6th Hole - 480 Yards, Par 4
The key to scoring well on the 6th hole is to skip it altogether -- just write down a bogey 5 and move on to the 7th tee. But where's the fun in that? The sixth is the toughest hole at Ballyneal, a double-bogey waiting to happen.
The photo above shows the sixth from the dune adjacent to the back tee box. It's a lovely view, especially because you can see how the fairway ripples melt into surrounding landscape. Most architects would probably give you the elevated tee to see the fairway. But not Tommy Deez. He gives you a view of deathly bunkers and native vegetation with a hint of the fairway and the green in the distance. It adds some mental intimidation for us weak-minded fools. It does the trick as my tee-shot dispersion is even larger than normal on this hole.
[Insider tip: This is one hole where mixing up the tee boxes over the course of a weekend really makes a difference, not only in yardage but more importantly angles. Jefe and I discovered a 'tee box' about 20 yards in front of the 5th green, which makes the hole play as more of a dogleg. I like it from there for two reasons a) because I feel like Magellan for 'discovering' it and b) you get a slightly larger hint of the left bunker and the fairway. Check it out!]
This hole is a BEAST. By far and away the toughest hole at Ballyneal. It takes four well executed shots, anything less simply will not do. The green itself has about as much contour as any of Ballyneal's greens, and that's at the end of a 490 yard hole! Many times I've seen the golfer take more putts to hole out once on the green than it did to cover the previous 490 yards!