Hole by Hole description

A hole-by-hole look at the 7,361-yard, par-71 Carnoustie Golf Links, site of the 128th Open to be played July 15-18:

No. 1, 407 yards, par 4: A clear view of the sunken green can only be achieved by keeping the tee shot on the high, left side of the fairway. Hale Irwin called this hole "the elephants' graveyard" because of the great humps that tumble down from the left. The green lies beyond a ridge, which is deeply bunkered on the right and covered in wild rough on the left. A drive falling away to the right leaves a blind approach.

No. 2, 462 yards, par 4: Braid's bunker in the middle of the fairway at 230 yards should pose no threat to the power players. They will be aiming further up the valley as it turns slightly right between large sandhills that diminish in height to expose the green to the wind, which is predominantly against and from the right. The green is long and narrow, measuring more than 50 yards from front to back. It is protected down both sides by bunkers, rough mounds and hollows.

No. 3, 342 yards, par 4: This may be the shortest par 4 on the course but it presents a classic links challenge, where accuracy is far more important than power. A ridge of broken dunes and thick rough dominates the right side all the way to the green, with trees, bunkers and Jockie's Burn on the opposite side. The burn swings close across the face of the small, sharply contoured green, which is bunkered on both sides.

No. 4, 412 yards, par 4: Gary Player ignored the fairway when he won in 1968, choosing the safer option of the 15th hole on the right. This strategy avoided the 270-yard carry of the bunker at the corner of the dogleg. Heavier growth between the fairways makes this a less easy option this year. Play too far to the left and a ditch awaits just a few yards into the rough. The flat green, well protected by bunkers at the front, rises into a sharp ridge before merging with the putting surface of the 14th hole. It is Carnoustie's only double green.

No. 5, 411 yards, par 4: Two new bunkers in the left rough put more emphasis on tee-shot accuracy at this pronounced left-to-right dogleg. Beyond the lone bunker on the right, Jockie's Burn crosses the fairway at 280 yards and many players will lay up with a long iron to get premium position for the approach to a very difficult green. More than 50 yards deep, it climbs quickly to a second tier and cuts back at an angle behind deep bunkers on the left.

No. 6, 578 yards, par 5: Known as ``Hogan's Alley'' in 1953 because he hit the narrow gap between two central bunkers and an out-of-bounds fence on the left, the only route to get home in two. A slightly repositioned tee and a new bunker now mean a carry in excess of 300 yards to find the fairway beyond the bunkers. Into the prevailing wind, this will force most players to choose between the left- and right-hand routes. A drainage ditch narrows the fairway some 80 yards short of a green that has been restored to its original two-tier contours, and bunkers back and front make it a difficult target from long range.

No. 7, 412 yards, par 4: The out-of-bounds fence runs all the way from tee to green on the left, but there is a reasonably generous fairway between bunkers left and right to make this one of the less demanding holes. The green slopes away 26 yards from front to back and, if the wind swings to the east, this can make even a wedge approach difficult to stop close to the hole downwind.

No. 8, 183 yards, par 3: A long hollow running up the front of the green creates a large area of dead ground and, together with the mass of gorse and heather between tee and green, combines to confuse the judgement of distance. The prevailing wind from the left also reduces the target area on a narrow green set between bunkers left and right.

No. 9, 474 yards, par 4: Jack Nicklaus thought he was making a helpful suggestion in 1968 when he expressed the opinion that a large mound in the fairway at drive length was unfair. When he came back for the Open seven years later it had been replaced by a deep bunker which bears his name. The fairway is also threatened by out of bounds on the left and a drainage ditch uncomfortably close in the right rough. Considerable reshaping has been carried out in mounds and hollows added to the bunkers, which guard the long green.

No. 10, 466 yards, par 4: A switch in wind direction can change this hole from a simple drive and mid-iron into a monster demanding two full woods. Four bunkers on the right and one on the left frame the fairway, and the Barry Burn makes its first appearance well to the left, then cuts across the line of play 30 yards short of the green and continues close to the right side of the putting surface.

No. 11, 383 yards, par 4: The second and last par 4 under 400 yards. Position in the well-bunkered, skinny fairway is essential to gain vital control of a short-iron approach that requires pinpoint accuracy into the newly reshaped green, which angles away amid humps, hollows and deep bunkers to offer a slim target.

No. 12, 479 yards, par 4: The vulnerable par 5 of earlier championships has become a much tougher prospect as a par 4. Bunkers and an unseen drainage ditch make the right side a place to avoid but there is ample room on the left. The second shot is through the gap between bunkered mounds to a green set below the level of the fairway. The putting surface is wide but only 20 paces deep and it slopes sharply down a distinct step from right to left.

No. 13, 169 yards, par 3: This is a huge green by short-hole standards, more than 40 yards deep as it climbs steadily before dropping away at the back. But it is squeezed tightly at the waist by bunkers left and right, and it is essential to get the tee shot into the correct half. A large horseshoe bunker blocks off the front of the green, making it difficult to judge distance.

No. 14, 515 yards, par 5: Only a thin strip of fairway is visible beyond a sea of heather, gorse and rough, but there is a large landing area. Twin bunkers highlight the corner of the right-to-left dogleg and there is a wide expanse of fairway before the trees and bunker on the far side. Players can comfortably carry the huge sandhill with twin bunkers -- known as "The Spectacles" -- that shuts off a view of the green 70 yards short of the putting surface. But bunkers left and right guard the entrance to the green and make the blind shot something of a guess.

No. 15, 472 yards, par 4: The sloping fairway throws tee shots down toward bunkers on the right, which make the second shot blind over thick rough and sand. The perfect tee shot is into the left side of the fairway to give a clear view of the sunken green, but the margin for error is tight and any ball aimed too far left can disappear into deep hollows and heavy rough as the ground falls away sharply.

No. 16, 250 yards, par 3: The prevailing westerly wind takes the terror out of this mighty par 3. But, if it blows off the North Sea, it will test even the strongest hitters. Against a northeasterly wind on the final day of the 1968 Open, Jack Nicklaus was the only player to get the ball past the pin -- and he used his driver. The narrow, sharply contoured green is almost 50 paces deep, bunkered on both flanks, with the ground falling away toward the Barry Burn on the left.

No. 17, 459 yards, par 4: A double loop of the Barry Burn creates an island of safe fairway that narrows down to nothing between 240 and 280 yards. In the absence of a prevailing head wind, longer hitters will be tempted to carry the far reaches of the water leaving only a short iron to a green that slopes down from mounds to the left, with three bunkers on the right. Tiger Woods played the hole one day with two 5-irons. The next day he just reached the green with two drivers.

No. 18, 487 yards, par 4: Once again, the Barry Burn threatens the tee shot, running down the right, sweeping across the fairway and looping back up the whole of the left side before crossing just short of the green. Three bunkers on the right tighten the driving line. With the wind at their backs, the power players will reduce this hole to a drive and pitch. Against an easterly wind, it will take a masterly long iron to win the championship, with bunkers on both sides of the green and out of bounds uncomfortably close on the left.