Why this is the best hole at the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links

The leafy giants — two oaks — crowd either side of the narrowing fairway, the tee-shot sweet spot.

Beyond them sits the green, fronted by an amoeba-shaped lake of sand.

And beyond all that is a left-leaning pine, on the third or fourth branch of which sits a nest tended by two huge birds or pterodactyls or whatever that might squawk when all the fans are quiet because a PGA Tour pro is about to putt.

“Great blue herons,” longtime RBC Heritage Presented by Boeing volunteer Hank Shaw told me during the 2017 tournament, referring to the birds. They’ve been in that tree for eight of the past 10 years, he said. And when they’re feeding their hatchlings, they really make a racket.

Which is just one reason I love Harbour Town Golf Links’ 13th hole, a 373-yard Par-4.

I know, I know: Technically, that pine towers above the tee box at No. 14 ...

... which is another reason I love No. 13 — because of its closeness to that other hole, a short Par-3 worried by water.

If you appreciate nature, you might grin at the herons’ attempts to distract golfers on the green and the tee. If you’re a golf fan, you’ve got prime real estate for two holes, and you’re close to so much more.

Without further ado, here are 13 reasons I love No. 13:

1. All the shushing

If you like seeing adults being told to quiet down, this hole is for you. There’s a lot of crowd noise since people tend to converge at this hole because ...

2. The Lions Club beer tent

Need a cold one and want to support charity? Look no farther than the pop-up tent staffed by the Sun City, Hilton Head and Hardeeville Lions Clubs. David Cullen of the Sun City Hilton Head group said the tent is their annual fundraiser for Camp Leo — a camp for visually impaired kids — and that the clubs raise “tens of thousands of dollars” for the event. A bonus: The beer tent is complemented by a concessions stand, which is close to ...

3. Real bathrooms

Yes, real, brick-and-mortar, no-chemical-toilet-funk-smell bathrooms, though there’s also a handful of porta-potties, just in case. And the facilities are handy here because ...

4. It’s a trolley stop

That’s nice whether you’re coming or going on the free ride, or whether you’re arriving or leaving on your ...

5. Bikes

Which you can park near the hole. In fact, there were about 140 of them secured to roughly 20 bike racks just after noon, when people were enjoying ...

6. The shade

Which is plentiful because of all the trees along the hole and closer to the green, which is guarded by that ...

7. Huge sand bunker

That most pros don’t hit into, but when they do — and especially when the ball is close to the high, bulkhead-lined sides — it makes for an interesting shot, which you can get more information about on the ...

8. Giant electronic scoreboard

That you can clearly see from the ...

9. High-rise stands

That sit to the left of the green, around which the ...

10. The primo spots go to the early birds

And Hilton Head resident Jo Pender is one of them — some of whom stake out their spots in the pre-dawn hours — who likes the hole for many of the reasons I’ve mentioned and because of its ...

11. Intimacy

What with the the roped-off seating area that’s practically on the putting surface, behind which is ...

12. A great view

Of the entire hole — you can watch the pros drive from the No. 13 tee and head your way, where you might be marveling at those ...

13. Blue herons

In the nearby tree, squawking away, sometimes at the most inopportune times.

And, if you’re like me, you’ll smile, appreciating nature, and how Mother Nature quiets down for no man.

This story was originally published April 15, 2017 at 12:09 PM with the headline "Why this is the best hole at the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links."