Seems like the conversation has stagnated a bit, I would be interested to know if there are any more people than pmgolf and me who actually look forward to the tournament version a lot, enough to care about the details of it.
As for 17th specifically, there are many options indeed, and Im not saying Im opposed to ways other than my favourite. I would still have preferred to hear more about how others think about various types of changes before I make up my own mind, but since the conversation so far didnt bring very much and quickly seemed to die a bit, I figured I may as well already present my current favourite way, as a suggestion, along with a drawn picture for visualization.
Suggestion:
I already posted my reasoning, but I will summarize the main points again.
I dont like the par 3 option that much, since it would either become too brutal of a hole to feel at home on the course, or else become easier to score a set number of strokes on than the resort version. I personally like the longer par 4 option more, but still not as much as my suggestion below, since a longer par 4 would completely change the character of the hole to be pretty much unrecognizable.
My suggestion has 3 parts.
1. A new tee being made between the cart path and border fence, adding about 18 yards to the hole. A tree would probably have to be cut down to make room for it. This will probably make the 3W fall a bit short in many situations, at least to pins on the back half, thus forcing the player to at least consider the Driver or 2W.
2. The addition of a water hazard, like Dan came up with. I think it would suit the hole excellently, adding a risk-reward element to an otherwise fairly risk-free tee shot. A tee shot on a par 4 into a green really ought to come with some form of risk. My favourite spot for a pond would be to the right of the green, going along most of the right side to extend far enough back that there is a slight risk of ending up in it even if landing on the green but too far and too much to the right. The cart path and road might be squeezed a little bit, but I think there should be just enough room. Moving the road perhaps a couple yards wouldn’t be so bad either, if necessary.
3. Reducing the size of the back section of the bunker to make room for the green being moved maybe 15-20 yards backwards and, because of the angle, slightly to the left. The pond would be moved along with it. This would basically force the Driver or 2W to be used in order to reach the green, and the shot would get tougher to pull off beyond the raw length as well, since the bunker will end up guarding the green a little bit more. Perhaps a draw (fade, if left-handed) would even become necessary. The tree behind the green would possibly need to be removed or moved, or there might still be enough room for it to remain there, not sure.
The hole would still be easy and remain a driveable par 4. It would still be recognizable, just much spicier and much less of a pushover. Neither of these changes feel like they would be unlikely to happen in real life, if a relatively big tournament was to be hosted. Moving a tree of that size might be, I suppose, but not removing it. I think I’m still personally in favour of slightly moving it a little further back, in order to keep it for the appearance to stay similar while preventing the tree from affecting gameplay, but either way should work, if you ask me.
![CDL 17 sA1.jpg](./download/file.php?id=2251&sid=bcc2dbb97ff2fa5a66994511fcc60772)
- CDL 17 sA1.jpg (499.33 KiB) Viewed 2914 times
If adding a water hazard is “too much”, I would still like the other two changes I mentioned, but I think the water hazard would add a LOT to the hole in a good way.