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Golf Digest Top 100 Courses... again
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16-12-2014 11:26pm#1
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I find the big movers to be interesting. Should we assume that there has been significant course improvement in Dooks & Old Head in the last 4years to warrant an increase of 9 and 10 places respectively? What has happened to Dundalk to see it in free fall (I know they had problems with the Greens last year but this year they are back to their normal quality). Portstewart has gone back 3 places in the last 2 years and yet during this time they made significant improvements to the course under the supervision of no less than the R&A (in prep for the British Amateur).
Ted, I'm confused
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TrapperChamonix wrote: »I find the big movers to be interesting. Should we assume that there has been significant course improvement in Dooks & Old Head in the last 4years to warrant an increase of 9 and 10 places respectively? What has happened to Dundalk to see it in free fall (I know they had problems with the Greens last year but this year they are back to their normal quality). Portstewart has gone back 3 places in the last 2 years and yet during this time they made significant improvements to the course under the supervision of no less than the R&A (in prep for the British Amateur).
Ted, I'm confused
Old Head has added a new hole, putting the par three 13th on the cliffs. It opened this year. Otherwise the same dramatic course. Dooks had its 125th anniversary - a friend is a member who tells me the course is in as good a shape as it has ever been... the only changes have been to the line of trees between 16 and 17, which have been removed.
Dundalk is a strong parkland, but I've never really understood why it's Top 100 material. As for Portstewart... well, I guess all you can do is look at who has overtaken it. Funnily enough, I expected to see Carne slip a bit because of their greens this year.0 -
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TrapperChamonix wrote: »I find the big movers to be interesting. Should we assume that there has been significant course improvement in Dooks & Old Head in the last 4years to warrant an increase of 9 and 10 places respectively? What has happened to Dundalk to see it in free fall (I know they had problems with the Greens last year but this year they are back to their normal quality). Portstewart has gone back 3 places in the last 2 years and yet during this time they made significant improvements to the course under the supervision of no less than the R&A (in prep for the British Amateur).
Ted, I'm confused
Subscribe to Golf Digest Ireland and you will see why, Dooks (whose manager is on the voting panel) advertise a lot, as do Old head... these rankings annoy me for that reason, they are all about advertising spend, not at all about the golf course.0 -
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I am glad the Cashen is rising. It really does deserve to be closer to the Old. It gets under rated because of proximity to the Old! (I feel)
I agree it deserves its rise up the ranking. It will never get that close to the Old as its not traditional links golf. On the Cashen you have to fire directly at greens as the bump-and-run option is often taken out of the equation by the heavy dips below greens.
A case in point - approach to the par five 15th:
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Kevinmarkham wrote: »I agree it deserves its rise up the ranking. It will never get that close to the Old as its not traditional links golf. On the Cashen you have to fire directly at greens as the bump-and-run option is often taken out of the equation by the heavy dips below greens.
A case in point - approach to 15
Great hole but a lot really are as you know. Thanks for the taste of home
(Cant paste links as im new)0 -
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Getting back to the Top100, played 32 of them and have plans for getting to another 10 or so next year, would be great to get to play them all...
I've played 33 and have 6 planned for next year. The real goal is for me and my son to play as many as possible of the top 20 (while we can still get him on juvenile rates
) Currently I'm at 8 with 3 more planned for next year. He's at 3 with another 5 planned.
I'm sure lots of people would see this as rather sad, but in a couple more years I'll be lucky if he acknowledges me in public never mind actually wanting to play with me.
European, Rosses Point, Enniscrone, Donegal, Portrush and maybe Lahinch on the wish list for next year.0 -
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Trapper – lol , seriously doubt it.
Have played 41 of top 100.
Was a crazy year – had a few tough years, so 2014 we just spoilt ourselves, doing stuff we wanted to do for a change. 2015 will be different, but still intend to finish the top 50. I know the actual number is not important, but want to play all the best courses in Ireland. I will too – may take 10 years – 20 years and realistically and hopefully will be with kids too, if they like golf.
Started off with a cracking course Portumna – massive journey to get to there, on the road I was thinking how mental it was, what Kevin did, some of these courses are in places you wouldn’t go to for any other reason. It really is a stunning little country and you never see most of it. The drive from Enniscrone to Carne is up with anything I have ever seen. Even when late and after about 15 pints. When you travel around Ireland you stick to main motorway routes, no option of motorway for so many courses.
Then from meeting people and playing on Boards’ Golf Society had a whirlwind of golf, just went with it, a no regrets sort of thing. Was very lucky to get invited out, play opens and even get a few freebies from lads on here – class stuff, actually The Forum at its best. Sometimes in life/work, you are always thinking about golf, or on a long drive or train journey looking for as long as possible at a passing course. For years I was thinking, am I the only one like this, but over the last year I've discovered I'm not. It is a peculiar small group of golfers, but you can smell them out after a few rounds.
As a young lad was always interested in who gets to play these great courses (“Lucky Bastards”) , would often hear of lads getting invited out on them, funny how things turn out in the end, if you just go for it. Take a chance. Thanks lads – ye know who ye are.
I know it is only golf, it is only a hobby, but some of my best days have been on a golf course, of course the best best days of your life are off a course, but the worst days of your life are never on a course. (lol - too many courses even when trying to talk about real life)
The Atlantic Coast Challenge and getting to play Strandhill again, was a great few days, had never gone away to play golf for a few days, was like a Stag of Links Golf. Highly recommend , but hard-core away from family work and real life too long.
There were a couple of courses that really surprised me, as I had heard so little about them - Royal Curragh / Douglas / Portumna / Carlow / Bearna / Enniscorthy /Galway Bay, not courses you hear lads talk about too much. Not just saying it, but found Kevin’s book excellent – if it was near or over 80 points in Hooked , I’d give it the green light.
But, I have an unusual taste in courses – I like courses that are naturally on the land and if woodland - natural woodland, The likes of The Heath and Royal Curragh would be a nice middle ground from Links to link me into Parkland courses – was also impressed with the way Carlow is shaped and has allowed longer grass to define course and used hills and contours naturally.
So if it is going to be a course like Roscrea or Thurles or courses in the general Irish parkland group – they have to be more like Tullamore or Carlow to impress me. But I love golf and you don’t need to be on a great course to have a fantastic day out, I wouldn't be fanatical about it, you hear lads saying “Kip” “Wouldn't play it”, madness. It is golf lads. You should rarely get stressed out about golf, never mind a course.
I played courses too that wouldn’t have a chance of making the top 100 – Corballis, Grange Castle, Deer Park, Portlaoise, Waterrock . All these courses always had good crowds and all have great holes and some are great/good courses. In fact there isn't a course in the country, I wouldn’t go back to, if the place, company and time was right. I was playing some of these courses as my friends are getting into golf and these courses are important as an introduction to golf for so many.
So, sorry for a little aside on/off topic. But that was my crazy year of 2014. Perhaps a mid-life post traumatic golf crisis – but hey, could have been much worse. 2015 will be back to normal, more club golf and pick a few more off the list. Becoming a full member and trying to get into weekend stuff more, maybe Interclub.
One thing that is for sure - going to all these old course, pictures on walls, old carpets and finish. You get a sense the golden era of golf is past. You see how important the golf club was, it was a social centre of some of the communities. I was concerned with how in decline golf was. How we may have lost a generation, how are all these clubs and way of life going to continue ?
So, thanks a million to all the lads who helped me out – “Some Speech” (:p)
As Shane Mcgowan says –“ Won’t see another one” (like it).
Fix (“Lucky Bastard”). 0 -
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