(Editor’s note: Throughout the remainder of the summer, MontanaSports.com will be visiting golf courses to feature ‘signature holes’ or holes that tie in to what makes the courses unique. To view more courses highlighted in our Signature Series, please click here. Lewistown’s Pine Meadows Golf Course has two of the toughest par 3s in Montana.)
LEWISTOWN — Pine Meadows Golf Course in Lewistown is a nine-hole treasure. The course has two incredibly difficult par 3s that, because of their severe slope, can eat up shots in a hurry.
“It’s back to front and then left to right. If you’re on the wrong side or short-side yourself, you’re going to have a really hard time stopping the ball,” Pine Meadows head golf professional Keithon Walter said. “The slope is going to be severe and you’re going to have to have 4-foot breakers that are 12-foot putts, so they’re tough.”
The par-3 second can become even more difficult on a windy day. With trees surrounding the green, there’s only a small window to hit the tee shot, so any miss can lead to trouble.
“You’re looking at a yardage, the wind gets up there then all of the sudden you’re two clubs short,” Walter said. “If you go long, you’re out of bounds on No. 2. If you go right, you’re looking at double bogey real quick. It’s very hard to pick a club on these par 3s, especially No. 2.”
The sixth hole has just one tree, but it covers nearly a third of the green. Again, the slope of the hole makes it incredibly difficult to get a ball to stop on the green.
“Six has been called the only dogleg par 3 in the state,” Walter joked. “We have a tree right in front of the green. Even Tom Weiskopf said that a few weeks ago, he came down for an event and said you’ve got to get rid of that tree. It makes it interesting, because you have to hit it high and land it soft, or you’ve got to hit left and hit a cut to hit this green. … From what I’ve played, just because of the slope of the greens and that they’re elevated, even though that No. 6 is 150 and No. 2 is 170-200 yards, they’re really hard because of the slope of the greens. I would say they’re harder than most of the par 3s I’ve played in the state.”
This course is one of the 51 courses included in the 2019 Golf & Go Summer Pass, which is available through MTNDeals.com for $99. To purchase a pass granting you access to 18 holes at each of the 51 courses, please click here.
