Central Golf Club - East Course

Course Data Location Ibaragi, Japan Yardage 7183 yards Par 72 Course Rating 72.7 Playing Date 20 Jun. 2004 Desingner Jyosuke Nishino Opened 1974 Caddy Yes Golf Cart Yes Rating Overall Rating 3.45 Course Layout #3 Difficulty Level #4 Greens Conditions 4 Fairways Conditions 4 Landscaping & Views 3

# I estimated the course layout and the difficulty level as if I were playing at the main greens of 7183 yards. In fact I didn't play with the main greens but the sub greens of 7060 yards.   This is a 36-hole championship course developed on the beautiful hills. Both courses, called East Course and West Course, have adequate distances of a little less than 7200 yards. The course rating of the West Course is 73.3, slightly higher than the East Course. The East Course has many different characteristics at each hole such as up & down hills and doglegs to the right & left. Also, it features relatively wide fairways. As each hole is well serrated, however it remains challenging. The course adapts 2 greens, and the sub greens I played are as interesting as the main greens.

2nd　 Par 3　182 yards

2nd Par 3 182 yards A challenging par 3.

4th　 Par 4　400 yards

4th Par 4 400 yards (2) 4th Par 4 400 yards 819 A dogleg to the right par 4. The fairway is tight and has hazard on the left. The bunker on the right of the fairway comes into play.

7th　Par 5　517 yards

An almost 90-degree dogleg to the right. You can make a short cut but the landing area becomes very narrow when you choose to do so. If you don’t hit the narrow fairway, your second shot becomes extremely difficult to maneuver because the ball is under dense trees and /or on a steep side hill lie.

7th hole seen from the green 7th Par 5 517 yards (2) 7th Par 5 517 yards (1)

9th　 Par 4　478 yards

9th Par 4 478 yards (2) 9th Par 4 478 yards (1) A long & straight par 4. The tee shot is uphill and the second becomes a little uphill over the creek. The bunkers in front and on both sides of the green are deep.

11th　 Par 4　386 yards

11th Par 4 386 yards (2) 11th Par 4 386 yards (1) A dogleg to the right, surrounding a small pond. To go over the pond, you need to hit a 260-yard drive. The elevated green is not wide, but deep.

13th　 Par 4　403 yards

13th Par 4 403 yards (2) 13th Par 4 403 yards (1) A par 4 with a difficult tee-shot. There is OB on the left and trees on the right, and furthermore the fairway is narrow, with fairway bunkers well in play. The bunkers also guard the green, too. According to the caddie, even pros sometimes end up with OB by veering to the left.

16th　Par 3　192 yards

16th Par 3 192 yards A downhill par 3 with OB on the right.

17th　Par 4　454 yards

A par 4, downhill for the first shot and uphill for the second. The fairway bunkers come into play.

17th hole seen from the green 17th Par 4 454 yards (2) 17th Par 4 454 yards (1)

19th hole

The course was awarded 80th place out of 2400 courses in 2002’s Japanese golf course rankings sponsored by Japan Golf Classic Magazine. The East Course used to host a Japanese PGA tournament.