ROUTING ROULETTE Bendelow’s original routing was in- triguing in the way greens and tees were grouped closely in certain key places. These tight junctions made it possible for the holes to be sequenced in different combinations, an option OCM took advantage of. Holes one through six remain numbered as they were, but from there the order changes with the old par-5 10th now being used as the seventh, making the old 11th the new eighth and so on. The former holes 14, 15 and 16, the last being famous for Sergio Garcia’s wild swing from behind the tree and dash up the fairway during his duel with Tiger Woods in the 1999 PGA Championship, are no more. They’ve been replaced by
two strong par 4s at 14 and 15 that precede the diagonal par-4 16th over the lake. One final change is in store for the Presi- dents Cup. As has been
DOUBLE DARE The diagonal, cross-water par-4 16th hole lures players into danger.
Tight junctions in Tom Bendelow’s original routing made it possible for holes to be sequenced in different combinations.
done in previous team events at courses like Hazeltine National and Liberty Na- tional, players will begin their matches not at hole one but at Medinah’s long, downhill fifth hole. This ensures that ex- citing swing holes like 16, 17 and 18 will be played as 12, 13 and 14 and will factor into each match. It also shuffles perhaps the hardest par 3, the second, snuggled tight against the water, to the 16th hole, presenting the chance for late-game heroics, or for players to choke away their matches with one swing.
GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA 63
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2026
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator