would also likely have been wet in the right side hazard.  His margin for error was about 15 yards max.  In summer it may be an OK play, but not on a cool evening in December.   I knew the EXACT line to safety and luckily executed.  The hole is the 18th at Turkey Creek for any other NorCal residents.

Sorry, if off-topic, but I thought others might find the information useful.

[colin007]

Maybe it's selective memory but when I've hit it to the left of the fairway, I seem to remember the ball trickles down to the flat part in the middle of the fairway.  Does it stay up a lot of the time for you?

Absolutely, unless it's a screaming slice that's coming down at a 45 degree angle right, it really won't trickle down much. It's not fairway up there, the rough and your angle of descent will hold it up.

[WUTiger]

It all depends on how far my driver shot goes. I would aim for the tree on the right and draw the ball back in. I get good rollout off the elevated tees - ball could end up anywhere from 230 to 270 yards off the tee.

If the drive goes out 260 or move, a decent 4W will carry over the fairway bunkers.  This puts me inside 50 yards, working the long axis of an open-front green. I can do several things from here, from a half wedge to an 8 iron pitch and run.

If the drive is shorter, I hit a 7W short of the fairway bunkers, and hit final approach with a wedge or a short iron.

Note to RFK : Next time you give us a hole to play, you might pull the hole picture into a photo editor, and draw in the distance yardsticks and elevation info. This probably wouldn't take much longer than making a separate pencil drawing.

[Tee2Trees]

Seeing as this is a par 5 I decide to go for a little extra distance and discreetly click my driver down to 7.5 loft (so as not to bother my playing partners).  I tee it higher than normal and give it a little extra leg kick to help clear my hips.  Unfortunately I seem to have overpowered my noodle-like OEM "stiff" shaft and the result is a screaming overcooked-draw headed toward the neighboring fairway on the left-hand side.  Seeing as I might need extra time locating my ball, I decide to head off in search of it while my playing partners continue to tee off.  Fortunately enough, I have located my ball sitting safely in the fairway some 328 yards from the tee box (measured with GPS), information which I shout over to the rest of my playing partners who are now out of view.  This actually puts me in ideal position to smash a towering, uh, 7 iron over the tree line and land it just short the pin some 210 yards away.  Unfortunately the ball I pulled from of my bag, uh, back at the tee box was a Pro V1x instead of my usual Pro V1 and as a result I get no bite and my approach rolls off the back of the green.  At this point I pull my 5 hybrid, which I must stress is used for chipping only, and bump one up there to within 10 feet.  I calmly address the birdie putt, mishit it, but my Ping TR putter pulls through and the groove technology delivers the ball just far enough to drop in the hole.  Slightly embarrassed, I go on to explain to the group that this is normally an eagle hole for me but I'm going through an equipment change at the moment.

[colin007]

Oh, and btw, that fairway to the left isn't a fairway. It's the driving range. So if you hit one up there you can say bye bye...

[Lihu]

Oh, and btw, that fairway to the left isn't a fairway. It's the driving range. So if you hit one up there you can say bye bye...

If I ever play that course, remind me to get all the information from you before I make that tee shot.

EDIT: http://www.caphills.com/course/1st.htm

[colin007]

If I ever play that course, remind me to get all the information from you before I make that tee shot. :-D   EDIT: [URL=http://www.caphills.com/course/1st.htm]http://www.caphills.com/course/1st.htm[/URL]

Lol! It's funny, standing on the tee it's all there in front of you, no fooling you with hidden trouble. You need to make three solid shots to have a chance at par.

[Pretzel]

How tall is the grass by the small parking area to the right side of the picture? If it's not very penal, hitting a tee shot over there appears as though it would present the best angle to the hole since you only have to hit over what appears to be shrubs and the opening between the taller trees is wider than on the fairway.

Not to mention that fact that you'd completely confuse your playing partners, which could be a bonus if that's something you're trying to do.

[colin007]

Not sure if that's in bounds. Besides, you're turning a 500 yards hole into 650.

[RFKFREAK]

[SIZE=13px] Note to RFK : Next time you give us a hole to play, you might pull the hole picture into a photo editor, and draw in the distance yardsticks and elevation info. This probably wouldn't take much longer than making a separate pencil drawing.[/SIZE]

Well, I already drew up another one today on graph paper that I'll probably share tonight or tomorrow since I did the work but I'll definitely consider it for any I might do after that. I did this one and a second one on graph paper to begin mapping the course to be able to carry it with me. A full page picture or one on my phone isn't as appealing, haha.

[RFKFREAK]

Oh, and btw, that fairway to the left isn't a fairway. It's the driving range. So if you hit one up there you can say bye bye...

You don't think people will stop so you can play your ball? ;)

[Pretzel]

Oh, and btw, that fairway to the left isn't a fairway. It's the driving range. So if you hit one up there you can say bye bye...

You don't think people will stop so you can play your ball? ;)

You guys don't carry a football helmet in your bag for such an occurrence? I thought it was commonplace!

[Tee2Trees]

Oh, and btw, that fairway to the left isn't a fairway. It's the driving range. So if you hit one up there you can say bye bye...

Well in that case I'd probably take a minute to give some swing tips to one of the range rats.

[PJCdude]

Driver/3-Wood depending on how well I'm driving that day. Depending on how that goes, probably a hybrid to the fat part of the fairway before the bunkers start then a full lob wedge or possible SW/GW

[Lihu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by colin007

Oh, and btw, that fairway to the left isn't a fairway. It's the driving range. So if you hit one up there you can say bye bye...

Well in that case I'd probably take a minute to give some swing tips to one of the range rats.

Hey, don't forget about pace of play. . .

[Chilli Dipper]

I don't think the player should have all that difficult of a time to decide what to do on this hole; the drive dictates the next play. Assuming you're a right-handed player (which I'm not), the ideal tee shot is a slight draw into the slope of the fairway. Hit a good drive, and you should be able to carry the cross bunkers easily with a fairway wood or hybrid, leaving a pitch up to the green. If you're in the rough, keep short of the bunkers on the second and settle for a full approach.