Hole with a View.

The thing that Michael Ruettgers really likes about the 12th hole at the Old Head Golf Links in Kinsale, Ireland, is the view. "It's like being on the 18th hole at Pebble Beach, only higher," says the 57-year-old chief executive officer of EMC Corp. "Imagine being not just 20 feet but 250 feet above the Atlantic Ocean, with water all around and these incredible sea cliffs. It's all so dramatic and that's what makes that hole my favorite."

Located on the South coast of Ireland, Old Head sits on a 220-acre, windswept promontory that sometimes gets so shrouded in fog that it has to close, lest any of the players or caddies walk right off the rocks. (It also happens to be the last point of land the people on the Titanic saw and is not far from where the Lusitania was sunk in 1915.) The par-72 course measures 7,121 yards from the back tees and boasts five parthrees, five par-fives and eight par-fours, each of which have six to eight tees that provide a number of setup possibilities depending upon wind and weather. Tiger Woods went to play there before competing in last year's British Open and said it was one of his favorite tracks.

It's certainly one of Ruettger's, and he has special affection for No. 12, which is called Coursean Stage, so named because the rocks that form the cliff on which the hole lies came from that evolutionary period. "It is a slight dogleg to the left, uphill a bit, to a landing area," says Ruettgers, who has a 16.5 handicap index. "The farther back you play the hole, the tougher the drive, because you have to hit over part of the cliffs. It gets straighter as you move forward."

The second shot is slightly downhill and relatively straightforward. "Usually I hit a three-wood, if I am feeling brave," says Ruettgers, who has played Old Head eight times. "And that leaves me with a wedge to the old punch bowl green. If, however, I'm not feeling up to it because the fairway does narrow quite a bit, I'll take out my five-iron for my second shot. Then I'll need a little more club than a wedge for my third shot."

Ruettgers says "old green" because Old Head has recently built a new one for No. 12, 50 yards back and elevated. "It makes the hole a little longer and tougher for most players," says Jim O'Brien, club general manager. "It's a genuine three-shot hole now, unless, of course, you're Tiger Woods."

Ruettgers hasn't seen the new green yet and is looking forward to trying it out. But for him, it really doesn't matter where the green is located or whether it is new or not. "No. 12 is all about the view," he says. "And the view is spectacular."

John Steinbreder is a senior writer for Golf Week magazine and is the author of five books, including Golf Courses of the U.S. Open.

MICHAEL C. RUETTGERS, CEO, EMC CORP.

Old Head Golf Links

Location: Kinsale, County Cork, Ireland

Hole: 12th, called Coursean Stage, par-five, 526 yards

Hole Description: A slight dogleg left, the hole rises high above the Atlantic Ocean on the left, and any shot veering off in that direction is gone. The tee shot is uphill to a fairway plateau, and players must hit an accurate wood or long iron down a narrow fairway guarded by gnarly rough on the right and the Atlantic Ocean on the left to position themselves properly for a third shot to a new, elevated green.

Course Architects: Joe Carr, arguably Ireland's most successful amateur golfer of all time and a three-time British Amateur winner; Ron Kirby, an American who has worked with Robert Trent Jones, Jack Nicklous, and Gary Player; Paddy Merrigan, an Australian-trained course architect and agronomist; and the late Eddie Hackett, a former professional golfer who designed a number of top Irish courses. But ask General Manager Joe O'Brien who designed the spectecular seaside course, and he simply says, "God."

Club Description: At the moment, Old Head, which opened in June 1997, is a "pay-and-play" course, meaning it is open to the public. There is some though, however, to making it a private club confined to international memberships down the road. A pure golf club, it has a clubbause with full dining facilities as well as 28 suites for overnight guests.