A blind par 3 can be exciting and it can be frustrating. Not knowing exactly, or sometimes even vaguely, the position of the hole, can lead to doubt and a tentative swing. Having said that, the delight and even surprise at finding your ball safely on the green can be one of golf's great thrills as these five examples in England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales demonstrate.
Aberdovey - Hole 3
The Golf Monthly Top 100 course at Aberdovey has benefited from the input of some of golf’s greatest architects including Herbert Fowler, James Braid and Harry Colt. Aside from this, its most important design influence has been nature itself and the rumpled landscape on which it sits. While the first two holes skirt just inside the dunes, the par-3 3rd takes you right up into them. Cader, meaning seat or chair, is only 166 yards from the very back tees, but calls for a full carry over no-man’s-land to a receptive and bunkerless punchbowl green. Particularly when played into the prevailing westerly breeze, club selection is vital. Hard to discern from the tee, the rule of thumb is to take one more.
- GF: 18 holes £110 Sun-Thu, £120 Fri-Sat
- W: aberdoveygolf.co.uk
Cruden Bay - Hole 15
Cruden Bay dates back to 1900 and its Top 100 course was designed by Old Tom Morris and Archie Simpson. It was subsequently upgraded by Tom Simpson and Herbert Fowler and takes full advantage of its dreamy setting through the dunes alongside a fabulous, sandy beach. There are four very varied and attractive short holes with the 15th being nominally the easiest on the card.
Whether it really is may depend on how confident you feel about drawing a long iron, hybrid or more around a towering dune from a tee sandwiched between the previous green and the beach. Thrilling, scary, and great fun.
- GF: 18 holes £185wd, £200we
- W: crudenbaygolfclub.co.uk
Appleby - Hole 15
In general terms, golf in the county offers the best value in the country with Appleby being one of the best golf courses in Cumbria. Covering a large expanse of beautifully crisp turf in the most unspoiled and peaceful moorland setting, this is a delightful place to play with its signature, Bell Hole, a terrifying treat arriving late in the round.
Playing between 176 and 149 yards, it calls for a do or die shot that needs to carry to the shallow green and then stop quickly. A river that also marks out of bounds flanks the right, and there are bunkers short, left and right.
- GF: check website for details
- W: applebygolfclub.co.uk
Lahinch - Championship - Hole 5
Exactly as he did at Prestwick some 40 years earlier, another Top 100 course packed with original features, Old Tom Morris created a blind par 3 for the 5th here at Lahinch. This is almost completely different in nature, still uphill but substantially shorter, with no water to cross and no need for bunkers.
It is played up to a 2-tier punchbowl green, higher on the left and lower on the right, that is about 30 yards wide and seems about 6 inches deep. A white stone is placed at the top of the hill to indicate the pin position for the day.
- GF: 18 holes €375 all week
- W: lahinchgolf.com
Shiskine - Hole 3
Although the beautiful course at Shiskine has just twelve holes, no fewer than seven of these are actually par 3s. And of these, two are blind. One is the 7th, which similar to the 15th at Cruden Bay asks you to shape it around and over a towering dune. Before that however, the 3rd - Crows Nest - is an absolute cracker.
If ever a hole played longer than its 122 yards, this is it. A marker pole indicates the centre of the green and a flag marks the left edge, beyond which you simply must not go. The view from the green is sublime. With Arran offering some of the best value golf in the UK&I, this is a wonderful destination.
- GF: 12 holes £37wd, £40we - 24 holes £60wd, £70we
- W: shiskinegolf.com
