Inside the course: TPC Boston

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Badz/PGA TOUR

The 16th hole at TPC Boston reflects the fact that it's the second event in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup.

Aug. 26, 2008

The second event in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup will be held at TPC Boston in Norton, Mass. Here's all you want to know about the course:

Fast facts

Original architect	Palmer Course Design Co. (2001)
Course remodel	Hanse Golf Course Design (2006/2007)
Course superintendent	Thomas Brodeur
Number of TOUR events as host venue	6 (including 2008)
Course ranking	Ranked 36 (out of 55) in difficulty on the PGA TOUR in 2007
Yardage history	7,415 yards (2003-2006)
	7,207 yards (2007-present)
Grass	Princeville creeping bentgrass (tees, fairways); A-4 creeping bentgrass (greens); Kentucky bluegrass/fescue (rough)
Tournament Stimpmeter	11.5 ft
Sand bunkers	52
Water hazards	5
Course tour	Click here

Course record

Player
Vijay Singh

Year
2006

Round
3rd

Finish
2nd

Holes-in-one

There have been 4 aces recorded during the Deutsche Bank Championship.

Player	Hole	Year
Robert Allenby	16	2006
Jonathan Byrd	11	2006
Kevin Stadler	3	2005
Garrett Willis	11	2003

2007 Rankings

Most Difficult Hole

	The par-4 492 yard 5th The TPC Boston really starts to show its teeth on the 5th hole. Drives must be long and accurate to avoid a strategically placed bunker on the left side of the fairway. This will lead to a mid-iron approach shot to a 3-tiered green, with trouble left and right. 2007: 0 eagles, 24 birdies, 212 pars, 66 bogeys, 5 double bogeys, 2 others.
Easiest hole in 2007
	The par-5 528-yard 18th This par 5 finishing hole will undoubtedly be controversial. Players can choose to carry two bunkers in the middle of the fairway and leave themselves a chance to reach the green with a fairway wood. Or the longest hitters can carry the right fairway bunker around 320 yards, giving themselves a mid-iron approach for a chance at eagle. The players choosing to lay up on their second shot will still need to avoid a pot bunker in the center of the fairway in order to score well. There will be plenty of birdies, bogeys, and heartbreak on this finishing hole. 2007: 18 eagles, 170 birdies, 155 pars, 27 bogeys, 4 double bogeys, 0 others.

TPC Boston			2007 rankings		Last 5 years
Hole	Par	Yards	Avg. Score	Rank	Avg. Score	Rank
1	4	365	3.925	14	3.899	15
2	5	554	4.711	17	4.762	17
3	3	184	2.997	10	3.051	10
4	4	298	3.714	16	4.028	12
5	4	466	4.187	1	4.195	2
6	4	465	4.045	9	4.135	7
7	5	600	4.850	15	4.813	16
8	3	213	3.128	6	3.145	6
9	4	472	4.152	2	4.191	4
10	4	425	4.056	8	4.041	11
11	3	231	3.142	4	3.204	1
12	4	461	4.112	7	4.099	8
13	4	451	4.150	3	4.164	5
14	4	495	4.139	5	4.195	2
15	4	426	3.976	11	3.996	13
16	3	161	2.963	12	3.090	9
17	4	412	3.944	13	3.907	14
18	5	528	4.543	18	4.646	18

NOTES: The only par-5 on the back nine holes is the easiest hole of the course.
• The 5th hole was ranked 198 (out of 990) in difficulty on the PGA TOUR in 2007 and was considered the most difficult hole of the course.
• The easiest hole on the course, the 18th was ranked 953 out of 990 on the PGA TOUR in 2007.

Course origins

The TPC Boston project started as a 600 acre parcel of land, with 155 acres deeded to conservation trusts by partnership. The facility has 3,800 linear feet of wooden bridges crossing the 265 acres of wetlands found throughout the site.

Four acres of land were given to the Massachusetts Golf Association to be used for an on-site headquarters. Allied golf associations also will be headquartered in the same building. Additionally the Francis Ouimet Scholarship Fund and the Ouimet Museum will be housed in the golf association building with 90 acres at the entrace to the TPC being utilized for an office park and hotel, at a future date.

The golf course site was formerly used for charcoal production for the jewelry, brick and iron industries, lumber for ship construction, gravel mining to build the adjacent Interstate 495 and most recently as a flea market. -- Source: Golf Course Superintendents Association of America

Tournament course history