Since 2001 Pine Dunes has been at the forefront of golf in Texas. With its impressive list of accolades including Golfweek's #1 course in Texas seven times, Pine Dunes has become the standard for golf course design in Texas. But with every great course comes a vision and the vision for Pine Dunes started with Jodi Lutz. In 1994 Lutz purchased the property as an investment opportunity that already had a nine hole golf course. It wasn't till three years later that Lutz met with PGA Tour player David Frost. Frost was in awe of what he saw of the property - the natural formation of the land, sandy soil, and pines - and believed there could be a course like those of Augusta National and Pine Valley. Frost introduced Lutz to golf course architect Jay Morrish who would design Pine Dunes with his son, Carter Morrish. When the golf course first opened for play it was already receiving honors such as being #6 on Golf Digest's Best New Upscale Courses in 2002. Many consider this golf course to be the best work and from a design standpoint Morrish has said that the par threes on the course are the best he's ever designed. This is the kind of golf course where players can learn something new every time they play it and the variety of holes only adds to how much fun it is to play. Pine Dunes is arguably the best deal in golf, not just in Texas, with weekday rates of $59 and weekend rates of $79. The golf course is also home to a few holes on our Texas 54 as being some of the best designed holes in the state of Texas. Play this golf course one time and you'll wonder why there aren't even more accolades and awards.
Before getting to the first tee players get to warm up on one of the best practice facilities in the state. The 120 yard wide practice tee, two short game areas, and massive putting green provide endless fun before you even get to the course.
Hole 1: 391 yards Par 4
The opening hole at Pine Dunes gives players a warm welcome to the course. This slight dog leg left has a fairly narrow corridor that plays in favor of a ball moving right to left. The fairway is guarded by a bunker flanked on the right about 285 yards out. Ideally players would want to stay right and miss it right even though the corridor calls for a ball moving left. By staying right, players will have a clean angle into the green and will be able to run something to the green if they find trouble off the tee. The green is guarded by a bunker to the left but is guarded more by two exterior mounds coming into the green. Finding yourself on the wrong side of these contours can give players a lot of options but other than the two main contours the green is mildly contoured with the back left section of the green running away from players. When you walk off the green its hard not to feel as though you been roaming through the piney woods of East Texas and this is only the start.
Hole 2: 348 yards Par 4
The second hole is one of the most interesting holes on the course. The tee shot is very similar to that of the eighteenth at Augusta National. Players hit their tee shot out of a chute on a slight dog leg right. The way the chute is positioned, players ideally want to hit a cut off the tee to open up the fairway. But on both holes being too far right can lead to some tree trouble so ideally players want to hug the left side of the fairway. This opens up the green and provides a much better angle. The green is guarded by two bunkers with the one placed right of the green being much more of a danger. The green slopes right to left and with a couple severe slopes in the green an up and down from this bunker is fairly difficult. The green is much more defended by its contours. A few pins on this hole can get tucked and give players a great tests of wedge play but the green can also yield some forgiving pin placements as well. My personal favorite is the back left hole location. A mound on the right can feed a ball to the hole if you choose to play it off of there but it can also roll too far down the swale to the left. This is the first of many great drive and pitch holes to come at Pine Dunes.
Hole 3: 160 yards Par 3
The first of four incredible par threes begins with the shortest one on the course. The 160 yard hole plays slightly uphill and with very little visibility of the green. The native grasses and bunker short of the green provide a visual test for players by barely throwing off their depth perception and taking their eyes off of the greens contours. The green's main defense is a drop off/swale on the left side of the green. With the wind usually coming from the right and the visual defense running up the right side off the tee, players more often than not will take on the risk of getting to close to the swale and rolling down. It makes the green much smaller and really tests a players ability to hit an accurate short club. The front part of the green runs slightly down hill and allows players to land it short and feed it to the green and the right side is very open as well. This is one of the purest middle length par threes you'll come across; there's no water and nothing artificial, just natural.
