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Philip Gawith

  • Karma: +0/-0
9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« on: January 10, 2006, 02:28:36 PM »
Jason Topp and I had a memorable New Year's Day - for the wrong reasons.

Personally, I blame it on Ran  ;) - but lets start at the beginning.

Newcastle Golf Club - 180km north of Sydney - has been popularised on this site at least in part due to Ran's enthusiasm for this course (and he is in good company - it ranks 12th or so in the strong list of good Australian courses).

In the way of GCA, Jason (Minneapolis) and I (London) - two cyber-buddies who had not previously met - discovered we were both holidaying in Australia over Xmas/New Year, and overlapped in Sydney. So we made a plan to play at Newcastle at 10am on New Year's Day. The concierge's instructions were deficient, so a 2 hour trip became 3 hours, a 10am start became 11am,  and things went downhill from there.

We should have smelt a rat when the car-park had only two other cars in it on a fine day, even if it was New Year's Day. The issue, of course, was the heat. That day, as we later discovered, the mercury touched 44.5 in Sydney - the hottest day since who knows when. Foolishly, we set off, walking as good GCAers do.

Very quickly my only thought on hitting a tee shot was where to find the shade as I walked to my ball. When you stood over your ball, you could find the heat radiating up from the ground. When you went onto the sandy patches, it was worse.

By the 7th hole, I had my first cold flush. That set alarm bells ringing - heat stroke etc. So as we were finishing the 9th (and we had scampered around in 95 min) I said to Jason - despite all our effort to get to this course -  that I though we should call it a day before we did serious damage to ourselves. I like to think that I am quite a hardy sort on the golf course, but this was going too far. And even Jason, who knows a bit of Arizona golf, was prepared to agree that this was serious stuff.

Fortunately he was of a like mind so we headed for the clubhouse, licked our wounds and then later quickly went round the second nine in a buggy.

But that was not the end of it. So extreme was the weather that as we headed back to Sydney, we discovered that the two - and only - access roads into Sydney from the north had been closed because of bushfires. We had two choices: sit it out till they reopened (one hour? three hours? twelve hours?) or take the only alternative route ( a circuitous 3-4 hour trip we were told - even though we were now only 40 minutes from Sydney).

The atmosphere was panicky given the heat - long queues, petrol selling out, water selling out - so we went for the option of keeping moving, believing we would be home 3-4 hours later.

The good bit of the drive was that it took us through some fabulous countryside - the wine-growing areas of the Hunter Valley, past the big racing studs like Coolmore etc, which we would not otherwise have done.

The bad news was that this route, allowing for a navigational error which cost us about 120 km, ended up with us getting home at 12 midnight, with 880km on the clock, after 9 hours or so on the road (the round trip should have been 360km).

For two guys who had only met each other that morning - it was quite a day! I have still to discover whether Mrs Topp had any sympathy for the ordeal her husband endured - or was looking after two children in that heat even worse?  :)

I have previously been blown off the course at Brora and rained off the course at Brora. Now I can proudly say that I have also been scorched off the course at Newcastle. ;D

Chris Kane

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #1 on: January 10, 2006, 03:03:58 PM »
Philip, its a shame you encountered such a hot day - the mercury only gets above 40 once or twice a summer here.  44.5 is close to unbearable indoors with air conditioning, I can't imagine playing golf in it.

What were your impressions of Newcastle?  

RJ_Daley

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #2 on: January 10, 2006, 04:22:47 PM »
Philip, no doubt as your were playing in that inferno, Jason had told you that his was a golf year of extremes.  He must have tried very hard to recall to mind what it felt like at our two days at Sutton Bay, where the temp was about 34-38*F but the wind howled at about 35mph with higher gusts.  I can safely say that is the most miserable (strangely invigorating) cold I have ever experienced.  And, that from a guy who lives in a region like Jason, often referred to as "frozen tundra".  I even played on a bright sunny day, today in about 33-4*F no wind and it was mild compared to Sutton Bay.

So kudos to you and Jason for keeping that GCA.com camaraderie alive and well at the antipodes. ;) ;D
No actual golf rounds were ruined or delayed, nor golf rules broken, in the taking of any photographs that may be displayed by the above forum user.

