Ed Tilley
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Lovely Jubbly
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« on: July 05, 2006, 02:18:12 PM » |
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Played at Silloth on Solway last week - in the extreme NW of England, just across the solway firth from Southerness in Scotland. It's not an easy course to get to but at £35 pounds for a day it represents the best value golf course I've ever played as it is top class links golf. 1st hole - hugely inviting opening shot 380 yards  1st green in a dell  2nd hole - forgot to take a picture - shame. Lovely hole bending right through a valley to a sloping green. 319 yards par 4 3rd hole 358 yards - great hole blind drive over a ridge into a valley  that swings left and steeply up to the green - don't be short or left!  4th hole 372 yards - superb hole. Another blind drive.  To a fantastically difficult approach. Don't be left or right - must be very precise down the prevailing wind in fast and firm conditions.  4th green from the side  5th hole - 482 yards par 5, swinging left along the firth. Lovely views across to Scotland and of the Lakeland hills.  6th hole - 187 yards par 3 downhill  7th hole - 403 yards. Steeply uphill drive - blind second to another green in a dell  green  8th - 371 yards  9th -134 yards - the English postage stamp  Back nine to follow |
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RJ_Daley
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« Reply #1 on: July 05, 2006, 02:24:40 PM » |
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more lovely jubbly, Ed.  |
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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.
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Ed Tilley
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Lovely Jubbly
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« Reply #2 on: July 05, 2006, 02:39:54 PM » |
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10th hole - 306 yards dog leg left. drivable but OOB over the back.  11th - 411 yards - N.B. Don't drive at the marker post downwind - must be right of it.  12th - 200 yards - long and left is not a good idea  13th - a fantastic hole - 468 yards par 5  Second up the ridge to a green that slopes severely off left, right and short   14th hole - 477 yards par 5  14th green from the top of the ridge - don't go left as the bunker makes it almost impossible to stop your pitch within20 feet  15th 417 yards  approach  16th 182 yards - steep slope in front of the green. Downwind it is a very exacting shot. the only way to stop it on the green is to run it up the steep slope or use the bank back right.  17th - 495yards  approach - right is not the place to be! Left of the green will do nicely.  Homeward bound - 401 yards  A fabulous test of golf on wonderful, undulating links terrain. Wonderful views of Scotland and the Lake district also make it a beautiful place to be. I'll be back. |
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Eric Franzen
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A student of the game
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« Reply #3 on: July 05, 2006, 02:56:23 PM » |
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Good stuff, Ed. Thanks for posting this.
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Geoffrey Childs
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« Reply #4 on: July 05, 2006, 03:12:51 PM » |
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Thanks for the photos Ed. They were a great reminder of a memorable time I spent there.
Since that time I've thought Siloth a great hidden gem. Ran agreed with me after I suggested he visit. I'd recommend any lover of links golf and a bit of quirk to add it to a trip. I visited after seeing Ganton, Woodhall Spa and Seascale on the way up to Turnberry. It's a nice drive.
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ed_getka
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« Reply #5 on: July 05, 2006, 03:46:20 PM » |
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Ed, So what is the attraction?  I can see why Chris Kane is heading there. I can't think of too many better ways to spend 35 pounds for the day.  |
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« Last Edit: July 05, 2006, 03:47:13 PM by ed_getka »
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"Perimeter-weighted fairways", The best euphemism for containment mounding I've ever heard.
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Travis Ripley
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I'm a llama!
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« Reply #6 on: July 05, 2006, 07:33:30 PM » |
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i noticed Siloth is one of the local qualifying sites for this year's Open.
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Pete Lavallee
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« Reply #7 on: July 05, 2006, 08:39:02 PM » |
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Great photo's again Ed. This is by far the best GCA discovery since Perennporth! This much golf for such a reasonable fee, it looks like heaven to me. Thanks for the time and effort to post the course tour.