Hole 4: 463 yards Par 4
One of the most important aspects of golf course architecture, if not the most important aspect, is the routing. The routing is how an architect lays out each hole by finding places for tees and greens, maximizing natural features, variety, but also the flow of the golf course. In the case of Pine Dunes, Morrish gives players three great opportunities to get off to a good start but when players get to the fourth hole it's a bit of a wake up call. The fourth hole typically plays directly into to wind and calls for one of the best tee shots of the day. The dog leg left calls for a ball really moving right to left. A tree and bunker through the fairway are roughly 230 yards away from the tee while the inside of the dog leg is guarded heavily by the pines. The green itself favors a short working in from the left. Three bunkers guard this green in the front. The contours in this green are very mild but there is a ridge in the back right section of the green that really put a premium on good placement.
Hole 5: 501 yards Par 5
The Pine Valley look is very present on the fifth hole at Pine Dunes. The split fairway par five gives players two options off the tee: either carrying the native area down the left (250 yards) or play it a little more safely down the right. The left fairway is no doubt the best line with a wider fairway and a much shorter distance into the green. Players staying right will have an awkward second shot with two trees in the fairway and a bunker through the fairway. What makes this hole so special is the green complex where players really have to think about their shot. A bunker sits 20 yards away from the front of the green and everything over the bunker feeds to the green that sits in a bowl. The back portion of this green really slopes hard to the center and a ridge in the front middle part of this green splits the putting surface into two distinct parts. With all of this taken into account, players can play this hole so many ways: run one down to the green over the bunker, play it off the back slopes, or just play it normally. There's some risk reward for shots coming into this green and it only adds to how much fun this hole can be.
Hole 6: 254 yards Par 3
If you haven't already gotten your camera out by this point, you will now. The sixth hole at Pine Dunes is not only one of the most picturesque holes on the course but also one of the best designed. The hole plays nearly identical to the fourth hole at Riviera. This Redan-esque hole allows players to take aggressive lines over the front left bunkers to the flag or play it off the slopes to the right. Given the length of the shot, most players opt for the more forgiving option and try to use the slopes. When we played it, my partner and I both chose different options: I took it right at the hole while he played a draw off the slope and we both ended up inside 20 feet. For the longest par three on the course and maybe the longest shot into the green, the sixth hole remains one of the most fun holes to play and is also on our Texas 54 as one of the 18 best par threes in the entire state.
Hole 7: 443 yards Par 4
The seventh hole calms players down a little bit after the previous two, but is by no means a hole to brush off. Players face a blind shot off the tee on this slight dog leg left. Two tall pines through the fairway give players a great aiming point off the tee and ideal players would like to hit a draw. The fairway is guarded with a sandy native area left that offer a very generous shot for recovery but is still a difficult shot to get on the green. Staying on the right side of this fairway offers players a much better angle into this green and creates a bigger opening into the green (two pines about 15 yards in front of the green sit on both sides of the fairway making it all about the angles for the approach). The green is guarded by two bunkers in front of the green on both sides making club choice a premium. The green has a small mound in the center making everything run away from it. The relatively simple green is made much more interesting with one, pretty small, feature. It offers a nice challenge to skilled players but still allows the higher handicappers to get around and keep up their pace.
Hole 8: 389 yards Par 4
The eight hole seems very benign to players off the tee, the typical "hit the tee shot in the fairway and short or mid iron into the green... no big deal." However, players really have to think their way around this hole. One of the tightest fairways on the course is guarded by two bunkers through the fairway and a sandy native area left. Seeing this off the tee most players would opt to stay right but to score well on this hole you have to think a shot or two ahead. The right side of the hole is guarded heavily by over hanging trees and offers a very tough angle into this green, typically requiring players to hit a cut with the ball above their feet. Staying left off the tee, while also bringing the sandy native area into play, gives players an ideal angle into this green. Even players missing it in the sandy native area will have a decent shot into the green that they can run up. The green is guarded by three bunkers: one well short of the green (20 yards short), one on the left side, and another right of the green. The green is mildly contoured with both the back left and back right part of the green running away from players.
