Review: Pinehaven Country Club (Part 2)

It's time to check out the back nine at Pinehaven, go here to see the front.

The tenth hole is 390 yards and plays slightly uphill, with the fairway routed through a valley. Everything falls in toward the middle of the fairway, which also means that flat stances are rare. The green is elevated, bunkerless, and not especially undulating, making this a pretty simple hole, pretty similar to the first.

The tenth hole.

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole is a very long par 3, playing 230 yards (though significantly downhill). The green isn't exactly a wide-open target either; there are two bunkers, one on each side, and the green itself is quite small and tilted from left to right. 

The eleventh hole.

The eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is a short par 4, playing 340 yards over some of the hilliest terrain at Pinehaven. The fairway reaches a plateau about 225 yards out then drops into a valley before shooting back up to the green, so if you want a flat stance for the second, you'll want to lay up. The green has no bunkers, but what it does have is a pair of pine trees stranding about 10 yards short left of the green. That obviously makes second shots tricky from almost anywhere, even the right portion of the fairway. You have to keep it low, which is not something you often have to do on short par 4s. In this case, rather than aiming for the flat stance, it's likely better to get as far on the drive as you can. A 75-yard pitch shot won't have nearly as much issue with overhanging limbs as a full wedge. This isn't the first or last time trees have figured into the design, but this is by far the most aggressive Pinehaven gets with it.

The twelfth hole.

The twelfth green.

The thirteenth hole is a mid-length par 4 that plays significantly downhill to a fairway that's a bit wider than it looks from the tee. You will want to favor the right side on the drive, despite the four bunkers protecting the right side of the green. That's because there's a big pine tree lurking front left of the green, blocking out shots that come from too far left. It was an issue during our round, and my brothers and I had a reasonably neutral hole location in the middle of the green. Left-side hole locations would be very nasty unless you skirt the O.B. right.

The thirteenth hole.

The thirteenth green.

The fourteenth hole is the shortest hole on the course at 145 yards, but since it plays straight uphill, you do need an extra club or two. The green is tiny, and there are bunkers on each side. Unlike most of the greens, this one is not sloped from back to front, more right to left, which means it's not particularly accepting of approach shots. I won't say that this hole or the ninth are tougher than the par 3 that's 80 yards longer, but neither are breather holes.

The fourteenth hole.

The fourteenth green.

The fifteenth hole is a very short par 5, less than 470 yards. That naturally brings birdie or even eagle into the mind of the golfer, especially considering the relatively open tee shot. The playing corridor is pretty generous by Pinehaven standards, and there are no bunkers. The fairway is quite undulating, however, so it's unlikely you'll have a level stance for the second. That makes the uphill second shot quite tricky, and it brings the bunker 20 yards short of the green very much into play. I bet that bunker catches a lot of overly ambitious second shots that come in too low. The green isn't too complicated, with one bunker to the right and one behind. Obviously, this is a great birdie opportunity, but the hole has enough challenge to it that you can't take a good score for granted.

The fifteenth hole.

Approaching the fifteenth green.

The fifteenth green.

The sixteenth hole isn't the longest par 4 on the course, but it is likely the toughest. At 420 yards, it's no slouch, especially considering how little room there is to work with on the tee shot. Trees overhang the right side of the fairway, which slopes from right to left as well. If you can hit a fade, then you're mostly okay, but if you hit any sort of draw, you either have to be incredibly precise or lay far enough back to avoid running out into the trees. Plus, you'll have a worse angle into the green, which is tucked behind a pond. At the very least, the green is on the bigger and flatter side and there aren't any bunkers, so if you do hit the green in regulation, there's a good chance you'll be rewarded.

The sixteenth hole.

Approaching the sixteenth green.

The sixteenth green.

The seventeenth hole is the third and final par 5 at Pinehaven, playing 500 yards and doglegging significantly to the left. The pond in front of the tee isn't an issue, but the tee shot should stick close to the left tree line, otherwise you'll run out of fairway pretty quick. The green is elevated and there are two bunkers in front, leaving a very small gap to run long second shots in, so it may be prudent to lay up unless you've got a mid iron in hand.

The seventeenth hole.

Approaching the seventeenth green.

The seventeenth green.

The eighteenth hole is the same length as the sixteenth, but is noticeably easier. The fairway is pinched by three bunkers, two right and one left, but the playing corridor is fairly wide, so there is some room to breathe. A solid drive will leave a short or mid iron into a small green protected by three more bunkers, one right and two left and behind. This isn't the toughest hole in the world, but it's far from the easiest, which is good for a finishing hole.

The eighteenth hole.

Approaching the eighteenth green.

The eighteenth green.

Pinehaven was never going to be my favorite course in the world. There's just too many trees for me to love the place. Some of us just aren't very accurate, though funnily enough the entire day the trees were being extraordinarily generous with their bounces. My brothers and I hit into the trees many times, but we only had bad luck with the ricochets once or twice. So that helped.

Personal bias aside, this is a good course. Not great, but I would certainly classify it as better than average. It's got some good elevation change, the greens are fairly interesting, there's a decent amount of strategy, and there aren't any really weak holes. The tree planting is a bit suspect in places, but the twelfth at least would lose a lot of quirky charm if the tree in front of the green was a bunker instead. I'd remove a lot of trees, but I wouldn't actually get rid of that one. It wouldn't be my first choice for a replay, but I wouldn't mind playing Pinehaven again.