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"...one inoculated with the virus must swing a golf-club or perish." Robert Hunter
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Peter Pittock
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« Reply #8 on: July 05, 2006, 08:58:20 PM » |
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Ed,
Thanks for the pictures. It brings back sweet memories of being there in 2000. Cecil Leitch, arguably among the best woman golfers played her golf there. Buda cuppers, its just a drive up the motorway from Liverpool. If you are going to stay in town use the Golf Hotel. Have the tiramasu for desert.
Any laundry, use the caravan park.
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« Last Edit: July 05, 2006, 09:02:07 PM by Peter Pittock »
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The course is my cathedral, its bunkers my confessional.
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Dschmidt
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« Reply #9 on: July 05, 2006, 09:09:31 PM » |
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Not to be too nitpicky, but this thread has been up for a while and not a single soul here has mentioned that there are enough cart paths in these pix and on this course to retire Barney permanently if he ever gets the repaving contract! Ain't we a bunch of hypocrites....if someone posted this many pictures of an Art Hills course (to pick the arch(enemy)itect du jour, a lot of guys on here would be going bananas!
But mums the word if it's a links course...what gives with all the cart paths?
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I don't always drink beer...but when I do, I prefer Dos Equis.
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Ed Tilley
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Lovely Jubbly
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« Reply #10 on: July 06, 2006, 01:33:39 AM » |
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i noticed Siloth is one of the local qualifying sites for this year's Open.
It's holding the regional qualifying this week - the stage before final qualifying. When we played they were putting the flag poles up on the first tee. Also, you may see from the photos that the flags were on the edges of the greens - chipping back down the 16th green was a bit scary - massive drop 2 feet past the pin! |
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Marc Haring
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« Reply #11 on: July 06, 2006, 03:20:30 AM » |
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Great pictures Ed.
Shivas
Sean is right. No one is going to build a cart path on a UK links course. They would be shot. The sandy soil and associated erosion problems necessitate the use of a hard base and it helps direct traffic away from those environmentally sensitive areas.
It looks like they’ve removed some of the gorse since I played there a couple of years back and I think it has improved things. For example that opening tee shot used to be a killer right by the Pro Shop and having to hit down an avenue between lost ball territory. It’s one hell of a course with some great holes. It gets a bit closely packed in the middle of the round but all the holes have some real individual character to them. Terrific routing. Who did it by the way?
I think the price of the fee is reflected by the fact that it is so out of the way and maybe because it really has become a bit of depressed area. I think that big flour factory is now closed and I don’t think there is much else to sustain the local economy.
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« Last Edit: July 06, 2006, 03:21:18 AM by Marc Haring »
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Ed Tilley
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Lovely Jubbly
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« Reply #12 on: July 06, 2006, 03:41:01 AM » |
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Marc,
As per Ran's course guide
'Principal credit for today's stirring links course belongs to Willie Park, Jr., who designed Sunningdale Old and his own favourite Huntercombe in England as well as several world class courses in North America headlined by his revered course at the Maidstone Club on Long Island. Alister MacKenzie, who lived several hours away in Leeds, also had a hand in some of the finishing detail work.'
The area around Silloth and Silloth itself are very remote and there is clearly very little money around. Silloth seems to be in a 1970's timewarp - certainly the golf hotel had curtains and carpets in every shade of brown and paisley patterns known to man.
Ed
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Mark Ferguson
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« Reply #13 on: July 06, 2006, 04:33:19 AM » |
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An interesting comparison.
Both Silloth and Macrihanish are a roughly similar price to play, or at least they were last time I was in that neck of the woods.
Disregarding - or perhaps because of - the journey, which would you rather return to?
I think Silloth is the better course.
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Ed Tilley
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Lovely Jubbly
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« Reply #14 on: July 06, 2006, 04:46:14 AM » |
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Machrihanish is £40 a round, £60 a day. Silloth is £35 a day.
I agree that, much as I loved Machrihanish, Silloth is a superior course in an equally, if not more, beautiful setting. I will probably be back to Machrihanish someday, but I will definitely be back to Silloth.
