Hole #2

Par 4 – 404 yards

The fairway is crowned and requires a draw or a straight drive. Drives right kick further right, and drives to the left find a little more room to run than players can see from the tee.Lake View’s second is a medium-length but downhill par 4 that requires a precise tee shot.

Drives will roll on drier days, so drives need to fly only 225 yards to be left with a short iron approach. The approach shot is played downhill to a long green guarded by three bunkers. Players want to avoid missing the green long or right, as steep hills make getting up and down a chore.

Hole #3

Par 4 – 420 yards

Players whose tee shots find the middle of the fairway will face an approach shot through the two stands of trees guarding the green. The green presents some safe areas, but neither of those include the bunkers guarding the front left and right sides.This demanding mid-length par 4 requires an accurate drive to a sloping fairway to ensure a shot at the green. The fairway slopes to the right, and at 240 yards from the tee slopes downward.

Miss the fairway with your drive and you’re playing for a bogey.

Drives will roll on drier days, so drives need to fly only 225 yards to be left with a short iron approach. The approach shot is played downhill to a long green guarded by three bunkers. Players want to avoid missing the green long or right, as steep hills make getting up and down a chore.

Hole #4

Par 3 – 192 yards

Players are advised to play at the middle of the green with an extra club to account for the wind and be content with a par. If the pin is up, putting is no easy task.This one-shotter is deceptively difficult. Typically playing into a breeze, the green features a narrow and sharply sloped tongue and three hidden pot bunkers to the left. The sharp slopes to the right are no man’s land, and a bunker addition to the back right will catch shots that go long.

Hole #5

Par 4 – 402 yards

Hit your drive too far left and your approach shot will be blocked by a large tree to the left of the green.This is a relatively benign par four with a semi-blind tee shot. Any drive that travels 225 will reach the top of the small hill, providing a few of the green. The ideal drive hangs along the right-hand side of the fairway, but there is plenty of room to the left.

This hole typically plays downwind and, played moderately, should be an easy birdie or par. Sins here include going long or right on the approach.

Hole #6

Par 5 – 595 yards

Typically playing into a breeze, the opening drive should be placed in the left-hand side of the fairway. This will provide a good angle for the lay-up, which should also be in the left half of the fairway.Tame Lake View’s sixth and you’re probably going to shoot a good number. The number one handicap hole on the course, this one plays 582 from the tips.

The approach is to one of Lake View’s largest and flattest greens. Long is bad, but going long on a 580-yard hole is not common. This isn’t the hole to play conservatively unless you are happy putting down a “6” on hole six.

This hole typically plays downwind and, played moderately, should be an easy birdie or par. Sins here include going long or right on the approach.

Hole #7

Par 3 – 217 yards

Ranked as the 15th handicap hole, this hole demands a long, accurate tee shot with a long iron, 3-wood, or driver (on the windy days). Once you reach the putting surface, you’ll find it to be relatively flat.The longest par 3 on Lake View offers no breaks: it plays directly into the prevailing west wind.

Hole #8

Par 4 – 400 yards

Your drive – probably with a long iron or 3-wood – should find the center or right edge of a fairway that slopes gently to the right. There’s room to the right, but tee shots that don’t find the fairway will be squeezed by two trees guarding the approach shot.The eighth is a short, straightaway par 4 which places emphasis on precision over power.

The approach requires some accuracy as well. Miss the green right and your ball may wind up 20 feet below the surface of the green or, worse yet, in the pond. The green is relatively flat, and two accurate shots will net a birdie or par. But wander offline and you’ll struggle to make par.

Hole #9

Par 4 – 368 yards

The ideal drive hugs the corner of the fairway and continues down the hill, leaving the player only a wedge or a short iron to the green. Drives to the right will find some room, but may be blocked by the large trees on that side.The 9th is a suitable closing hole for the front nine: a moderate par 4 that requires two good shots and a deft putting touch to walk away with par.

The approach shot must be carefully judged, as two ridges – halfway back and on the right third – determine pin positions. Get unlucky or hit a poor shot and you’ll do well to take only two putts.

The approach is to one of Lake View’s largest and flattest greens. Long is bad, but going long on a 580-yard hole is not common. This isn’t the hole to play conservatively unless you are happy putting down a “6” on hole six.

This hole typically plays downwind and, played moderately, should be an easy birdie or par. Sins here include going long or right on the approach.

Hole #10

Par 4 – 425 yards

The key here is your drive. The fairway slopes down and veers left about 280 yards from the back tees. If you can get there, cut the corner as much as possible to leave yourself a short iron to the green. The further your drive travels to the right, the longer your approach.The tenth hole is deceptively long and provides for an approach shot following a good drive of anywhere from 120 to 220 yards.

That approach is to a green that’s slightly lower than the fairway. The putting surface is deceptively sloped, so take your time reading any putts. Long and left is not where you want to be, so leave your approach in the middle of the green for a run at birdie.

Hole #11

Par 4 – 404 yards

As a relatively short hole, people who draw the ball need not worry as there’s more room left than appears from the tees. A 3-wood or long iron puts you within 125 yards for your uphill approach.The eleventh is a fader’s dream: the fairway cuts further to the right the farther you drive it.

