Hi Dale,
What is your favourite par 3, 4 and 5 at Royal Colwood and why?
If you could only pick one hole to restore at Royal Colwood, which one would it be and why?
How different was the second green back in the day versus today's configuation. To my untrained eye, it looked very much out of place with the rest of the greens, as did #11.
I know how I felt playing the 12th hole for the first and only time - do you get a less claustrophobic feeling on that tee and in that fairway after multiple plays?
How many times a year do you see people putt the ball off the 13th green? The slope on that surface is unrelenting!
Can you give us some history on the 'Cathedral Hole' at RC? Is there a more peaceful place on the course than walking that fairway among the huge speciman trees?
You're quite lucky to be a member out there - it's just a wonderful club that you call home and my sincere thanks again for helping me find a game there last summer.
Matt, always happy to talk about Royal Colwood!
What is your favourite par 3, 4 and 5 at Royal Colwood and why?I don't do very well with favourite lists but will give some thoughts.
Par 3 - I think #4 is the best looking of the 4 three pars since we redid the pond a few years ago. I think #7 has the most charm, however that word could be defined. #11 and #15 are both strong holes, and before we lost 40 yards on 15 in 1953, I would think that hole was the best of the 4.
Par 4 - There are several options here. I have already mentioned my love of #6 and #8. In addition I would mention #9, 12, 13 and 18.
Par 5 - With only two Par 5s there is not much choice and to be frank, they are, to my mind, the weakness of the course. Of the 2, #5 is by far the better hole.
If you could only pick one hole to restore at Royal Colwood, which one would it be and why?That is a great question and I would choose #2. The original bunkering has been completely removed and what is there does not honour Macan's legacy. The green, as you note, was replaced a number of years ago and it does not fit the rest of the course at all. The original green was immediately in front of the present green and, as far as I can determine, sloped significantly from right to left and front to back, the latter a real Macan trademark. I would love to see a replacement for the present green that incorporate some of the original elements. You are right about #11 being a similar design to #2 but somehow it seems to fit into its setting a lot better.
I know how I felt playing the 12th hole for the first and only time - do you get a less claustrophobic feeling on that tee and in that fairway after multiple plays?I have never seen another hole anywhere like #12 and I have a love/hate relationship with it. I love its uniqueness and challenge, I hate what it does to my scoring average! But, together with 9, 10, 11 and 13. it was a stretch of holes that Macan pointed to as his best work and I can only concur. It does get less claustrophobic after repeated plays - it actually is not that narrow, especially the drive, but it never gets easier. The approach shot demands precise placement of the drive to be able to approach the green from the right side, and in the summer driver for a player who can drive the ball about 240 yards or more is not the play. I take my comment about a love/hate relationship back, I love the hole.
How many times a year do you see people putt the ball off the 13th green? The slope on that surface is unrelenting!Rarely does a putt go completely off the green but it is certainly one of the most severely contoured greens in this area of the world, and there is no shame in three putting! It does become easier over time but only in a relative sense. Frankly I love the green. We have recently discovered the green used to extend approximately 20 or 30 feet farther to the right, which would have offered more pinnable areas and that area is not as severe as the present green. We are in the process of recapturing some of that area right now.
Can you give us some history on the 'Cathedral Hole' at RC? Is there a more peaceful place on the course than walking that fairway among the huge speciman trees?Legend has it that the sixteenth - the Cathedral Hole - put the “Royal” in Royal Colwood. The Prince of Wales was said to have commented that playing the sixteenth hole was like “playing in a cathedral”, with firs on the left and right and several magnificent specimen firs standing sentinel behind the green, and that it was his favourite hole. Whether the story is true or apocryphal, the hole is a stunning sight from the tee, and on a summer morning with the sunlight dappling the fairway, it is a tremendous visual treat.
Actually, the trees on the left were much, much smaller when the course was first built and their growth is causing increasing problems with shade and turf quality.
I am glad you got the chance to play the course and I am sorry I was not able to join you.