Hole 9: 551 yards Par 5
To close the front side Morrish gives players a good amount of width and options to work with. Off the tee players eyes are drawn to the four bunkers closely guarding the left side of the fairway. The bunkers typically deceive players into playing to the right side of the fairway even though most players can typically take them out of play with the carry on their driver at 230 yards. The second shot gives players a few options. The way the bunkers are positioned and the green complex is constructed, players can really choose the angle and distance they have without being constrained in width. The green is guarded by bunkers on nearly every side and ridges divide this green up into three sections. For a back left pin location, the green really runs away from players especially for shots coming in from the left side of the fairway. Pin location on this hole determines a lot of how players want to play this hole and with wind helping, players can definitely get to the green making it that much more interesting. My personal favorite aspect of this hole is amount of though players have to have on this hole. As you see a lot of times on holes of this distance, players hit a lot of driver-3 wood-wedge without questioning their play. And as you'll see a lot on this golf course, Morrish keeps the player thinking and strategizing in order to score well.
Hole 10: 439 yards Par 4
The opening hole on the inward nine once again give some players some strategy to work with. The tee shot sets up nicely for a left to right moving ball into one of the widest fairways on the course. However, a bunker 260 yards from the tee pinches into the fairway on the right, bottlenecking it, and cuts the width in half. For the big hitters the bunker is 280 yards to carry but another bunker on the left side of the fairway comes into play (roughly 315 yards away). Players ideally want to stay left off the tee in terms of angles but shots tugging the right side might subtract half a club into the green as well as allowing them to run a shot up. Two bunkers guard this green: one short left and another right. The contours in the green are very calm and gives players a great opportunity to score before they get to the famous eleventh.
Hole 11: 605 yards Par 5
Reminiscent to the seventh hole at Pine Valley, the eleventh hole at Pine Dines is regarded as one of the best holes on in the state of Texas. The hole features a version of Hell's Half Acre and requires players to have a couple of really good strikes to find success on this hole. The fairway is guarded by two fairway bunkers and pines lining the fairway. The fairway bunker on the right is the most accessible bunker for players requiring a carry of 250 yards and the left bunker sits 285 yards away from players, really coming into play for the big hitters (also in this bunker is a unique finger sticking out of it and we took it to social media to determine a name for this finger, you won't be disappointed: Twitter and Instagram). A poor tee shot on this hole makes the carry over Hell's Half Acre more difficult and tests a players shot making abilities. The second shot on this hole ideally tugs the left side of the fairway to open up the green. For pin placements on the right side of the green players can play fairly aggressive with the green tilted toward them however, a back left pin can get players in trouble and favors a shot coming in from the right as the green runs away from players. The green is guarded by two bunkers with the front one being just off the green. Players will walk off the eleventh hole and feel tempted to play it one more time... its that good and is on our Texas 54 as one of the best holes in Texas.
Hole 12: 204 yards Par 3
The twelfth hole is arguably the most fascinating par three on the golf course. Playing over 200 yards from the back tee, Morrish gives players some freedom and alternate routes to the green guarded by a long bunker running down the left side and a deep drop off on the right. The ideal shot into the green works its way from left to right, making the green much more accessible. However, players can play aggressive and take on the drop off on the right giving them a good dose of heroic architecture. Missing down on the right givers players a few options to get on the putting surface: running it up the slope, pitching it into the hill, or flying it all the way there. The green itself feeds slightly to the right and is in no way tricked up with contours. Good shots will be rewarded and poor shots punished to some extent.
Hole 13: 426 yards Par 4
The thirteenth hole gives players a few options to play this hole successfully. The ideal line is down the left side of the fairway requiring a carry of about 250 yards off the tee to clear the hazard. This line takes the right bunkers out of play and gives players an angle into the green that allows them to access nearly every pin by carrying it there or running it up. Another option off the tee is to play safely out to the right. This line brings three bunkers in to play off the tee and a more challenging angle into the green. Players missing too far right will have some tree trouble and the two bunkers in the middle of the fairway (roughly 30 yards from the front of the green) will greatly impact how players manage to save their score. The green itself is fairly simple: the front part of the green is tilted toward players allowing shot to stop much quicker than the back portion that runs away from players and is divided by a ridge running through the center, making it all the more important to have a good angle into this green. Three bunkers guard this green, two in the front and one in the back, and has minimal contouring giving players a great opportunity to score around the greens with comfort.
