On 4/25/2007, the golf league will face the back 9 on ThornApple Country Club. Therefore, I thought a little preview of the back nine would be in order. For this review, all yardages quoted will be from the white tee box as that is from where I play. The back 9 is 3465 yards long and water comes into play on 4 of the holes. ThornApple is 6824 yards long and rated 70.49 with a slope of 114 from the white tee box.
Hole No. 10 is a par 5 dogleg right. It is bordered on the left by Alton-Darby Road. There are 4 fairway bunkers on this hole with 3 of them being on the left side of the fairway. There are trees on the right separating the 10th fairway from the 18th fairway. There are trees on the right in the rough and a fairway bunker on the right for wayward 2nd shots. There is a greenside bunker on the left. This is the 5th rated hole on the course.
Hole 11 is the hardest hole on the course. A 245 yard par 3 with a creek 20 yards short of the green and out of bounds down the left side can aptly be described as evil. Par is a great score here. The creek makes you do one of two things off the tee. Take a driver or 3 wood and go for it. Or lay up in front of the creek and hit a short iron or wedge into the green. It could be the most valuable thing in your bag is your ball retriever on this hole.
After the hole from hell, the 370 yard par 4 slight dog leg left hole is a sight for sore eyes. No water or bunkers on this hole and a fairly large green make this hole fairly easy. With a good drive you can be hitting a short iron or wedge into the green. This is the 13th rated hole on the course.
Hole 13 is another par 4 with no water. There is a large fairway bunker on the right and a greenside bunker on the right front also. 5 years longer than No. 12 at 375 No 13 is another good shot at par (or bogie for me). Rated 15th on the course this hole can be fun.
If 11 is the hole from hell, 14 is the hole from heaven. 343 yards long, straight, no bunkers, and no water make this a dream hole and and good change for birdie (par for me) and if you can really boom it the hole is driveable. This hole is the 17th rated hole. Why it is not the 18th I don’t know.
15 is a PGA Tour length par 4 and the longest par 4 on the course at 452 yards. Another hole with water on it, the 15th is a long iron or wood over the creek if you want to reach the green in regulation. At 442 from the red this is a par 5 for the ladies. This is just another evil hole and rated 3rd on the course.
Hole No. 16 is the final par 5 and another evil hole as far as I am concerned. The tee shot must be long and accurate and the 2nd shot must carry the creek. After you clear the creek however, it is straight into the green. This is the 7th ranked hole on the course.
No. 17 is a 193 yard par 3 with a creek about 2/3 of the way to the green. Like 11, the design makes you choose to go for it with a long iron or fairway wood or lay up with an iron. The green is bunkered on both sides and if you clear the creek on your tee shot and don’t hit the green you are faced with an uphill shot into the green over a bunker from the right. This is the 11th ranked hole on the course.
18, the homeward hole on the course is a 390 yard par 4. While there is no water on this hole, the 50 yard depression in front of the green cause you to have a 3rd shot uphill into the heavily bunkered green.
