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MERIDIAN VALLEY
Country Club
PAR 4 426 YARDS
Kent, WA
253.631.3131
www.meridianvalleycc.com
Meridian Valley Country Club, for years one of the most popular stops on the LPGA
Tour, remains an oasis in the East Hill area of Kent. But among the beauty is a beast:
the 426-yard fifth hole, a par 4 that ranks as the toughest hole on the course for all
the right reasons. It was first sketched by the esteemed architect Ted Robinson, who
deemed the long, narrow par 4 difficult enough with a deep swale fronting a green cut
into a hillside. A flood in the late 1990s washed out a culvert underneath the fairway,
turning a swale into a stream. The members liked the look enough to fortify the creek
banks of the newly minted hazard.
Without a nearly perfect tee shot, there is no chance to go for the green on the
second shot. A huge tree blocks the left side of the fairway, and a bunker guards the
right. The perfect tee shot is right to left away from the bunker, leaving 160 yards to a
green that slopes precipitously to the creek. Most players opt to lay up, but still must
be careful because anything within 75 yards of the creek leaves a downhill lie. The
third shot—best played from 100 yards—won't be the easiest either, as anything long
leaves a downhill putt as scary as it is subtle. Anything short is wet.
The winners during the 18-year run of the Safeco Classic were classic ball strikers,
such as JoAnne Carner, Juli Inkster, Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, and Kathy
Whitworth. With a new $6 million clubhouse, Meridian Valley is better than ever and
the fifth hole tougher than ever, all of which could help lure the LPGA Tour—which left
only because sponsorship for its tournament did—back to the state of Washington.
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Photograph by Mike Rucker
