15 Rounds, 1 Scottish, Welsh, or Irish Links (ie NO English)

[Adam Lawrence]

Mark,

Out of interest, when you had your time at Westward Ho!/RND did you get bored with just playing the same course or did you slip away and play somewhere else?

atb

PS - nice WH!/RND photo on the 2014 photo of the year thread.

Hi Thomas,

Nope, didn't veer off to any other courses. I fell far short of the 15 round goal though -- mostly because #1 son claimed battle fatigue. 

I continue to daydream about the course regularly. I am obsessed with the 10th. I am wrapped around its finger.

Ally, it's funny you mention Ljunghusen -- the night before your post I had researched it.

#2 son now has brought his mother into the argument and they are insisting on going someplace where English isn't spoken. Has anyone played Lofoten? 

Yes, and when the full 18 is finished next year it will be a fantastic destination. But the Norwegians speak better English than most of us do!

[Tony_Muldoon]

For a family destination with Golf it's very hard to top Biarritz.

Chiberta is part links and the rest tend to have pines, Hossegor looks like a Heathland.  However the French do seem to like their courses green (Chiberta was the exception).


http://www.golfpassbiarritz.com/

[Thomas Dai]

Mark,
Out of interest, when you had your time at Westward Ho!/RND did you get bored with just playing the same course or did you slip away and play somewhere else?
atb
PS - nice WH!/RND photo on the 2014 photo of the year thread.

Hi Thomas,
Nope, didn't veer off to any other courses. I fell far short of the 15 round goal though -- mostly because #1 son claimed battle fatigue. 
I continue to daydream about the course regularly. I am obsessed with the 10th. I am wrapped around its finger.
Ally, it's funny you mention Ljunghusen -- the night before your post I had researched it.
#2 son now has brought his mother into the argument and they are insisting on going someplace where English isn't spoken. Has anyone played Lofoten? 

Aberdovey Golf Club then, or Clwb Golff Aberdyfi to the native non-English speakers!

and just for you here are some of the boys having a sing-song in Welsh - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AM4mIlYKG9s



atb

[Ed Tilley]

#2 son now has brought his mother into the argument and they are insisting on going someplace where English isn't spoken. Has anyone played Lofoten? 

Have you thought about Glasgow? I can't understand a word anyone says there. I would have said Liverpool but that's obviously in England so disqualified.

[Adam Lawrence]

#2 son now has brought his mother into the argument and they are insisting on going someplace where English isn't spoken. Has anyone played Lofoten? 

Have you thought about Glasgow? I can't understand a word anyone says there. I would have said Liverpool but that's obviously in England so disqualified.

Glasgow is easy if you do a bit of practice beforehand. You just have to do it with a few episodes of Rab C Nesbitt rather than Rosetta Stone

[Ally Mcintosh]

To be honest, I think one of the three Dutch links could work wonders... But I'd say there's no chance in that elusive o/seas membership.

[Niall C]

Strange thing is English golf is unheard of outside of GCA. Most Americans I've met in Scotland look at you like you've just threatened to eat their dog if you suggest golfing in England.

This is exactly how we want it. So far in my research I have discovered that quality Scottish and Irish courses are possibly the least-accessible (in the broadest definition of that term) of any market I've experienced in the world.

Mark

That might hold true if you restrict your choice to the usual suspects of Open rota and A list tourist courses like Prestwick, Dornoch and Cruden Bay, however there are quality courses outwith that list that are readily accessible, much less expensive and in some cases offer golf that is as good if not better than those on the A list.

Rans recent discovery of Fraserburgh is a case in point. I posted earlier about Moray GC at Lossiemouth and let me tell you that in my view Moray Old is certainly as good as Fraserburgh and probably better. Both courses are easy to access and offer great value for money. It's there if you are prepared to go off the beaten path.

Niall

[Rich Goodale]

Mark B

Staying for a week and keeping up the social interests of a teenager eliminates most places that meet the value-for-money hurdle.  Forget about any place north of Dundee except for Aberdeen (this eliminates Lossiemouth, Montrose, Tain, Dornoch, Golspie, Brora and Askernish).  Elie is the best posibility raised so far (although I doubt that the social life will interesting unless you go in July or August, when access might be limited).  Let me offer three alrnatives, of which I know a bit or two:

1.  Monifieth.  Excellent links course, which has been dramatically improved through recent conifer removal.  Sporty 2nd 18 hole course.  £220 annual country membership fee.  Adjacent to Broughty Ferry which has a vibrant night life all year round.  Close to Dundee (University town, and rapidly improving downtown night-life and culture).

