Water · par 5 · once a round
The Crossing — Island-Hopping Par 5 in Daily Holes
A par 5 played over open water from island to island. Each landing must find dry ground; a miss sends you back to the island you hit from.
What it is
Every round contains exactly one crossing: a par 5 of roughly 445 to 510 yards with no fairway at all. There are five patches of dry ground — the tee island, three stepping stones spaced about a quarter of the hole apart, and the green island. Everything else is water.
What it costs
Any shot that finishes off an island costs one penalty stroke, and the ball returns to the island you played from. Unlike the island green there is no forward drop zone, so a miss loses both the stroke and the distance. Each island plays as fairway: there are no bunkers or rough on this hole.
Planning the hops
The aiming guide points at the next island ahead of the ball, and that is usually the right target. Each hop is a medium-length shot, so you rarely need the driver. Skipping an island is possible with a long, well-timed strike, but the islands are only around 75 yards across and the gaps between them are open water.
How to play it
Pick a club that carries to the middle of the next island, not its far edge, because the ball still rolls after landing. Check the wind and the gust marker if this is an odd-numbered hole. A steady five or six strokes is a good result: the hole has a stroke limit of ten, and chasing a heroic carry is how cards fall apart.