The Crowned Crane

The second of the par 5's, the sixth and fifteenth tees are both situated alongside a small dam. From the tee, players are required to carry approximately 150 metres over the vlei protecting the front section of the hole. A lateral hazard follows the entire left-hand side of the fairway through to the green, making the tee shot particularly important. From the tee box, a well-positioned fairway bunker on the right provides an ideal target line. Once safely in the fairway, the second shot becomes more straightforward, with the priority being to avoid the water down the left-hand side. Playing up the right half of the fairway leaves the safest angle into the green. During the course upgrades in 2013, the designers shaped this hole beautifully, balancing both playability and visual appeal.

Pro Insight:

With the long carry from the tee, a driver is almost certainly required on both the sixth and fifteenth holes. For longer hitters, I encourage aiming toward the line of trees on the right, just beyond the fairway bunker. Shorter hitters are better off using the bunker itself as the target line. Being the shortest of the par 5's at 443 metres, this is also one of the more tempting greens to attack in two. Aiming toward the greenside bunker on the right provides a safe target line, and a well-struck second shot will often be rewarded. For those laying up, the safest option is to favour the right half of the fairway, allowing the natural right-to-left slope to feed the ball toward the green.