How Many Par-5 Holes Are on a Golf Course?

How many par-5 holes does a typical golf course have? Four is the most-common number of par-5 holes golfers encounter on a standard-length golf course. But three such holes, and two par-5s, are also common numbers.

Par-5 holes are the longest holes on most golf courses (par-6 holes do exist, but are rare). On a par-5 hole, most golfers will need three strokes to reach the putting green. A full-sized, standard-length, 18-hole golf course is made up mostly of par-4 holes, along with several each of par-3s and par-5s.

The most common configuration for a standard par-72 course is four par-3s, 10 par-4s and four par-5s. But those numbers can and do change depending on what the golf course designer wants. And, of course, not all golf courses are par-72s.

A few examples of the number of par-5 holes on some very famous golf courses:

• The par-72 Augusta National Golf Club has four par-5 holes.
• The par-71 Royal County Down Golf Club has three par-5 holes.
• The par-70 Merion Golf Club has two par-5 holes.

Par-73 golf courses are rare, but where they do exist they typically have one more par-5 hole than par-3 holes (for example, five par-5s but only four par-3s). Some famous courses that used to be par-73 converted to par-72 by taking one of their par-5 holes and either physically shortening it to make it a par-4, or by simply re-labeling it a par-4.

When golf courses have an even number of par-5 holes — four or two or, far less commonly, six — it is most likely they will be split between the front nine and back nine. A golf course with four par-5 holes will, for example, most likely have two par-5s on the front nine and two on the back nine.

But, back to the original question: How many par-5 holes are on a golf course? It's up to the golf course designer originally, and to the folks in charge of setting up the golf course for daily play. But four par-5 holes is the most common number, with three and two also very common.

Further reading:

• How many par-3 holes are on a golf course?
• Do golf courses paint the grass?
• Explaining 'hole locations' on putting greens