Finally got my pictures off my camera & uploaded onto the photobucket. I played St Andrews in April, and after golf one day we took a spin up to see the Castle Course. Bar RCD I have never been as impressed with a course. We actually walked every hole backwards, green to tee. It was pretty neat because there were no flags/markers & you just had to figure out the holes for yourself. I had seen 17 as a par 3 beforehand & knew 9/18 was a double green. I can not wait to play it - though it is a tad expensive!
17 is a long par 3 on the cliff face. What I liked about it was there is a bail-out left & there is the possibility of getting a kick forward onto the green from short left. Green is really fun, with lots of swales & dips, but a generous target for such a long shot.
This picture is taken from the front left of the green & gives you an idea of the contours & also the size of the green.
This is taken from over the green - the bunkers were real "natural" looking & seemed to just appear where nature intended them to. (I realise this is all false since the course was 100% constructed out of farmland!) But you can see how the front of the green is higher, making it possible to run the shot onto the green.
I think this is take from the front of the 18th tee box. One thing I noticed about the entire course is the huge amount of teeing ground. I am still undecided as to whether this is a good thing or not - it wasnt a rare occurrence to have 5 separate possibilities. That said, each one was nicely situated so as to be as unobtrusive as possible - no RTJ Runway Tees for DMK! You will also notice the amount of bunkers and how it totally dominates your vision. A lot of visual intimidation, but the landing areas & widths of fairways are actually very generous.
This is taken from just short right to try and highlight the size of the green (double) and the rise up to the putting surface. Did not really do a good job of either but for completion's sake I will include it.
This picture is taken from the 9th fairway, around 200 yards out. You get a better idea of the size of the green & the angles in play. Really cool feature IMHO.
Random Green, I think its the 7th or 8th with the Old Town in the background. The views really are something else - at Pacific Dunes the Ocean is great and everything, but here you have the height of the cliffs, the ocean, AND the Home of Golf to appreciate!
Next up is a really cool green complex. No bunkers, but a blast to play I'd imagine. I guess you could call it a "Punchbowl" in the weaker sense of the term. I think its the 5th hole but my memory is hazy! First pic is take from just in front, and the next from beyond and left of the green.
The next hole had the most intimidating drive/second shot I have ever seen. I am not 100% on the yardages but there is the ridge you must carry. The day I walked it, it was playing into a 25 mph wind - an awful lot of trust would be involved in going for the green here. Again though - the fairway is really wide, and the green nestled up against the edge of the course. This was one of the few bunkers that weren't perfect / playable over 2 months before opening.
You can see in the pic that its a kind of "skyline fairway" and there is NOTHING to aim at save the ocean. Fun!
Greent, from front left:
Next pic is off the par 3, early in the round - I think the 2nd & gives you some notion of the wildness of the greens.
And finally this is from the front left of the 16th, a par 5 I think.
All in all - this is definitely going to be a must play on any trip to TOC. Interestingly enough the locals say that it will be VERY windy up there on the cliff face, much moreso than at TOC.
Thoughts? Anyone lucky enough to play it yet?
Patrick