2.  Murcar.  Superb links course.  Sporty 9-hole "ladies" course/2nd course.  Adjacent to Aberdeen which is a University town.  Overseas memberships available, but you need to contact them directly to find out the price.

3.  Ballyliffin.  One superb and one over-rated links course.  Overseas memberships available, but you need to contact them directly to find out the price.  No nearby cities, but this is Ireland, so social life is all out of proportion to the reported size of the population.

All three of these places also offer separate dialects of the English accent which gets more and more understandable after several pints of beer and/or several shots of whisky.

Slainte

Rich

[Mark Bourgeois]

Thanks Rich ! Have not researched these but will get on it.

[Rich Goodale]

Thanks Rich ! Have not researched these but will get on it.

Nae problemo, Mark.  BTW, when I say "overseas" memberships I should have said "country" memberships which usuually means 200+ miles from the course.  Some places (including Ballyliffin) have actual "Overseas" memberships which are extortionate in price.  AVoid them at all costs unless you really fall in love with the place, or have more money than sense.

rfg

[Mark Bourgeois]

Thanks for the advice. I suspect a lot of those overseas memberships get inked by Americans around midnight in a pub. 

[Thomas Dai]

The further north you go the more daylight you'll get in the summer so you'll get more potential golf time for your $$$$, and Cruden Bay, to name just one example, in a late summer evening is bliss. I wonder if the wooden huts/lodges on the bluff above the 1st fairway at CB can be hired? A friend owned one and for 3-4 months of the year lived in it, and sitting on the porch of an evening was just delightful. One of the greatest views in golf from your own porch. Not quite so nice when the haar/sea mist rolls in though.

Atb

[Niall C]

Yes Thomas, but according to Rich there's no social life for teenagers north of Murcar 

Niall

[Rich Goodale]

Yes Thomas, but according to Rich there's no social life for teenagers north of Murcar 

Niall

Yes Niall, there is a social life for youngsters in the Highlands, but it is brutish, nasty and short.  For us geezers, a friendly pub where the probability is close to 0% that you won't be head-butted, puked upon or glassed is as close to 0% as possible, is what we are looking for.  At least me, if nobody else.

[Mark Bourgeois]

So I've committed to...Ireland, buying r/t air to Dublin. It's down to two courses. I've heard from one, waiting on the other then will decide.

The thing that tipped Ireland was...surfing!

[Thomas Dai]

Yes Thomas, but according to Rich there's no social life for teenagers north of Murcar 
Niall

Yes Niall, there is a social life for youngsters in the Highlands, but it is brutish, nasty and short.  For us geezers, a friendly pub where the probability is close to 0% that you won't be head-butted, puked upon or glassed is as close to 0% as possible, is what we are looking for.  At least me, if nobody else.

We're too soft on teenagers these days. They should be on the practice ground until after dark...or they could be learn to speak Doric and then venture out in search of native company at friendly gathering spots, of which I'm sure there are some interesting ones in and around the Broch and the Bloo Toon!



atb

[Ally Mcintosh]

So I've committed to...Ireland, buying r/t air to Dublin. It's down to two courses. I've heard from one, waiting on the other then will decide.

The thing that tipped Ireland was...surfing!

This is very sensible. A surfing and golf holiday is about as good for the soul as it gets.

I might be offended if you don't let me take you out at Portmarnock on the way west though...

[Mark Bourgeois]

oooo...one of HW Wind's 4 greatest links. We might just have to find a way to make that work. Sending a PM.

[Tony_Muldoon]

So I've committed to...Ireland, buying r/t air to Dublin. It's down to two courses. I've heard from one, waiting on the other then will decide.

The thing that tipped Ireland was...surfing!

Ok so it depends on the weather but here's Muldoon's guide to the surf/golf combo (obvioulsy still a work in progress)

Lahinch             definitely an 8 and you can change in the club car park  If the town of Lahinch is the St Andrews of Ireland, it's also the North Shore.
Bundoran         whilst the surf was only a 7 on the day I was last there it does have a world class reputation, whcih cannot be said for the course.
Porstewart        both the course and the surf are 6
Portrush            7
North Berwick   9 An east wind was blowing and it was wild, but you do feel safe as the only one out on the West Beach  (nb this is a  connoisseur's experience due to the rarity of the conditions being right)
Pennard and Rhossili beach,  9  OK it was back when I was doing Canoe Surfing, but it's a tough combo to beat
Saunton           Surfing excellent, courses solid      7
Biarritz             8 Courses OK but surfing amazing and you won't need a wetsuit (a big plus IMO) It's where the sport started in Europe!
St Enedoc        0   I had my body board at the recent BUDA but the sea did not play ball!

