Higashi Hirono Golf Club

Course Data

Location	Hyogo, Japan
Yardage	7145 yards　Par 72
Course Rating	74.4
Playing Date	April 12, 2005
Designer	Yukichi Kobayashi
Opened	1989
Caddie	Yes
Golf Cart	No

Rating

Overall Rating

4.75

Course Layout	5
Difficulty Level	5
Greens Condition	5
Fairways Condition	4
Landscaping & Views	5
Level of Satisfaction	4

Snow wilow

The Higashi Hirono Golf Club is a hilly course which is designed by incorporating the surrounding elements of the natural landscape. The course offers a fun challenge because of the variety of holes. With a total length of 7158 yards, the course offers a constant journey of breathtaking moments due to the variety of good holes. Especially four the par threes are superb. Shunsuke Kato picked the four good locations for par 3s first before completing the overall routing. The designer believed that the more distinctive par 3s are, the better the other par 4s and par 5s will stand out as well. The greens are fast with a lot of undulations. Higashi Hrono hosted Panasonic Open in 2012 and 2019 that is a Japan and Asian male Tour.

view from clubhouse

view from 18th green

cherry blossom

Hole 3　Par 3　183 yards

Hole 3　Par 3　183 yards (2)

Hole 3　Par 3　183 yards (1)

A signature hole. With a slightly downhill shot, players hit onto a shallow island green. Since the green is only 25 yards deep, the selection of the right club will be essential.

Hole 6　Par 4　440 yards

Hole 6　Par 4　440 yards (2)

Hole 6　Par 4　440 yards (1)

A par four with a gentle downhill with the turtle-shell shape of the fairway. Both sides of the green are protected by bunkers. Putting is difficult because the green is divided into two faces by a mound.

Hole 7　Par 3　188 yards

An over-a-lake par three in which the green is guarded by water as well as several bunkers. The green slopes from the back towards the pond in the foreground.

Hole 12　Par 5　543 yards

12th hole seen from green

Hole 12　Par 5　543 yards

A sharp dogleg to the right with a slightly downhill tee shot. While there is a shortcut to cross the bunker on the right side of the fairway, if players hit even a little to the right, there is a possibility of entering the OB zone. With a gentle uphill from the third shot to the green, players may face a difficulty reading the proper distance to the pin.

Hole 13　Par 4　485 yards

Hole 13　Par 4　485 yards (2)

Hole 13　Par 4　485 yards (1)

This long par 4 requires a driver shot of over 250 yards in order to overpass the zelkova tree in the middle of the fairway. The green has a narrow apron due to a bunker to the front right and a slope on the left. So, it is advisable to hit the approach shot directly onto the green with a high ball. The green is divided into three tiers and even if players hit the green on regulation, it may be difficult to save par unless the ball lands in the same tier.

Hole 15　Par 4　432 yards

Hole 15　Par 4　432 yards (2)

Hole 15　Par 4　432 yards (1)

A downhill par four with a slight dogleg to the right. The bunker protecting the right front of the green is deep, and should be avoided.

Hole 17　Par 3　200 yards

A scenic par three over a lake. The green is shallow and tripe tiered.

Hole 18　Par 5　550 yards

While the tee shot is not difficult, the second shot offers quite a challenge due to the narrowing fairway that are tightened by the ponds coming in on the both sides. The green is swung to the right, and is surrounded by a lake to its front and right sides.

Hole 18　Par 5　550 yards (3)

Hole 18　Par 5　550 yards (2)

Hole 18　Par 5　550 yards (1)

19th hole

restaurant

It is about a 60-minute drive from either Osaka or Kobe. Visitors must be accompanied or introduced by a member.

Mr. Toyohiko Inui, who served as the president of the worldly recognized Hirono GC for many years, tried to build in 1980s something that is comparable to Hirono GC. The course is named as Higash (east) Hirono because it is located only 2.5 miles east of Hirono GC.

The 2020 edition of Top 100 Golf Courses ranked Higashi Hirono GC (top100golfcourses.com) as No.26 in its category of top 80 courses in Japan that has 2230 courses as of 2019.