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Pound Ridge Golf Club - Public 18-HOLE COURSE
Ranked No. 3 in our Top 30 Amenities:
Lessons: yes Clinics: yes GOLF COURSE
Description: Legendary golf course architect Pete Dye’s first design project in New York is a spellbinding layout that winds its way through hardwood forest and opens to rolling meadows. With 14,000 feet of rock walls surrounding trees, wetlands and water hazards, the course offers different shot-making opportunities on all 18 holes that will satisfy every avid golfer.
And whether you love him or hate him, Pete Dye sure makes his courses interesting. Pound Ridge follows in tow, as it cuts no corners on aesthtic and entertainment value. Every hole looks different and presents a new array of very challenging obstacles. Because of all the rock that had to be blasted out of the ground, the most distinct design feature is the dramatic mounding that runs from tee to green. The mounding separates adjacent fairways (in conjunction with tangles of knee-high fescue grass), defends tee shots, second shots and often tosses aside balls hit in the middle of the fairway. It's not uncommon from the back tees to have a semi-blind tee-shot, hit it exactly where planned, and end up in the rough or on a horrible side-hill lie. There are a lot of forced carries, depending on what teeing area you use, and that can lead to a lot of lost balls if one isn’t careful (or a long-drive champ). There is a definite emphasis on accuracy, as all the different angles Dye sets up through the use of mounding, hazards and trees, makes course management a necessity to break 100 from the back tees, even for the most skilled golfer. There are also some very interesting elevation changes, which contribute to the four great par-3’s on the 176-acre woodland property. To match those four par-3’s are four par-5’s, equally as stunning in their appearance as their risk-reward versatility.
Signature Hole: No. 15, 174-yard Par 3. Not a long par-3, this hole demands accuracy and distance control with no bail-out available. The green sits at an angle from the tee, as it gets longer from right-to-left and runs only steps from a wetland area that fronts the green and runs up the whole left side. Behind lies the intimidation factor; the trademark look of a course cut through stone. A very uninviting boulder complex shadows the green, as anything hit a couple yards long or too far right will be propelled wherever the boulders may throw it. The rocks are on a steep embankment that makes the hole look appealing for a draw — until it’s over-cooked and you’re hitting three from the drop zone. It’s a good-looking hole, fun to play, fair, and sets up the three difficult closing holes with a bit of flair. Reader Comments: An absolutely stunning round of golf; worth every penny ... Way too hard, from any teeing area ... The most enjoyable Pete Dye torture I've ever experience ... What a course! The setting is magical.
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