3 new holes to be added at The Renaissance club

[John Kirk]

One important consideration is whether Tom can maintain the rhythm of the walk.  The three new holes will necessitate a steeply uphill climb from the third new green back to what is presently the 13th tee.  It will take some finesse to make the new holes fit as seamlessly as the present course.

[Ally Mcintosh]

Tom said above that the climb was less than 10 metres... which is manageable... But it may be some distance laterally as well...

Obviously you'd lose your returning nines... Tom also mentioned above that the balance of those nines would be thrown out...

Would the "feel" of the course be compromised by having six dramatic holes (current 10, 11, 12 plus three new ones) all in a row surrounded by the less visually dramatic holes on either side?.... I don't think it should... Despite a love of the first three holes, the routing of the current holes 1 to 7 do form a certain back and forth feel and this will be reduced by starting at 4 (which is one of my favourite holes)...

I think that in all but a very, very select few minds, the new three holes would add both to the quality and reputation of the course...

But I do like Rich's idea of 21 holes

[Wayne_Kozun]

I played the Renaissance Club yesterday in about a 3 or 4 club wind.  It's a wonderful course with great contouring around the greens that on some holes, such as the par 3 9th, devilishly feeds balls into the bunkers.  Much creativity is needed around the greens to get one's ball close to the hole - with all of the contouring you often have many options.  The course would have to be played many times to really get the hang of playing some of these shots.

The first three holes are quite good - in some ways it is a shame that they will no longer be played much.  But the new holes will be quite spectacular.

It is surprising to see a links course with a large number of trees - certainly not like most other links courses.

The wind was quite oppressive yesterday and made the course play very difficult from the 6800 yard White tee blocks.  The par 4 18th is ridiculously long (460 yds) playing into the wind.  Yesterday it took driver, 3-wood, 7 iron to reach the green.

The only downside to the course is that the turf isn't growing in too well on several of the fairways, especially on the back 9 - presumably that will be corrected over time.

Off to play 36 at North Berwick today.  The wind is just as strong so the front 9 is going to be a grind.

[Ally Mcintosh]

Having walked the new land extensively in August, I thought it might be worth commenting again...

The extra land includes some of the largest dunes in Scotland... but it is noticeable that Tom's routing does not touch these and I'll offer 3 possible reasons why:

1. Environmental restrictions on earth movement and vegetation.
2. Impossible to get three holes in and out of the high dunes and to reconnect with the existing course. The dunes are (by their nature) closer to the sea and further from the current 11th and 12th.
3. A desire to make the new holes feel both closely connected and similar in nature to the existing holes nearby. The new 10th will play parallel and quite close to the 9th (existing 12th)

I am pretty sure that 1 & 2 are the main reasons and that 3 might be a beneficial result.

Should be a great addition to the course if they ever happen...

[KBanks]

I played Renaissance a week ago. It's an impressive course with unflagging strategic interest. The bunkering and greens contouring stand out especially. Agree with Rich that some of the bunker surrounds need thinning. The property seems unique in that it affords links conditions throughout, even with the presence of substantial remaining trees.

It will be interesting to assess the comparative rhythmn and flow of the course when the new holes in the spectacular dunes system get built. The current 1-3 are excellent holes.

The Duke of Hamilton put on quite a show over the back nine in his vintage airplane the day we played!

Ken