The 5th hole at Arabian Ranches Golf Club is a great long par 4. It’s actually not the longest par 4 on the course but given it is played into the predominant wind, you’ll soon discover why it is our stroke 1 hole. It always feels like it plays a little longer than the yardage and it definitely requires accurate placement off both the tee and with your approach shot. 

Off the tee: Although it’s a fairly straight hole, your tee shot demands accuracy. Ideally, you want to try and hit it as far up the fairway as possible in order to leave yourself a shorter shot in. However, the longer you hit it, the tighter the landing area. Hit it left and you will find yourself in the waste area, while a miss right will see you in the trees and most likely requiring a chip out. 

Approach & closing out: With severe drop offs both left and right of the green, your approach requires yet more accuracy or you’ll be faced with a challenging recovery shot. Indeed, any up and down here is to be celebrated. 

Although the green is fairly large, the better player will be mindful of leaving themselves on the correct side of the pin to give the best shot at birdie. The green is home to numerous subtle breaks so take care with your putter. Par here, be it off the stick or with the assistance of any handicap allowance, is always a good score. Enjoy. –with Kent Gray

BE AT 1 SERIES:
Tame ‘Sea View’, stroke index 1 at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at The Els Club Dubai
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Tower Links Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at Yas Links Abu Dhabi
Tame the 7th, stroke index 1, at Dubai Hills Golf Club
Tame the 12th, stroke index 1, at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club
Tame the 13th, stroke index 1, at Al Zorah Golf Club
Tame the 10th, stroke index 1, at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Abu Dhabi Golf Club

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The 5th hole at Abu Dhabi Golf Club is both breath-taking and nightmarish at the same time. It’s a beautiful, sweeping par 4 that doglegs to the left, testing golfers of all abilities from every tee complex. Here’s my strategy to tame this potential card-wrecker.

Off the tee: The landing area off the tee, while spacious and inviting, asks for a gentle draw in between strategically placed fairway bunkers. Hitting it in the left hand bunkers will likely surrender any opportunity to hit the green in regulation so the most sensible play is to favour the right hand side. The right bunker, while further away and mainly out of reach, is the ideal starting line for your drive but beware as the prevailing wind is a left to right brute which often plays directly into your face. A slightly leaked tee shot to the right introduces rough and a potential chip out from waste area, so an accurate tee shot is a real key to success. 

Approach: The approach lends itself to another dilemma. As the second shot is generally a long one, the looming left hand greenside bunker is always a factor in the golfer’s decision making. Playing safe to the right hand portion of the green is the smartest option but clever architecture by course designer Peter Harradine means that the narrow opening is often hard to find as the slope tends to direct the ball towards the right hand portion of the green. In short, only a well-flighted approach will find the putting surface. 

Holing out: There is some good news when you finally discover the putting surface: keep the ball below the hole and you will be left with a reasonable attempt at birdie. Local knowledge suggests that you should look at the line from both in front and behind the hole however, as there are some subtle slopes that can be hard to see. The 5th hole is both a physical and tactical marvel that will surely stand out during your round at Abu Dhabi Golf Club. Good luck! –with Kent Gray

BE AT 1 SERIES:
Tame ‘Sea View’, stroke index 1 at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at The Els Club Dubai
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Tower Links Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at Yas Links Abu Dhabi
Tame the 7th, stroke index 1, at Dubai Hills Golf Club
Tame the 12th, stroke index 1, at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club
Tame the 13th, stroke index 1, at Al Zorah Golf Club
Tame the 10th, stroke index 1, at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club

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While the two other par 5s at AESGC offer birdie opportunities, the 10th, in stark contrast, more than lives up to its billing as stroke index 1. Even more skilled golfers will gladly take a par here and run to the 11th. From the hole’s length, to the various bunkers in play from the tee, to second shots and regulation approaches that must avoid the large lake guarding the front and the right side of the green, there is no let-up when you arrive at the hole we dub “the Beast in the East”.

Tee shot: Finding the fairway is the first challenge as any drive finishing in the rough, or even worse, the sandy waste area, will put you on the back foot for the rest of the hole. The landing area is relatively generous but as you approach 300 yards off the tee it starts to narrow so big hitters need to keep that in mind. The right of the fairway will lead to a better angle for your second shot; anything left will prove more difficult.

