Why Do None Of Our Brits Talk About Sheringham?

[Tommy_Naccarato]

Why has this course, seemingly one of the more dramatic clifftop courses in the world flown underneath the radar?

You Brits hiding this?

It's widely considered a short but tough course full of strategy. The par 4''s lengthy and abundant. Could the 11th be C.B. MacDonald's inspiration for the Short? How about Tom Fazio's inspiration for his addition to the 8th at a certain course at my darling in Clementine? (Nahhhhh!)

Rule Britannia!

[Mark_F]

What a disappointment.

I clicked on this thread thinking it was going to be about Teddy, and lo and behold it's not.

I would have said it is because he isn't the player he once was...

[Tommy_Naccarato]

Fergie,
 You mean to tell me those photos don't raise the desire to see such a dramatic looking golf course? Or in the very least, imagine the possibilites of restoring a lot of that native look?? Looks pretty impressive to me!

[Sean_A]

Naccers

What do you want to talk about?  I have played Sheringham.  The views are more special than the course, but the course isn't bad at all.  

Some reasons why GCA folk haven't seen Sheringham are:

1. The Norfolk coast is a bit isolated and therefore off the tourist trail.  I folks do make it over to Norfolk it is usually to play Hunstanton and/or Brancaster.  Though in all honesty, over toward Brancaster is one of my favourite bits of England.

2. Most GCA folk aren't interested in the 2nd or 3rd tier courses in GB&I so there is little point in bringing them up for discussion.  Watch when pictures of GB&I courses are posted.  If it isn't a well known or highly touted course by the Treehouse the thread will get far fewer hits.  


I think a trip which took in courses such as Worlington, Hunstanton, Brancaster, Sheringham, Cromer, Aldeburgh & Felixstowe (though I would probably reverse the order if one imagines himself starting from London or Stansted) would be wonderfully varied and not too costly.  There are loads of places to visit in this circle of Norfolk/Suffolk.  Cambridge, Ely, Burnham Mkt., Wells next the Sea and Southwold only scratch the surface.  

Ciao

[Mark Chaplin]

Judging by the pictures Teddy could have been a founder member!

I'm playing Sheringham in May as part of a 4 leg tour the others being RWN, Hunstanton (love it apart from the last when I doubled in the opening round of a big event for a 74) and RW&N. So I'll make my mind up on Sheringham then.

Sean - point 2 agreed, mind I bet us overseas folk are the same when we see Backyard National CC, any state you care to think of, is posted. However for those planning trips to the UK the 2nd & 3rd string courses are often great days out and a fraction of the price.

A couple of years ago we visited Prestwick, Brassie and Prestwick StN. We had a cracking days golf at each venue but PStN was pure fun. Needless to say we enjoyed the £155 saved by missing Royal Troon over a couple of special dinners with better wine.

[Brian_Ewen]

Sean
Could you still land in that position off the 4th tee ? .

Surely not in todays Health & Safety obsessed Britain ? .

Thanks for posting Tommy .
Brian

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

Tommy, thanks for the post and Sean thanks for the reminder of how deep great golf is in the UK.

[Tommy_Naccarato]

Arbs,
Listen, As a Brit your supposed to let us know of the "off-the-beaten-pathl" courses that DO in fact entertain us GCA folk. (cognescenti in Wardian terms) The same goes for Australia, Nambia, China and Bangledesh!

The problem for me is I needed to have be born a Rockefeller or a Rothschild to have the money and time to go play these wonderful palaces!

POST PICTURES!

[Sean_A]

Arbs,
Listen, As a Brit your supposed to let us know of the "off-the-beaten-pathl" courses that DO in fact entertain us GCA folk. (cognescenti in Wardian terms) The same goes for Australia, Nambia, China and Bangledesh!

The problem for me is I needed to have be born a Rockefeller or a Rothschild to have the money and time to go play these wonderful palaces!

POST PICTURES!

Naccers

Cut me some slack.  I'm livin hand to mouth over here.  However, I will solemly swear to uphold the Emperor's Picture Posting Pledge as soon as the pledge has been drafted.

Ciao

[Mark_Rowlinson]

I'm not sure you could play that shot any more, for the cliff is crumbling away.  They're particularly worried about a high tide coinciding with strong winds and currents (it's a dangerous beach - not safe for swimming) and losing enough of the cliff-top holes to put them out of action for good.  

I have sung the praises of Sheringham in the past.  I agree with Sean that probably the situation is 10 on an Arble Scale, the course perhaps 4 to 5.  There are some excellent holes, but a number a rather ordinary.  In that respect it is not unlike Nefyn, though not quite as quirky, both courses suffering from erosion.

In any East Anglian excursion I should also recommend, Woodbridge (heathland) and Ipswich (heathland).  I'm not enormously enamoured of Royal Cromer, although the late holes up by the lighthouse are fun.  Royal Norwich and Eaton are well-respected parkland courses.  I love Thetford (heathland), and there are other courses woth playing if you happen to be in the area such as Thorpeness and Rushmere.  If you play Royal Worlington (which you should) you should also play Gog Magog, so that you have experienced both the Cambridge undergraduate golfing homes.  

There, Tommy, a few more recommendations from the backwoods - and, if there are any GCA folk who like woodland courses, have a look at King's Lynn.  

[Mark_F]

Tommy,

Those photos do indeed raise the desire to see the course.

Despite Sean's opinion otherwise, I quite like going to the 2nd and 3rd tier courses in the UK, and that particular area of England is one I look forward to seeing.

You have just made sure i do>

[Rich Goodale]

I played Sheringham on Wednesday (supposed to play on Thrusday too, but we got fogged off.  Bummer....) and it is a delightful and challenging course.  As far as i know, no more holes have been lost to Mother Nature since the Emperor made his original post, and in fact none of the remaining holes seems to be in danger of falling into the sea, so as they used to say in US commericals ifor flights to Florida in the 70's, "Come on Down!"

The first looks simple on the card (321) but for those interested in strategery the drive must be placed close to serious trouble on the left and the approach is severely uphill.  One of the good-golfer guys in the tunamint I was playing in had a 12 on this hole.......

2 is a 5 with a lot of features which make it unreachable for all but the high-launch-angle players of the world.  3 requries two seriously good uphill shots to a severely right to left green.  Let's pause for a moment....

....driving from Scotland (or any other civilised part of the world) to Norfolk require mucho motorway miles and then mucho miles through endless mudflats/bird sanctuaries until you approach the coast.  Then, the land rises to seriously weird peaks and valleys that eventuallly rise to peakdom and then fall into the sea.  This geomorphological anomaly makes Sheringham (and can I say, Brancaster, Hunstanton and Royal Cromer too?) the golfing gem that it/they is/are.

4-7 run along the coast but the North Sea is never in play.  Instead, you have a marvellous sequence of 325, 456. 211, 521 which stand by themselves as great golf holes, and then you turn inland and after significant challenges (particularly the last three holes up against the railway line) you are back in the clubhose for a well deserved pint.

Sheringham is a course that I shall return to.

Rich