Ben,
I started writing an e-mail to you earlier this morning but had to get to work before I sent it. I was going to warn you about this as a subject but hey here goes...
What this really brings home for me is that these exercises are great fun, but if you start making drastic changes, its very difficlut to do so just from aerial photos on google! And you get all the locals up in arms
Here are my ideas, often similar to Adrian's but I did write most of them this morning before you had started the thread...
1. 370 yard par 4
Pretty much as is. Maybe play it from a slightly forward tee to allow for a small grandstand behind the tee? I like it as a bunkerless opener but maybe a few would be added to toughen it up, probably around the pinchpoint in the fairway about 300 yards or so from the tee.
2. 440 yard par 4
New back tee behind the 1st green maybe, but I've never wandered up there to have a look to see what the angle is like.
3. 390 yard par 4 (430 yard par 4 option)
The tee for 3 is on a prominant mound, which I think used to be the Majuba hole, which it shares with 17? I think the lower left (as you look on google) could be used as the back tee for 3 (currently yellow for 17) while the upper right could be used for 17 (currently yellow for 3), pretty much switching them over and adding 10 or 20 yards to each. You could rebuild a new green up behind the existing to add some yards?
4. 520 yard par 5
I have to admit that I didn't like this hole at first but its growing on me. A more drastic option would be to come down the 6th on the channel nine through the dunes, but may struggle to get the length and I think I'd prefer it as is, so perhaps some bunkering down the left of the fairway? Mayb be able to just add a couple of yards to the back tee but as Adrian says woyuld be very tricky.
5. 180 yard par 3
Dont touch this hole! Maybe a slight lengthening of 20 yards or so?
6. 460 yard par 4
Could be lengthened with a new tee to the left of 5. This would possibly be in the way for the drives on 5 on the channel but if only used for the open, not a problem. Some fairway bunkering and maybe a few greenside ones as well as its fairly open, but there is a large swale short right? My favourite bunker is short left of the green, not the sand one though, the brick pill box!
7. 470 yard par 4
This is were it could be argued that it starts getting a bit flat and dull. There are dunes up the left but the fairway is all pretty flat. Maybe a new back tee right of the existing tees and a new green built up in the dunes a little where the 8th yellow tees are?
8. 550 yards par 5
Same as 7, this is flat with dunes up right, but the 8th green is already built into the dunes. There has been some new fairway bunkering here but I've not seen it myself yet? Plenty of room to right of ditch to push the tee back to say 550?
9. 170 yard par 3
Not much room for change here, and I wouldn't want to anyway.
10. 400 yard par 4
Drive blind over the big dune (Ben, check google earth back a few years and you can see another old pill box which has now gone!) Not much room to push the tee back. Could maybe push the green back by moving all the tees for 11 right (left as you look on google) into the dunes.
11. 480 yard par 4
Not a great hole so happy to change it. Push the tees right back into the dunes to give it a championship tee around 480 yards?
12. 430 yard par 4
Push tees back a bit as angle into 11 green will have changed due to tees in dunes. Great green site next to the church that is mostly hidden from view as the dunes have surrounded it, so you only see the spire from a distance. (Ben, the holes here used to run the other side of the church but that was tricky on sundays so was changed some years ago...)
13. 530 yard par 5 (570 yard par 5 option)
Tricky as a path to the beach is just on a good drive distance. Not sure if tee could be pushed back as it built up a bit and falls away behind the tee but may be possible? Drastic option: push the green back and right (left as you look at it on google) to make a bit of a puchbowl green underneath a big dune, and help lengthen the hole, but this would be a blind approach.
14. 220 yard par 3
Plenty of room to push the tee back, but its already a tough green to hit, raised up on all side. Leave it but push tee back a bit?
15. 480 yard par 4.
Last time I was there I noticed a new / rebuilt tee, to the right and down a bit of the 14th green as you look on google. This is probably the 480 yard tee Adrian mentions.
16. 360 yard par 4 (390 yard par 4 option)
Plenty of room to push tee back and possibly rebuild the green back and right a bit but there is something I like about the current mad two tier green.
17. 220 yard par 3
As with the other par 3s I wouldn't touch it, apart from pushing the tee back as suggested.
18. 445 yard par 4
Wouldn't want to change this hole other than maybe tweak the greenside bunkering a bit?
7,115 yard par 71 (with potentially more drastic option for relocating a few greens at 7,265 yards)
I'd build one huge grandstand to left of clubouse over the top of the chipping green, and running virtually the full length of the range. This would give a great view of players teeing off on 1 and coming home on 18 (also small one behind first tee). I'd use the range for the tented village and use the fairway for the first on the channel as the range with a new large practice tee, and the channel ninth as the chipping green. Plenty of room amongst channel holes for further tented village stuff. And if you could get rid of those damn caravans to the south you would have loads of room!
Not that Burnham is likley to host an Open but if the Captain came up to me and asked for a feasibility study, thats were I'd start...
These are great fun Ben, just try and make sure people realise how HYPOTHETICAL these are before you really send someone of on one...
I just had to respond to this one but I must get back to work!!!
Cheers,
James