In a perfect hole the surface of not only the green, but the approach to it, should be visible. It is difficult, or even impossible, to judge an approach accurately unless the ground which the ball pitches on can be seen. It also gives great pleasure (or sometimes pain) to see the result of one’s shot.
In an ideal hole, the turf should be as perfect as possible and the approaches should have the same consistency as the greens, but it is by no means advisable to avoid entirely bad lies or irregular stances. There is not only much skill required, but an improvement of one’s game results in occasionally having to play out of a cupped lie, or from an uneven stance. There are few things more monotonous than always playing from a dead flat fairway.
In an ideal long hole, there should not only be a big advantage from successfully negotiating a long carry for the tee shot, but the longer the drive, the greater the advantage should be. A shorter driver should also, by extreme accuracy, be able to gain an advantage over a long hitting but less accurate opponent.
An ideal hole should provide an infinite variety of shots according to the varying positions of the tee, the situation of the flag, the direction and strength of the wind, etc. It should also at times give full advantage for the voluntary pull or slice, one of the most finished shots in golf, and one that few champions are able to carry out with any great degree of accuracy.
Should an ideal hole be ideal for the plus, scratch, or long handicap player? As players of all handicaps play golf, a hole should as far as possible be ideal for all classes. There are many famous holes, such as the Cardinal, which are by no means ideal, as in an ideal hole there should always be an alternative route open to the weaker player.
Are there any ideal holes in existence at the present moment?
I think the eleventh (the short hole coming in at St. Andrews) may be considered so. Under certain conditions, it is extremely difficult for even the best player that ever breathed, especially if he is attempting to get a two, but at the same time an inferior player may get a four if he plays his own game exceptionally well. It has been suggested that the mere fact that it is possible to putt the whole length is an objection to it. No doubt the timid golfer can play the hole in this way, but he will lose strokes by avoiding risks. Even if an expert putter holes out in four strokes once in three times, he can consider himself lucky. I do not know of a solitary example of a player achieving success in an important match by this means. If a cross bunker were constructed at this hole, it would become appreciably diminished in interest in consequence. The narrow entrance and the subtle slopes have all the advantages of a cross bunker without making it impossible for the long handicap man. These contentions are borne out by those attempts that have been made to copy and improve on the hole by a cross bunker.
There are few, if any, other ideal short holes in existence. The seventh and fourteenth on the Eden Course at St. Andrews are remarkably fine holes, especially as they have to a great extent been artificially created. At the present moment the gorse in places is somewhat near both greens, but this can easily be rectified, and the architect, Mr. H. S. Colt, was wise in not removing too many whins in the first instance, as, if once removed, they cannot be replaced.
Another good example is the eighth at Moortown (formerly seventeenth, or, as it is known locally, Gibraltar). Its length is 170 yards, and it has been entirely artificially created at the small cost of £35.