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Chicago - Best/Worst Par 3's


Argonne69

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That is a good call for worst Par 3 on an otherwise very nice course ( my nomination was for an executive type course)

 

Edit: that makes me think of a common theme that comes up during our rounds. if you lined up the top 20 golfers in the world at the 5th at Blackstone from the tips, what would the average score be?

Probably right around par. The difference between pros and us is night and day but that hole wouldn't generate a lot of birdies because of the tricked out green. I've seen a grand total of one birdie on that hole ever. Some guy I was grouped up with ripped a T-MB 2 iron to inside 8 feet and made the putt.

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This is a tough one, here is my stab at it:

 

My favorite:

So many likeable Par 3's. I will go with Prairie Landing #12. Clocks in around 200 with most of the yardage over water. There is a little room right and left before woods come into play. Very picturesque and very playable as long as you clear the water. You feel isolated on this hole from the rest of the course. Challenging but fair hole.

 

Honorable mention:

- Hilldale #13 with the lilly pads in the water.

- Oak Grove #3, uphill 200 yards, but surrounded by nature. Everything is right in front of you but you need a well struck shot.

 

Least favorite:

Makray Memorial Hole 4. It is about 170ish, with a huge downhill drop which makes club selection very difficult. If that was the only issue, I would say it is a nice hole. However, the green is extremely narrow with water off the right fringe which moves in and out of the green. Left is a few trees with a very difficult chip. You almost have to play short or aim left and hope you are not behind a tree. Look at a picture if you do not believe me! A bogey is an awesome score.

 

I've played a ton of golf at PL and don't like #12 at all. Long forced carry = pace of play issues and it almost always plays the same yardage to a pretty benign green. 3 is a more interesting hole IMO.

 

Worst - Tanna Farms #1, sets a bad, but appropriate, tone for the rest of the round.

 

Haha!

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I'll give another vote for the 13th at Big Run. Also, the 7th at Highlands of Elgin. Elevated tee, water left, bail out front right, and the green has a lot of undulation. I've made 2 and I've made 6.

The worst par 3 is easy: the 5th at Blackstone. Unnecessarily long, causes backups galore, and has a miniature golf green. Move the tips to the golds and it's fine, but 234 with that green (as well as trees on both sides and the possibility of errant tee shots on 6) creates pace nightmares.

 

I'll agree on the 5th at Blackstone. Long par 3, narrow green with 3 tiers, and falls off pretty hard on the sides. Neat idea but for most amateurs a 200+ yard par 3 is enough, no need to trick out the green too much like they did. There's plenty of green to hit, but again for most amateurs from 200 yards they're usually off more side to side than in distance.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Worst: #5 at Stonewall Orchard. Long with a small green and hazards everywhere. Extremely hard to hold the green with a hybrid or driving iron.

 

Best: #17 at Glen Club or perhaps #4 at Mt Prospect. I also really like the group of par 3’s that Ravisloe has.

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Worst: #5 at Stonewall Orchard. Long with a small green and hazards everywhere. Extremely hard to hold the green with a hybrid or driving iron.

 

Best: #17 at Glen Club or perhaps #4 at Mt Prospect. I also really like the group of par 3’s that Ravisloe has.

At Stonewall it all depends on what tees you’re playing from. The fifth is fine from the gold tees (about 190ish) but I agree, it’s asking a lot from the tips. That said, the tips at Stonewall in general are no joke. They should add a combo tee there that blends the gold and silver tees like they did for the golds and whites. That would neutralize that par 3, just like HoE did for the 7th and Blackstone the 5th.

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Can't forget Big Run's 13th. Again, I'm sure there's a lot of hate on this hole, but I think it's a tough, but fair test.

 

cover.jpg

There's not many that create the same oh-sh*t feeling the 1st time you see them as this hole...the 13th at Medinah might be close

 

I love this hole. Sometime making a par is a helluva great hole.

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I have to agree with all of the Blackstone #5 hate.

 

Technically not Chicago area, but my favorite is probably Hawk's View 17.

In fact, all of the par threes at HV are fun.

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  • 1 month later...

This is a tough one, here is my stab at it:

 

My favorite:

So many likeable Par 3's. I will go with Prairie Landing #12. Clocks in around 200 with most of the yardage over water. There is a little room right and left before woods come into play. Very picturesque and very playable as long as you clear the water. You feel isolated on this hole from the rest of the course. Challenging but fair hole.

 

Honorable mention:

- Hilldale #13 with the lilly pads in the water.

