Ireland Golf Trip

The 2012 Ireland Golf Trip was my first visit to Ireland, my first taste of Irish golf, and my first time experiencing the “package” golf trip. I was eager to compare the great Scottish courses to their Irish contemporaries. Our trip lasted one week and included six rounds of golf.

Those on the trip included my ever-present golf buddy Matt, his dad, and a group of his father’s friends (all of whom were from New Zealand). During the week, I experienced the New Zealander’s calming laid-back attitudes, along with their extreme generosity. A special thanks to Matt's dad Nick, who made the trip possible. 

Ardglass Golf Club

The trip began with a round in Northern Ireland at Ardglass Golf Club. Ardglass has a beautiful clubhouse that is part of an ancient castle. The first five holes on the course are stunning. The par-3 second was especially impressive with cliffs on the left and a forced carry of nearly 160 yards to reach the green. There was a noticeable lull in the quality of holes between the sixth and eleventh. This sag in remarkable holes left a slightly negative taste, but from the twelfth onward, the design regains form and finishes strong. The eighteenth provides a final chance for birdie with a beautiful elevated tee and a drivable green. If you are in the N. Ireland playing Royal County Down, I would strongly recommend making the effort to go play Ardglass.

Ardglass's practice putting green and clubhouse

Par 3 second with a large forced carry

Par 3 tenth hole with an elevated tee

Royal Portrush

Royal Portrush’s rating of fourteenth in the world speaks very strongly about the course. Our trip came to Portrush two weeks after the Irish Open. This meant that the greens were in excellent condition, but it also meant that much of the rough had been cut or trampled down by the galleries. This was great for me since my driver was slightly wild throughout the round! Very few weak holes could be found and my only complaint was the lackluster 18th hole. 

Well bunkered first hole with an elevated green

Fourth hole with OB tight right and bunkers down the left

Par 3 tenth hole with a mean pin placement... wind was strong off the right

Par 5 seventeenth with MASSIVE bunker short right off tee

Ballyliffin Old

When a course rater reviews a course, one of the criteria is “variety of the par fours.” This was one area where Ballyliffin’s Old Course was lacking. There was little variety between the par fours, and extremely high rough combined with strong winds made the day a grind. Upon finishing the round, none of us could recall a single hole we particularly liked (or even disliked!). The only hole that came to my mind was the par 3 sixth hole, which with its elevated green reminded me of the thirteenth hole at Muirfield. Nick Faldo had come in and redesigned (added a few bunkers) to a number of holes on the course along with completely redesigning one of the par 5s. None of the Faldo redesign holes were particularly interesting. We didn’t play the Ballyliffin Glashedy Links, but I hope it has a better selection of par 4’s. After looking through the photos from the day, none were especially interesting, which does speak to the quality of the course.  

Par 3 sixth with elevated green

Donegal

I would have greatly benefited from having played Donegal Golf Links prior to our round. Despite having a forecaddie for the group, multiple blind approach shots and blind tee shots led to bad results due to sheer ignorance about the layout. The par 3 fourth hole was extremely good. Bunkers left and high rough low right made the long par 3 challenging, but score-able. Donegal was an enjoyable course, but I wouldn't go out of my way to play it again. 

Beautiful par 3 fourth! Best hole on the course in my opinion

Par 5 eighth hole... After the drive it is an awkward approach to the green. Must have seen it before to score well!

Co. Sligo

County Sligo offered the best views of any course played on the trip. Beautiful mountains framed one side of the course with water and beaches lining the other side. A high, elevated third tee provides the best chance to take the great view in. The course was not excessively long, but required thought and well positioned shots. I would strongly suggest a round at Co. Sligo to any visiting golfers.

View from the elevated third tee box towards the water! (Mountains in the picture below were behind us)

Par 3 ninth hole with gorgeous mountains in the background

Seventeenth fairway hidden within the hillside

Enniscrone

Enniscrone was our last course and turned out to be the favorite of multiple people on the trip. Most of the holes are set within deep dunes, giving a secluded feeling on each hole. Six new holes were built ten years ago. Those six holes were extremely strong and took the course to the next level. Further, the six new holes were not uncharacteristic from the course and fit in well overall. My only complaint for the course was too many blind tee shots. Even with a caddie, I was confused on many tee boxes, and having seen the course before would have paid dividends. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera. Some of the holes were gorgeous, and you'll have to take my word that a visit is necessary! 

