The 13 most terrifying, frightening, fear-inducing holes in golf

By Joel Beall

September 13, 2024

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Photo By: David Cannon/R&A

Photo By: Keyur Khamar

Photo By: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Photo By: Gary Kellner

Photo By: Chris Condon

Photo By: Keyur Khamar

Photo By: Ross Kinnaird

Photo By: PGA of America

Photo By: Fred Vuich

Photo By: David Cannon

Photo By: Joel Riner, Quicksilver Studios

17th Hole, Old Course, St. Andrews

During the 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews, the field scoring average on the Road Hole was 5.31, a whopping 1.31 strokes over par. Not sure why. All the 450-yard par 4 requires is a tee shot over a railroad shed/hotel to a blind, dogleg-right fairway surrounded by heather, with an approach to a narrow green guarded by a bunker that's harder to escape than most prisons and a stone wall lining the back of the hole that garners overrun balls. Nothing to it.

Photo By: David Cannon/R&A

18th Hole, Blue Monster Course, Doral

For years, the Blue Monster's finishing holes lived up to their namesake on the PGA Tour. Though the Tour's best haven't had to face the positively oceanic finishing hole since 2016, the same can't be said for LIV Golf's stars, who now use Doral's tough 18th hole as a springtime warm-up for the next terror on our list ...

Photo By: Keyur Khamar

12th Hole, Augusta National

Many a green jacket dream—from Jordan Spieth's in 2016 to Max Homa's in 2024—has drowned in Rae's Creek at Augusta National's 12th hole, which Lloyd Mangrum once called "the meanest little par 3 in the world." Swirling winds and the whirlpool effect wreak havoc, not only on players' shots, but their nerve. Two-time Masters winner Ben Crenshaw blames the hole's location on an old Indian burial ground. "Sometimes it comes down to superstition. When the wind comes up while the ball is in the air and knocks it into the water, the local caddies will say, 'The spirits got it.' "

Photo By: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Fourth Hole, Bethpage Black

How can this 517-yard par 5 at Bethpage Black—one of the hardest layouts in America—be the course's second-handicapped hole? For one, add 100 yards to that distance, because the hole makes a severe track uphill. The view from the tee will make the most courageous individual doubt themself, with a cavernous bunker lurking left and thick rough threatening on the right. Traversing the hill requires a long shot over a deep wall of sand, with the green surrounded by, you guessed it, more beach. Needless to say, neither American nor Euro Ryder Cup members will be looking forward to this beast come 2025.

Photo By: Gary Kellner

17th Hole, TPC Sawgrass

TPC Sawgrass' penultimate test might be an island, but it's anything but paradise. “It’s like having a 3 o’clock appointment for a root canal,” Mark Calcavecchia once said of the iconic and infamous 17th. “You’re thinking about it all morning and you feel bad all day. You kind of know, sooner or later, you’ve got to get to it.”

Photo By: Chris Condon

17th Hole, Ocean Course, Kiawah Island

At the 2021 PGA Championship, Kiawah Island's Ocean Course played an average of 2.01 strokes over par, and the par-3 17th was a big reason why. In compiling Golf Digest's 20 Toughest Golf Courses in America, one of our panelists said, "I think the 17th hole is the toughest par 3 in the world. If the wind blows, watch out." Tipping out at 231 yards, the 17th is not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach.

Photo By: Keyur Khamar

18th Hole, Carnoustie

Jean van de Velde. Enough said.

Photo By: Ross Kinnaird

13th Hole, Whistling Straits

Though the lasting image of the 2021 Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits was Jordan Spieth's hazardous hillside escape on the 17th hole, don't let that fool you. It's actually the hole known as "Cliff Hanger" that provides one of toughest tests in championship golf. Anything less than an accurate tee shot will find the sand. The same applies to the approach, with shots to the right plummeting towards the waves of Lake Michigan.

Photo By: PGA of America

First Hole, Oakmont Country Club

While Oakmont's most infamous feature is it's church pew bunkering, the first tee is hard enough entirely on its own. A 482-yard par 4 with eight bunkers off the fairway and two more by the green, it can be a downright dream-killer if you're not properly warmed up.

Photo By: Fred Vuich

Eighth Hole, Pebble Beach

The Pacific Ocean hugging the cliffs is breathtaking . . . until you put your tee in the ground. Then it takes your breath away in a totally different way. A well-hit drive can overrun the fairway and into the Pacific, and the green, which runs front to back, is guarded by four sand traps. Oh, and don't forget the Marine Layer and whipping winds. If you walk away with the same ball you tee'd off with, consider it a success.

Photo By: David Cannon

14th Hole, Coeur d'Alene Golf Resort

From 'Friday the 13th' to 'Lake Placid,' 80 percent of scary movies take place near a remote lake. Throw in a 218-yard shot to a floating island, along with a boat ride to the green, and we're staying far away from this Idaho monster.

Photo By: Joel Riner, Quicksilver Studios

Fifth Hole, Pine Valley

While many of Pine Valley Golf Club's holes don't leave much room for error, the par-3 fifth does not suffer fools. The 220-yard hole requires an uphill shot over water and bunkers to a narrow, sloped green. Bogey isn't the end of the world, especially considering the fact you're playing Golf Digest's top-ranked golf course in America. No matter what you shoot, you're winning at life.

Extreme 19th, Legend Golf & Safari

The longest par 3 in the world at 395 yards, this hole, seemingly plucked out of a 'Golden Tee' arcade machine, requires a shot from the top of Hanglip Mountain that takes close to 20 seconds to land. Players at this South African stunt hole have to take a helicopter to reach the tee. God forbid if you bring the wrong club.

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The 13 most terrifying, frightening, fear-inducing holes in golf

Shop This Look

17th Hole, Old Course, St. Andrews

18th Hole, Blue Monster Course, Doral

12th Hole, Augusta National

Fourth Hole, Bethpage Black

17th Hole, TPC Sawgrass

17th Hole, Ocean Course, Kiawah Island

18th Hole, Carnoustie

13th Hole, Whistling Straits

First Hole, Oakmont Country Club

Eighth Hole, Pebble Beach

14th Hole, Coeur d'Alene Golf Resort

Fifth Hole, Pine Valley

Extreme 19th, Legend Golf & Safari

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