Praying For Par

No.18 at Doral Golf Resort & Spa

Australian Tour standout John Senden says, “The 18th at Doral is the toughest. You need to crack your tee shot, and depending on the breeze, you’re hitting a 5 iron or more into the toughest of greens.” The last hole on the “Blue Monster” is a test of courage, as you have to smash a drive down the fairway with water to the left and then fire at the back-left pin with more insidious aqua claiming any shot not hit with full authority. The 467-yard par 4 is a waterlogged menace.

No.17 at TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course

Fan favorite Tommy “Two Gloves” Gainey says, “The 17th at TPC Sawgrass is the toughest we play all year.” The infamous “Island Green” proves the Earth is more than 70% water, as land is in scarce supply. The water encasing the 132-yard par 3 is said to gobble up 100,000 plus balls annually, many of those during the Tour’s annual Players Championship. This is water torture disguised as a golf hole.

No.14 at Pebble Beach Golf Links

Wine and golf expert Duffy Waldorf considers the hardest par 3 on the Tour. For par 5s Duffy says, “The 14th at Pebble Beach is really tough.” Usually, PGA Tour pros lick their chops on par 5s, salivating with thoughts of eagles and birdies gracing their cards. Not so on the mighty 14th at Pebble. The inland par 5 presents a nasty challenge on the approach, as the highly sloped green propels incoming shots as if they just hit a trampoline. This might be the only par 5 on the Tour where par is actually a good score.

No.5 at Colonial Country Club

Colonial is one of the Tour players’ favorite stops, with its traditional design that rewards superb golf shots rather than brute strength. We caught up with gregarious Nick Price as he was looking forward to teeing it up on Tour at the Honda Classic after a few years of playing exclusively on the Champion’s Tour. While he considers the 18th at both TPC Sawgrass and Riviera among the hardest, he says, “No. 5 at Colonial was always tough. Of course we were hitting wooden drivers and then a 2 iron into the green. Now they hit 7 irons on the approach. Don’t forget to mention we hit wooden drivers!” The Texas tough par 4 plays to 481 yards and is almost always the most ornery when the Tour comes to Fort Worth.

No.14 at TPC Southwind

The 231-yard par-3 14th at TPC Southwind ranks as one of the toughest par-3 holes on the Tour each year. This hole requires a long iron or hybrid to reach a sliver of a green protected by water down its entire right flank. The green has a large undulation in the middle as if someone had buried an elephant. Shaun Micheel, winner of the 2003 PGA Championship, says, “The hole comes at a pivotal place on the course, and there are no places to miss.”

No.6 at The Champion Course at PGA National Resort And Spa

The Champion Course at PGA National is chockablock with demanding holes. PGA Tour veteran Alex Cejka says, “While No.17 from the back is tough, the par-4 6th here at PGA National is brutal.” Converted from a par 5, the hole has alligator-infested water to the left, score-ruining bunkers to the right and a tiny three-level green makes putting a nightmare under those warm South Florida skies.

No.10 at Pebble Beach Golf Links

PGA Tour player Brett Quigley says, “The 10th at Pebble Beach is the hardest we play.” The 495-yard par 4 played to a stroke average of over 4.4 during the 2010 U.S. Open. With the magnificent Pacific Ocean hard right and a slanted green looking like it could barely seat four for dinner, this hole has all the golf you’ll ever want.

No.11 at Augusta National Golf Club

Now with the classic Bobby Jones/Alistair Mackenzie Georgia masterpiece “modernized” to accommodate the fantastic length of the tee of today’s Tour players, No.11 at Augusta National seems as long as the Nile. Recently increased to a forbidding 505 yards, the beautiful but sinister par 4 requires two on the screws and a deft negotiation of a putting surface. Italian golfer Eduardo Molinari says, “If I could make par on any hole in golf, it would be No.11 at Augusta.”

No.18 at TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course

Lee Westwood didn’t hesitate for a moment when asked to name the hardest hole on Tour. “No.18 at TPC Sawgrass has a demanding drive, a demanding second and a green that is anything but flat once you’re there. Plus, where it’s at on the course makes it even more demanding.” With water all down the left and tricky Floridian breezes wreaking havoc, the 464-yard par-4 finisher has crushed many a golfer’s dream of glory.

No.17 at The Champion Course at PGA National Resort and Spa

Australian golfer Robert Allenby, one of the best ball strikers on the PGA Tour, says, “On Sunday, when the pin is in the back right on No.17, this is the hardest hole we play on Tour.” The final act of the famous Bear Trap and the penultimate hole on the Champion Course, the 190-yard par 3 demands a precise shot over a watery grave onto a green smaller than a landlord’s heart.