Mystic Rock: Hole No. 1
The Rock Pile:
Hole by Hole Typical Western Pennsylvania golf courses offer rolling fairways, parkland and trees.
Mystic Rock – Joe Hardy’s personal sandbox – is anything but typical.
While most area courses are at the mercy of the land they’re built upon, Mystic Rock is different.
“You come here and you see things you haven’t seen before,” said Kevin Shields, assistant golf professional at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort and Spa. “This wasn’t the ideal spot to build a golf course, but the funds were available, and they were able to move a lot of rocks and a lot of dirt.
“So, now you have golf holes where you don’t think they were intended to be.”
The world’s best golfers will test Mystic Rock’s 18 holes beginning Sept. 18, when the 84 Lumber Classic of Pa. tees off. Over the course of the following two months, the Herald-Standard will look at each of the holes beginning today with Hole No. 1.
One of, if not the, easiest holes on the course, No. 1 provides the golfer with a birdie opportunity. From its furthest tee, the hole currently plays at approximately 322 yards. But after a little tinkering with the positioning of the tee box, the hole will play closer to 400 yards.
“Without the changes, No. 1 is little more than a pitch and putt hole,” Shields said. “There’s a fairly wide fairway, and you just blasted it as close to the green as possible and then went for a little pitch.”
When the tee is moved back and to the right, golfers will have to decide whether or not to shoot for the neck of the fairway, or to work left of the hole with perhaps a full sand wedge.
If golfers attack the green from the left, they will encounter a rough pin placement because of a mound. A front pin placement will make it difficult because of a knoll, and a back pin placement may force an aggressive golfer into hitting too long an approach.
“It’s really an easy hole, but the changes should make it a little interesting,” Shields said. “It’s a very good chance for golfers to get off on the right foot. You’re looking to make 3. If you don’t make a 3 or at least get a good look at a birdie, then you’re thinking you had a bad hole.”
Next: Hole No. 2, Sunday.