Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco

We love to start a golf course off with a par 5 when the land allows. A par-5 opening hole gives players of all skill levels the opportunity for a positive start. Playing primarily into the wind, it is a three-shot hole for everyone except the longest, most accurate hitters. The tee shot over Panther Creek should flirt with the fairway bunkers on the right for the preferred line. Second shots must contend with a cross-hazard valley and bunkers to the right, but playing down that native side opens the best angle into the green. Meanwhile, another crossing feature short of the green challenges long hitters. The small, elevated green has deep bunkers on the left and a tightly mown slope feeding off the right side. Going for it in two is daunting but much more manageable with a short third shot.

Teeing off from the low ground, there are bunkers on both sides of the uphill fairway. The right side has the shorter carry to clear, but the slope pushes shots farther right, leaving a more difficult second shot. The green is perched atop one of the largest elevation changes on the course and angled to receive shots from the left. Bunkers guard both sides, with the ones on the right being some of the deepest on the course. This green also features one of the best views on the property, so be sure to take it in.

Having two par 5s in the first three holes is unusual, but the natural lay of the land here fits the demand. The elevated tees feature a forced carry over a tributary leading to Panther Creek and a large native area. The natural slope of the land forms a crescent along the left side of the fairway while the second shot plays uphill through unique bunkering. The best angle into the green is from the left, as it is protected by a front-right bunker and sharp fall off to the left. Avoid the sand for a chance to score.

This downhill par 3 plays over a gully and native area into a right-to-left green. The contours of the approach, surround and green will aid a shot played from right to left. From the tee, the beautiful bunkering hides some of the green’s contours that are segmented into several areas, with a deep falloff toward the back that drops into a short grass area, which forces a difficult recovery shot.

As the course turns back toward the clubhouse, the wind should be at your back. Panther Creek winds along the right side and crosses through the area. With the penalty area coming close to the right side of the fairway, this side offers the preferred approach shot into an elevated green. Two bunkers short of the green are visually deceptive, as are the bunkers over it. The green offers some of the trickiest putts of any hole, with a particularly challenging back shelf.

The elevated tee shot must carry a dry wash/sand feature, but the main challenge is a dry creek along the right side. If you can avoid it, the long second shot has a better chance to hit the green from that side — just carry the right greenside bunker and the ball will kick toward the green. From the left side, the second shot must carry another greenside bunker and doesn’t come with a downslope assist. The green sits up and features a unique trough on the right side that can funnel errant putts off the putting surface, so roll the ball with caution.

As one of the shortest par 4s on the course, this hole can appear inviting, but the landing area off the tee is partially blind if you play from the offset left tees. For those not firing at the green, the layup area is short of the cross bunkers to the left, but the second shot has challenges with greenside bunkers short and right of the green. The raised L-shaped green provides many interesting hole locations and requires precise shots to avoid the sharp rise in the front and falloffs to the rear. There are lots of ways to play this hole, and watching your playing partners decide is just as entertaining as playing it yourself.

One of the most dramatic holes on the property, this par 3 plays over a constructed wetland into a bluff-top green with a large bridge to the back and left. The green angles toward the back right, but the bunkering short and right disguises the slope. This is the rare type of hole that is nothing like what it appears to be from the tee. The miss is into the large chipping area to the right, but the slopes leading into the green require a precise pitch from here. The perched green falls away in several directions, requiring a high degree of focus for any putt.

Playing alongside the bridge, the tee shot comes with options brought on by the centerline bunker in the fairway: carry the bunker, play to either side or lay up short. With the wetland down the left side, shots that land safely there or carry the bunker are rewarded with a better angle or shorter approach. The second shot must carry Panther Creek on the way to the elevated green, which features ringed bunkers and a pronounced back-to-front tilt. This hole requires decision-making and features a beautiful green complex and fitting foreground on the way back toward the clubhouse.

The back nine starts with an elevated tee shot over Panther Creek played to a plateau fairway that falls into a wetland on the right, with out of bounds to the left. Shots played safely along the penalty area out to the right will be rewarded with a direct angle to the green. Shots hit between the two left side fairway bunkers earn a shorter second shot, but if the tee shot is short of the bunkers, the longer second shot is partially blind. The peninsula green, with bunkers and a drop-off front and right, is angled left to right. It also features lots of internal slopes, so beware of three-putts.

