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.

Turtle Island Hole No. 9

Before you can load up your golf cart with beer and get bratwurst juice all over your golf shirt at the turn, there’s a rather significant obstacle to deal with. Hole 9 on Turtle Island isn’t necessarily the backbreaking hole that will ruin your scorecard—although it certainly van be—but rather a really fair challenge when it comes to walking away with eagle.

There are multiple ways to play this design, and multiple landing areas for your tee shot. The most common area, of course, is the fairway and you’ll want to stay short of the lava and volcanic rock. If your tee shot grazes this rock, you won’t be able to reach the green in two.

From the short stuff, however, you can take multiple approaches. If you’re far enough back, a driver should clear the trees that come between you and the hole with ease. In some instances—perhaps with a strong wind—you’ll even be able to use a 3-wood here.

Be careful with this shot. Clipping the trees will likely result in a lava ball, and thus the blowup hole could be on. Figure out where you need to be to best make this shot work, and you could be in store for big things.

If you’re too close to the trees and the concern over clearing them enters your mind, there is another option: go around them.

This simple approach isn’t nearly as easy—after all, you have to cut the shot—but it can be an effective way to tackle pins tucked in the back left side. Obviously factoring in distance, wind, cut and spin can make a shot more challenging to judge, but it also can work brilliantly when executed.

And yes, there is a drastically different way to tackle this hole, one that won’t involve any fairway at all. If you’re left with a long tee shot and concerned over the difficulty of your second shot, hitting in the rough just right of the beach (and left the fairway) can give you a shot to get there.

Is it recommended? That depends. Obviously finding the right area will take some time. You’ll have to clear trees en route to the green so being too close will be a problem. But if you can find the spot—and the pin is in your favor—you could be looking at eagle or better.

The name of the game is eagle. It’s that simple. Find what shot works for you and avoid the various bits of lava at all costs. If you can do that, you’ll be successful here.

How do you play?