Second shot: If the fairway has been found off the tee, the next task is to move your second shot down the hole as far as possible. The two strategically placed fairway bunkers will be in your mind and both need to be avoided if you want a chance of hitting the green in regulation. Hugging the left side of the fairway is the prudent play as anything right will leave you a long carry over the water.

Approach: Even after two good blows you are going to have a mid-iron into the green. Hopefully, you are on the left side of the hole to make your line to the green a safer one that doesn’t require a carry over the lake. Anything coming up short or right is going to see you reaching into your bag for another ball. Missing in
the greenside bunker is not the worse play.

Finishing off: The green is generous in size and slopes steeply from back to front. If you find yourself just off the putting surface short of the green, be positive chipping into the up slope. Conversely, if you end up over the green don’t get caught out by the speed of the green when chipping or pitching from the back, as your ball can easily run further than you had imagined.

Once on the green, you still need to keep your concentration as the subtle breaks can lead to three putts. For a long putt, concentrate on lagging it close and avoiding a card wrecker. Par here is more than acceptable. – with Kent Gray

BE AT 1 SERIES:
Tame ‘Sea View’, stroke index 1 at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at The Els Club Dubai
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Tower Links Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at Yas Links Abu Dhabi
Tame the 7th, stroke index 1, at Dubai Hills Golf Club
Tame the 12th, stroke index 1, at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club
Tame the 13th, stroke index 1, at Al Zorah Golf Club
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Abu Dhabi Golf Club

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The post Tame the 10th, stroke index 1, at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Thirteen is an unlucky number for some. At Al Zorah Golf Club, it is the number of a hole that can make you feel like a really unlucky golfer, a proven a scorecard wrecker for those who approach without a prudent strategy. Even the pros at past MENA Tour events have run up big numbers here. Water on the left side will play on your mind from the moment you stand on the tee box with your driver until you drop your final putt. The approach shot, yeah that’s a nerve-jangler too.  Summed up, making par on this hole is an achievement in its own right but it’s not impossible. Here’s my strategy:

Tee shot: This is the most demanding tee shot on the golf course as water lies to the left and bunkers wait for anyone who bails out right. The perfect shot would be a soft draw off the bunkers. Playing a draw off this tee is still a daunting prospect with all that wet stuff left but trust yourself to set up a decent approach.

Approach: Find the fairway and you’ll likely be left with long to mid iron in. The challenge? The water hazard hasn’t gone anywhere. It’s still hugging the entirety of the hole which means any shot which has a touch of left in it ends up wet.  The bailout is short and right which can leave a straightforward pitch shot into the pin. If you go long and right then a treacherous chip shot to the pin with water in the background will give all but the surest of short game exponents pause for thought.

Finishing off: The green on the 13th has an array of movement which can easily lead to annoying three-putts. If the pin is at the back and you come up short with your approach, you’ll need to negotiate a multitude of breaks and undulations.  If the pin is on the left side, then putting into the water can also be a real threat. This is a hole where you need to maintain concentration on every shot until your ball disappears into the cup. A pure par or one with the assist of a stroke or two? Perfectly acceptable. A birdie? Well played indeed. – with Kent Gray

BE AT 1 SERIES:
Tame ‘Sea View’, stroke index 1 at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at The Els Club Dubai
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Tower Links Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at Yas Links Abu Dhabi
Tame the 7th, stroke index 1, at Dubai Hills Golf Club
Tame the 12th, stroke index 1, at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club
Tame the 10th, stroke index 1, at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Abu Dhabi Golf Club

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The 12th hole at Royal Greens comes after a nice stretch of birdie holes and certainly tests all levels of golfer. At 459-yards off the championship tees, this par 4 is a long, skinny and slightly uphill hole where an unfavourable left to right prevailing wind will push any errant tee shot into the desert and, even worse, out of bounds if you are not careful.

If you are successful in finding the small fairway by avoiding the well-placed fairway bunker, then there will be a long iron, perhaps even a fairway wood, into the extremely undulating green that has severe run offs. Dave Sampson from European Golf Design certainly wanted to test every element of your game at the 12th. –with Kent Gray

Tee shot: An elevated tee allows golfers to visualise their tee shot. However, the strong left to right wind seeds doubt … do you aim left and let the wind bring the ball back, or play a draw of the tee into the wind? Moreover, the fairway bunker at 250 yards off the tee is perfectly placed on the right and will catch a slightly wayward tee shot; forget reaching the green in two from there. If you are able to find the fairway or even the first or second cut of rough, you’ll have a chance of reaching the green in two but the odds will still be against you.

