Highlands Course at Atlanta Athletic Club

This is a good starting hole that gives a player the chance to get ahead with a birdie, The addition of a new tee has added some 25 yards in length and a better angle to work the ball around the dogleg left. This may bring the driver into play, but chances are a three wood or hybrid off the tee will be the percentage shot. A right to left tee shot to the ideal landing area will leave a short iron to the green. A tall tree line guards the left side of the fairway and the right side is well bunkered from 295-335 yards out. The aggressive player may try to turn a driver around the corner and play a short wedge but needs to make sure he turns it just right in order to gain an advantage. The key to the approach shot is to stay below the hole.  

This slight dogleg left par 5 provides an early birdie opportunity for those that find the fairway, longer hitters can often reach this green in 2, but players may want to lay up when the flagstick is in the back right of the green, as it is protected by deep bunkers in the front and steep drop off behind the green. 

This is a very demanding par 4 which plays as one of the most difficult holes on the front side. The prevailing wind generally blows against you here, which adds to the length and difficulty of the hole. The position of the tee shot is key as players will definitely want to favor the left side of the fairway and avoid the huge set of bunkers that guard the right side from 269-343 yards off the tee. It is all but impossible to reach the green from this location with the combination of sand and trees to deal with. A good drive will leave a short to mid-iron shot to a large green with plenty of hole locations. The green is deceptively fast from back to front so players will want to stay below the hole. The toughest hole location is back left. 

Play on the par 3 holes during this week could well decide the winner of the 93rd PGA Championship. A large lake guards the front of the green, surrounds the entire left side, and wraps around the back. A new tee has been added to offer 15 more yards. If the wind blows, it wreaks havoc on a player's dub selection. Most players will hit a mid to long iron into a long narrow green that possesses tough hole locations on the left side both front and back. The back-left hole location can stretch this hole to 230 yards. The tendency is to favor the right side of the green but putting from right to left is lightning quick. If the hole is located front right, you can look for some birdies if players have the nerve to flirt with the water. 

Since 2001, a few design changes have taken place, which should make this hole play a little tougher. Twenty-five yards have been added to the back tee so, at 565 uphill, only the longest hitters will have a chance to reach the green in two. The second shot is crucial. Cross bunkers have been added about 100 yards short of the green. This will force players to make a choice of laying up short or trying to take it over the bunkers to get closer to the green. A mostly blind approach shot to a small, well-bunkered green makes it hard to get the ball dose. The back, right hole location is the most difficult on the green. Best chance at a birdie is to stay below the hole no matter what. 

This straightaway hole plays at medium difficulty but may be another good birdie opportunity on the front nine. The ideal tee shot will favor the left center of the fairway with a little left-to-right shape. Bunkers protect the landing area on the right from 270-340 yards out. A series of trees protect the left side of the narrowest fairway on the course at 22 yards wide. Care must be taken not to drive the ball too far left. If the tee stays back at 425, most players will lay up short of the pond located left front of the green and have a short iron in, However, things could get interesting if the yardage is moved to a forward -tee at 295. This would be a drivable par 4 and may tempt a number of players with a huge risk-reward option. 

A new tee can stretch this par 3 to 195 yards from the championship tees. A lot of birdies were yielded in 2001, and the hole did not undergo a lot of change with the redesign. The difficulty will be in holding a mid-iron approach shot to a wide green that is narrow from front to back. The undulating green offers a number of difficult hole locations that will test even the best iron players. The quiet pond in front will not come into play, but the large steep faced bunker that guards the front of the green must be negotiated in order to get the ball dose. look for hole locations to favor the left side of the green during the week. If the hole is cut to the right side, putting from left to right is treacherous . 

A new tee has been added to this dogleg left, which now requires a tee shot to carry 280 yards. From the back tee, bunkers are positioned at 307-357 yards out protecting the right corner of the dogleg. Those choosing to play it safe can take the water and bunkers out of play. The ideal tee shot draws right to left off the right side bunkers in order to hug the left side of the fairway and shorten the second shot. Water and sand can come into play for any approach shot that lands short or left of the green. No. 8 has a number of tough hole locations to challenge the player's approach shot. The tendency is to hit plenty of club on this uphill shot, but over the green is dead and downhill putts on this slick green can be treacherous. 

A well--placed drive here should set up an excellent birdie opportunity before heading into the back nine. The key will be to make sure and keep the ball between the bunkers that guard both sides of the slightly elevated landing area. At 310 yards out, some players will be able to carry the right-hand bunkers, but this is not the line. Anything out of the fairway to the right will deal with deep rough and be blocked out by trees for the second shot. The ideal tee shot will leave a short-iron approach to a well bunkered green that is positioned slightly downhill. Club selection on the approach shot will be critical as this wide green has a variety of challenging hole locations. Front left can be severe as the green slopes from front to back. 

