No. 5
"Table Top"
Par-3, 210 yards
There are some great par 3s on the Composite but the one that drives the most fear into the hearts of the professionals is the aptly-named 5th, "Table Top". The longest one-shotter at The Hong Kong Golf Club, the difficulty here is not so much the yardage – which at over 200 yards may raise a few eyebrows among amateurs – but more about being able to stop the ball on the raised two-tier green. Two deep bunkers protect the front of the putting surface, while a grassy bank at the back will snare any shots that go long. To add to the trickiness, the teebox is surrounded by trees on three sides, making it hard to tell the strength and direction of the wind. Even given the vast distances that most pros hit the ball, the 5th still requires something in the region of a 5- or 6-iron, which is still a lot of club for what is a diminutive green. The hole played as the third hardest in 2009, with only 46 birdies carded during the championship.