Approach: Accuracy and precision is key to your approach shot and anything on the green in regulation is a job well done. While there are no greenside bunkers to avoid, sometimes you wish there was to help stop the ball rolling down the severe run offs. If your approach shot falls short, goes left or right then you are left with a very difficult chip shot to try and save par.

Closing out: The 12th hole gets even better once you’ve finally reached the green. Welcome to one of our most undulating greens on the course which tends to slope away to the run off areas. That makes hitting any approach shot close difficult.  The three-tiered green allows many ‘interesting’ pin locations for our members and guests with everyone looking forward to hearing the ball finally drop and moving over the par 5, 13th hole.

BE AT 1 SERIES:
Tame ‘Sea View’, stroke index 1 at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at The Els Club Dubai
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Tower Links Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at Yas Links Abu Dhabi
Tame the 7th, stroke index 1, at Dubai Hills Golf Club
Tame the 13th, stroke index 1, at Al Zorah Golf Club
Tame the 10th, stroke index 1, at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Abu Dhabi Golf Club

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The post BE AT 1: Tame the 12th, stroke index 1, at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The challenging par 4 7th hole at Dubai Hills Golf Club is perfectly sandwiched between two of the more scoreable holes at the region’s newest course and two tough, long holes to close out the front nine.

At 440 yards off the black tees, all but the longest hitters will be left playing a longer iron or more with their approach. Accuracy is vital off the tee to avoid the drop off waste area on the right and the cleverly positioned bunker on the left. Only then will finding this long two-tiered green seem realistic. I have seen many cases of players getting off to fast starts over the first six holes only to come unstuck at this tough hole, myself included. Here I will share my thoughts on how you can avoid this problem. –With Kent Gray

Tee shot: From the back tees the bunker on the left is 230 yards to reach and over 250 yards to carry so it’s important that you have a realistic understanding of how far you can hit the ball. Few players are going to have the firepower to launch it over that trap, so the line is just right of it. A gentle fade off the bunker suits the shape of the hole well. Anything too far right though will kick off the slope end up down in the waste area and then it’s simply pot luck as to how you find your ball sitting. If you do end up down there don’t try to be a hero, simply get the ball back in play and keep the damage to a minimum.

Approach: Even if you do manage to find the fairway, the approach to this green is no cinch.  Any shot landing too close to the front right of the green will roll down the run off area potentially leaving a tricky chip back up the slope. Playing towards the left centre of the green is always a safe play and a miss slightly left could still leave you with a chance. With the ball often slightly below your feet on this shot it is likely to finish right so adjust for this. Make sure you club up for your approach as well – the green is slightly raised and anything short will run back further away from the green. A bunker front left is also waiting to catch anything slightly under hit. A green in regulation is a great effort but by no means is the hole complete.

Closing out: The green slopes back to front and gently left to right following the general shape of the hole. Pace putting is a priority here. Anything left and long and you will need to be cautious with your speed – don’t get aggressive with your first putt or you’ll leave yourself an awkward length coming back. Walk off this green with your score still intact and you should be one very happy golfer.

BE AT 1 SERIES:
Tame ‘Sea View’, stroke index 1 at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at The Els Club Dubai
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Tower Links Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at Yas Links Abu Dhabi
Tame the 12th, stroke index 1, at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club
Tame the 13th, stroke index 1, at Al Zorah Golf Club
Tame the 10th, stroke index 1, at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Abu Dhabi Golf Club

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The post BE AT 1: Tame the 7th, stroke index 1, at Dubai Hills Golf Club appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The 15th hole at Yas Links is the start of one of the toughest stretches of finishing holes in the Middle East. Not only is it deservedly the stroke index 1 hole, it doubles down by invariably playing straight into the prevailing wind that sweeps across Yas Island.

Par or better is no cinch because even if you safely negotiate the fairway bunker and run-off areas designed to gobble up drives that stray too far left, the approach into the large, double-tier green shared with our 12th hole calls for a crisply struck shot.

The putting surface is then protected with a large bunker to the left, a hidden run-off area to the right and a fairway bunker short right, catching miss-hit or miss-judged approach shots which are common-place hitting into this challenging green. But fret not. Here’s my blueprint to walk away with a Stableford point or three. — with Kent Gray

Tee shot: There’s not much reward here if you’re tempted to take on the bunker on the left-hand side of the fairway. It sits about 276 yards out and because of its depth, you’re looking at bogey at best if your drive ends up in the trap. So for even the big hitter, right is your best chance of avoiding early punishment. There’s a large area that opens up to the right side of the fairway which you cannot see from the tee.  The left side, meanwhile, is cambered, leading to a runoff area which Is laced with thick rough, a magnet for anything that bounces left.

