PGATOUR.com - Triton Financial Classic: Course Information

Triton Financial Classic

Monday Jun 1 – Sunday Jun 7, 2009

The Hills Country Club · Austin, TX

Purse: $1.6 million
Winning Share: $240,000

Course

The Hills Country Club

Course Par Value: 72

Course Yardage: 6879

The Hills Country Club was the region's first Jack Nicklaus signature golf course. It offers a variety of membership opportunities that allow you to experience the serenity of life in The Hills. In addition to spectacular Nicklaus designed golf; the Club presents world-class tennis, fitness facilities and a newly renovated dining room and clubhouse.

Come visit The Hills' magnificent waterfalls, rolling hills, and beautiful estate homes, all of which accentuates life in the Texas Hill Country.

www.thehillscc.com

Hole	Par	Yards
1	4	454	From the elevated tee box on this 454-yard par 4 you can see the beauty of the Texas Hill Country and the surrounding hillsides peppered with red Spanish tile roofs. Down the fairway beyond the tiered tee boxes and live oak, a sand bunker flanks the left edge of the fairway. Two sure shots and you will be over the large sand bunker and on the green for a level putt. Golfers often see deer playing through on this hole.
2	5	520	The second hole is the first of The Hill's par 5s. This hole slopes 520 yards downhill to the green, which stands over Hurst Creek. Live oaks dominate this hole and can easily erode your score. Water and sand add to the beauty and difficulty of this hole. Two smaller creeks merge here before slipping into the woods on the left side of the fairway. Played correctly, you will miss both the water and the sand just on the other side. Another feature of No. 2 is the large sand bunkers that mark the approach to the green.
3	3	188	The water treatments on this scenic par 3 rival those on No. 16. Some consider this "No. 16 light" because of the similar beauty and danger both holes share. Hit too short from the tee box, and you will not make it over the water. Too long, and you will be in the sand that surrounds the green.
4	4	356	The path to the fourth tee box takes you along a limestone ledge and through the wooded hillside. From the elevated tee box of this 356-yard par 4 you can see Hurst Creek below and the tops of sycamores and live oaks that dot the fairway. The right side of the fairway will give you a clear view of the green and the five bunkers that line the edges.
5	3	181	The par-3 fifth hole will keep you honest. With the hazard of Hurst Creek ensuring that you don't hit it too short, and sand bunkers keeping you from hitting it too long, you will have to gauge your shot accurately to land on the green 181 yards away.
6	4	383	From the challenge tee box on No. 6, you will hit over a man-made fountain that bursts up from one of the many ponds on the course. The green lies 368 yards uphill on this par 4. You will pass over limestone and a sand bunker that bisect the fairway. Three more sand bunkers surround the green.
7	4	409	The green is illusive on this creative, 409-yard par 4. Again, Hurst Creek lies between the fairway and the green. Once over the creek, you have 100 yards to the pin. Before you can reach the green, you will maneuver past additional water treatments, including a pond and three sand bunkers around the green.
8	5	505	The secluded 505-yard eighth hole is best known for its bowing fairway that curves along Hurst Creek and the tall sycamores along its banks. Once you round the bend it is 200 yards uphill to the green, which is surrounded by two long sand bunkers on either side.
9	4	442	The ninth hole is characteristic of the great beach-side courses of the southeast U.S. Marsh-like grasses sprout up from a pooling lake anchored by limestone houses with red tile roofs. Water foul abound. Another tiered waterfall marks the approach to the green with a sloping bank in front and a sand bunker resting at the bottom.
10	5	537	From the long boxes on No. 10, you will need at least 20 feet of loft and 50 yards of distance to pass over Hurst Creek and the intimidating limestone cliff on the other side. Once over the water, it is another 75 yards until you are over Mel's Creek that cuts through the fairway. Once in play, there are four bunkers guarding the approach to the green. With a good drive, solid chip shot and putt, you will have this 537-yard par 5 behind you.
11	3	197	The approach to the 197-yard No. 11 seems fairly straightforward - a solid drive, and you are on the green. It is what you can't see on the approach to the pin that makes this one of the more challenging holes on the course. Three deep sand hazards are hidden by the natural lay of the fairway and green, making it an almost certainty that you will pull your sand wedge for this par three.
12	4	463	This 463-yard par 4 gives you a chance to take in the Hill Country surroundings and an occasional meandering deer. A sand hazard fades off the left side of the fairway about 200 yards from the pin. Once past it, though, your approach is guarded by a single bunker on the back side of the green.
13	4	436	Sand is your dancing partner for this 436-yard par 4. This hole has five sand traps, the first coming at 250 yards out. A couple of strategic shots will get you on the narrow green for a two-putt. One mistake and you will be chipping out of the three bunkers that surround the green.
14	4	424	This 424-yard par 4 with a dogleg left begins with a live oak hazard in front of the tee box. The defining characteristic of this hole is the sand bunker that runs for 50 yards down the right side of the fairway. Clear the first bunker, and you will navigate the three that line the edge of the green and the five live oaks that mirror the pin.
15	4	418	From the 14th green you will round a patch of cactus and Texas Mesquite to reach the elevated tee box of the 418-yard 15th. This par 4 takes you back across Hurst Creek. But even the fearless golfer will lay up before the creek for a solid shot from the middle or left of the fairway to the tilted green just across the water. If crossing the creek wasn't enough of a challenge, sticking to the sloping green on the other side will be.
16	3	204	The path to No. 16 takes you back around the clubhouse to The Hills' signature hole. Heralded as one of the most breath-taking holes in the state, this 204-yard par 3 is Byron Nelson's favorite par 3 in Texas. From the tee box you see moss cascading over a curving limestone ledge that runs the entire length of the green and beyond. Water flows over rock, creating a rippling pool in the river bed below. For a moment, you may even forget to take your club out of the bag. Once on the tee, you will gauge the distance to the green just over the waterfall. The beauty of this hole may distract your attention away from the sloping green that is shelved by two sand bunkers on the backside.
17	4	410	This 410-yard par 4 may feel like a par 5 to many golfers because of the numerous hazards that lay in and along the fairway between the tee and the pin. You will have to navigate shots over Hurst Creek and around live oaks to reach the green where four sand bunkers keep you true.
18	5	543	This dogleg-right par 5 will take you from the tee box down a sloping fairway 518 yards to the pin. Along the way, you will slip around live oak trees and over soft hills to the green. With two solid drives, you will be in play around the bend and in clear sight of the pin. The green sits behind three sand bunkers encased by a cluster of live oaks.