- Oak Grove #3, uphill 200 yards, but surrounded by nature. Everything is right in front of you but you need a well struck shot.

 

Least favorite:

Makray Memorial Hole 4. It is about 170ish, with a huge downhill drop which makes club selection very difficult. If that was the only issue, I would say it is a nice hole. However, the green is extremely narrow with water off the right fringe which moves in and out of the green. Left is a few trees with a very difficult chip. You almost have to play short or aim left and hope you are not behind a tree. Look at a picture if you do not believe me! A bogey is an awesome score.

 

Perhaps I'm in the minority, but I have the complete opposite view of #12 at PL - it's maybe my least favorite. It's easy to plop a green down at the end of a lake 200 yards away. Sure, it's hard, but it's a very boring design. All it's asking you is if you can carry the ball 190+. If you can't, good luck making double.

 

I'd nominate #4 at Mt. Prospect for a difficult long par 3 done the right way. It's playable for everyone, even those who can't fly the green (perhaps the preferred way of playing it is to land it short left), and it will absolutely reject bad shots that are hit to the wrong spot, leaving a very challenging up and down.

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This is a tough one, here is my stab at it:

 

My favorite:

So many likeable Par 3's. I will go with Prairie Landing #12. Clocks in around 200 with most of the yardage over water. There is a little room right and left before woods come into play. Very picturesque and very playable as long as you clear the water. You feel isolated on this hole from the rest of the course. Challenging but fair hole.

 

Honorable mention:

- Hilldale #13 with the lilly pads in the water.

- Oak Grove #3, uphill 200 yards, but surrounded by nature. Everything is right in front of you but you need a well struck shot.

 

Least favorite:

Makray Memorial Hole 4. It is about 170ish, with a huge downhill drop which makes club selection very difficult. If that was the only issue, I would say it is a nice hole. However, the green is extremely narrow with water off the right fringe which moves in and out of the green. Left is a few trees with a very difficult chip. You almost have to play short or aim left and hope you are not behind a tree. Look at a picture if you do not believe me! A bogey is an awesome score.

 

Perhaps I'm in the minority, but I have the complete opposite view of #12 at PL - it's maybe my least favorite. It's easy to plop a green down at the end of a lake 200 yards away. Sure, it's hard, but it's a very boring design. All it's asking you is if you can carry the ball 190+. If you can't, good luck making double.

 

I'd nominate #4 at Mt. Prospect for a difficult long par 3 done the right way. It's playable for everyone, even those who can't fly the green (perhaps the preferred way of playing it is to land it short left), and it will absolutely reject bad shots that are hit to the wrong spot, leaving a very challenging up and down.

 

Agreed, i debated this with Shriner on the phone after he posted that.

 

#3 at Prarie is the superior hole and not only does #12 not fit with the rest of the course, its dark and fairly boring/uninteresting (imo)

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Looks like the cook beat me to the hate for #12 at PL. The tee shot is way too overly penal if you can't carry 200 from the box, and a forced layup on a par 3 is absurd.

 

My favorite is probably #9 at Stonewall Orchard. This risk/reward of going for a tucked pin on the right side of the green can make the elevated tee shot very exciting, and if you bail out left you could find yourself with an intimidating bunker shot looking right back at the water.

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  • 3 weeks later...

> @Argonne69 said:

> VNutz wrote:

>

>

>

> Worst - Tanna Farms #1, sets a bad, but appropriate, tone for the rest of the round.

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

> On the flip side, Willow Crest's par 3 18th is a letdown. 'Not a fan of closing with a par 3. Now, if they flipped the nines, it would be a very good 9th hole, and the current 9th would make an excellent closing hole with the water on the left.

 

I agree that the 9's should be reversed, #9 would be a great 18th hold. With that, I think Willow Crest and maybe Bolingbrook have the best set of par3's in the area. Great variety of holes and you'll use a variety of clubs on them. Also agree on Big Run's 13th, love that hole.

 

Worst for me would be Sheppard Crook #4, no par 3 should be 245 yards. I'd rank Tanna #1 up there as well for obvious reasons.

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I dunno. I don't mind a long par 3 as long as it's not overly penal. Most players should be able to roll a drive at least as far as the front edge of the green.

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> @DavePelz4 said:

> > @greg said:

> > Also, how about #16 at Prairie Bluff? Nice hole, calls for a draw, but over draw it and you're in the reeds or pond. Play it safe and miss a little and you have to chip or putt at that pond.

>

> Think you mean 17 at PB. 16 is basically an uphill left to right strong par 4.

 

Yep, you are correct.

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