Description
Chester-le-Street’s version of the identically named hole at St Andrews but without its own road bunker. Yet like its namesake it is praised and criticised in equal measure. The first of two holes on return to the Park, it is for most players a dog-leg right starting at river level before climbing steeply for the seventy or eighty yards immediately in front of the elevated green. Before that, a good drive needs to be far enough along the valley but not over far nor over left, to avoid the out of bounds woodland that falls away to the beck. A short drive to the right, especially beyond the road snaking its way up to the castle, is the direct route but is beset with problems. From the centre of the fairway the hole turns sharp right. The approach up the hill ought to be straightforward enough but not for anything pulled left. For the longest hitters, though, the temptation to aim straight at the green carries various risks . . . of bunkers, of approaching the green sideways and of an awkward kick off the steep slope on its right hand-side, more so when the pin is sited on the small lower tier.