Hole 14: 434 yard Par 4
The fourteenth hole is one of only three holes with a true water hazard. A pond, roughly 220 yards from the tee, runs up the right side of the fairway at a diagonal, giving the longer players a little more width. This hazard serves a great purpose in understanding the concept of risk/reward. The ideal line is into the green is to be coming in from as right as possible, giving you a clear shot at the green. This forces players to flirt with the pond in order to gain a significant advantage for their approach. There's a lot of confusion as to how exactly heroic architecture and risk/reward are different and this hole makes it very clear: heroic architecture is going to always involve risk reward but not all risk reward is heroic architecture. This concept sets up the rest of the hole where the green is guarded by two bunkers and a tree the blocks a portion of the green. The contouring on this green sets up for a punchbowl-like area in the back left and relatively calm everywhere else providing forgiveness to players running a shot up to the green. As players walk off this green they have no idea how unique the closing four holes are going to be and are in for a real treat.
Hole 15: 344 yards Par 4
The drive and pitch fifteenth screams birdie to players while they're standing on the tee. The slight dog leg left has trouble scattered about and plays in favor of no type of player. The pond that players deal with on the fourteenth also comes into play on this hole, roughly 150 yards from the tee and runs up the right side another 60 yards. A bunker placed 260 yards from the tee divides the fairway forcing players to either go over and have a short wedge in or lay back and more of a full wedge in. The green is guarded by four bunkers and is among the biggest greens on the course. The contouring on this green is what makes this hole so interesting. A premium is put on distance control and those who get a little wild with a wedge will leave themselves with a putt with a lot of movement. A couple pin placements on this hole call for more exact placement off the tee as well. A front left and front right pin sit in bowls making it very difficult to stop something from the wrong side of the bowl. This type of hole is one of Morrish's favorites and gives every class of player a great chance to make a birdie.
Hole 16: 178 yards Par 3
The final par three in the set that Morrish calls his best, does not disappoint. Playing over a sandy native area, the sixteenth hole give players a few options to attack pins. The right side of the green feeds fairly hard to the left and moves into a ridge on the left (this creates a bowl like effect on the right side of the green) that feeds balls even more to the back left section of the green. These contours allow players to play aggressive and take on the two bunkers short right or play it out to the right (with the right bunker coming into play to a lesser effect). Not only do the contours have an effect on the shot into the green, they also have a profound impact on shots around the green. The severity of some of the contours almost creates a hazard in itself making an up and down extremely difficult. The same contours can also make this green incredibly fun, providing a great amount of variety on just one hole.
Hole 17: 475 yards Par 4
The seventeenth is the only hole on the course that does not have a bunker but by no means does it make this an easier hole. The long par four requires players to hit one of their best drives of the day. There is no ideal angle that can be played for but shots tugging the outside of this dog leg right will have a little more favorable angle into the green allowing for a bit more forgivenesses and space to run shots up to the green. The greens exterior contours and punch outs provide the most defense on this hole. On both the left and right side, the green extends a out an extra 10 feet allowing for some incredibly tucked pins. Two mounds in front of the green feed into the green itself and a ridge in the back portion of the green creates a handful of challenging pitch shots. Like many of the great golden age courses, the seventeenth hole is the architects real punch to players as this is where a lot of matches would end. This sets up for an incredibly fun eighteenth hole where players have on last chance to get a stroke back.
Hole 18: 512 yards Par 5
The final hole at Pine Dunes is one of the most unique finishing holes in the entire state. The 90 degree dog leg right gives players a few options off the tee. The safest line is to stay left and play it down the fairway as it is intended for most players. This sets up players with about 260 yards to the green. Another option is to challenge the left side of the pond in hopes of setting yourself up with about 215 yards into the green. This line requires a carry of about 250 yards to ensure safety from the hazard. The third option players have is to go right of the pond and put it all on the line. This line requires players to carry something a minimum of 265 yards with hazard left and bunkers right as well as skirting your ball in between a couple trees off the tee. This sets players up with about 145 yards into the green. For players who can't get to this green in two, it is ideal to lay up on the left side of the fairway in order to open up the green and be able to utilize the slope running through the middle of the green. The green is guarded by four bunkers with a slight drop off on the back right portion of the green. When you walk off this green its hard to not want to play this course again, and the great news is, is that you can play it again for half of the rate you paid. Pine Dunes is truly a fantastic course with some of the best architecture the state has to offer.
