The Links at Hope Island, Australia   

Holes to Note

1^st hole, 375 yards: An enticing first hole. The fairway is plenty wide and is the only two shotter on the course with no bunkers to threaten the tee ball. The green is elevated those crucial two/three feet above the fairway level.

The wide fairway is intended to help get the golfer off to a smooth start.
However, the pushed up green is a more elusive target.

2^nd hole, 550 yards: A lake down the left dedicates the play for the first two shots. A sandy beach acts as a buffer from the lake from 160 yards to 330 yards off the tee. A magnificent fig tree was saved during construction and further pinches the hole in from the left at the 280 yard mark. The second shot must find a patch of fairway between a bunker 200 yards from the green and three more that pepper the fairway at the 100 yard mark. The tabletop green is smallish but is a reasonable proposition with a wedge in your hand. However, somewhere along the line, the golfer invariably seems to get tangled up and the approach shot ends up being much longer. From further back, the elevated green complex is a tough target indeed.

The three shot secon doglegs around this impressive specimen fig tree.

12^th hole, 385 yards: This shortish two shotter could be Thomson's tribute to the 12th hole at St. Andrews. There are bunkers everywhere and yet when the golfer is standing on the green, he can not make out a single one. The placement of a short par four after a birdiable par five is an interesting strategy. Many better golfers, buoyed by the confidence of birdieing the 11th, step up on the 12th, look at the yardage, and start thinking about another birdie. However, after landing in one of the nine fairway bunkers, their thoughts soon change.

The 12th fairway is littered with bunkers.

13^th hole, 425 yards: A big two shotter that doglegs around a lake. The hole encourages bold play as the farther up the fairway the player drives, the less interrupted the approach shot. Another appealing risk versus reward decision must be made.

The ideal drive at the 13th finishes close to the lake. Though the property is relatively flat,
the approach is significantly uphill, requiring at least an extra club.

17^th hole, 210 yards: This par three is the only approach shot that must directly carry water on the course. Thus, its effect can be unsettling at this late stage in the round. Appropriately enough, there is a fairway bail-out area to the right of the green that gives golfers of all levels a chance for a pitch and putt par.

The view from the 17th tee in the early morning light.

18^th hole, 565 yards: More than a two shot swing is possible on this three shot finisher. The biggest lake on the property is down the left of the fairway and tells the golfer where not to go. A string of three deep bunkers set into a ridge 320 yards from the tee dedicates placement, regardless if the hole is into or down wind. To the architects' credit, they did not place the green right on the water's edge - there is a fifteen yard grassy hollow to the left of the green. The strong golfer can have a reasonable 'go' at the green in favorable wind conditions, making for an exciting finish. The unconfident golfer trying to nurse a lead still must execute each of the three shots.

The curvature of the lake was put to excellent use on the 18th.

A particular strength of the course is the collection of three shot holes. Collectively, they may be the best in Australia and they serve to highlight the strategic use of bunkers throughout the course. A third of all the course's bunkers are on these four holes. On the eighth hole, the architects paid homage to the 16^th hole at St. Andrews with its fairway bunkers off the tee. Further up the long fairway, there are four pot bunkers scattered fifty to eighty yards short of the green. The golfer can 1) lay shot of this cluster, 2) go left of the bunkers for a shorter shot, 3) carry the bunkers to the right to set up a straightforward pitch down the length of the green, or 4) fly the cluster in hopes of reaching the green. The variety of options like this continually pulls the thinking golfer back to Hope Island for another round.

Well placed hazards add immeasurable pleasure to the game as they create strategic
dilemmas for the golfer to mull over. A perfect example are these diagonal
pots short of the reachable three shot eigth green.

Thomson, Wolveridge, and Perrett spent untold hours stalking the flat property to figure out the best way to breath life into it. Their advanced planning paid off handsomely as the course is a beautiful place. It is a pity more architects don't show the same strategic flair.

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