Take aim at the right side of the fairway with a long iron or fairway wood to hit the narrow fairway that is guarded by a long fairway bunker and water on the left and out of bounds to the right. A quick green that is guarded by three bunkers and an inlet of water lurking makes for a precisely demanding approach shot. Par is a great score on the #1 handicap first hole.

Several tee options ranging the hole from 175 to 223 yards can make this par 3 easier or tougher, considering a mid to long iron is the club of choice. A huge bunker guards the front right portion of the green and heavy rough behind the hole forces players to favor the proper safe shot short and left of the green. The green tends to be a little quicker than expected, especially when heading along the grain.

The par three 3rd hole is a short but tricky hole because the right side of the treacherous green is guarded by a big oak tree with outstretching limbs. Too far left or beyond the hole are very tough up and downs because of the slope of probably the fastest green on the course. The par four 12th hole is short but very narrow. The smart play is a mid to long iron to right-center of the fairway and allow the slope to run the ball out to the proper position left-center for an uphill pitch. Going for the green isn’t wise unless it is a controlled fairway wood or driver that moves high and left to right. Still, out of bounds to the right and the green-side bunker on the left come into play with the risky shot.

Don’t let this short par five fool you. There is a premium on the direction of the drive – take aim at the target rock that is right of the fairway with a bulls-eye on it. The slope of the fairway is a constant all throughout the hole and a sharp drop near the end of the hole. With out of bounds left and right, the smart play is a fairway wood to the right off the tee and an approach shot that is targeted for about 20 yards short and right of the green. There is a tremendous right to left slope to the green and sloping from front to back as well, so play it short and right and let the ball roll down to the hole.

The par four 5th hole has probably the narrowest fairway that you’ll ever play. The slope of the fairway runs right to left which helps because the shape of the fairway is similar. A big fairway bunker guards the right side of the fairway, so the ideal shot is to hit toward it and allow the ball to roll off to the left. A mid-iron is the club of choice to play it safe for a wedge into the big, sloping green. The par three 14th is a scenic straight forward hole that requires an accurate tee shot to be below the hole for a good birdie chance.

A combination of length and proximity of trees surrounding the green make this par three the toughest at Buckingham. The length of a long iron or fairway wood is needed for the hole that has a dome-shaped green that is very, very quick when putting down grain. More trees on the left side of the hole that is adjacent to the previous hole’s fairway tend to force players to end up to the right, where a green-side bunker is waiting. A par is an excellent score on this hole.

This shorter par five is a perfect hole to make up some strokes with a birdie or an eagle. The drive must be kept to the left of the big rock in the middle of the fairway to have a chance to stay in the fairway. The approach shot must fly partially over a pond and a bunker that guards the left side to reach the green. A bunker behind the hole and a big tree to the left make it tough to get up and down, besides it will be directly down grain from there if the hole is cut in the front. The best place to come in from is the right in order to come up hill and be aggressive on the putt.

The par four 8th is a dogleg left with Little Borax Lake running all along the left side. A fairway wood off the tee is a wise choice to keep it centered in the fairway, because trees can block your view if you’re too far right and set up a short iron to mid iron to the green. The green is well-bunkered up front, so play for the middle of the green. The par five 17th hole is setup to be played with a lay up shot about 100-120 yards shy from a separate island-like green that is approachable by foot from the right. It is very risky to attempt to reach the green in two shots, because the second shot would be with at least a mid iron, which is tougher to spin and hold on the newer green with the hole played mostly downwind.

The par five 9th hole is a long dogleg left with Little Borax Lake and Jake’s Lake covering most of the left side. Out of bounds comes into play on the right all the way down the hole. Keep the ball in play with a fairway wood to play it as a conventional par five or cut the corner a little and miss the strategically placed fairway bunkers on the left side of the fairway to attempt to reach the green in two. There is a pond on the right that comes into play the final 100 yards in as well as two big bunkers guarding the front of the elevated green. The long par four 18th hole is a tough finishing hole because of the length as well as how narrow it plays. This hole plays downwind most of the time, so the accurate placement of the approach shot to the front of the green is important.