Tom Huckaby

Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #3 on: January 10, 2006, 04:27:04 PM »
For those of you here in the Fahrenheit world, remember it's 9/5C + 32.

That 44.5 C comes out to 120.2 degrees F.

Good god....

So I was gonna call them wusses, in the spirit of giving any man crap who fails to finish a golf round, but now I shall keep my trap shut.

 ;D

RJ_Daley

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #4 on: January 10, 2006, 04:36:04 PM »
But, Its a dry heat. ::)

The hottest I ever played was 104 with significant humidity.  I sweat so much that I dehydrated, and produced a kidney stone that very night.

Mad dogs and Englishmen...and Philip was the Englishman in that twosome, if I'm not mistaken. ;) ;D
« Last Edit: January 10, 2006, 04:36:38 PM by RJ_Daley »
No actual golf rounds were ruined or delayed, nor golf rules broken, in the taking of any photographs that may be displayed by the above forum user.

Tom Huckaby

Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #5 on: January 10, 2006, 04:46:47 PM »
 ;D ;D
I've played when they told us it was 118 - in Palm Desert.  It was what they call that dry heat  ;D... we stayed in the CART most of the round, venturing out only to actually hit the ball... we kept well hydrated and not with beer - must have gone through 15 gatorades.  It was actually doable, but not for the faint of heart.

120 walking?  As I say, good God...

« Last Edit: January 10, 2006, 04:50:27 PM by Tom Huckaby »

Jason Topp

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #6 on: January 10, 2006, 04:53:06 PM »
  I should have taken a picture and done a side by side of the fire in Australia and the snow at Sutton Bay.  Unfortunately, I was too preoccupied with just staying alive.

  On the first couple of holes, Phillip and I enjoyed a nice conversation.  By the third it started to falter and by the fifth, we were both just searching for shade to walk in.  I really appreciate Phillip's suggestion that we quit.  

  I discovered that the biggest gap between us was not Midwestern US v. South Africa/London, but rather married without kids v. married with kids.  Phillip got much sympathy from his wife.  As I expected, the reaction I got was "You were gone all day yesterday.  You take the kids.  I'm taking a bath."  In my wife's view she was the one that needed sympathy.  She may have been right.

  Once we had accepted our fate, I really had a terrific time.  The drive was beautiful and I had plenty of time to pester Phillip with questions about cricket, of which I now have a very rudimentary understanding. We also enjoyed a fine dinner at Sandy Hollow, New South Wales.  If you look that one up on a map, you will see that Phillip had a flawed navigator.

  As to the golf course - my primary impression was that it was tough.  It was tight off the tee, longer than I expected and not very receptive to my duck hooks and right by right tee shots.  On the positive side, I did not see any snakes.

  I would really like to see it on a more reasonable day.


James Bennett

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #7 on: January 10, 2006, 05:55:30 PM »
But, Its a dry heat. ::)

The hottest I ever played was 104 with significant humidity.  I sweat so much that I dehydrated, and produced a kidney stone that very night.

Mad dogs and Englishmen...and Philip was the Englishman in that twosome, if I'm not mistaken. ;) ;D

Dick

In Perth, Adelaide and melbourne it would be a dry heat (a la California).  In Sydney/Newcastle, it is east coast heat (similar to the US east coast).  It may have been dry on that day, but egnerally Sydney is more humid.  Brisbane goes higher again on the humidity scale, and Cairns - well it is between the tropics and the equator!

You comment about mad dogs and englishmen out in the midday sun is very appropriate.  I LOL'd.

We had two days of 40 degrees plus in Adelaide just prior to New year (as the weather system moved east across Australia).  As I recall, we did very little on the Friday, and I played very early on New Years Eve.  And it was so hot the airconditioner refused to operate! >:(  I think i went to work on the Friday pm, because at least there was aircondsitioning working.

From a golf perspective, 40 degrees plus is as useful as sub-zero.  It is also a period of time when the turf health of the course is really tested.  Any weak winter grass (new poa) burns off quickly.