So aim for the right side and leave yourself a nice angle into the green from somewhere between the fairway bunkers.

Approach: Your number one task here is to simply hit the middle of the green. Manage this and it sets you up for a good start for the final three holes. The deep greenside bunker left and a fairway bunker 30 to 40 yards out is just waiting to catch those poor shots previously mentioned. Miss the green right and the nasty run off area will leave you with a shot from a tight lie over a steep bank guarding the green. So, to reiterate, take a short game blowout out of the equation by aiming for the middle of the green.

Closing out: The large two-tier putting surfaces sees its share of three (or more) putts on any given day. My advice is to accept a two-putt even if you are chasing a score. Don’t get greedy because the undulating green can easily leave you second-guessing with the flat stick, not something you want as you move onto the final stretch.

BE AT 1 SERIES:
Tame ‘Sea View’, stroke index 1 at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at The Els Club Dubai
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Tower Links Golf Club
Tame the 7th, stroke index 1, at Dubai Hills Golf Club
Tame the 12th, stroke index 1, at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club
Tame the 13th, stroke index 1, at Al Zorah Golf Club
Tame the 10th, stroke index 1, at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Abu Dhabi Golf Club

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The Middle East’s 18 favourite holes
The Middle East’s best par 3s
Top 10 Golf Courses in the Middle East: The Class of 2020

The post BE AT 1: Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at Yas Links Abu Dhabi appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

The drive from the 4th green to the 5th tee gives you time to contemplate the task ahead as you enter the “Green Mile”, a stretch of three holes under the road comprising two par 5’s and a long par 4. The par-5 5th, which thoroughly warrants its stroke index 1 status, poses a challenge to even the most skilled players. At no point can you allow your concentration to waiver. Depending on the tee box you are playing from, the first task is to select a line from the tee which allows you to carry the mangroves which hug the entire right side of the hole. The sensible play is towards one of the bunkers on the left side of the fairway, reducing the risk of a re-loaded tee shot. Care must be taken to ensure the bunker just over the mangrove does not catch your tee shot leaving a long lay-up shot. Longer hitters can use the “twin towers” in the distance as a guide. Thread them with your drive and it offers an opportunity for the longer hitters to take on a very risky second to a well-protected green. Normally the prevailing wind is straight into your face and must be considered when deciding your line, regardless of which tee you peg it up from.

Decisions, Decisions
Once you are in play off the tee, focus turns to a second shot into a tight landing area. Beware the water on the left which runs from 150 yards out all the way to the green. On the right side there is a large sandy waste area and mangroves beyond waiting to swallow your ball. The braver you are will dictate the length of the third shot where pinpoint accuracy is key. Anything short or left will catch water. Should you carry but not hit the green a steep run off onto a speed zone will catch your ball. To the right and long of the green are small bunkers. These present a very scary shot heading back towards the speed zone and water.

Clever Closing
The green offers a number of great pin positions. Take care wherever it is cut as the green slopes from back to front. The clever design often sees those generating a lot of spin finding themselves bringing the speed zone in to play by spinning the ball off the green, especially with left sided pin positions. The toughest pin position is back right on a small shelf surrounded by subtle breaks.

This really is a hole not to get greedy on. The 5th at Tower Links can bite but also offer a good chance of birdie providing you stick to a plan. Always remember you still have two tough holes ahead as you complete the first phase of the “Green Mile” so use your handicap allowance wisely. — with Kent Gray

BE AT 1 SERIES:
Tame ‘Sea View’, stroke index 1 at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at The Els Club Dubai
Tame the 15th, stroke index 1, at Yas Links Abu Dhabi
Tame the 7th, stroke index 1, at Dubai Hills Golf Club
Tame the 12th, stroke index 1, at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club
Tame the 13th, stroke index 1, at Al Zorah Golf Club
Tame the 10th, stroke index 1, at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club
Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Abu Dhabi Golf Club

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Top 10 Golf Courses in the Middle East: The Class of 2020

The post BE AT 1: Tame the 5th, stroke index 1, at Tower Links Golf Club appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.