5 Things to Know About Quail Hollow

Quail Hollow Club returns to host the PGA Championship (May 12-18) this year, eight years after doing so for the first time, when a 24-year-old Justin Thomas captured his first Wanamaker Trophy by two shots over Francesco Molinari, Louis Oosthuizen and Patrick Reed.

On that steamy August day in Charlotte, North Carolina, Thomas entered the final round two shots behind leader Kevin Kisner and found himself tied for the lead after draining a long birdie putt on the ninth hole. He then birdied the 10th hole, chipped in for birdie at 13 and made another birdie on 17 to take a three-shot lead to the home hole, which he bogeyed. Thomas shot a final-round 68 and ended the week at 8-under-par 276 total on the par-71 layout.

This year, when the strongest field in golf gathers in the Tar Heel State, Quail Hollow will again be a par-71 and will stretch out to 7,626 yards, just a touch longer than it was in 2017.

Here are five things to know about the George Cobb design that opened in 1961 and has been tweaked by Arnold Palmer (1986) and modified by Tom Fazio and others several times over the past 20 years.

1.

Charlotte News columnist Ron Green was allowed a sneak peak of the club in June 1961 and wrote that it had all the qualities to be a great golf course. Green died late last year but his early words helped immensely for an area that was looking for another high-end facility. Quail Hollow sits on land that was previously one of the largest dairy farms in the state and got its name from the quail that were often found on the grounds. From those humble roots, it's now considered one of the finest courses in NC.

2.

You will hear the “Green Mile” mentioned hundreds of times during television coverage and read about it often in articles. It’s in reference to the final three holes – the par-4 16th, par-3 17th and par-4 18th. It is one of the toughest closing stretches in the history of major championship golf. In fact, in 2017 they ranked as the third, fifth and first most difficult holes for the week, respectively. The lone bunker on the 16th is strategically placed at the dogleg where players are trying to cut off as much of the hole as they can off the tee. The approach is no picnic either as it’s downhill to a green with a short, right bunker and water both left and long. Seventeen presents a tee shot that is mostly all carry over water on a hole that is 220 yards. The only bail out is right. There is a creek that runs along the entire length of the home hole and it does come into play. The landing area off the tee is not wide and the approach shot is to an uphill green with a false front. Making par on the 72nd hole to win the championship is no easy task.

3.

Regarding the “Green Mile,” a few PGA champions have had interesting things to say about it over the past few months, in the run up to the championship. Keegan Bradley, the 2011 PGA Champion and U.S. Ryder Cup captain this year for the matches at Bethpage Black, said, “From a fan’s perspective, it’s a really entertaining finish to see the players take on The Green Mile. A lot of things can happen at the end of the tournament there. There’s a lot of water to navigate and just a bunch of tough shots facing the contenders.”

Said Collin Morikawa, the 2020 PGA Champion: “It think it’s just a great golf course overall. From tee to green it’s comprehensive. You’ve got very challenging tee shots to deal with, and it’s a pretty long test. Mixed in there you’ve also go some scorable holes, par 5s that you can take advantage of and they can sometimes be gettable depending on the wind and the weather. You just can’t let up on a golf course like that, and that’s all you can ask for when you come to a major championship.”

4.

Surprisingly, the front nine played more difficult eight years ago even though the back had four of the five most difficult holes on the course. But it also had three of the four easiest holes too. Nos. 1 and 9 were the two hardest on the front, playing .388 and .277 strokes over par. Playing to a par 35 on the front, the average for the week – from 459 total scores posted – was 36.431. A par 36 on the back, those nine holes played to a 37.037 average even though the closing three-hole stretch is treacherous. Players will have to bring their A-game for all 18 holes at Quail Hollow.

5.

At every major championship there seems to be a premium placed on hitting fairways. Players must be in the shortgrass off the tee in order to control their ball better heading into difficult, speedy greens. Well, Justin Thomas was tied for 62nd in fairways hit in 2017, hitting only 28 of 56. So that tells you he did everything else extremely well that week. He tied for 17th place in greens hit in regulation and was fourth in strokes gained/putting, picking up 1.807 shots on the greens for the week. During a week where par was always a great score, and the winning number was only 8 under, it was good enough to hoist the Wanamaker Trophy. It'll be exciting to watch how the players in 2025 take on the challenges of Quail Hollow.