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Troy Alderson
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« Reply #15 on: July 06, 2006, 10:46:11 AM » |
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Ed, Great pictures, especially the par 3 6th. I am confused though, where are all the golf carts, overwatered/fertilized turf, yardage markers, and irrigation heads?  I like the grass bunker to the left of the 4th green, a short grass hazard fantastic. Now I have more screen saver pictures to download. THANK YOU. Troy |
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Colour is no measurement of quality, nor is heavy irrigation conducive to preserving traditional conditions or providing the salvation that many believe it does. Jim Arthur "Practical Greenkeeping". "Because the shot is not over when the ball lands" Tom Doak.
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Andrew Mitchell
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« Reply #16 on: July 10, 2006, 06:37:52 AM » |
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Great pictures Ed - they've really whetted the appetite. I've arranged a game with Chris Kane there whilst he's in the area. The cost is an added bonus!
Silloth is very much a hidden gem - although I live in the North of England I've lost count of the number of blank looks I've received from other golfers when I've mentioned it.
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Number of rounds played in 2010: 11
Played or planned for 2010: Swinley Forest; Formby; Royal Birkdale; Alwoodley; Glasgow Gailes; Crail; Royal Dornoch; Brora; Castle Stuart; Rye; North Berwick; Joondalup; Kennedy Bay
Still dreaming: Prestwick; Machrihanish; Royal County Down; Royal Melbourne
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Ed Tilley
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Lovely Jubbly
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« Reply #17 on: January 03, 2009, 04:49:18 AM » |
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Bump - due to request for Silloth pictures on another thread.
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Mark_Rowlinson
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« Reply #18 on: January 03, 2009, 06:02:55 AM » |
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Thanks for the bump - excellent pictures.
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Patrick Kiser
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One shot at a time...
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« Reply #19 on: January 03, 2009, 08:54:06 AM » |
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35 pounds ... a day!!! Unpossible! Wow! Brilliant Ed and thanks for sharing. Got to get over there ... someday. |
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“One natural hazard, however, which is more
or less of a nuisance, is water. Water hazards
absolutely prohibit the recovery shot, perhaps
the best shot in the game.” —William Flynn, golf
course architect
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Sam Morrow
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« Reply #20 on: January 03, 2009, 08:58:21 AM » |
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I'm not up on the current currency conversions. How much American money is 35 pounds?
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Lookin for nickels
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Jason Hines
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"You came to Kansas to play in this game..."
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« Reply #21 on: January 03, 2009, 09:01:31 AM » |
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Sam,
$54.25.
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"I'm an American honey, our names don't mean s***"
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Sam Morrow
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« Reply #22 on: January 03, 2009, 09:02:22 AM » |
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Sam,
$54.25.
Thanks Jason, I can now officially say that's a great deal. |
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Jason Hines
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"You came to Kansas to play in this game..."
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« Reply #23 on: January 03, 2009, 09:08:07 AM » |
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Of course, it will cost a bit to get there, even if you did live in NW England.
However, looks perfect and worth the trip for me.
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"I'm an American honey, our names don't mean s***"
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Sam Morrow
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« Reply #24 on: January 03, 2009, 09:08:53 AM » |
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Of course, it will cost a bit to get there, even if you did live in NW England.
I'm in Texas, the logistics are now falling apart. |
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Lookin for nickels
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David Stamm
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« Reply #25 on: January 03, 2009, 09:43:05 AM » |
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Thanks Ed! This place looks like heaven to me!
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"The object of golf architecture is to give an intelligent purpose to the striking of a golf ball."- Max Behr
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Neil_Crafter
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« Reply #26 on: January 03, 2009, 12:23:55 PM » |
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Thanks Ed
Great pics and a terrific looking course, very economical with the bunkering, if not with the paths!
And a course where Mackenzie did a bit of work as well.
Neil
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