And of course the UV levels are up in summer, irrespective of the temperature - the saying here goes slip, slop, slap and wrap.  Slip on a shirt, slap on a hat, slop on some sunscreen and wrap on a pair of sunglasses.

James B
Bob; its impossible to explain some of the clutter that gets recalled from the attic between my ears. .  (SL Solow)

James Bennett

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #8 on: January 10, 2006, 06:42:46 PM »
Dick Daley

I checked the actual weather bureau stats, and you are more 'right' about the humidity than I was! :o

In Newcastle on new years day, it 'max'd' at 42.5 celsius.  At 9am it was 29.1 with 67% humidity (typical east coast weather) whilst at 3pm it was 40.4 celius with 20% humidity.

By contrast, the adelaide weather on 30/12 was a max of 42.5, with 3pm at 40.4 celsius and 12% humidity (very dry, and typical for the two or three hot runs we get).  Saturday 3pm was 38.0 celsius with 21% humidity.

I also looked at Melbourne's summary , but whilst it did get to 42.5 on new years eve, it had already dropped to about 33 celsius by 3pm, as the wind moved to the south-east.  Apparently typical for melbourne weather.

James B
Bob; its impossible to explain some of the clutter that gets recalled from the attic between my ears. .  (SL Solow)

Tiger_Bernhardt

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #9 on: January 10, 2006, 11:40:58 PM »
wow You guys do know how to toast in the new year. Bill McBride, Mike Golden and myself played in 70 degree weather on a very average but fun course near Destin, Florida. I was a great way to bring in 2006 without all the drama. I am glad we GCAers will do whatever it takes to start the year correctly.

Chris Kane

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #10 on: January 11, 2006, 02:41:49 AM »
James, new years eve in Melbourne was an extraordinary day.  Originally forecast to be 42, it hit low 30's by 11am, then cooled down, prompting the Bureau to issue a revised maximum of 33.  They got it wrong - by 4pm it was 43.  When I left the house to go out at 7.30pm, it was still 42!


Philip Gawith

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #11 on: January 11, 2006, 03:28:26 AM »
The amazing thing about the weather was that the temperature in Sydney the next day was exactly half the previous day - 21 degrees. Much better for watching cricket!

Chris - in a semi-delirious state, feeling so sorry for myself that i was almost inconsolable, it was difficult to form sensible thoughts on the golf course! I took some photos which I will post in due course. Suffice to say that the nice green picture on the score card of the wonderful sixth hole bears on a mocking resemblance to the dry, brownish track we played!

My overall impression was of a challenging, even difficult, golf course, with some very good holes, especially around 5,6,7 and 10 with that wonderful rolling fairway. It lacks the wow factor of some of the other exceptional courses in Australia, but I don't disagree with its high rating. It feels a pretty unpretentious place, and I would imagine anyone who learns their golf there is pretty accomplished. Just a shame that we came upon it in such extreme weather.

Sean - yes, good stories to follow!

James Bennett

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:9 hours, 900km, 9 holes
« Reply #12 on: January 11, 2006, 04:26:47 PM »
James, new years eve in Melbourne was an extraordinary day.  Originally forecast to be 42, it hit low 30's by 11am, then cooled down, prompting the Bureau to issue a revised maximum of 33.  They got it wrong - by 4pm it was 43.  When I left the house to go out at 7.30pm, it was still 42!



thanks Chris - I was wondering whether the tem[perature had dropped, or was actually on the rise.  The bureau weather data only had a 9am and 3pm temperature, plus an 'untimed' maximum.


Phillip

In Adelaide, we can get up to 5 days of 38 dgerees plus (100 farenheit) of dry heat, with wind from the north and north-west (from Alice Springs/Ayers Rock country).  Then, the wind suddenly moves to the south-west as a cold front finally comes through (ie wind off the ocean and the antarctic) and the temperature can drop by 10 degrees celsius in an hour.  And yes, the next day will probably have a maximum of 20 degrees
Bob; its impossible to explain some of the clutter that gets recalled from the attic between my ears. .  (SL Solow)

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