Five rules for architects when it comes to cross hazards
Golf can help retain its popularity by accommodating the needs of players across the entire spectrum of swing speeds. I wrote in the October 2014 issue of GCA about the issue of tee lengths that would fit a wide range of players; our research indicates tees ranging between 4,000 and 6,800 yards would fit players, regardless of their gender or age, with swing speeds between 65 and 105 miles per hour. Here, I turn my attention to the effect of cross hazards on players with slower swing speed.
The research that Jann Leeming, my wife, and I have done indicates that there is a factor in golf course design closely related to course length that is very important to the slower swing speed golfer. The ball flight of a player who swings their driver at 80 mph or less has considerably different characteristics than the ball flight of a player with a faster swing speed. This means that their ball flight does not allow them to clear cross hazards with ease. In addition to the obvious shorter yardage, the following characteristics are significantly different:
• the maximum height is lower
• the ball reaches its apex farther from the landing area
• the landing angle of the shot is shallower
• a higher percentage of total yardage results from roll
• backspin is lower (in rpm).
The ‘so what’ for golf course architecture is that slower swing speed players have much more difficulty with cross hazards of all types.
The good news is that, with thoughtful design that includes good tee positioning, architects can deal with this issue in the overwhelming majority of cases.
While not covering all situations, here are some basic rules of thumb:
1. Every green should allow a player to hit a run up shot. Hazards that front greens are a particular issue. Players with slower swing speeds are faced with using a longer club to carry the hazard, only to find that their shot with lower trajectory and less backspin rolls over the green. Where this is an issue, place tees close enough to the green so that the approach shot is a wedge or, at most, a short iron.
2. Where there is a cross hazard, position tees so that slower swing speed players can get close enough to carry it on their next shot. Avoid the lay-up shot that adds a shot to par.
3. Always provide the slower swing speed player a route around a cross hazard.
4. Unless impossible because of the lay of the land, avoid cross hazards that cross the entire line of play and are more than 50 yards wide. If this is not possible, the only real choice is to put the tee on the far side of the hazard.
5. And, often missed: place all tees to allow players the ability to reach the fairway over the intervening rough.
By keeping these rules of thumb in mind when designing golf holes, architects can create courses that embrace this significant segment of the market.
Arthur Little and Jann Leeming offer free advice to clubs. Contact him by email at arthurdlittle8@mac.com
This article first appeared in Golf Course Architecture – Issue 43.