Is laying up your choice at Foxford Hill's 'Great Wall'?
"Double Jeopardy."
"Slice of Heaven."
"Valley of Sin."
Just a taste of the nicknames given to the hole at Foxford Hills Golf Club in Cary.
If you've never tackled this beautiful Tim Nugent design, what are you waiting for? Summer is running short, and it'd be well worth your time to get a foursome together and have some fun on this course.
With a name like "The Great Wall," a golf hole has a lot to live up to.
Without fail, No. 15 at Foxford Hills is a dramatic and exciting par 5 that could be a birdie in disguise.
Playing at 527 yards from the tips, you hit your tee shot to a downhill sloping fairway. Just how downhill you ask? From tee to green, the hole declines about 50 feet.
While long hitters can take advantage of the slope, the tee shot must be straight because woods line both the left and right sides. Most drives will also kick to the left, so leaving your ball out to the right could end up being safe for your second shot.
From the fairway, good ballstrikers may have a decision to make. The downhill slope makes this hole tempting to reach in 2. I you do go for it, your shot better be straight and long. Anything short will meet a pond in front that guards the green.
The back wall of the pond -- which is also the front of the green -- is an 8-foot high cobble boulder embankment. Hence the name, "The Great Wall."
"For most players, the best way to make par is to play for position on the drive and, on the second shot, lay up as close to the pond as possible," says Tim Miles Sr., president of Golf Visions Management. His son John is the club manager at Foxford Hills.
If you made the decision to lay up, your third shot over it needs 60 percent distance control and 40 percent touch. For most, the little golfer inside will be screaming, "Just get it over!"
Even though this shot will most likely be less than 100 yards, the obstacles ahead include a bunker in back that will make for a hard up-and-down if you land in it.
The green is not very deep, 18 yards to be exact, but is very wide. It slopes back toward the water and makes for some difficult putts if you're eyeing a birdie or par.
"This hole requires ultimate respect from every golfer as it is easy to quickly assemble a big number," Tim Miles says.
If "The Great Wall" got the best of you, talk it over with No. 16, "Babbling Brook." I'm sure she'll listen.
If you go
What: Foxford Hills Golf Club, 6800 South Rawson Bridge Rd., Cary
The course: Tim Nugent designed, 18-hole public course, 7,023 yards from the tips, five sets of tees, strategic bunkers, elevation changes, natural wetlands, great scenery
Head PGA pro: Pat Katchmar
Greens fees (with cart): Monday-Friday: $67 6 a.m.-11 a.m.; $62 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; $52 2 p.m.-4 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday: $79 6 a.m.-11 a.m.; $67 11 a.m.-2 p.m.; $56 2 p.m.-4 p.m.; Twilight, resident, senior and junior rates also available.
Directions: South of Route 176 on Rawson Bridge Road
Contact: (847) 639-0400 or visit Foxfordhillsgolfclub.com
Our golf tour
Editor's note: This golf season, the Daily Herald is taking you on an 18-hole tour of some of our favorite holes in the Chicago area. Today is the 16th installment. We're limiting our list to public courses. Please e-mail your thoughts on other great holes to sportstalk@dailyherald.com and include your name, hometown and phone number.
May 9: Makray Memorial No. 11
May 16: Prairie Landing No. 12
May 23: Schaumburg Players No. 6
May 30: Chalet Hills No. 17
June 6: Stonewall Orchard No. 8
June 13: Cantigny Lakeside No. 9
June 20: White Deer Run No. 9
June 27: Golf Club of Illinois No. 11
July 4: Indian Lakes Blackhawk Trace No. 9
July 11: Mill Creek No. 18
July 18: Hilldale No. 13
July 25: Pine Meadow No. 15
Aug. 1: Klein Creek No. 9
Aug. 8: Whisper Creek No. 8
Aug. 15: Willow Crest