The place Royal Troon’s ‘The Railway’ ranks amongst 50 hardest Open holes of twenty first century

So far as Open Championship venues go, Royal Troon isn’t significantly stout, rating because the third best on the rota.

It’d be a lot simpler if not for “The Railway.”

The par-4 eleventh gap has traditionally been the hardest gap on property, together with in 2016, the final time the Open visited Troon, when its 4.561 scoring common ranked it as essentially the most troublesome gap on the PGA Tour that season.

What makes this gap so punishing? Let’s begin with the tee shot; at 490 yards and often enjoying instantly right into a northwest wind, it’s laborious to depart the lumber within the bag. Railroad tracks run down the whole thing of the suitable facet of the opening, and at about 300 yards from the tee, the boundary wall sits simply 20 yards from the suitable fringe of the golf green. In fact, there isn’t any bailout left, both; thick gorse litters the left facet of the golf green, which is barely about 30 yards large within the touchdown space for many of those gamers.

The tracks are in play on the second shot, too, with the wall simply steps from the suitable fringe of the inexperienced. There may be additionally a deep, greenside pot bunker simply off the front-left portion of the placing floor.

“11 is a superb instance, simply get that one on the golf green,” Bryson DeChambeau mentioned. “It’s a really troublesome, troublesome gap. If the wind picks up, it might be driver. There are occasions the place it needs to be driver. You possibly can’t hit 3-wood or 5-wood; it’s simply too brief. I may hit a 3-wood, and if it’s 15, 20 miles an hour into the wind, it may go 250 yards, 240 yards relying on the peak. If it’s raining too, that performs a giant issue, as nicely.

“So, there are occasions the place it’s possible you’ll be compelled to hit driver, and also you’ve simply bought to suck it up and hit an excellent drive.”

“The Railway” has produced its justifiable share of disasters, together with in 1962 when Jack Nicklaus carded a ’10′ on the opening. Extra lately, Thomas Pieters delivered one of many extra memorable moments of frustration, snapping his membership over his knee and chucking each items of iron into some gorse.

However the place does Troon’s intimidating No. 11 rank amongst all holes on this championship since 2001? Here’s a checklist of the 50 hardest of the twenty first century up to now; 2016’s model of “The Railway” cracks the highest 10, although simply barely: