greetings from a new member to this great site, and what a pleasing discovery it has been. i thought i was passionate about golf and it has been a pleasure discovering that i am still in short pants next to many of you!
anyway - as a south african living in london, two courses on the "next 50" list struck my attention - huntercombe (to which i belong) and durban country club, back in south africa, to which my father belongs. the latter is often voted south africa's best course and tom doak has given it the attention it deserves in the confidential guide. if anyone wants an introduction, let me know. incidentally, while south africa is a long way from america, it has many fine courses and more of you should try to get over there. perhaps the exposure which will come from the presidents cup later this year will act as a stimulus.
as for huntercombe, it has been described as an inland links course. there is no water, and a lot of links style features - bunkers, waste spaces, humps etc. it is a very traditional course, in the sense that it is basically a two ball course - either foursomes or two-balls. a 3 or 4 ball might occasionally be allowed with the secretary's permission. playing quickly is also a feature of the course - 2 hours 45 minutes is recommended time for 18 holes. connoisseurs would appreciate a visit as the course is an interesting one. your chances of meeting a golf tourist are close to zero! by modern standards it is short, though there are some longer holes on the second nine. although it is not a daunting course to the eye, it is more difficult to score on that you would think.
again, if any message group members are coming to this part of the world and would like an introduction, feel free to contact me.