ST. ANDREWS, Scotland—If one were designing a golf hole today that featured a tee shot over a portion of property tied to an adjoining hotel, a menacing deep greenside bunker that swallows golf balls faster than “Jaws” inhaled swimmers, and an actual road and stone wall that awaits the wayward play, you would say such a concept was beyond daft. It would be totally out-of-bounds—no pun intended.
With the return of The Open Championship for the 29th time to the famed Old Course at St. Andrews, the spotlight returns to arguably the most fascinating hole in all of golf. Known to all as “The Road Hole,” the penultimate hole will once again play a critical role in determining what player leaves the grounds as the Champion Golfer of the Year.
The Road Hole played as a par-5 for much of its history. The distance was roughly 465 yards, and for many players the option to go for the green in two shots was fraught with the keen awareness that the Road bunker was only one part of the equation to be solved. The other was the real possibility that an approach from great distance could easily bounce beyond the putting surface and end up on the road—or worse yet, leaning against the stone wall that runs perpendicular to the playing line.