This short par 4 requires decision-making off the tee. Three bunkers form a triangle in the fairway, with Panther Creek looming down the right side. Playing short of, or beyond, the right fairway bunker gives the best angle for a second shot, but it also brings the creek into play. Playing to the left leaves a short second shot but with an awkward angle. Flying the bunkers to the left side provides a short pitch onto the green, but that tee shot leaves the smallest margin for error. The perched green is the smallest on the course and features a severe slope, so any putts from above the hole can be troublesome.

One of the longest par 4s on the course features an intimidating tee shot with a wetland on the right and a tree grove and sandy wash area on the left. The wash area mimics the broken ground on the ranch before the course was built. Playing to the right gives a clear look to a raised green, but hitting away from the wetland on the second shot means taking on a bunker short and left. There is room over that bunker to land a shot onto the large green, and there is another greenside bunker to the left and a sharp falloff guarding the right side. With a variety of hole location possibilities on the green, this entire hole will play as one of the most difficult.

When laying out the course, this corner always had the makings of a dramatic hole. To fit the course’s flow and natural landscape, a long par 3 was ideal. At more than 270 yards from the back tees, uphill and into the wind, this is no easy three. The green sits above Panther Creek, with sharp, eroded banks and bunkers falling toward the water. A series of bunkers built into the hillside serves as a backdrop, with a bailout area short and right of the green. From here, recovery shots are manageable into the large green that pitches from back to front.

As the course turns toward home, a blind tee shot over a ridge to a pitched fairway awaits on this par 5 built around the land’s natural features. The aiming bunkers provide lines for the tee shot, so use those for guidance. Second shots face a series of bunkers, with the most aggressive play over the left side that should leave a short wedge shot for the third. Laying up before the bunkers means an obscured view of the green, hiding the Panther Creek tributary running along the left and across the front of the green. The narrow green sits on an “island” within the tributary, meaning reaching the green in two requires an accurate, near-perfect shot.

The shortest par 4 on the course plays dramatically uphill to a green set on a ridge. Aim at the Frisco Water Tower off the tee, where a large fairway and steep uphill second shot over a deep bunker await. Aggressive tee shots can hit the upper fairway that is angled left to right. Deep bunkers are cut into the ridge, but this is still a “bite off as much as you can chew” tee shot. If you can’t reach the green, stay toward the right side. The putting surface is tucked into a bowl, but if it is missed, the recovery options are challenging. The hole locations can be tricky, so stay focused on putts. This is one of our favorite holes on the course, to look at and to play.

From the elevated teeing ground, it appears to be an inviting first shot with no bunkers, but a strong left-to-right cross slope in the fairway plays defense. The entire right side is protected by Panther Creek as the primary challenge, making the fairway slope that much more dangerous. Playing close to the creek leaves an unobstructed view of the green. There is a ridge about 40 yards short and left of the green, so approach shots can land short and kick on. The creek continues to the right side of the rectangular green, ready to gobble up wayward shots. This hole’s traditional character influenced the green’s old-school shape and contour.

The penultimate hole is the shortest par 3 on the course, playing across a wetland into a green that is wide and shallow. Distance control is key, but there is some slack left and right, although that could lead to some long putts after wobbly tee balls. Bunkers lie across the front with the wetland to the right, where the green is narrowest. Nothing but a perfect shot will get close when the hole is located over there, especially if the prevailing wind is blowing in that direction.

It all wraps up with a par 5, and with the potential to have a lot riding on this hole, there’s trouble lurking everywhere. The tee shot plays over the wetland to a diagonal fairway with Panther Creek to the right, requiring precise accuracy and ball flight. The green sits atop a bluff over the creek, so getting home in two will truly be a do-or-die shot, with anything short or right in the water. Even layups require accuracy, as the creek meanders down the right side and bunkers guard the left in the second landing zone. Long approaches can end up in bunkers behind the green, and shots from there run downhill toward the water. The green is receptive and sloped from back to front, requiring intense focus until the ball is in the cup. This is a true finishing hole, with trouble and options galore.