There are benefits to the “plan it yourself” golf trip, including freedom and flexibility. Having experienced both at this point, it is also very nice to be driven everywhere, have problems solved, and everything planned. If it is your first trip to the UK for golf, I would give serious to using a golf travel company (something I wouldn’t have said pre-Ireland...). I would recommend visiting Ardglass, Royal Portrush, Co. Sligo, and Enniscrone. We all had an excellent time, and I am already planning my next trip back to Ireland, particularly the southwest corner!

Royal Dornoch

Our trip to Royal Dornoch exemplified perfectly the difficulty of golf trips without a car. It was another trip with my good friend Matt, and it lived up to all expectations. We took multiple trains, which eventually dropped us in the very remote town of Tain, Scotland. From Tain, we took a bus to the town of Dornoch. We then found that Dornoch has no taxi companies, so we hopped a ride on a school bus to our B&B. Our journey had taken us deep into the Scottish highlands to play what is one of the best ancient links courses in Scotland. I had a personal goal of playing Dornoch, because it was the home course to Donald Ross, the course design master who brought the world Pinehurst #2, and my home club, Biltmore Forest Country Club, in addition to many other greats.

We played a twilight round the evening of our arrival. This allowed us to get a good look at the course before our early morning tee time, but also to slow down, and let everything sink in while the course was empty. The decision to play the twilight round was excellent. We made our scores irrelevant, and brought the design and course layout to the forefront. Between our two rounds played, we were able to grasp the course, and realize that it was one of the best ancient links in Scotland. As my dad would say, "We sat back and enjoyed the breeze!"

 The course begins to come alive on the par-3 second. It is a 175-yard hole with a raised green and severely sloping sides, both spilling into small collection areas. With green complexes like this one, it is easy to see where Donald Ross found his inspiration for Pinehurst #2. His signature small greens, with beautiful bunker complexes, definitely have their roots at Dornoch.

 The course dramatically opens up from the third tee onwards. The beautiful sunset during out twilight round was a perfect way to end the day. (This photo taken while walking to the 18th.)

The bunkering on the 5th hole is classic. With a set of bunkers guarding a right side bailout and three massive bunkers endangering huge hitters and short approaches, there is plenty to think about on the tee. Lots of room on the left side of this fairway makes it obvious that if played correctly, a good score can be had. Getting greedy or leaking the ball right would lead to big numbers.

 The 161 yard par-3 6th has a massive slope on the right side, and bunkers and gorse guarding the left. A confident tee shot is a must. This is one of the holes at Dornoch that is truly fun. We spent time chipping around and hitting multiple approaches into this small challenging green.

 This famous view at Royal Dornoch is from the 7th tee box looking back at the majority of the course. It was absolutely stunning.

The par-3s at Dornoch really stood out. This picture of the 10th green shows the clever green complex, with bunkers guarding nearly every miss, even over the green. The par 3s varied in length, with the longest reaching 175 yards. They were challenging and fun to play, while not presenting unenjoyably long beasts.

The finishing holes were strong, and the 17th was particularly fun to play. The 16th required a straight tee shot, which we found to be a theme on nearly every hole. A premium was put on straight drives, and long rough bordered by gorse was quick to catch any wayward balls. If you could drive the ball straight, you could go low. I had two eagles on the back nine during the twilight round (on 12 and 15), along with two double-bogeys (on 14 and 16), where I hit it in the gorse.

The course conditions were superb. Being a "golf nerd," I always look out for types of grass, and particularly the conditions of the greens. The greens had nearly no intruding grasses, poa annua, or other impurities. They rolled very true.

