There are days when you know you’ll need to gut out a round of golf and today at Pine Valley was such a day. I cannot remember the course ever playing tougher as this field of top mid amateurs probably averaged close to 80 on this breezy blustery day. But there was one player, Mr. Mike McCoy that was able to fire an impressive even par 70.
The wind was constantly changing direction and intensity making it impossible to select the proper club. The next challenge was putting in the wind on these fast and undulating greens. It’s hard to imagine that there are 6 holes under 400 yards on this 7057 yard par 70 gem. Each of these par 4 holes can create problems from the tee shot all the way to the final putt.
With everyone gunning to secure a spot in match play after tomorrow’s 2nd round, there should be some serious grinding tomorrow as the winds are expected to subside. The Mid Am’s qualify into three flights of 16 players, while the Seniors (over 55) qualify into three flights of 8. Each division has a Championship flight of 16 and 8 that play for the Crump title.
In the Mid Am division the top 16 scores and ties where as follows:
Michael McCoy 70
Michael Muehr 71
Dan Horner 72
William McGuinness 72
Craig Nichols 72
Scott Rowe 72
Stephen Summers 73
Michael Barbosa 74
James Donnelly IV 74
Joe Sanders 74
Randy Haag 75
Bill Jeremiah 75
Dennis Kavelman 75
Steve Slayden 75
Gary Durbin 76
Jordan Nasser 76
Seth Sargent 76
THE SENIOR TOP 8
John Daniel 74
Allan Small 74
Steve Smyers 74
Jack Vardaman 74
David Brookerson 75
Martin West 75
Marvin Giles 76
Jerry Greenbaum 76
The tee shot on this 636 yard par 5 is crucial to get into the fairway or a chip out will be your 2nd shot leaving you over 265 from the back of the waste bunker called "Hells Half Acre". This is a tough par 5!! This 326 yard par four 8th hole is no easy pickins, my last two scores on this hole from the fairway have been 8, 6 no more explanation needed. This tiny green has two small levels that will test your wedge game another shot of the 8th greenThe 9th hole is another tough par 4 at 458 yards long with a steep uphill second shot to a undulating greenThere are many tiny bunkers at Pine Valley waiting for that errant shot. This one shown here is barely big enough to stand inThis tough 161 yard par three has a steep slope from back to front and from left to right. The ideal shot is played below the holehere Stan Morrison is in the bunker on the tenth hole referred as "The Devils Asshole" this bunker is perhaps the deepest narrowest bunker I've ever seen (including the road hole bunker)This 397 yard uphill par 4 is fairly generous off the tee, but can create issues if your tee ball is played to far to the left. The second shot is uphill to another steeply sloping green from back to frontThe 12th hole is a 337 yard dogleg left with a fairly generous fairway. Although the second shot will be from under 100 yards, it's difficult to get a ball close to the hole with the firmness of the humps on this green that slopes from front to backThis 486 yard par 4 is one of my favorite holes I've played anywhere. The picture shown here is from about 180 yards from the green. Left of the green is a steep drop off that must be avoided. The green has significant undulation and is 44 yards longThis downhill par three 14th hole can play as long as 220 yards over water with trouble both left and right of the green. The wind is the critical factor in judging the distance properly. This is a spectacular par three!!This is the view from the 15th tee at Pine Valley a 615 yard uphill par 5 with a tee shot over the water shown. This again is one of the best par 5's in the world with a green that has a 30 - 40 foot false front that must be avoided.View across the lake from the 15th tee over to the 16th green View from the 15th fairway looking back across the Lake to the 15th teeThis is a shot uphill to the 15th green that has several issues to deal with the false front, and the green slopes from back to front and severely from left to right. This shot plays 1/2 a club uphill where short is NO GOODThe 16th hole is a downhill 475 yard par 4 that requires a 258 yard carry over a waste bunker that needs to be avoided. The photo from about 180 yards out shows how wide this green is with the water guarding the right side. Great par 4!!It looks like I skipped the 17th hole a par 4 uphill 345 yard par 4- this shot is from the tee on 18 that measures 483 from the back tee. The fairway is a 240 yard carry over a waste area that is easily carried unless the tee shot is into a strong wind.This is the awesome view of the second shot into the 18th hole at Pine Valley. This really wide green slopes hard from left to right and from front to middle and back to middle. This is a great finishing hole!
Hey Randy, great job on the site. Yea, that first day of the Crump Cup was brutal. Keep up the good work. See you soon.
Mark