A 421-yard dogleg right that can play 20 yards longer if the PGA elects to use the very back tee (on the front of No. 1), as they did in 2001. Players will most likely start on the No. 1 and No. 10 tees alternately every five minutes for the first two rounds, giving spectators the opportunity to view both starts from the same location. It will require a left to right tee shot to turn the corner and shorten the distance for the second shot. Most likely a short iron shot will be played into a deep three club green that can be hard to get dose depending on the hole location. Players need to take extra care to guard against long or left as shots winding up in either of these places can spell disaster. Stay below the hole. 

A sharp dogleg left that requires a very well-placed tee shot in order to be able to attack the flag on the second shot. The tee shot is deceptive in that it looks like a player should drive the ball left over the bunkers, but in most cases this will be a mistake. The carry is 290 yards to dear the last bunker and anything that does not carry will be blocked out for the second shot. There is plenty of room to the right but this will lengthen the hole considerably. Bunkers are also positioned straight away at 310 yards out. There is a perfect landing area just around the corner that will leave a short-iron shot. This downhill approach shot to a well-protected green will test the nerves of the best players . 

A new elevated tee has added length to this hole, but tour players usually do well on the par 5s and the downhill tee shot makes it play shorter. A 300-yard drive that turns the dogleg left hole will definitely put a lot of players in "go territory" for their second shot. From this distance, the approach shot is long and very demanding as water protects the right side of the green from 100 yards out. Anything short and right is going to be wet. A tee shot that does not turn the corner may leave a player with a tricky lay up shot for their second. The landing area tightens considerably the closer you try to get to the green. Most lay up shots will want to be well short of this lake so they leave a full shot for their third. 

This is the shortest and tightest par 4 on the golf course. The objective off the tee will have little to do with length, but rather with a player's ability to control the distance that he hits the tee shot. This is a sharp dogleg right hole that has tall pines lining both sides of the fairway. A bunker on the right side steers tee shots to the left center of the fairway but players need to make sure they do not hit too far down the left side or they can be blocked out for the second. An iron off the tee will be the smart play for most players. A short-iron approach shot to this slightly elevated green will require pinpoint control of distance in order to get the ball close. 

This hole was tough to begin with and the redesign has strengthened it even more. This is a slight dogleg right that gives the appearance of offering very little landing area from the tee. Massive bunkers protect the left side up to 350 yards out and the right side up to 330 out. Right off the tee is dead because the second shot will be out of thick rough and most likely blocked out. The ideal tee shot will be down the left center of the fairway, making sure to stay inside the bunker that borders the left side of the landing area. From here, a short-iron approach to the most severe green on the course must be negotiated. Large bunkers in the front will make a player be sure he has taken enough club to carry onto this elevated green. 

Intimidating is the only way to describe this 227-yard par 3. This is the longest and most difficult par 3 on the course. During 2001, No. 15 yielded the most high numbers of any hole other than No. 18. The hole plays slightly downhill but extremely difficult with a large pond that guards the entire right side of the green. This pond starts well in front of the green, completely hugs the right side and wraps around the back right corner. It was also a turning point for Jerry Pate during the final round of the 1976 U.S. Open when Pate strung a 2 iron down the water line to within 8 feet and made 2. This hole would be the start of AAC's version of "Amen Corner". 

This is a narrow, long, uphill par 4 that will play tougher than last time. The back tee has been lengthened by 35 yards. Bunkers have been added to protect the right side of the tee shot landing area from 315-360 yards out. Players will tend to favor the left side off the tee, but the fairway quickly runs out, and from this position the player will be blocked out by trees for an approach to a left side hole location. A driver off the tee is probably necessary but some may opt for a fairway wood off the tee to keep it in play, The players who hit the driver will need to thread the needle as the landing area tightens the further you drive it. A perfectly placed tee shot will still leave a difficult uphill short iron second to a green. 

This is Highland's signature hole and one of the most beautiful holes on the course. Stair steps of elevated tee boxes overlook a huge lake that surrounds most of the 17th green. Beautiful as it may be, this hole plays extremely difficult and will be a critical hole especially this late in the round. Playing downhill, the distance can be a little misleading. Any shot that is mis-hit is going to be wet. Beyond the green is dry, but well--protected by bunkers and very difficult to stop any shot coming back downhill towards the water. The far-left hole location is the toughest. The hole plays longer to this corner and the shot has to be struck perfect if a player is going to take dead aim at the flag. 

This demanding Par 5 finishing holes requires accuracy for all 3 shots. For those bold enough to try and reach in 2 into the prevailing wind, the second shot is all carry over the lake that fronts the green. Players choosing to lay up must control the spin on the wedge shot as the green is severely sloped from back to front.