THE
HUNTERDON COUNTY NEWS |
TITLE: Destination Review - ST KITTS – THE ROYAL ST KITTS GOLF CLUB Back Nine
DESCRIPTION:
Time: 07:17:15
For those of you who are either thinking about vacationing on the isle and want to play a round or two or perhaps are planning an outing to the island, rejoice, the Royal St Kitts Golf Club can meet your needs. Arriving at the end of April, a scant two days after the Buffalo Bills Bruce Smith and his buddies held a tourney celebrating his election to the NFL Hall of Fame, the course was in excellent playing condition. The pro, Scott Lien, could not have been more gracious in setting up our play, meeting us before we played, and caring for any need we had, including two fine rental sets of Taylor Made clubs, with perhaps one of the biggest driver heads I have ever seen.
After a round of golf at the Royal St Kitts you will know one thing, the architect made superb use out of the natural resources, the most important being the wind and the water – including the ocean, to create a risk reward golf course that will challenge not only your shot making ability, but it will test your patience and imagination. Overall experience - wonderful - let's take a spin around the back nine
Number 10 – It looks like you can carry that last bunker on the right, with a perfect shot, but beware, it is longer than you think. Take aim for the second bunkers left edge and play a longer shot in.
Hole Number 11 – this starts your journey to the Atlantic, which you can now see off the mountainous tee box that sits by a rather gothic looking home. You will be tempted to hit the ball left of the bunkers, and it does give you a good reward, beware however as it puts the 0ut of bounds, and the persons pool, into play. I chatted with the homeowner and it is not uncommon for more than a few balls a day to find the swimming hole. The problem is if you lay up far right into the fairway, this is a par five, you will make the hole very long into the wind. You goal for shot two is to get even with the tree that sits our in the middle of the fairway. This will leave you an approach of about 140 – 150 yards. The green is wide, and watching this hole form a home above in the hills, most people come up short and have a wonderful time digging out of the bunkers. Take an extra club on the approach and you will have no worries.
Hole 12 – a tricky little par three. A pond hugs the right side all the way to the hole and is visually intimidating. The problem is a new house is being constructed on the bluff just above to the left and it might as well have a bulls eye on it, I smack it pretty good twice. It’s not a terribly long hole, but for some reason it is a ball magnet up there. A window or two will be shattered in no time.
Hole 13 has been lengthened into a par five from the originally layout and it makes for a much more interesting hole. You have to drive over water and bend the ball a little bit to the right, ideally, off the tee. A good tee shot allows you to bang a three wood into A- one position and then you have a short iron into a flat green. The mongeese seem to love this area around 5 p.m.
Hole 14 is a new hole, it is short, allows for an easy drive down the pipe and then your second plays straight uphill. Take an extra club, gun at the pin, the green holds nicely, and go for birdie.
Hole 15 is what one would refer to as the signature hole on the course. It sits high above the Atlantic so that you can see 15, 16, 17, running along the breaking waves. It is a wonderful sight. This hole plays right into the wind. I tried to hit the ocean with a driver and came up short. I recommend two extra clubs even though tits downhill. You will be tempted to play the ball way out to the right, directly over a mass of bunkers, but don’t cut off that much. Aim just right of the left bunker that borders the green, and you should be able to drop it on the left side.
Hole 16 – The left side is dead, it’s the ocean. The wind, as you might imagine, howls off of this edge and the proper way to play the hole is to start the shot over the beach and let it drift to the middle, if you have the stones to do so. A shot inside the beach line will drift to the right and leave a longer second shot in and may put you in a tad of tree trouble. The green is accessible however and you can get there with a five wood and hold.
Hole 17 again puts you down the beach line. At this point you are getting sand between your teeth, that’s how close you are to the breakers. If you don’t risk starting the ball left you can fall into the water down the right side. The second shot is a doozey. The green is a postage stamp. If you go over you are swimming with the fish, if you go left you are again with the dolphins. If you bail out right you are in a swampy mess. Playing safe to the front is advisable and chipping up the slope is an easy up and down.
Hole 18 – The wind is at your back, Hooray - sort of. This is a nice finish. It has a good amount of teeth distance wise. A lake runs down the entire right side, slicers beware, and it has a protect green, on the right by the water, and on left by bunkers that leave you a sand shot toward the water which makes many a player leave it in the sand for swing two. If you hit a low screamer you can run it up to a small entranceway at the front of the green.
