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The stately old golf course at Sedgefield Country Club follows the contours of the land, every slope and curve accentuated.

It’s the way legendary designer Donald Ross intended.

The course can be helpless in the summer heat. The water needed to keep the bentgrass greens alive makes them vulnerable to the pros of the PGA Tour.

The scores can go low. Very low.

Arjun Atwal shot a 61 in the first round last year and led the Wyndham Championship wire to wire, holding it together on the final day.

Let’s take a walk around the course with the defending champion and see how he plays each storied hole.

NO. 1

Par 4, 418 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.918

Rank: 9

Atwal’s approach: “You definitely want to be in the fairway. It’s a birdie hole if you can hit your tee shot in the fairway. Then you have a 9-iron or a wedge into the green.”

NO. 2

Par 4, 442 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.912

Rank: 10

Atwal’s approach: “Again, you’ve got to hit the fairway. You can’t really come at that green out of the rough, and there’s a hazard to the right. It’s not as easy a hole as No. 1, but you don’t want to make a bogey there.”

NO. 3

Par 3, 174 yards

Average 2010 score: 2.824

Rank: 14

Atwal’s approach: “It’s a good par-3. Any time you can make Par on that hole, it’s a good score.”

NO. 4

Par 4, 428 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.933

Rank: 8

Atwal’s approach: “You’ve got to hit a little draw off the tee. You’ve got to be able to move the ball right to left in order to hit that fairway. If you can do that, from there it’s a pretty simple hole.”

NO. 5

Par 5, 529 yards

Average 2010 score: 4.402

Rank: 18

Atwal’s approach: “You can’t see the fairway. It’s a blind tee shot, but you need to hit the fairway. From there, it’s a pretty easy birdie hole. You’ll see guys make eagles if they can get the tee shot in the fairway. That’s a real scoring hole.”

NO. 6

Par 4, 423 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.972

Rank: 7

Atwal’s approach: “Six is a tough hole. It’s an elevated tee shot. You can’t hit driver off the tee because there’s a creek in the middle of the fairway. Everyone lays up, and so you’re going into the green anywhere from a 4-iron to a 7-iron. It’s a good hole to make Par on.”

NO. 7

Par 3, 223 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.022

Rank: 6

Atwal’s approach: “Simple par-3 strategy: You’ve got to be able to hit the green, just make your Par and get out — get on to the next two holes.”

NO. 8

Par 4, 374 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.729

Rank: 16

Atwal’s approach: “It’s a birdie hole. I’m hitting a 3-wood (off the tee). You can’t hit driver. Some guys do hit driver, but it’s really a 3-wood and a wedge. The key is you’ve got to be able to control your spin (on the approach) because the green is pitched from back to front quite a bit.”

NO. 9

Par 4, 416 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.869

Rank: 12

Atwal’s approach: “It’s a 3-wood off the tee. Get it in the fairway, then you’re hitting an 8-iron or 9-iron into the green. Again, you’ve got to position it to a point where the ball is below the hole. You don’t want to be above the hole because that’s a tough, tough putt.”

NO. 10

Par 4, 440 yards

Average 2010 score: 4.084

Rank: 4

Atwal’s approach: “I hit 3-wood off the tee. Guys who are longer than me will hit their drivers over the (fairway) bunker, but I hit 3-wood. Then it’s anywhere between a 6- or 7-iron into the green. Again, this green is pitched quite a bit back to front, so you’ve got to be able to keep it under the hole or you’re left with a tough putt.”

NO. 11

Par 4, 486 yards

Average 2010 score: 4.133

Rank: 3

Atwal’s approach: “It’s a long hole, so you haul off and hit your driver just as hard as you can. I remember hitting a 4-iron or 5-iron into that green. It’s a good, decent hole. You’re trying to make a Par there and get out.”

NO. 12

Par 3, 235 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.067

Rank: 5

Atwal’s approach: “You’re just trying to make a Par here. It’s a long par-3. They can set it up anywhere from 200 to 240 yards. So, for me, it can be anywhere from a 4-iron to a rescue (hybrid). You’re just trying to hit the middle of the green — hopefully on the right tier, because it’s a two-tiered green — make your two-putt and get out.”

NO. 13

Par 4, 405 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.871

Rank: 11

Atwal’s approach: “You’ve got to be able to move the ball right to left. It’s pretty similar to No. 4. You can hit a 3-wood or a driver, then hopefully a short iron into the green for a chance to make birdie.”

NO. 14

Par 4, 501 yards

Average 2010 score: 4.183

Rank: 1

Atwal’s approach: “This is a good hole. It grabs your attention. You need to definitely hit a good drive here, and you’ve got to be able to turn it just a little bit right to left. And then, depending on the wind, you can have a long iron, a mid-iron or a short iron. It’s a Par hole. If you make birdie, it’s a big bonus.”

NO. 15

Par 5, 545 yards

Average 2010 score: 4.445

Rank: 17

Atwal’s approach: “A very interesting par-5 with a lot of risk-reward potential. The second shot sometimes can be blind if you’re on the right side of the fairway. You’re trying to knock it on in two and make a two-putt birdie.”

NO. 16

Par 3, 165 yards

Average 2010 score: 2.830

Rank: 13

Atwal’s approach: “This is a really good hole for me. That’s where things turned for me, where I made a birdie putt (in the final round). A good designed green. You try to hit it under the hole and leave yourself a chance to make the putt.”

NO. 17

Par 4, 406 yards

Average 2010 score: 3.822

Rank: 15

Atwal’s approach: “It’s a 3-wood off the tee. Put it in the fairway and it leaves you maybe a 9-iron, maybe a wedge into the green. If you hit it close, you can maybe make birdie.”

NO. 18

Par 4, 507 yards

Average 2010 score: 4.168

Rank: 2

Atwal’s approach: “The toughest hole on the golf course. You can’t see a thing. You can’t see the fairway from the tee. It’s a par-5 for the members, but we play it as a par-4. The most important thing is to pick your target off the tee and stick to it. You can’t see where the ball is ending up. All you’re hoping for is to hit that fairway, get it on the green and make a two-putt for your par.”