Let me first take this opportunity to wish all the readers a wonderful Christmas.
My present to you this week is a rundown of some of the finest little gems in our area – those par 3 holes that can be so iconic.
We start at Thetford Golf Club, with thanks to Peter Allott for his contribution. Peter sends information every week without fail and for that I am so very grateful.
The 16th hole at Thetford Golf Club presents a big challenge Picture: Peter Allott
Thetford has some great par 3s thanks to its iconic course architect Philip Mackenzie Ross. Indeed, a survey published by GolfShake.com identified Thetford’s 11th hole as the 48th most difficult par 3 in Britain. Any such accolade always generates debate, as some may feel the 184-yard 1st hole is more daunting, requiring a player to hit the green with their opening shot of the day while everyone watches!
However, for most members and visitors it’s Thetford’s iconic 16th that sets hearts racing. With a carry over heather to an island green, it’s a visual and playing joy, one that is both feared and relished. In fact the cavernous moat bunker in front of the 16th green is dedicated each year as the captain’s charity bunker. A visit in here will cost you a stroke, and a donation to the chosen charity. This year that was the Brain Tumour Charity, and along with the plethora of other events held throughout the year, a cheque for £12,000 was presented last week to the organisation.
Bury St Edmunds Golf Club also has a good array of short holes. The long 15th will test a player’s mettle coming down the closing stretch, and the 2nd has a devilish green that needs constant concentration.
However, my personal favourite is the 125-yard 9th. This is by far the shortest hole on the course, and has an absolutely pancake flat putting surface.
However, this by no means guarantees and easy par. Miss the small green in any direction and the concluding chip shot will pressure any short game.
Short is a bunker and tightly cut run off area, left is a large bank covered in thick grass, long will find more thick rough and the whole right side falls off into a collection area. Miss this green at your peril, and please don’t try and find any breaks on the green.
Heading down the road to Stowmarket, we find further great par 3s. If hitting the first shot at Thetford on a par 3 is tough, finishing your round on one, with a tournament or even just a good card on the line, now that’s pressure.
The 18th at Stowmarket has decided many championships over the years, but Matthew Rawlings acing his final hole to equal the course record of 64 in 2011 must be remembered as one of its highlights.
Often, however, the 245-yard 4th hole is the one that gets talked about. It’s one of the longest par 3s in the county, with an iconic huge oak tree halfway down the fairway (yes a fairway on a par 3!). Again, missing the green here can prove very tricky indeed.
There are not many par 3s in the country, however, where missing the green can cause more punishment than the 5th hole at Royal Worlington
If you haven’t been, the 5th at Worlington is one I personally feel all golfers should experience. The beauty here is that it is also the 14th hole, so you get to play it twice!
If you recollect the drop offs we have spoken about on other courses today, then they are mere depressions compared to missing the 5th to the left or right.
I’m a pretty tall chap, but standing in the hollow to the left of this green, there is no way I can see the green surface, even with a big jump!
The green is so narrow that many players (I have my hand raised here) have chipped from left side hollow to right side hollow and back, and the score just racks up.
Once the green surface is found, it is multiple tiered with some fairly sizeable slopes – not easy at all.
With a row of trees behind the green, the only option on this 155-yard monster is to be straight. If you haven’t played it, I highly highly recommend.
Flempton Golf Club may not have the downright devil’s work seen at Worlington, but make no mistake, their par 3s are not to be sniffed at.
Another course with a closing par 3, and this one is longer than Stowmarket’s, measuring up to 190 yards.
The clubhouse looms large in view on the 9th/18th, and with the grassed area in front of the clubhouse designated as out Of bounds, you can ill afford to miss to the right. Miss left, however, and a deep pot bunker awaits.
Then there is the green surface itself – a big constant slope from front to back and left to right, one of the hardest putting surfaces on the course.
The 5th hole at Flempton will also pose challenges, mostly for its quirky construction, which can throw a player off guard.
A diagonal stream runs the length on the hole, then turns sharply left across the front of the green, catching any ill struck shots.
A big box hedge juts in from the right as the green begins and continues close to the back of the green, rendering any long shots useless.
There is a bunker front left and severe mounding (think Olympic Moguls) on the right.
Once aboard the green there are some very tricky pin placements that can involve little pockets of the green that can sit higher or lower than where your ball is resting. A real challenge.
Challenges also lie in wait on the short holes at The Suffolk, with the 7th being the most iconic.
At 130 yards it isn’t the longest, but a thin sliver of a green which sits diagonally to the player can cause real trouble.
It is approximately 110 yards to the front left of the green, but more than 150 yards to the back right, meaning club selection and aim are crucial.
As right-handed golfers generally miss short when they leak right, and go long when they pull left, the stream that runs in front of the green and River Lark to the back left, will catch many hundreds of balls every year.
There is also a delightful willow tree to the back left just waiting to catch errant balls and send them heaven knows where. No wonder the average score for this hole in competition is 3.95.
Combine that with the 230-yard 17th and you have a pair of par 3s worthy of any course.
I hope you have enjoyed a little round-up of the par 3s in our locality – now have a great golfing Christmas and a Happy New Year.
