Welcome to the Course Caddy, a look at each and every hole in Golden Tee 2014. Over the next few months, we will spend each day looking at a different design, starting with Hole 1 on the first course and ending with the final hole on the final design.

We want—no, NEED—your help in this process!

How do you play a particular design? Share your thoughts on strategy and YouTube uploads in the comment section. Your feedback is integral in the complete understanding of the design.

All holes will then be available for reference on the Course Caddy page—a bookmark must for the entire encyclopedia! Enjoy.

Shady Acres Hole No. 17

The term “blow-up hole” is often overused in Golden Tee. I mean, technically every hole can be a blow-up hole if you miss enough flat putts, but there are few holes that take on the traditional feel of being potential scorecard destructors.

Hole 17 on Shady Acres fits this mold.

With that said, there have been much harder par-3s in recent years. Heck, this isn’t even the hardest one across all five courses. But the setup of this design requires you to approach it with caution, and aggression should give way for having a manageable putt at birdie each and every time.

Obviously the wall near the top part of the green requires mention. Come up short of landing the green, and you can very well hit this. If you hit this on the fly, you’ll likely hit the water.

If you hit it on a bounce, however, you might be end up dry. You might end up better than that. It’s not the optimal strategy, but it can breed favorable results.

The more favorable strategy here is to apply backspin, play a safe shot just over the pin and let your spin do the work. Obviously it’s not always that easy, but this is the safest way to leave yourself a putt—or perhaps give yourself something even better.

Of course, attacking this shot with Bite or even without and spin at all is also an option. Such attempts come with more risk given the downward slope toward the water, but this a workable shot if there’s a strong wind working against you.

In many ways, the wind is applying its own natural spin.

Reacting to the wind is crucial in consistently coming away with birdie on this hole. Obviously an out-wind will carry the ball much further than you’d expect. Learning the appropriate shots for various setups will be critical in finding consistent success.

Play smart, play safe and play to stay dry. A safe shot could mean a longer, challenging putt—and potentially a par—but it beats the alternative of trying to chip onto the green after finding the hazard. That’s where the blow-up hole possibility lingers.

How do you play this hole?