Unfortunately, we had a negative experience with the staff at Royal Dornoch. Due to our random assortment of trains and buses, we arrived for our 6:30 twilight round at 14:00, planning on slipping out early. After a massive meal in the clubhouse and an hour spent putting, we asked the pro at 16:30 if we could tee off early. The course was completely empty. He said that we were the next tee time, but if we wanted to go off early, we would have to pay 40 pounds each to upgrade from a twilight rate. I understand that rules are rules, but while we sat for two more hours, not a single person teed off. Letting two students off two hours early would not have hurt the club, and I wouldn’t be writing this negative blurb right now. The rude and illogical way they went about letting us tee off was a disappointment. It put a stain on what could have only added to the trip. Luckily, the great golf overshadowed the pro-shop staff.

In the category of "Old Scottish Links," Dornoch is unquestionably one of the best. It had the beautiful Old Tom Morris design elements of Machrihanish, with some of the fun of Cruden Bay. Golf was first played in Dornoch in 1616, and if it weren't so darn rural, it would get the same amount of play as Troon or other contemporaries. I don't know when the next time I play Dornoch will be, but I would recommend it to anyone who is willing to make the journey.

**I forgot to add one more comment on the course. On the negative side, the course had no yardage markers. There was a 200 yard stone and a 150 yard stone, but other than that, literally nothing. Without a range finder, many club choices and yardages had to be guessed. This was one of the only negatives of the golf course itself. 

St Andrews Links - Behind the Scenes

If you have ever played at any of the St Andrews courses, thinking back on the round, did you see any greenskeepers? I seriously doubt it. The St Andrews Links hosts tens of thousands of rounds every year. Despite this huge number of rounds, the courses stay in incredible condition, and you never see work being done (other than the odd bunker re-build mid-winter). To give a unique look at the dedicated and unseen group who keeps the Links in such great condition, I interviewed Gordon Muir, the Director of Greenskeeping at St Andrews Links.

-How long have you been working at the St Andrews Links? 

I’ve been here almost 21 years. I started here in Sept 1991 as head greenkeeper on the Eden course and in October 2000 was promoted to my current position as Director of Greenkeeping.

-What previous positions did you hold before coming to St Andrews?

 I came up through the ranks at Fraserburgh Golf Club, a 27 hole members course in the NE of Scotland where I started as an apprentice and was head greenkeeper for 11 years before I left.

-How many greenskeepers does the links employ?

Around 50 full time employees plus 6 full time mechanics. From mid April until early October, we take on a further 20 students who are going through greenkeeper training/college or have worked on golf courses around the world and have some experience.

-How do you set up the courses to handle the massive numbers of rounds played?
We have enough staff to allow us to carry out 90% of the essential work before golf starts each morning, cutting most areas, setting the course up, moving holes etc. (Keep in mind the first tee times are at 6:30AM). The Old Course is closed on Sundays, during which we take advantage and bring a full team in to do things such as topdress the greens or anything else that would be disruptive to golf. We have what we call a “maintenance morning” on each of the other courses where greenkeepers have the right of way until 9am on one course/day. During the off-season we’re not as busy, and jobs such as aeration can be carried out.

-How often do bunkers need to be re-built? 

Depending on their location and how much traffic they get, they can last up to 6 or 7 years. Road hole bunker by the 17th green needs to have the face of the bunker replaced every year, but some of the small bunkers that are rarely visited can last 7 years easily.

Road Hole Bunker - www.weiunderpar.com

-How does typical course care differ from tournament course preparation (ie for the Dunhill or Open)? 

There is very little difference. When it comes to something like the Dunhill, we would cut all areas every day from a week beforehand whereas we would normally only cut tees, surrounds and fairways 2 or 3 times a week. Greens are cut every day anyway from April until October. Depending on weather and growth we might roll the greens more often during the period. It’s unlikely we would alter the height of cut but that would be growth dependent. We would have timed any topdressing or fertiliser applications so that they wouldn’t fall the week before the tournament and we wouldn’t aerate the greens in the close lead up to an event

-Outside of mowers, what piece of greenskeeping equipment is most vital to the operation?

Probably the variety of aeration equipment we have to punch holes in the ground although the turf irons/rollers have proved to be a good piece of kit.

