18 signature holes for a PGA Tour signature course

Hole 9, The Turn and Hole 10

Hole 9: Par 4 – Royal Melbourne #X

We’re rounding out the front side with a trip down under, but probably not down under par. You can take your pick of any hole at Royal Melbourne, as long as the conditions match what we saw at the 2011 Presidents Cup. Twenty-five mph winds and an outrageous 14 rating on the stimpmeter added up to the fastest, most diabolical greens I’ve ever seen. The best players in the world sent routine putts off the green that weekend. Lucky for us, I’m instituting a stroke limit on this hole to maintain pace of play.

The Halfway House: 

Throughout this imaginary exercise we’ve been limited to holes that actually exist. We can pick any signature hole in the world, but we can’t create a new one out of thin air. Here at the turn, we’re going to break that rule. This is a magical halfway house. You can order anything you want and they’ll make it just the way you like it. Not only that, the cost is included in your greens fee. I’m walking away with a turkey club, a Snickers bar, a yellow Gatorade and an insulated cooler bag with enough beer to survive the return journey to the clubhouse. Eat up, you’ll need your strength.

Hole 10: Par 4 – Ridgewood Country Club #12

We all know the value of course management. The safe play keeps the big number off the scorecard. Yet, no matter how long we spend planning to lay up, when the moment arrives to put the big stick away and grab the iron, we can’t resist going for it. After all, you didn’t come all the way out to the Signature Course to not go for the green. The reachable par 4 at the recent Northern Trust inspired the signature course concept, so I’d be remiss not to include it on the list. There are other par 4s on tour that yield more eagles, and dole out harsher punishments to those who lose the gamble, but think of this one as representative of its entire risk/reward breed as you gamble for the green.