Torrey Pines South - Strategy

[fjk]

Anyone have any good links or can post a hole by hole approach for the south course at Torrey?

 

Playing for the first time tomorrow. Hopefully my buddies won't read this before I do ;).

[SkiSchoolPro]

The rough was pretty long when I played there a few years ago so my suggestion would be to keep the ball in the Fairway. There is some kikuyu grass so if you're not familiar with it it hit at least a few chip shots off of it and a few pitches. Not a lot of blind shots or tricked up holes so it is possible score decently if you keep the ball in play.

[double or triple?]

I play there every week. Greens have been running pretty fast last couple weeks. Depending on when you play they'll be bumpy from previous groups going through. Be careful in bunkers as there isn't alot of sands in them lately. Anything else?

 

oh and pretty much everything will break towards the ocean

[lookylookitzadam]

Torrey is all keeping the ball in the fairway and playing with wind. There aren't any gimmicky holes but depending on the weather conditions the wind can be brutal. Luckily the rough is cut back from what it is shortly after the tournament but the greens will probably still be pretty quick.

[AC168]

Hit it long and straight hopefully. Have a great short game as it is easy to miss a lot of greens there.

[NickJ]

Rough is cut low so the course is playing fairly easy. As noted, the sand is iffy. Don’t open the club face as much as you normally would or the club will bounce.

 

The course is pretty much what you see is what you get. There are bunkers in a lot of landing zones so it is possible to spend all day hitting 7, 8, and 9s out of the sand.

[enfuego]

18 birdies will let you use the GPS to see an aerial of all the holes. You don't have to be at the course for it to work.

[cane700]

Like others said. Keep your tee shots under control. Greens are very fast and anything outside of 30 feet is a potential three putt. Also, its better to come up short than go long on approach shots. Lots of trouble behind the greens.

[MuniPukeLife]

1st Hole

• Probably didn't warm up because range balls cost $10
  
• My bail out is normally right, which I don't recommend, because at least if you go left, you will have a good angle to run it into the green. If you're right at all, play to the fat part of the green.
  
• If you miss the green, take double out of play. If it's a right pin and you short side yourself, you have a pretty much impossible chip, so just get it up there and leave yourself a putt.
  
• If you get off to a rough start, remember: Tiger made double on this hole 3 out of 4 days in the 2008 U.S Open, and the day he made birdie it was his 10th hole . . .
  

2nd Hole

• You can hit driver and get it down as close as possible, or you can lay it to a number. Avoid all fairway and greenside bunkers big time, they're death on this hole especially IMO.
  

3rd Hole

• Take out your phone and take a picture for social media first.
  
• If it's a right pin, right is an okay bailout as it's mostly short grass right of the bunker.
  
• If it's a left pin, fire at the middle of the green.
  
• Long= death 99% of the time.
  

4th Hole

• Off the tee, right is better than left, as left runs the risk of going in the ocean.
  
• If the pin is in the front, you can run it in using the slope on the right of the green, but read a few bullets down.
  
• Same if the pin is in the middle.
  
• If the pin is in the back, the green is only about 15 feet wide back there, so play to the middle.
  
• Beware when aiming too far right on your second shot, because if you flare it out right, your pitch shot is pretty much impossible and your playing for bogey.
  
• Par is your friend here big time.
  

5th Hole

• The bailout off the tee is right. Left is no bueno, but not total death. If you really block it, you'll be in the 4th fairway, which is a-okay, I played from there today without issue.
  
• Miss on the side that leaves you more green to work with, classic course management, but it really punishes you on this hole.
  

6th Hole

• The shot here is a 5-10 yard cut that starts down the middle and moves with the dogleg. If you're long and hit a good drive, this hole is gettable in two.
  
• If you miss the fairway left, it's a three shot hole.
  
• If you miss it right and it stays up, you can still probably go for it in two as the grass down there isn't thick.
  
• Once again, the fairway slopes left to right, so most misses are on the right, and the green slopes from right to left mostly, so if you flare it right, you're pitching downhill over a bunker.
  

7th Hole

• Drive down the left half of the fairway will be good, right rough is bad because you are now shooting more uphill on your second shot and your angle is terrible.
  
• Only fire at the pin if it's left or middle.
  
