My wife, Kathleen, and I took a wonderful trip to the UK in July, finishing up at the Open in St Andrews. We played some unique and outstanding courses on this trip, and I'm going to post some notes and a few of my amateurish photos over the next couple of days. I find I forget to take pictures when I get chatting during a round, or overwhelmed by the golf, but I did manage to get a few good shots in.
The first course we played was way out in Wales. My wife is still unhappy that I subjected her to a four-hour drive from Gatwick out to Swansea so we could play Pennard the next morning, but it was worth the trouble - to me at least! Sean Arble is a member and is very enthusiastic about the rigors and pleasures of Pennard. After just one round I can say uncategorically that I would hate to have to post a medal score there, but there are many great things about Pennsard.
The first sets the tone - blind second shot into a punch bowl green at the top of that hill. The hole plays about 400 yards and the tee shot is to a very narrow fairway, typical of Pennard's challenge.
The second, by contrast, is a very short hole to a tiny green protected by a mounded entrance.
One of the outstanding features at Pennard is a great set of punchbowl greens, but here they tend to repel as much as attract approach shots. Here is the difficult uphill 6th.
Pennard continues along in this interesting vein, and then come the holes with the incredible views down to the cliffs above the sea. Not for nothing is Pennard known as “the links in the sky.” As high as it above the sea, the turf is definitely of fine links character, and the course plays fast as hell.
This is the downhill 7th, with a ruined castle to the right, a ruined church wall to left (both ”in play” according to the score card!) and that fantastic view in the background for maximum distraction.
Here's the 7th green, a short iron approach, but check out the front to back slope. Kathleen hit what looked like a great mid iron over the guarding rampart in front, I hit an indifferent wedge, we both came onto the green and found our balls had run all the way to the back of the green. At least neither of us wound up in that deep hollow in the back right!
This is the uphill 8th with a devilishly contoured green. The back to front slope must be over 4%. My approach was my fourth or fifth shot. Both of us hit tee shots on line to the pole in this semi-blind fairway. While walking along that line, we found both tee balls in a hidden fairway bunker about the size of a bathtub, with softish sand that caused a series of attempts to extricate said balls from this nasty pot. I was reminded of a great quote I believe is from Bernard Darwin, to the effect that a certain bunker, perhaps this one, was “just large enough for an angry man and his niblick!”
This is the brutal 11th, 220 yards into a brisk wind onto a crowned green which showed no mercy.
Here's a side view of #11 green showing the challenge... note the false front and the shallow green, which I played to with a 4-wood. Tough hole!
The 13th hole is another very difficult par 3, this one tough because it's one of those rare dogleg par 3's! The tee shot is blind to the pin which is almost on the left margin of this photo. The right side of the green is protected by a steep bank which repels any shot not played farther left than you might think it has to be. This hole at around 200 yds downwind might be as tough as any hole at Pennard.
This is the tee shot on the wonderful 16th, a 510 yard par 5 which plays along the cliffs for the second shot, and to a steeply sloping green for the approach. This is the most reachable of the par 5's.
The home hole at Pennard clearly illustrates the challenges which face the player all day. The fairway might be only 20 yards wide in the landing area, and slopes rather steeply from right to left. A rope hook is definitely NOT the tee ball here. A careful fade has a chance to hold the fairway, leaving a short iron to a fairly open green.
Awesome views, solid challenges, great links conditions, an energetic walk --- Pennard has all the ingredients for a good round of golf.