BARNBOUGLE DUNES: A hole-by-hole pictorial!!! (18th hole posted)

[Alex Miller]

Don't mean to be a stickler, but what about back left? On the tiny tiny shelf? I wouldn't pin it there for a public destination course like BD is, but it looks fairly flat up there.

[Brett_Morrissy]

Alex,
that is spot we were speaking off, the little back shelf - from the right side of the FW it feels like it is back right.
but it is a great little spot - there are 3 more great little back shelves like that - 13, 15 - all pin positions that I look forward to very much.

[Kyle Henderson]

Could it be considered weak because it lacks bunkers?  I think it's a tough hole because it's very much into the wind.  As Kyle states, the green isn't as wide as others and that means one has to be even more accurate in their approach.

Hooray for Patrick!

I've always felt this hole got unfairly bashed just because it wasn't in the big dunes and we didn't go nuts with bunkering on it.  The green is its defense; if you hit a wide tee shot, the angle of the second to the ridge that the green is sited on makes for a very difficult shot.  And, as Patrick notes, too, the hole nearly always plays into the wind, which makes it play much longer from the back tee than the impression you get from looking at the scorecard.

I guess nobody likes to make 5 without having a better explanation for it. 

No bashing of the 2nd here. It offers plenty of challenge and strategy, as attested to by Mr. Morrissy.

My point is merely that I can't imagine anyone would pick it as their favorite hole. It's RELATIVELY bland when compared with the rest of the front nine, IMHO.

[Tom_Doak]

Tom you posted as I did - do you see a time where you may make it small recommendations for changes to BD? Do you think the owners will see fit to make that happen?

Brett:

There were three or four things I saw on my recent visit, that I'd like to address at some point.  None of them would be very costly, but one or two would be disruptive to play, so it's really a question of when and if they want to inconvenience visitors in order to satisfy my perfectionism.  (That, and when I can spare the time and the manpower to get back there and do the fixing.)  Luckily, I'm still in good standing with everyone involved, so there's a good chance it will happen eventually; but it's hard to justify when none of the customers are complaining about any of the things I want to change!

[Jud_T]

Sven,

Slumming it down under?

[Sven Nilsen]

Sven,

Slumming it down under?

Jud:

No dramas.  If by slumming you meant I was being a bludger, then no.  But if you meant meeting some new cobbers and sharing some amber fluid and durry after some good golf, then yes.  I hope I avoided getting cut snake, and I'm pretty sure I didn't lair it up or liquid vomit.  I'd recommend you get down there soon, but bring some extra grundies, you'll wet the ones your wearing when you see the courses.

Cheers,

Sven

[Scott Warren]

The second was a favourite of mine. I guess when you spend any decent time at Deal you come to love bunkerless greens that create sufficient interest and challenge through the land alone.

2, 6 and 17 at Barnbougle Dunes really appealed to me for that reason.

I agree with Kyle that the green makes the hole in this instance, but I think the flatter fairways (2, 6, 10) are crucial parts of making the course work, just to even out some of the drama at holes like 3, 4, 5, 8, 12, 13, 15 etc. To that end, while 2 might not immediately jump out as a star hole, I think its importance in the grander scheme of things is massive.

Can I point out for those who are not aware, that the hole maps Kyle is posting are from the course guide, which was compiled by Ogilvy Clayton Design associate (and GCAer) Mike Cocking, who also did the books at Kingston Heath and Yarra Yarra, among other courses (www.golfrenderings.com.au)

[Brett_Morrissy]

Scott,
The 17th has 2 bunkers around the green, one back left in the knob behind the green and the other centre right next to the hollow/bowl.

[Scott Warren]

Didn't see them! Initially I thought I must have been mixed up with 15, but an aerial reveals it has bunkers as well...

[John Mayhugh]

Nice start to the tour, Kyle (and Patrick).  The second green was one of my favorites, but I got more wallaby photos than green photos.

Any photos of the airstrip adjacent to the second fairway?

[George Pazin]

Very cool pic.

Thanks to both of you for sharing. It's interesting to see the contrast in photography styles as well as of course the pics of the course.

