Hole #16 “Lang”

553 Yards, 474 Yards, 435 Yards, Par 5

Charles Banks in 1925 “Number sixteen is a rather long rolling fairway leading to a broad level green. The hole should be found somewhat of a let-down from the preceding and following holes of the second nine. The second shot of this hole is the critical one and should bring the ball up from an easy pitch to the green. The green is hidden from the tees and a shot for a narrow transverse saddle in the fairway should open up the hole for the second and third.”

Since 1926, three tee boxes have been added to the original tee, which is now the short, and the hole plays as a par 5 from all tees. At 553 yards, the new long tee is 210 yards to the fairway, making this a real par 5, even for the long hitters. The woods along both sides of the straight line to the hole reward straight play. However, the undulations of the first half of the fairway that leads to a narrow saddle will often create awkward stances that add a degree of difficulty to the second shot.

The second half of the fairway opens up and flattens out for the approach. Seth Raynor’s 1925 schematic plan showed water on the left front of this green. Now, however, shallow bunkers surround the long green, which slopes back left to front center and front right. Roger Rulewich restored the right-side bunker and extended it partially around the front of the green. Previously, a shot could kick off the higher right side of the fairway and run up on the green. The bunker now pinches the front collar and heightens the risk in trying for the green in two shots.