Inside the course: Quail Hollow Club

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A view of the 18th green at Quail Hollow Club

Apr. 26, 2010

The TOUR heads to North Carolina for the Quail Hollow Championship in Charlotte. Learn more about this week's host, Quail Hollow Club.

Todd Jones, Head Instructor at the PGA TOUR Academy at TPC Sawgrass, analyzes Quail Hollow:

This week the PGA TOUR visits the Quail Hollow Club for the Quail Hollow Championship. This tournament is a player favorite and traditionally draws a strong field as done so once again this year. The players will be challenged by the 7,422-yard par 72 layout that was originally designed by George Cobb in 1961. The course saw a redesign by Tom Fazio in 1996.

To play well at the Quail Hollow Club, you need to drive the ball well. This is exactly what Sean O'Hair did en route to his victory last year. O'Hair was seventh in driving distance (316.6 yards) and 19th in driving accuracy (51.8%), which set him up to score with his approach irons. The PGA TOUR tracks a statistic called Total Driving. Total Driving combines driving distance and accuracy to rank players based on overall ability to drive the golf ball. It would not be a surprise to see a player in the top 10 of this category contending come Sunday afternoon. One such player to watch is Boo Weekley -- he's coming off two solid weeks after finishing T12 at Verizon Heritage and T10 at Zurich Classic of New Orleans.

For those who are outside the ropes on Sunday afternoon, tracking your driving stats can help you to shoot lower scores as well. Track your distance (easily done with today's laser range finders) and your accuracy to maximize your driving game. Look to maximize accuracy and distance, putting a premium on accuracy. To support this you should make sure that your driver is "Fit to Perform". This is exactly what players like O'Hair and Weekley do with their equipment companies. Technology, such as the Trackman Launch Monitor, is used to match the proper club to the player with the end result being optimum performance. Learn from the best players in the world, get fit for your driver, hit more fairways, and shoot lower scores.

To learn more about the TOUR Academy, please click here.

Fast facts

Course Superintendent	Jeff A. Kent
Original architect	George Cobb (1961)
Redesign	Tom Fazio (1996-1997)
Par value	72
Number of TOUR events as host venue*	8 (including 2010)
Course ranking	Ranked 19 (out of 51) in difficulty on the PGA TOUR in 2009
Yardage history	7,442 (2004-present)
	7,396 (2003)
Grass	419 bermudagrass, perennial ryegrass (tees, fairways, rough); G2 creeping bentgrass (greens)
Tournament Stimpmeter	11 ft
Sand bunkers	52
Water hazards	3
Course tour	Click here

* Also hosted the Kemper Open (1969-1979)

Course record

Player
Kirk Triplett
Bo Van Pelt
Rory Sabbatini

Year
2004
2006
2007

Round
1st
2nd
3rd

Finish
T15
T6
T3

Holes-in-one

There has been one ace recorded at Quail Hollow Club

Player	Hole	Year
Jay Williamson	6	2008

2009 Rankings

Most Difficult Hole

	The par-4 478-yard 18th This is the last in a three-hole stretch dubbed "The Green Mile" and is consistently one of the toughest finishing holes in golf. On the tee shot, players must avoid a bunker on the right, as well as a creek that meanders along the entire left side of the narrow fairway. An uphill second shot must avoid hazards on both sides of the green, which is deep and sloped. If a player must birdie this hole to win the tournament, he will have his hands full. 2009: 0 eagles, 35 birdies, 252 pars, 128 bogeys, 35 double bogeys, 2 others.
Easiest Hole
	The par-5 566-yard 15th The last of the par 5s plays uphill after the tee shot. To spectators, water on the left and right of the fairway may appear dangerous; however, it will probably have little affect on the professionals. A ridge running down the middle of the green requires perhaps more caution and an accurate approach. 2009: 4 eagles, 209 birdies, 210 pars, 28 bogeys, 1 double bogeys and 0 others.

Quail Hollow Club			2009 rankings		Last 7 years
Hole	Par	Yards	Avg. Score	Rank	Avg. Score	Rank
1	4	411	4.084	11	4.032	11
2	3	178	3.108	9	3.031	12
3	4	452	4.117	8	4.159	8
4	4	458	4.15	7	4.205	7
5	5	570	4.631	17	4.710	16
6	3	250	3.259	3	3.255	4
7	5	532	4.677	16	4.705	17
8	4	343	3.847	13	3.857	14
9	4	491	4.177	5	4.260	3
10	5	591	4.845	14	4.811	15
11	4	421	4.018	12	4.037	10
12	4	456	4.168	6	4.218	6
13	3	203	3.088	10	3.135	9
14	4	345	3.794	15	3.913	13
15	5	566	4.586	18	4.665	18
16	4	480	4.21	4	4.240	5
17	3	217	3.285	2	3.338	2
18	4	478	4.374	1	4.417	1

Course origins

On April 13, 1959, James J. Harris hosted a meeting at Morrocroft Farm that marked the formal beginning of Quail Hollow Club. Committees were named to proceed with various details of organizing the Club and planning its activities. George Cobb was engaged as the golf architect and plans were made for the acquisition from Mr. and Mrs. Harris of the land that would become the site of the Club.

On Dec. 18, 1959, the Certificate of Incorporation of Quail Hollow Club was executed by the 21 Founders of the Club, and on Jan. 4, 1960, was filed with the Secretary of State of Delaware thereby constituting the Club, a nonprofit corporation to provide social and recreational facililties for the exclusive pleasure and recreation of the member of the Club. The Delaware corporation was qualified with the State of North Carolina to conduct its activities in that state. The golf course formally opened on June 3, 1961.

Quail Hollow Club has two signature holes. The par-4 14th is a dogleg left that can be driven with a good tee shot. It measures 346 yards from the pro tees. A 15-acre lake frames the left side of the hole and the rough on that side slopes down to the water. The narrow landing area measures about 27 yards across and is guarded with two bunkers on each side. The two-tiered green is long and narrow with about 7,100 square feet of putting surface. Two more bunkers guard the left front and middle of the green, and a collection area waits just off the right front of the green for short approach shots hit off line, or almost perfect drives. The area immediately left of the green slopes severely down 15 feet to the lake, so anything hit left has a very good chance of ending up in the hazard.

The 17th hole is a 217-yard par-3 over water. A rock wall rings this part of the lake and borders the left and front of the green. The tee shot must carry the water hazard and a bunker that protects the center. The 6,500 square-foot green is undulated, and, on the left side, there is only six feet between the edge of the putting surface and the water hazard. On the right, there lies a closely mown collection area for errant shots. The water will be the collection area on the left. Shots hit too strong also have a good chance of getting wet since the lake wraps around behind a good portion of the green, and the rough slopes drastically down to it. --Source: Golf Course Superintendents Assocation of America

Tournament course history

Course	Location	Years
Quail Hollow Club	Charlotte, N.C.	2003-present

This week's Kodak Challenge hole

HOLE: The par-5, 566-yard 15th at Quail Hollow
LAST YEAR: The 15th played to a stroke average of 4.586, with players recording 4 eagles, 209 birdies, 210 pars, 28 bogeys, 1 double bogeys and 0 others
DESCRIPTION: The last of the par 5s plays uphill after the tee shot. To spectators, water on the left and right of the fairway may appear dangerous; however, it will probably have little affect on the professionals. A ridge running down the middle of the green requires perhaps more caution and an accurate approach. (Click here for tour)