-If you could send a message to all golfers playing the links, what would it be?

Be considerate of others using the Links and show respect. Replacing divots, repairing pitchmarks or raking bunkers for other golfers are all extremely important. Throwing away litter and avoiding areas that impact the wildlife are also important.

-How do greenskeeping tactics vary between the Old Course and the Castle Course, with over 600 years separating the two?

The principles are still the same. We’re still trying to promote the finer fescue and bent grasses at both locations and keep the playing surfaces firm. The big difference is the soil type on the fairways since the Castle is built on agricultural land and it will take many years of drainage and sand topdressings to get it to resemble the Old Course. The Castle course greens are more “pure” than the Old course ones at the moment as they have not been infested with poa annua, or annual meadow grass but that will inevitably find its way in there over time.

Castle Course 17th Green

-If you could change the make-up of any of the courses (ie. grass type, number of bunkers, drainage systems), what would it be?

From an agronomy point of view, it would be great to get rid of all the poorer grasses in the sward, such as perennial rye grass, yorkshire fog and poa annua to name but three. To have a pure fescue/bent sward would be dreamland, but I don’t think we have the ability to achieve that in my lifetime, and if we did, we might discover that heavy traffic routes might struggle withstanding the wear and tear without ryegrass present. Managing the gorse and stopping it spreading everywhere, especially into areas of heather or dune grassland, is something I would like to achieve. We’re working hard at controlling to gorse as well as trying to re-introduce heather into many areas. A review of the bunkers and the position of some such as the New course fairway bunkers would be good as a lot of them are at a distance that only penalizes poor shots from high handicap golfers.

-In light of the recent sustainable greenskeeping conference int St Andrews, what are the main steps St Andrews Links takes in order to be environmentally friendly? 

We have always managed the courses with what could be described as a low input programme with minimal watering, fertilising and the limited use of pesticides, working with nature and the indigenous grass types, climate and soils. In the last year, by carrying out an audit of our irrigation system, we have reduced our water usage by around 30% just by reducing the arc that sprinklers throw so we’re not watering the rough and bushes. Away from the courses themselves, we’re always looking at ways of reducing our energy and managing our waste so that we recycle more and send less to landfill.

Conclusion:
The next time you are at the St Andrews Links, take the time to fix your ball marks, replace your divots, and be courteous. Also, take a moment to appreciate the hard work that goes into making the St Andrews Links some of the best maintained in all of Scotland. 

Renaissance Club

While sitting on the train to North Berwick on my way to Renaissance Club, I fully expected to compare every aspect of Renaissance Club to its neighbor, Archerfield. On the train back to St Andrews post-round, I had come to realize that the golf at Renaissance Club offers something different to the club just down the coast. Archerfield’s two courses are there for the entertainment of the members, but at Renaissance, Tom Doak created a challenging world-class course, worthy of fighting its way into the upper half of the UK's top 100 courses.

Renaissance Club opened up in 2008 with a similar ethos to Loch Lomond. Different from most Scottish courses, a largely international membership base is able to fly in and relax in a golfing haven, hidden from society, while being provided with anything of which a golfer could dream. To exemplify this, we overheard the chef asking a member, “What would you like for dinner tomorrow?” to which the member replied, “Lobster would be good...” The chef answered, “I’ll have one brought in.”

         
The temporary clubhouse would make most permanent clubhouses jealous. Marble floors, sinks, and showers in the locker room make me wonder what the permanent locker room will be like. (Could we see a PowerShower rating of 10??) I could go on about the club’s offerings and treatment of the exclusive membership, but what really stood out was the golf course. (Click on the pictures to see full, large detail.)

The hole in the above picture is the 4th. After a strong first three holes, this fourth sets the tone for the round. The fairway has plenty of room to the left, but the left tree forces the golfer to favor the right side of the fairway. The green complex is something of genius with bunkers short right, and a massive backstop on the left side of the green, again encouraging the right side of the fairway for an optimal angle into the backstop. 