[George Pazin]

Guys,
I really like both opening holes, although I think they are near the weaker end of the 18. If you have a look at the course guide image of the second hole, you will notice some tree(s) out to the left, which frames the FW bunker, these were removed for the building of the runway for the small planes, I think this has certainly removed some framing and reference from the tee shot, and the land now just seems to run away up into the hills without any real defintion.

Do you like this or no?

No value attached, just curious. Me, I love lack of definition in general (haven't been to Barny yet).

[David Kelly]

One of my groups had a plane take off from that airstrip as we walked the hole.  The #2 green is very interesting.  In one of my matches my opponent and I were both on the back of the green in two with the pin way up front.  My opponent went first and proceeded to putt his ball off the green and into a bunker.  We halved the hole.

[Kyle Henderson]

Hole #3 overview


After a short walk into the dunes, the 3rd tee offers a glimpse of the next fairway –the green is hidden down the right side. Conservative players will select a 3-wood or long iron aimed at the left edge of the far bunker. On blustery days, prevailing winds come at the player from the right and may force golfers to curl drives over the starboard dunes.


A prominent ridge bisects the fairway up ahead. Approaches played from left of this crest will have difficulty accessing left-side pin positions. Aggressive drives that carry the dune pictured on the right will yield birdie opportunities.


Along the right side, overly aggressive tee shots may be ensnared by this hidden fairway bunker or bushes.


The putting surface is quite narrow, though it widens a bit in the rear.


From behind the green, one has a good view of the flanking bunkers and the slopes guarding the front edge of the putting surface.

[Michael Goldstein]

Brilliant hole.  I'm really going to enjoy these photos - particularly the front 9. 

[Scott Warren]

Good adition of the bottom pic, Kyle. really shows how much lower that left-hand shelf is.

One of the 5-6 brilliant Doak/Clayton short par fours I played that week.

[Michael Taylor]

I felt the first hole to be a great starter. It really eased you into the round which I like, and provided options for the 2nd and 3rd shots.

The second hole I thought to be a very solid hole. I really liked the green as it placed a premium on hitting a solid tee shot, and it gave you plenty of recovery options if you missed the green.

The 3rd has a really clever green. Hit it down the right and have a nice shot along the length of the green, or bail out left and be left with a more difficult shot from the lower section of the fairway, having to hit across a bunker, but with the option of playing a running shot up to the green and bringing it off the bank on the RHS of the green.

Scott,

What were your favorite and least favorite holes at BD?

[Brett_Morrissy]

Guys,
I really like both opening holes, although I think they are near the weaker end of the 18. If you have a look at the course guide image of the second hole, you will notice some tree(s) out to the left, which frames the FW bunker, these were removed for the building of the runway for the small planes, I think this has certainly removed some framing and reference from the tee shot, and the land now just seems to run away up into the hills without any real defintion.

Do you like this or no?

No value attached, just curious. Me, I love lack of definition in general (haven't been to Barny yet).

George, usually the definitions are ok for me, in this aspect I particularly liked the hidden mowing lines at Old Mac removing some perspective.
But, for this hole - it once had some definition, and that has been removed, so I prefer the previous, and also in particular to this hole (and perhaps with 10, but less so), it is the land on the farmland side of the links to the dunes, and is mediocre in this sense, the golf hole seems of less consequence becuase it almost disappears in the foreground before the surrounding hills, I do not think this adds to the hole in any way. It also doesn't help that I know what is around the next bend...

[Brett_Morrissy]

One of my groups had a plane take off from that airstrip as we walked the hole.  The #2 green is very interesting.  In one of my matches my opponent and I were both on the back of the green in two with the pin way up front.  My opponent went first and proceeded to putt his ball off the green and into a bunker.  We halved the hole.

DK - I think he may have putted into the left bunker of 3? (no bunkers on 2), and the pin position on the Sat I think was up near the front left, so a putt back up the slope could have reasonable gone into that bunker?

[Brett_Morrissy]

The putting surface is quite narrow, though it widens a bit in the rear.


From behind the green, one has a good view of the flanking bunkers and the slopes guarding the front edge of the putting surface.

