HOLE 1
PAR 4
420 YARDS
During the U.S. Senior Open a lot of players grumbled about starting on holes 10-13, which are the hardest on the course. But this year, number one will be every bit the equal of 10. The hole will going to play harder for women than for the seniors, who mostly hit wedge in. The elevated green falls so hard back to front that the players have to get it deep enough so it doesn’t roll back. At the same time, you want to be below the hole. So much here depends on pin placement. It’s just a solid opening hole that sets the tone for the rest of the course.
HOLE 2
PAR 4
265/339 YARDS
The hole could provide some early excitement when longer hitters go for the green from the forward tee built specifically for the Open. The bunkers guarding the front left of the green should catch those who come up just a bit short, and the three-inch primary cut of rough will punish errant tee shots. The smallest green on the course, it slopes from right to left, working against the mountain and making those potential eagle putts all the more difficult to sink.
HOLE 3
PAR 5
560 YARDS
The hole will play 40 yards shorter, but no less risky, than it did during the 2008 Senior Open. An eagle opportunity awaits for any player who carries the pond on her second shot, as the apron of fairway leading to the green will be kept firm to allow shots to run up and on to the putting surface. In front of the pond, the fairway narrows from 27 to 23 yards, tightening the target area for layup shots. With the primary rough cut to three inches, second shot accuracy plays a critical role.
HOLE 4
PAR 3
142/163 YARDS
Those who remember then-leader Meg Mallon’s triple-bogey on the final day of the 1995 U.S Open know how pivotal this short hole is. Not only does the water seem to draw shots with too much backspin, but according to Director of Golf Russ Miller the green “may be the toughest on the course to putt.” Players will have to make sure they not only stick the green but also land their shots in the same quadrant as the flagstick while also keeping the pin between their ball and Cheyenne Mountain.
Adding to the intrigue, course architect Ron Forse, an expert on classic golf-course design restorations, recently reestablish the original, angular shape of the Donald Ross-designed green, and in the process added more putting surface to the rear right, making a pin placement in that area the most accessible. Nonetheless, players will need to watch hole locations and green speeds to avoid three-putts or worse. And nobody’s getting up-and-down if they miss the green.
HOLE 5
PAR 4
425 YARDS
To bring the bunkers on the left side of the fairway more into play, the USGA shifted the fairway left, giving the impression of a tighter landing area and forcing tee shots further right than they realistically need to be. Although the primary rough is a half-inch lower (2 ½ instead of 3 inches), players will need to stay in the short stuff if the hope to get on in two, as bunkers lurk around a green that appears to be one of the flattest on the course. “It’s actually the toughest hole to get a true Stimpmeter reading on a flat spot,” says Fred Dickman. “It definitely pitches from back to front—and break really hard away from the mountains.”
HOLE 6
PAR 4
402 YARDS
Cutting too much of the dogleg on this visually intimidating hole risks a trip to the beach or the wrist-breaking rough. Going over the fairway bunkers is the right play off the tee. A trio of deep bunkers prevent from running the ball up to the green, so sticking the approach is critical. But players are better off in the bunkers than in the swale behind the green. This fiddly putting surface breaks from back to front and left to right, with balls tending to collect in the hollow in the left-middle. Staying below the hole when the flag is in front is nearly impossible.
HOLE 7
PAR 4
426 YARDS
A second consecutive dogleg left is one of the course’s toughest driving holes. The fairway doesn’t start until it almost reaches the dogleg, making it difficult to keep tee shots in the short grass. Players who miss the fairway will welcome the shorter primary rough and wider approach area as they attempt to land the tiered elevated green, which ranks as the largest on the course and victimizes putts with The Broadmoor’s infamous “mountain effect.”
HOLE 8
PAR 3
140/166 YARDS
The difference between the two tees on this all-carry par-three is about more than distance. The “140 tee,” which is actually the championship tee on hole 12, sits five feet lower than the 166, creating more of an uphill shot. Players can’t afford to miss left because of a hazard. One of the more severe greens on the “Upper” holes designed by Robert Trent Jones, it features a shelf on the right side that drops into a bowl front left. Watch for three-putts, especially if the pin’s in front.
HOLE 9
PAR 5
535 YARDS
One of the better scoring opportunities on the front nine, this risk-reward hole will see players hitting into a fairway 14 yards wider than what the seniors encountered in 2008. If the course plays as firm as the USGA and Broadmoor expect it to, watch for players to risk the water and the bunkers and go for it in two. Remember, though, that the little approach area in front of the green runs back towards the pond and a number of competitors flew the severely pitched green—or couldn’t hold it—on their second shots in ’08.
