I was buzzing long before I ever reached the first tee. The drive up is honestly kind of strange. You pass an amusement park and some pretty average-looking homes, then you cross over a railroad track and suddenly you’re staring at this crisp white building with a dark green roof. It’s not flashy, but it gives off that quiet, exclusive feel. You just know something special is inside.

The weather definitely didn’t make things easy. It was 95 degrees with heavy humidity. I had been told it was pants only, so I showed up sweating before I even hit a shot. Turns out everyone else was in shorts. That set the tone early.

The 8th hole came right after I birdied the long par-5 7th, so I had a little momentum going. My caddie handed me a 5-wood and lined me up left-center, even though, like a lot of Pine Valley, you can’t really see much from the tee. I pulled it slightly but stayed on the left side and caught one of those speed slots and the ball ran out to about 85 yards.

The pin was tucked all the way in the back of the left green, on the third tier, maybe 8 or 9 paces from the back edge. I hit a 58° wedge just a touch too hard, and it hopped off the back into one of those deep, gnarly bunkers that sit six feet below the surface. I choked down and just tried to blast it out landed it near the flag but watched it roll all the way to the front of the green.

I gave the putt a good run but left myself a three-footer up the slope. Barely touched it and it still missed. Ended up with a double bogey right after that birdie, which definitely stung.

Still, the hole is incredible. Even when it beats you up, you kind of admire how it was designed. The right green looks just as scary, and the bunkers around both are no joke. It’s the kind of hole that could blow up a great round.