... under Architecture Timeline and Courses by Country.
The latest edition of
The Confidential Guide rolled off the press in October. Tragically, the very next course I saw was one that I had misjudged.
I should have given Sunningdale’s Old Course a ‘9.’ My blunder is in part due to all the fine work done there since my original visit. Based on its superior topography and how both Park and Colt capitalized on that, it gets my vote for best heathland course.
The original Sunningdale course occupies a unique spot in history. No other inland course was built with the gutta in mind, transformed quickly and smartly when the Haskell arrived and still hosts major televised events. Name another. Walton Heath was the first big course built for the Haskell and Oakmont came along at that time too. I considered The Country Club in Brookline but it has been drastically altered from its origins. Several links have successfully spanned the different eras but for inland courses, the first course at Sunningdale stands alone.
The golf ball - much more than clubs – has been the major disruptive force that has transformed the game. How did Sunningdale transcend the pitfalls that diminished other inland courses? No waterfalls here!
Credit must go to a slew of people. There is Willie Park Jr. who built an unusually muscular course for 1899. Think about the back-to-back forced carries on both shots at his 6th and 7th holes. As the Haskell came into vogue, so began Colt’s tenure as Club Secretary. He was the first in a long line of distinguished gentlemen who have steered Sunningdale in the right direction ever since. For the definitive take on its club history, please peruse
The Sunningdale Story by past Club Secretary Guy Bennett, with updates by current club historian, John Churchill. You can find it under our Best of Golf section/Club Histories.
Dogs and golf and the twelfth: Sunningdale does it best.For me, the brilliance of The Old is its sterling collection of par 4s. Go through them (these days, they commence with the second) and you’ll encounter a remarkably diverse assemblage from tiny ones (e.g. 3 and 11) to the monsters (e.g. 10 and 12). Overall, Sunningdale’s two shotters surely belong in the world top 10, yes? You know the others (Royal Melbourne West, Pine Valley, NGLA, Merion, Oakmont, et al). Some of those (RM West, Oakmont) feature more severe greens but, for me, it’s the balance of Sunningdale’s challenge without favoring any single aspect of the game that resonates. Sunningdale Old is beautifully proportioned.
While there’s gloom and doom about private club life in North America these days, Sunningdale members appear ‘in on a secret’ and seem to have more fun. There is an energy and vibe here that is unmatched in my experience. The Brits do many things better than the rest of the world - murder mysteries, state funerals, secret agents, breakfast and … Sunningdale Golf Club.
Best,