The 7th hole is a dogleg right with the picture above being taken right at the bend of the dogleg. The green was extremely large with a tree guarding far left pins, slopes guarding the front, and bunkers guarding the right side. 

The 8th hole (green above) is a drivable par 4. It is also the first place that the original stone walls surrounding the course come into play. The green, like many others on the course, is massive and very undulating. None of these pictures do the slopes justice. The unfinished clubhouse can be seen in the background... It will be extremely impressive. 

At the turn, a member of staff came out to offer us tea, coffee, hot chocolate, and snacks.

                           

There wasn't a single weak hole on the back nine. The 10th, pictured above, is a long dogleg right requiring a carefully placed drive on the left side of the fairway. In another stroke of designing skill, Doak placed the last bunker on the hole at 185 yards out. How many par 5s have you seen without a single bunker around the green? Instead of bunkers, large slopes guard the green. 

The 11th hole was my favorite hole on the golf course. It was an extremely strong hole, which carefully straddled the balance between too difficult and enjoyable. The picture above is taken from the tee, while the picture below is taken looking backwards from the green. The pictures don't do the massive scale of the hole justice. 

Another massive green is found at the 11th with bunkers forty yards out, thick grass and dunes left, and slopes filtering towards the ancient walls to the right. A common theme seen at the course is open, harmless entries to the greens, but miss left or right, and you're in trouble. 

The 14th hole puts a premium on accurate driving. I know this personally, as I was stuck in a deep fairway bunkers on the right side of the fairway (look carefully in the picture). A "figure 8" style bunker guards the dead center, but a natural chute on the left side of the fairway will slingshot a good drive past it. 

The 18th hole was playing downwind during our round and I took full advantage with a high flighted "North Carolina" style drive. The wall running across the fairway makes for a distinctive last hole that will not soon be forgotten. A shelf on the back left portion of the green makes for an interesting pin in a "make or break" situation. 

As you can tell from this writeup, I can only say good things about Renaissance Club. I was treated extremely well and everyone was extremely friendly. The course was in perfect condition, although the greens were slow. I can't wait to go play again when the greens are running fast on a less windy day. I found myself wanting to write about every single hole on the course.

Looking over the 14th, 13th, and 11th holes on the course.

After reading about the course and hearing me sing its praises, you may ask yourself, why isn’t Renaissance higher in the Top 100 in the UK? The main reason is that, due to its young age and high level of exclusivity, much of the golfing world has not seen Renaissance Club. That is how the membership likes it. Another reason would be the lack of seaside views, like those found at Kingsbarns or Castle Stuart. According to my host, once the new seaside holes are finished, they will welcome the ranking panelists. At that point, I would be shocked if Renaissance doesn’t place solidly within the top 100. 

THE NEW HOLES:

There are a number of new holes in the process of creation at the course. They will change the routing fairly drastically. I am going to focus on one hole in particular that will likely be the signature hole. It is a par four with the sea down the entire left side. I was told by my host that the range of tee boxes will allow the hole to be made barely driveable if hosting a Scottish Open or other event. I cannot wait to play the course again once these holes are complete. 

Tee box set within the dunes

New fairway being shaped right beside the beach

New green with grass growing immediately ocean-side

Masters 2012 - What was it like?

What better way for the 2012 Masters to end than a playoff duel between Bubba Watson and Louis Oosthuizen? It was only a matter of time before the very talented Watson pieced together four good rounds to win a major. With the wet Augusta National unexpectedly playing longer and softer than usual, Bubba’s massive length played to his advantage, and without too many errant drives in the woods, it was a good week for him to win. Even though my call of Tiger winning failed hopelessly, I still stand by my previous post. Any of the eventual 96 players in the field could have played well and won (bar the amateurs and old-timers...). This was exemplified with the massive number of players who held the lead or were within a handful of strokes at various points in the tournament.

            My purpose for writing this post is not to re-cap the competition or explain the layout. Instead, I am writing to describe my visit to the 2012 Masters. I want you to feel as if you’re in my shoes, experiencing the best event in the world of golf.

