“The Green Mile? [You are a] dead man walking,” said Fox Sports expert Wayne Riley on Kayo Sport’s PGA Championship Preview show. Rumored to be named after Stephen King’s famous novel, this tough stretch can make players feel like their fate is sealed as strokes slip away on the unforgiving par-4/par-3/par-4 trilogy, which can measure a combined 1,270 yards, with water hazards lurking near each green.
So, what makes the “Green Mile” so iconic and treacherous? Well, all three of the final holes–often dubbed as the toughest finishing stretches in golf–equally contribute to its dangerous appeal. The carnage begins with the par-4 16th hole that stretches to 529 yards. A new back tee that adds 20 yards will make this already difficult long par 4 even more challenging. The hole drops 50 feet from the tee to the green, which sits on a peninsula, with water behind and to the left, creating a significant risk for players. Luckily, the green measures 7,840 square feet, the largest on the course, allowing approach shots to roll without going off the edge.
This longer par 4 is only slightly shorter than one of the par 5 holes on the course. The 16th hole has just two bunkers, but they sit in challenging locations that can surprise players. Even if golfers avoid the fairway bunker on the right side of the dogleg, they still face a tough downhill shot to a green with water on the long and left sides, along with a bunker on the right—making it easy to get into trouble!
Perhaps nothing explains the anxiety of playing at “Green Mile,” especially the 16th hole, as much as 1991 Australian Open winner Riley who called it a “beastly” examination. However, the course that saw Rory McIlroy win a record 4 times for the Truist Championship has only started getting difficult. To gain a better understanding of what makes “Green Mile” so scary to the golfers now heading at the course for the PGA Championship, here’s a closer look at the last two holes of this stretch.
How do the final two holes in “Green Mile” make the task more challenging?
Here’s what the 17th hole at Quail Hollow is doing so well: This long par-3 truly tests the golfers skills and strategy. They need to make a precise full carry over water to reach the green, and with water dominating the view to the left and behind, they face a challenge that demands careful navigation. While bailing out to the right might seem like a safer choice, it brings its own headaches—a tight lie and a tricky chip shot back up the hill to a green that slopes down toward the water, making double bogeys a real possibility. But the trouble continues.
To complicate matters further, the tee sits 17 feet above the green, so even a light breeze can throw off their shot. Even the best golfers sometimes opt for a defensive play, aiming to the right of the putting surface, but that often leads to a tough recovery from a downslope, with water still lurking nearby as a constant threat.
The first two holes of the “Green Mile” are tough, however, not as tough as the 18th hole. It stood out as the hardest hole on the PGA Tour in 2024. It allowed only 13 birdies and has an average score of 4.5, which is quite tough.
Players must hit their driver to a very narrow landing area, and then they need to approach a green with a big false front, while the creek looms close on the left. This hole offers a challenging finish, starting from a tee that sits 14 feet higher than the landing area and then rising back up to the green at the same height. Lastly, the creek runs along the entire hole, just a few yards off the fairway and only a few feet from the green, so players must be very accurate. With the course looking so tough, will Xander Schauffele be able to defend his title? Well, it will be entertaining!
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