• Don't fall for that back right pin, fire at the middle of the green and it's an easy par.
  
• The greenside bunker on the right looks scary, and it's not the place to be, as you pretty much have no green to work to any pin position from there and need to elevate the ball really fast.
  
• The miss on the second shot is left.
  
• Long isn't great, as there is a gully on the left side, and a canyon past that. However, I'd take a chip shot out of that gully over that bunker any day.
  

8th Hole

• Plays about half a club uphill (with little wind).
  
• It's a two tiered green, so try to put it on the right tier with the pin.
  
• Front bunker is steep, but isn't terrible with a front pin as you have the tier as a little backstop, it is very bad with a back pin. Back bunker is okay for a front pin, but you'll be lucky to keep it on the back tier if it's a back pin.
  

9th Hole

• Like 6, a drive in the fairway could mean it's reachable in two for long hitters. If you spray it, there's room on both sides.
  
• If you miss the fairway, lay up to a good wedge number
  
• This is another two tiered green, so if it's a back left pin you want to put it on the right side of the fairway if you layup, so you have the best angle to get it back there.
  
• The tier only really is in play on the back left pin.
  
• The greenside bunkers on the left, either, are bad to go. Play away from them. Right is better than left here.
  

10th Hole

• Longer hitters can take less than driver here and still have about 150 in.
  
• The miss off the tee is right, left brings trees into play and you're probably punching out.
  
• The miss on the second shot is on the shorter side. If you miss right you are chipping uphill, left downhill.
  

11th Hole

• Par is your friend
  
• Play at the middle of the green, if the pin is towards the back, try to get it to the back tier, if it's forward, try to keep it off the back tier.
  
• Avoid the left greenside bunkers at all costs. If you put it in there just try to make bogey.
  
• Long isn't fun as the green is very sloped away from you.
  

12th Hole

• Par is your friend
  
• I personally think the better miss is left, because right just really sucks.
  
• Back left pin, fire at the middle.
  
• Right side, fire at will.
  
• I'd stay away from the right greenside bunker, because it slopes away pretty severely. Not that the left one is that much better. . .
  

13th Hole

• The hardest par 5 at TP South.
  
• If you're long, you might get there in two.
  
• Best play is to lay it up down into the valley.
  
• It is better to be on the green putting downhill than be miss the green short.
  

14th Hole

• Miss off the tee is right, and right side of the fairway is a must if you want to fire at a left pin, left side of the fairway for a right pin.
  
• Right greenside bunker is much steeper than it looks on TV, just so you know. Which leads me to the next point-->
  
• When in doubt, middle of the green here. Anything more than a yard over the green is gone.
  

15th Hole

• The miss is once again right, there's trees and a canyon on the left. Tiger has played this hole pretty well from the right rough.
  
• If the pin is back, it will be past a little slope, so if you're hitting a full wedge you might want to club down to control spin.
  
• Left bunker over right bunker, no bunker over any bunker.
  

16th Hole

• Middle of the green, again. Don't shortside yourself here, because you can really get punished if you do. If you shortside yourself, any pitch shot to 20 feet is great.
  
• Anything putting here in reality is a good shot.
  

17th Hole

• Off the tee, you got room on either side, but try to give yourself an angle to the pin.
  
• If you miss the green in pretty much any direction, you are chipping up a 7 foot hill. Long is dead, because you have no shot if your past the trees over the green.
  

18th Hole

• There's room on either side off the tee.
  
• If you put it in the fairway, it can be reachable in two.
  
• If you miss the fairway or don't quite have the length, lay up short of the pond and you got a nice 3/4- full wedge shot. The green is sloped from back to front, so beware backspin into the water.
  
• Once any ball gets on the hill past the pond in front of the green, it requires a minor miracle for it to stay up. There is room right of the pond.
  

Summary

• The ocean will hold putts. If you have a putt that feels straight, it probably will break toward the ocean.
  
• Right now the rough isn't super thick, but the ball tends to stick up in the grass, making it easier to go under it on pitch shots. I try to feel like I shallow the shaft on the pitch shots to make better contact.
  
• The bunkers are pretty damp and packed. It's better to set up with the face only a little open or even square and play a chunk and run while keeping the clubface pointed at the sky. Don't add bounce.