            My girlfriend Isla and I entered Augusta National on Thursday through the main security gate. Metal detectors and guards made sure we weren’t carrying any phones, cameras, or other contraband. We had a game plan: 1) Watch the ceremonial tee off by Palmer, Nicklaus, and Player; 2) Walk the entire course while it was relatively empty and open; and 3) See as much golf as possible in the remaining time.

            After we passed through the gates, the practice facilities, recently redone and considered some of the best in the world, appeared on the left- hand side. Short game areas with full size, real speed greens, dot the area and replicate shots found on the actual course. Sticking to our game plan, we proceeded to the right, passing “Masters green” permanent buildings for merchandise and food. Funneling past the buildings, the trees cleared and opened to the first, vast view of Augusta National.

            Once through this dark portal, it was an uphill left to the clubhouse, oak tree, and first tee. The small, simple clubhouse looked elegant and was full of members and their friends relaxing on the warm day. We didn’t have clubhouse passes, and we envied the patrons and members relaxing under the shade of the famous oak tree and lounging on the porch wrapping around the white, square clubhouse.

            The size of the place is massive, and everywhere you look, there is strikingly dark, lush green grass. All of the typical sayings associated with Augusta National ring true: “Try to find a weed... bet you can’t!” or “There’s not a single blade of grass out of place!” Every bit of the course was in perfect condition. It is hard to imagine the amount of work that goes into preparing the course for its magnum opus: The Masters. The only disappointment this year was unexpectedly warm temperatures, which led to a premature blooming of all the bushes, trees, and flowers that line nearly every hole of the course. Instead of the beautiful colors normally observed during Masters week, we had dark, healthy, green. I wasn’t complaining.

            The “hilliness” or elevation changes at Augusta National are also striking. Many of the holes require blind shots to elevated greens. The greens are extremely undulating. These features don’t fully come across on the television.

            It was surreal seeing holes that I had studied for years previously on the TV. I soon realized after reviewing the first few holes, Augusta National is a different kind of penal to other great courses. The rough is cut short, the bunkers are massive, but shallow, and the course isn’t unbelievably long. The course instead shows its bite in fast undulating greens, and a large premium must be put on local knowledge. Knowing where to miss is just as important as knowing where to hit. Six inches on either side of a ridge could be the difference between a fifty-foot putt and a two footer.

            At an interesting point in the day, we took a look left while making our way down the left side of number ten. Sitting with his family, within earshot, was Jack Nicklaus, enjoying the porch of one of Augusta National’s white cabins. He was taking in the nice afternoon with hundreds of people passing him, too busy to notice the golfing icon. Ironically, these were the same cabins that provided the backdrop for Rory McIlroy’s massive hook on the tenth hole and his eventual collapse in the 2011 Masters.

            I have been lucky enough to attend both the 2011 US Open at Congressional and the 2011 Open Championship at Royal St Georges. The Masters was completely different. The numbers of people are much smaller at the Masters. The people in attendance aren’t fans; they are “patrons.” Patrons’ personal green Masters chairs dot the course and line the greens. Once a chair is placed, nobody other than the owner can sit in it or move it. There is an unspoken honor code upheld by nearly everyone. This is simply not found at other golfing events.

            Where the US Open and the Open Championship offered overpriced and bad food, the Masters has its famous sandwiches and drinks. $2.00 for a pimento cheese sandwich (among other kinds), $1.00 for chips, and $1.50 for a drink. There may be few options, but everything is fresh, tasty, and very inexpensive. They simply want to provide the patrons with food and drink for the day instead of seeing another area in which to make money.

            The overarching factor that sets the Masters apart is simply Augusta National’s aura. It is the “x factor” that no other course can replicate. It is the perfection of the course, the secrecy of the club, the traditions, the history, the members circulating in their green jackets, and it all adds up to create something unlike anything else. You pass through those gates into another world.

Magnolia Lane (www.masters.com)

            What the Masters did for me personally was further instill an incredibly deep desire to play a round of my own at Augusta National. I can only wish hard for the time being, but one day I think I’ll play it, and when I do, I’ll savor every moment as if it were my last.