Thanks for the memories. I wish you luck with the right weather conditions.

[Ed Tilley]

So I've committed to...Ireland, buying r/t air to Dublin. It's down to two courses. I've heard from one, waiting on the other then will decide.

The thing that tipped Ireland was...surfing!

Ok so it depends on the weather but here's Muldoon's guide to the surf/golf combo (obvioulsy still a work in progress)

Lahinch             definitely an 8 and you can change in the club car park  If the town of Lahinch is the St Andrews of Ireland, it's also the North Shore.
Bundoran         whilst the surf was only a 7 on the day I was last there it does have a world class reputation, whcih cannot be said for the course.
Porstewart        both the course and the surf are 6
Portrush            7
North Berwick   9 An east wind was blowing and it was wild, but you do feel safe as the only one out on the West Beach  (nb this is a  connoisseur's experience due to the rarity of the conditions being right)
Pennard and Rhossili beach,  9  OK it was back when I was doing Canoe Surfing, but it's a tough combo to beat
Saunton           Surfing excellent, courses solid      7
Biarritz             8 Courses OK but surfing amazing and you won't need a wetsuit (a big plus IMO) It's where the sport started in Europe!
St Enedoc        0   I had my body board at the recent BUDA but the sea did not play ball!

Thanks for the memories. I wish you luck with the right weather conditions.

North Berwick 9 and Saunton 7. Lahinch 8.

Really? If you are looking at surfing ang golfing, and weighting each equally,  then that seems a bit ridiculous. The gap between Croyde or Saunton Sands as a surf venue compared to North Berwick is massively huge. The golf gap much less. In Britain, Saunton is the stand out surf / golf venue - first class surf and very good golf. If you include Ireland then Lahinch is the obvious choice - world class in both regards.

Much as I love the Gower, as I spent many childhood holidays there at my grandparents, it's a long way from Pennard to Rhossili - even if Rhossili is officially one of the 10 best beaches in the world!

[Tony_Muldoon]

Dear Ed

I suspect a publishing sensatin is in the offing "The Confidental Guide to Surfing and Golfing" by Ed adn Tony, where Pine Valley at last scores a 0.


My point is that Surfing is far more weather dependent than golf which is one of the reasons why I packed up Windsufring for Golf in the year 2000.

And yes, that one evening in Summer 2006 the break at North Berwick was awsome!

[Ally Mcintosh]

Lahinch and Croyde (Saunton) are clearly the two liveliest surf / golf crossover towns and villages...

Though there are a few others in Ireland I can think of... But those two really live and breathe surfing... And Lahinch does the same for golf... That's why Lahinch has such a special vibe...

[Mark Bourgeois]

So you read the surfing sites and it's like going down the rabbit hole. A lot of places associated with good surfing are names we associate with good golf, Lahinch being a great example. Literally a parallel universe -- or another string.

EDIT:

I wrote I'm down to two courses but then went back and reread everyone's posts and IMs regarding Ireland. I realized I had fallen victim to tunnel vision so am stepping back and reconsidering. The priorities in order are surf, golf, craic.

I'm making a new list.

[Ed Tilley]

If you're looking for somewhere to stay, this place is awesome, the best hotel I've ever stayed in - not in a posh way, just a fantastic, relaxed atmosphere.

http://www.watergatebay.co.uk

Halfway between perranporth and st. Enodoc. I know you excluded England but if surf is your priority, and you're going in summer, then it really is SW England or west Ireland as your  only options.

I'm booked in at Inch beach cottages for August next year based on Ally's recommendation. Taking the clubs but only really have time for 1, maybe 2 rounds so thinking Dooks. Anyone played Castlegregory?

[Ed Tilley]

Dear Ed

I suspect a publishing sensatin is in the offing "The Confidental Guide to Surfing and Golfing" by Ed adn Tony, where Pine Valley at last scores a 0.


My point is that Surfing is far more weather dependent than golf which is one of the reasons why I packed up Windsufring for Golf in the year 2000.

And yes, that one evening in Summer 2006 the break at North Berwick was awsome!

How about "Surf and Turf" as a working title?