The bright light and kryptonite of the short par-4 is temptation, the desire, with one fell swing, to both card a birdie and indulge in golf's finest, most conquering ego-moment-the driving of the green. Author Geoff Shackelford addresses the issue of temptation in his book "Grounds For Golf," writing, "The element of temptation is the driving force behind all of the most interesting features in golf architecture. The shots we enjoy hitting most are those that elicit internal deliberation, causing us to debate whether to try a risky shot versus the safer play. They make us wonder if the time is right to take a chance and to consider whether we will regret having taken the easy way out."

Nowhere is the "internal deliberation" more demonstrated than at the drivable or near drivable par-4 where the chance for heroism, as well as the addictive perfume of achievement, is so imminently possible compared to similar chances at longer holes or shorter pars.

One of the finest models of this type of hole in the South exists two hours west of Augusta National on Interstate 20 at Cuscowilla Golf Club, a Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw design on the shores of Lake Oconee. The fifth hole plays 305-yards uphill, with a jagged cavernous bunker dominating the centerline of the fairway. The drive offers three options: a safe play out to the wide fairway right; a longer drive to an upper but narrower fairway left of the bunker; or a colossal shot over the top of the bunker at the green.

The beauty of the hole is that the most devastating result is reserved for the most second-nature of all plays, straightaway drive that ends up bunkered. Other degrees of error are subtler. The nature of the small, crowned green (shaped like a small inverted light-bulb angled several degrees left) makes approaches from the lower right fairway ticklish, particularly to a rear pin. The upper left fairway is normally a superior position but reaching it takes courage and strength.

Across the lake from Cuscowilla-almost within sight-is the 11th hole at Jack Nicklaus' Great Waters Course at Reynolds Plantation, a par-4 of less than 350 yards from the back markers and a good bit downhill. Decisions here are effected by the pin placement; if it's cut to the extreme left of the 60-yard wide green, out toward the water, it's an iron and a pitch. Cut center or, especially, right, it's worthy of a go. Yet in certain situations-a tail wind or a big bet-taking a blast at a left pin could certainly enter the long player's mind, however suicidal it may seem.

Of the several remarkable drivable par-4s in Florida, arguably none is as feast-worthy as the 15th at World Woods' Pine Barrens Course outside Brooksville. What makes this 330-yard theater of water, scrub, and sand so intriguing is not only it's late placement in the round but also that the conservative route, a long iron or fairway metal to the gurgling left fairway, yields an approach-a semi-blind pitch from an awkward distance to a shallow green-that's nearly as touchy as the boldest drive. The direct route over the hazard to the tongue of safety short of the green varies from 220- to 250-yards but even if the green isn't quite made the pitch is straightforward. This is the essence of the risk/reward hole.

If a course possessing a daring short par-4 has been played the sense of anticipation for that hole often starts to build almost as soon as the first tee ball is struck; the eagerness for glory, however, that tempting chance to get it all back with one swing, can often be a fatal malfunction of judgment. Certain short fours are designed expressly for that.

At Cherokee Run Golf Club, a Palmer Course Design layout in Conyers, Georgia, the eighth hole measures a mere 287 to 301 yards, and this from a significantly elevated tee. Worry in the form of a stream cutting tight against the front of the green causes most players to exercise common sense and back off the driver, but for others the sight of the beckoning green seemingly so close down below lures players into trying on their big swings at a hole where there's absolutely no room to miss.

Perhaps no architect in the South has consistently demonstrated the knack for designing interesting short par-4s as much as Bobby Weed has. For nearly every course he's designed, redesigned, or restored he's included or improved upon at least one drivable par-4, and sometimes more.

"We love to design a short par four," Weed said in a 2001 interview with the author. "We still like the.short par four that has a lot of options and where there's a lot of additional risk and reward involved in the decision-making. It's also very exciting to play from a set of tees where there is an opportunity to drive a par four."

Some of Weed's better original work in this mode includes the 316-yard 12th at The Golf Club at Fleming Island, a hole that may recall the 11th at Sunningdale Old to some, and the 14th at The Slammer & The Squire at World Golf Village. He's also re-energized some short fours of other architects' design, including Donald Ross' downhill 17th at The University of Florida Golf Course in Gainesville and several of Pete Dye's original holes at Amelia Island Plantation (specifically the 296-yard opening hole on the Ocean Links course and the 307-yard 10th at Oak Marsh).

Architects such as Weed and the former team of Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish have found a place for the short par-4, but of late it seems architects of all influence have rediscovered their charm and powerful, tantalizing possibilities. We can only hope that the unique and dare we say deviant psychological proclivities that Mr. Hunter described continue to be titillated by this thrilling style of hole.

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