The Honda Classic: Inside the Course (PGA National Resort & Spa - The Champion Course)

Angled greens, savage winds, and devastating bodies of water greet the best players in the world this week as the PGA Tour heads east for the Honda Classic at PGA National Resort and Spa.  Justin Thomas returns to defend his title against a field that includes 2017 champion Rickie Fowler, 2016 champion Adam Scott, 2017 Masters champion Sergio Garcia, and 2018 U.S. Open and PGA Championship winner Brooks Koepka. 

 

Quality ball striking will be key to success for the eventual champion, as The Champion Course is known for penal rough, demanding par-4s, and one of the toughest closing stretches in all of golf.  Hole nos. 15 to 17 - collectively known as "the Bear Trap" will take center stage again this week, and for good reason. 

Looking at the scorecard, none of the yardages jump out as difficult: the 15th is a 179-yard par-3; the 16th is a 434-yard par-4; and the 17th is a 190-yard par-3.  Looks however, can be deceiving.  

More than 75-percent of the players who’ve challenged the Jack Nicklaus designed Bear Trap since 2007 have hit at least one ball in the water.  Honda Classic fields during this same time have been more than 2.5 strokes over par collectively on the Bear Trap.  Water ball donations, re-teeing, and big numbers are inevitable. 

 

Rounds can get away from players quickly however, even before they reach the Bear Trap.  The 217-yard par-3 fifth, the 479-yard par-4 sixth, and the 226-yard par-3 seventh make up the Tour's fourth-hardest three-hole stretch over the past 10 years.  There's simply no room to rest or play defensive anywhere on this par-70, 7,110 yard track. 

Signature Hole
The start of the Bear Trap is a short par-3, but winds make this 179-yard 15th hole very tricky.  Players need to hit their shots over water and into a diagonal green that runs left to right.  The hole usually plays with winds coming in from the water, which brings the large bunker on the left into play. 

 

 

Getting up and down from this bunker is extremely difficult because the green slopes away from the bunker and back towards the water.  There’s simply no bailout anywhere on No. 15, and any tee shot that doesn’t hit the green is courting disaster. 

Birdie Watch 
The superb 556-yard closing hole is a double dogleg par-5 with ample opportunity to reach in two.  There are bunkers off the tee that pinch both sides of the fairway, and second or third shots have to carry water to reach the green. 

 

 

Conservative players will use a mid to long iron for their second shots to leave a very manageable 100-yard pitch to the green.  The putting surface is perched out hanging over the lake and protected by four bunkers on every side.  Back-right is the toughest pin position. 

Bogey Alert 
Water on the left side from tee to green makes the 479-yard, par-4 No. 6 a tough birdie hole and can knock a player's confidence early.  Off the tee there’s room to bail out on the right, however a series of bunkers on that side will gobble up errant drives. 

 

 

Players who miss the fairway will find it very difficult to hit the green on approach.  A three-level green will result in more three-putts than any other hole if second shots are sloppy.  And there are subtle challenges to pitching around the green, particularly when pin positions will be toughest in the back-left.