HOLE 10
PAR 4
460 YARDS
A difficult hole for the seniors three years ago, this two-shotter might play a bit easier for the women, who’ll start 40 yards up and enjoy greater accuracy off the tee. The right middle of the fairway provides best angle of attack, though the downhill slope complicates the approach shot. Look for players to hit hybrids into the green, which is the second largest on the course, but tends to be unreceptive and falls off to the right. Rear right pin locations therefore present the greatest challenge.
HOLE 11
PAR 4
420/440 YARDS
The second hole in what players consider the toughest four-hole stretch on the course, this hole ranked as the most difficult for competitors in the June 6 Qualifier. It presents some alignment difficulties off the tee, owing to lack of fairway for some 50 yards from the closer tee box. Hitting a long iron or hybrid over the bunkers and stopping the ball on the same tier of the green (there are three) as the flag could prove problematic.
HOLE 12
PAR 3
168/200/223 YARDS
This hole’s elevated tees, varying yardages and tricky pin placements could cause some issues for players, especially those unaccustomed to playing at altitude. Players need to avoid sucker pin placements left and rear and aim for the fat part of the green. High, soft shots will roll toward the pin if they hit the right spot. The deeper the pin placement, the harder the par. Long is most definitely wrong here. Recovery from behind or left of the green will require deft skills.
HOLE 13
PAR 4
450 YARDS
The uphill, right dogleg hole that was Fred Funk’s undoing in 2008 could dash a few hopes in 2011. The bunkers at the elbow, which sit about 270 yards from the tee, should only come into play for the longest hitters, but they could be reached if the course plays firm. The ominous, easy-to-bounce-into presence of native grasses on the left and right of the fairway requires a straight tee shot, which will leave most players with at least 200 yards into the green. Approaches should be to the left, as the putting surface pitches to the right, away from the mountain.
HOLE 14
PAR 4
413 YARDS
Although it boasts one of the course’s smaller greens, this uphill hole could yield birdies—as long as a player’s tee shot doesn’t find one of the five fairway bunkers or the deep stuff bordering the fairway. The green doesn’t cant as severely as most of the others and surrounding bunkers sit away from it. A wedge or short iron into the green should present the opportunity for a makeable putt.
HOLE 15
PAR 4
432 YARDS
Shorter hitters will find themselves with an uphill lie, as the fairway levels off about 270 yards. This gives bombers a slight advantage. Either way, players can’t afford to push their tee shots. The fairway pitches hard to the right, where thick rough and a bunker lie in wait. Anything left-center will kick right and stay in the fairway. The well-guarded green falls away from the mountain and back hole locations could make it near impossible to get approach shots close to the pin.
HOLE 16
PAR 3
180/170 YARDS
If a player finds herself in desperate need of a birdie here, she’ll work hard for it—especially if the pin is tucked on the left side. With putts falling hard to the right, away from the mountain, they also roll towards the front of the green. Staying below the hole—or close to it—is mandatory. “Players should spend their practice rounds here,” says Fred Dickman. On a course renown for its devious putting surfaces, this one could be the most vexing.
HOLE 17
PAR 5
600 YARDS
A great scoring chance awaits the player who can take advantage of this long, downhill hole that the Seniors played as a 545-yard par-4. If the weather stays dry, tee shots will run like whitetail deer. Players attempting to reach the green in two had better get there on the fly, because anything short (including aggressive layup shots) can kick into the right bunker or the deep stuff surrounding it. Bunkers also pinch the layup landing area. The green breaks subtly away from the mountain, making it less severe but no more legible. Players need to watch for a rear right pin placement, as the green fights the grade, heading slightly uphill.
HOLE 18
PAR 4
433 YARDS
One of the most recognizable finishing holes in golf will look and play differently than it has in previous national championships. New since the 2008 Senior Open are the pair of fairway bunkers along the right side of the fairway that were built in part to direct resort players away from the new Cottages just behind the pines bordering the rough. The fairway itself has moved slightly right to run into those bunkers, making it that much tighter. With the pond 334 yards out and the fairway ending 13 yards in front of it, most seniors teed off with 3-wood or higher. Whether the women will follow suit is doubtful. However, getting the ball as close to the water as possible will put players in position to make a second shot that’s longer than it appears because the green is so elevated. For this reason, rear pin placements are hard to reach, and front flags are tough because of the pitch away from the mountain. But the tiered, bowled green can surrender birdies if a player can stick her approach close. And by close, we’re basically talking tap-in range. These are, after all, the legendary greens of The Broadmoor.