I love this hole, I usually take a 3w & 5w/3i up to the tee box, always aiming to finish on the 'high road', and these will usually give me about 110-80m to the centre of the green. into a bit of breeze will certainly get the heart pumping, as anything with a slight cut will bring all the trouble on the right into play and potential for a lost ball, and anything left will make for a very tough shot into this fantastic green complex. The intriguing and most challenging part, exemplefied with the front pin position on Friday, from the preferred angle of the high road, the shot into that pin must be very well executed, or it will usually run all the way down the back, becuase the entire green centres around a small ridge/knob just short of the green that kicks everything away, anything short will go left or right, so stopping a wedge on a green sloping away from you is very difficult, trying to run a ball in is also a minefield, as Pup says, from down on the left is less troublesome off the tee, but the shot in is over everything, the front section is very narrow between the two bunkers, so bail out is to the back, with challenging putts to follow - a great green site maketh the hole.

the other great thing about this hole is the tee area, because as you climb the hill from the 2nd, you realise you reach a crest and on the other side is the end of the 6th - further enhancing your anticipation...

[Tom_Doak]

One of my groups had a plane take off from that airstrip as we walked the hole.  The #2 green is very interesting.  In one of my matches my opponent and I were both on the back of the green in two with the pin way up front.  My opponent went first and proceeded to putt his ball off the green and into a bunker.  We halved the hole.

DK - I think he may have putted into the left bunker of 3? (no bunkers on 2), and the pin position on the Sat I think was up near the front left, so a putt back up the slope could have reasonable gone into that bunker?

I wondered about this ... I won't take the blame for a guy putting into a bunker when the nearest bunker is 100 yards from the green!

[David Kelly]

One of my groups had a plane take off from that airstrip as we walked the hole.  The #2 green is very interesting.  In one of my matches my opponent and I were both on the back of the green in two with the pin way up front.  My opponent went first and proceeded to putt his ball off the green and into a bunker.  We halved the hole.

DK - I think he may have putted into the left bunker of 3? (no bunkers on 2), and the pin position on the Sat I think was up near the front left, so a putt back up the slope could have reasonable gone into that bunker?

I wondered about this ... I won't take the blame for a guy putting into a bunker when the nearest bunker is 100 yards from the green!

Yes it was obviously #3, my mistake.  Looking at the green we were back right and he putted into the left side bunker.  #3 really is an awesome green.

[Bill Brightly]

I thought the third was a great hole, superbly conceived. The first time I played it I took what seemed like a safe line: 3-wood down the left side. I pulled it, but thought I was fine due the great fairway width. When I got to the ball, I realized that I had to fully take on the front left greenside bunker with a full gap wedge. To me, this shot typifies the beauty and challenge of links golf. Back home on plush fairways and soft greens, I would have comfortably played past the pin and hoped to back the ball up. I would just take that bunker out of play. But off of a tight fairway and into a hard green, I had to hit a near perfect distance to hold the green. I bailed out right, into the right bunker, and made bogey.

The next time I hit an aggressive faded driver down the right side (a shot that is really uncomfortable when you view the hole from the tee) and was rewarded with a clear view of the hole and a safe par.

[Carl Rogers]

A little description of turf conditions and grass variety, please.  It looks a bit crusty and dry ... is that typical? 

Thanks.

[Bill Brightly]

A little description of turf conditions and grass variety, please.  It looks a bit crusty and dry ... is that typical?  

Thanks.

Carl,

The conditions were definitely fast and firm, but not quite as "hard-packed" as some links courses that I have played. To be honest, I find the really hard-packed links courses just too hard to play (I thought this several times at Pac Dunes and some other links courses in Ireland.) I thought Barnbougle Dunes was perfect, just a tad softer, a tad more grass under the ball,  so that you felt somewhat comfortable playing wedges from inside 100 yards.

The greens rolled really well. They were firm but well-struck shots held. The greens were certainly not plush by US parkland standards, but you wouldn't want them to be plush.

I'm sure the fairways and greens were fescue. The marron grass was cut back far more at BD than at Lost Farm, so you at least had a prayer of finding a wayward shot.