The green is one of the most steeply slanted of all at Lake View – you’re encouraged to leave yourself below the hole, which shouldn’t be hard with the elevation change. Take an extra club and you’ll still leave yourself in a good spot. On this green, long is toast, and left is not much better.

Hole #12

Par 3 – 160 yards

The water hazard just in front of the tees does not really come into play, but serves to work at the mind of lesser players. The green is wide but well guarded, and expects a proper shot on the right line. Long, left, and right are all bad, with left leaving perhaps the most difficult chip off the downslope leading to the 13th tee.The twelfth is the easiest hole on the golf course, but don’t let that stat fool you. The par 3 plays deceptively long.

Take an extra club, put a gentle swing on it, have a run at a birdie.

Hole #13

Par 5 – 509 yards

Those who must fade the ball will find a lot of room to short and right, but the hole tightens up further out. Balls played here will leave the player no chance to get home in two on Lake View’s shortest par 5. The proper play is a draw down the left-center of the fairway, which will leave a good player a 3-wood, utility club, or a long iron to the green. Just be careful: snap one too far left and you’re OB.As the eleventh is the fader’s dream, the thirteenth is the drawer’s hole. The chute of trees blocking the left side of the fairway confirm that as you step on the tee!

Players attempting to lay up should do so to about 100 yards to avoid the two severe downslopes between 150 and 110 yards. From here, a partial wedge will get you home, but the shot had better be accurate: the 13th green is the most severely sloped green on the course, with a bowl front right and a shelf left and back. Keeping your ball in the proper section is critical, so control your spin and distance.

Once on, good luck two-putting. The distance of your first putt will often be the critical factor here.

Hole #14

Par 3 – 171 yards

Playing downhill about half a club, shot selection is critical. The green features two segments with a shelf separating the left and right halves of the green. You don’t want to be above the pin here.The two shortest par 3s are on the back, and fourteen is the 3rd easiest hole on the course. Just don’t go left, where your ball may tumble down into a ravine that’s 20 feet deep.

Hole #15

Par 4 – 396 yards

From the tee, the hole is not visible. You simply see a fairway that drops off about 250 yards from the back tees. Hit your driver here… if you don’t mind playing your next shot out of the rough and possibly from a 45° downslope. You may have to play the fifteenth a time or two before you learn how to play it.

The smart play is a cut up the center of the fairway. The ball will naturally roll off the slope a bit left, but that provides for a clearer shot to the green. Too far left, though, and some trees (and OB) will block your path.

The approach will be made with a short iron to a green that plays a club shorter downhill. The green is receptive to high shots, but will spurn pitches from beyond the green – as with most every other green, long is bad. The green putts fairly true, and birdies can be made here if you play your tee shot well.

Hole #16

Par 4 – 327 yards

And straight up a hill. Players wishing to go for the green can get there if they can fly the ball 300+ yards on flat ground. Just make sure you’re hitting it straight: left and right both present lots of trees and, to the left, out of bounds.The sixteenth is one of those holes that you can’t wait to play when you see it on the scorecard: only 327 from the tips!

Players electing to hit a long iron from the tee will be “rewarded” by a difficult-to-judge uphill wedge into a fairly flat green. The surface of the green will not be visible, so pay attention to the flag color and add at least one to two clubs in distance. The traps are positioned short to catch any misjudgements in distance, but left is not so great here – the ground slopes up to the seventeenth tee.

Hole #17

Par 5 – 540 yards

The fairway and the hole slope gently to the right, and as with most every par 5 at Lake View, this one’s a three-shotter for all but the longest and straightest of players. Your downhill drive should hug the trees and travel up the left-hand side of the fairway, which will leave you the most open shot for your second. Seventeen is the fourth toughest hole on the course, but if you talk to the members, you’ll find that the ranking is quite kind: it’s one heck of a hole!

If you choose to lay up, again play out to the left to leave yourself a slightly downhill pitch or wedge to a relatively small green. Going for it? Play a low cut that gets a chance to roll down the slight slope fronting the green.

The green, again, is relatively small and is guarded front left and front right by bunkers. Grass bunkers left and trees right and back make this green one that requires precision. Once on, players will find a true green that requires a little care in reading the break: putts at the front of the green break quite a bit.

Hole #18

Par 4 – 399 yards

The ideal drive cuts fairly close to the large tree 75 yards from the tees, which aim to the right just a little. A 3-wood is the safe play, but it’s the home hole: go with driver. Players who can hit a draw have the safer shot and will get more roll on the fairway, which slopes down from the tees. OB way left and small clusters of trees right should force your tee shot online.The finishing hole is one for the gamblers. At 399 yards from the tips, anyone can birdie to steal some bets, but cockiness can result in a mess. This hole also plays into the prevailing wind, so it may not play as easy as the yardage indicates.

The approach is to a medium-sized green fronted by two bunkers. You don’t want to be left or long, but bailing out right is not too bad depending on the pin position. This green is one of the trickiest on the course – take extra care in reading your putts.

When you’ve holed out, quickly scan the course. You’ve just played one of PA’s best. How’d you do?