CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Quail Hollow Club, the prestigious site of the 107th PGA Championship scheduled for May 15-18, presents a challenging course for the world’s top golfers. Let’s take a detailed look at each hole of this formidable venue.
The first hole at Quail Hollow stretches 505 yards as a par 4. It is designed to test golfers right from the start with a demanding left-to-right drive that lands on an elevated area beyond the dogleg. Approaching the green requires precision, as players face a mid-iron shot to a narrow green, protected by three sizable bunkers.
Next is the 452-yard par-4 second hole. A well-placed 280-yard drive will find the turn in the fairway, leaving around 170 yards to reach an elevated green that slopes significantly from back to front.
The third hole extends 483 yards, also a par 4. Golfers need to send the ball long and straight off the tee to avoid a threatening bunker on the right. The green sits elevated, surrounded by three bunkers, and features a ridge dividing its front and back sections.
Quail Hollow’s fourth offers a brief respite as a 184-yard par 3. The hole is framed by towering pine trees, leading to a large green with significant undulations, flanked by three bunkers at the front. Long shots end in a difficult position below the green.
At the fifth hole, stretching 449 yards into a par 4, the course slopes gently downward before rising to a green nestled on a hillside past the sixth tee. The fairway hosts bunkers on both flanks, with a narrow green equipped with a bunker on its front right.
One of the longer tests is the sixth, a 249-yard par 3 that descends downhill. Players need accuracy, wielding hybrids or long irons, as the back-to-front sloping green is protected by a front right bunker.
Hole seven, measuring 546 yards and a par 5, is the shortest yet most thrilling of the par 5s. Players can aim to reach in two, avoiding bunkers on the left and the water hazard running along the right. The green, guarded by surrounding bunkers, offers chances for birdies but can be punitive.
At the eighth, 346 yards and a par 4, strategy varies from attempting to drive the green to laying up for a wedge approach. Two left-side bunkers pose hazards with a larger bunker guarding the right side of the green.
The ninth is typically among the most challenging par 4s at 530 yards. Players aim to avoid a right-side bunker off the tee to maintain a clear path with a long iron toward an uphill green, watched over by two front bunkers and a lot of movement.
On to the 10th, a lengthy 592-yard par 5 where reaching the green in two is possible by avoiding a left-side bunker and right-side trees. Both sides of the back-to-front sloped green feature bunkers, impacting birdie opportunities.
The 11th hole, a 462-yard par 4, tests players with substantial bunkers guarding a slight dogleg corner and deep bunkers near an elevated green to the left.
A par-4 twelfth is narrowly carved at 456 yards, flanked by trees. Players tasked with a short iron shot to tackle an elevated, steeply sloped green from back to front must keep the ball below the hole to prevent three-putts.
The thirteenth at 205 yards, a par 3, demands precision to navigate between two large bunkers surrounding the green. It slopes severely from back to front, adding to the challenge of securing a birdie.
At 344 yards, the fourteenth is a tantalizing par 4. Water defends the left side, adding risk for those who drive the green. From the fairway, the lengthy, narrow green complicates proximity to the pin distribution, making birdies and bogeys frequent.
Players face the fifteenth’s deceptive 577-yard par 5 with water left and trees right en route to an uphill journey. The fairway shot, ideally with a metal, targets a centrally ridged green rewarding close feeds or punishing misses. This hole offer a significant birdie chance.
At 529 yards, the par-4 16th’s green perches beside water. Precision off the tee to avoid a right-side bunker is crucial, with subsequent mid-iron play required for the water-flanked, bunker-guarded green.
A highlight is the 17th, 223-yard par 3, defining Quail Hollow’s identity with a peninsula green necessitating a 195-yard carry from the back tees. Firm conditions make precise pin targeting critical to avoid water overshoots.
The 18th hole, a formidable conclusion at 494 yards par 4, presents obstacles with a right-bunker and left-side creek, coupled with an uphill closing shot navigating bunkers to the right and the menacing left creek.