#Bethpage State Park Black Course Hole-By-Hole#
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HOLE   PAR   YARDS    DESCRIPTION
----   ---   -----    -----------
  
  1     4     430     Dogleg left to right from an elevated tee.
                      The best drive is a high fade around the 
                      right corner.  The second shot is straight
                      forward but must be kept below the hole on
                      a long, narrow green.

  2     4     389     Iron off the tee may be the best bet with
                      trouble awaiting drives long left or 
                      right.  Green is flat and spacious with a
                      large bunker guarding the front right.

  3     3     205     A definite birdie hole if players can stay
                      out of the three greenside bunkers.  The 
                      typically flat green is 45 yards deep and 
                      otherwise easily accessible.

  4     5     517     One of the few par-5s that will not 
                      succumb to the players' distance.  The 
                      ideal drive is 275 yards to a landing area
                      just short of a cross bunker.  Going for
                      the green in 2 requires a 220-yard, uphill
                      shot often into wind to a green guarded by
                      a cavernous bunker.

  5     4     451     The course's toughest driving hole gives
                      big hitters an advantage off the tee
                      because the ideal drive is some 280 yards
                      to carry the right side of a cross bunker.
                      That leaves the best approach to a small,
                      elevated green protected by a pair of 
                      bunkers in front and another back left.

  6     4     408     A short par-4 with one of the most
                      dramatic elevation changes on the course.
                      From the narrow landing area, which is 
                      flanked by two fairway bunkers, the 
                      fairway plunges to a tabletop green 
                      surrounded by bunkers.

  7     4     489     A long dogleg right built for an accurate
                      drive.  The ideal drive is a high cut that
                      carries the right side of a massive 
                      bunker, which protects the length of a 
                      narrow landing zone.  The long approach is
                      to a circular green with a small ridge 
                      running across it.
                      
  8     3     210     From an elevated tee, this hole plays over
                      a small pond, the only water hazard on the
                      course.  Club selection depends on the 
                      wind.  The large, two-tiered green slopes
                      back to front.

  9     4     418     Success here depends almost entirely on
                      a drive that must be long, straight and 
                      preferably right to left.  The key is to
                      carry a large gully to set up a short
                      approach.  Players need to carry some 290
                      yards to reach the top shelf of the 
                      fairway or risk balls trickling back into 
                      the gully.

Out    35   3,517

 10     4     492     From a new tee box built for the Open,
                      it's about a 250-yard carry to the 
                      fairway.  Deep fairway bunkers and high
                      fescue line both sides of the landing
                      zone.  Approach shots are to a slightly
                      elevated green that slopes from back to
                      front.

 11     4     435     Plays straightaway but longer than 435
                      yards because of a prevailing wind.  
                      Fescue-lined bunkers flank nearly the
                      entire length of the fairway -- five up  
                      the left side, three up the right.  Drives
                      must be accurate in order to find one of 
                      the courses' most challenging greens in 2.

 12     4     499     This dogleg left requires two long, 
                      accurate shots.  The ideal drive will cut
                      the left corner and leave a mid-iron 
                      approach to a deep green that slopes from
                      back to front and is protected by bunkers
                      on either side.

 13     5     554     Ideal tee shot is up the left center of 
                      the fairway, avoiding trees to the right.
                      The landing area for a layup is narrow and
                      guarded on the left by a deep, sprawling 
                      bunker that may be a better option than 
                      the rough that fronts it.  A bunker that 
                      fronts the green will prevent many from 
                      reaching in 2.

 14     3     161     The shortest par-3 on the course and the 
                      most likely to yield a birdie.  The 
                      trouble comes from the cavernous bunker
                      guarding the right and center of the 
                      green.  Bunker shots will be blind to the
                      putting surface.

 15     4     459     This may be the toughest par on the 
                      course.  The dogleg left is not as long as
                      others, but the last portion runs severely
                      uphill.  The tee shot must find the 
                      fairway.  The approach, which plays to the 
                      most diffult green on the course, must be
                      short and right of the hole.

 16     4     479     The tee towers some 50 feet above the 
                      fairway.  The smart play is down the left
                      side, setting up the best angle to attack
                      the green.  Green is deep, narrow and 
                      well guarded on both sides by deep,
                      mammoth bunkers.

 17     3     207     The toughest par-3 on the course.  From
                      the tee, all players will be able to see 
                      is sand as three bunkers ranging in size
                      line the front of the narrow green and two 
                      guard the back.  The front bunkers have
                      high lips that could lead to bogey or
                      worse.

 18     4     411     Downhill drive to a fairway squeezed to
                      just 16 yards wide by two enormous 
                      clusters of bunkers.  Greenside bunkers
                      are deep enough that mis-hit approaches
                      will bury.  Wind will play a major role in
                      club selection.

 In    35   3,697

 Total 70   7,214

st 06-09-02 13:23 et