What's so great about Dornoch?

[Ally Mcintosh]

The run-up shot is alive and well at Dornoch but it is a matter of degrees and I think that is what Niall is getting at.


Dornoch certainly encourages a running approach less than many links courses that are full of grade level greens. But the land before the front rise at a lot of greens at Dornoch is consistent (I.e. flattish) and therefore there is a relatively high percentage outcome for players to land the ball short with one bounce and let it hop up.


In that way, it sits somewhere in the middle of ground game links courses. Some of our most beloved, rambunctious courses sit near the bottom: the ground running shots at these courses are great to look at and I play them often until I find myself in a medal where mysteriously, I find myself going aerial on a lot more occasions.

[Sean_A]

Sean

 I couldn't put a number on it but for me, and it's purely subjective, it's a definite minus for the course. Not that having a carry/aerial shot is hugely bad in itself but for me at Dornoch it is overdone and in some instances not done very well. Variety counts for a lot and I feel a lot of the time you are having to pitch up at RDGC.

Niall

I understand your PoV because it seems clear to me that a great many holes favour an aerial approach even if the ground option is possible.  Yet, I do think there is plenty of variety.  It is easy to pick at Dornoch because it is hailed as one of the great courses on the planet, even so, in relative terms to other GB&I courses there are few that I think are clearly better....and that could change if I knew Dornoch better. I guess the bottom line for me is Dornoch is comfortably good enough to be in the conversation of best courses in GB&I and that is what really matters if quality is the end game. 

Ciao

[Niall C]

Niall -

The only holes at Dornoch where one cannot hit a run-up shot on to the green are the short par-4 fifth and the par-3 tenth and thirteenth.

DT

David


Yes you can run a ball up and onto the greens at the 3rd, 4th, 6th, 9th, 14th, 15th and 17th but at the risk of sounding facetious you can also jump out of a plane at 10,000 feet without a parachute, but why would you ? I appreciate that the decision whether to go aerial or bump it in will depend on not only where you are playing from, what's in front of you but also your ability to get the ball in the air. I suspect that for perhaps most golfers a lot of the time they will be taking the aerial route on most if not all of the holes listed.


Also to retell a story as told by our late friend, the Laird of Aberdour, he was playing a match in the Carnegie and it went to extra holes. They got to the third and Rich hit a poor shot in but got on the green whereas his opponent had a fine strike. When they got on the green Rich was lying stiff and his opponent was 10 yards beyond. What neither had seen or been able to tell was that the greenkeeper had moved the hole since they had played it first time round !


Sean - as I like to say you just enjoy the lesser courses, putting up with their "foibles" and marveling at their good points whereas top courses or courses that aspire to be top courses should be judged. For sure Dornoch comes into the latter category, and is a very good course and I do enjoy it but for me it wouldn't be in the conversation for top course GB&I.


Niall

[Niall C]

Lou


Interesting comment about RDGC and playability from the normal tees. I think that's one aspect about a lot of older traditional courses over here, especially links (excluding courses set up with narrow fairways and heavy vegetation at the sides) is that by and large a lot of the hazards/bunkers are flanking hazards with tee to green being like one long landing strip as opposed to the idea of set landing areas of going from point A to point B to point C. That cuts down the need to have multiple tees that are chopped and changed depending on the weather.


Niall

[David_Tepper]

"Yes you can run a ball up and onto the greens at the 3rd, 4th, 6th, 9th, 14th, 15th and 17th but at the risk of sounding facetious you can also jump out of a plane at 10,000 feet without a parachute, but why would you ?"


Niall -

Speaking from my experience (and limited abilities), I routinely attempt to run up my 2nd shots on #3, #4 and #17 greens. I often attempt to run my 2nd shot on to the 15th green and I usually attempt to run my 3rd shot ( ) on to the green on #14. I almost always play short of the 6th green and hope the ball bounces up the slope on to the green. If it does not, I am happy to chip or putt the ball on to that green.


If I could hit the ball long, high & with backspin no doubt I would play aerial shots instead. As Jack Nicklaus has said, "there are no bad bounces in the sky."

DT