ALWOODLEY Again: 2016-17 Winter Tour

[Thomas Dai]

Jon,

Thanks for this detail. So the rig and furrow would have been there before the land became a golf course?

All the best

[Jon Wiggett]

Jon,

Thanks for this detail. So the rig and furrow would have been there before the land became a golf course?

Yes. There are many courses in the Leeds area with this feature. Must be fun for the greenkeeper cutting the fairways

Jon

[Sean_A]

Jon,

Thanks for this detail. So the rig and furrow would have been there before the land became a golf course?

All the best

Thomas

The rig & furrow is a interesting feature which helps make up for the lack of little undulations like we would find on some links.  Its very easy for a ball to hit a rig and deflect into the rubbish thus emulating some of the odd bounces sometimes found on links.  

Boony

No, I was thinking of the short par three 10th, though the 9th is a good par 5.

Ciao

[Mark Pearce]

Isn't the rig and furrow mostly at right angles to the direction of play, so that it effects whether the ball takes a stopping bounce or gets a kick forward but doesn't really kick the ball sideways?

We have some vestigial rig and furrow shaping left at Northumberland.  Interestingly there, Colt was brave and let the rig and furrow carry on through on the 6th green, which Mackenzie didn't do at Alwoodley.

[Sean_A]

Mark

I think there is enough angle off of 90 to increase deflections here and there - somewhat like a kick going with a slope or spin, but exaggerated.  I watched Boony's ball kick a quite a distance into the shiza on the 3rd.  If the land were flatish I think the ball would have held up.  Same thing happened to me on the 17th when if anything the land moves the opposite direction.  My ball took a huge kick right into the shiza.  I am not complaining, just saying its possible and the course is better for the odd freak bounce.



Ciao

[Sean_A]

It is always a pleasure to return to courses.  This time I played with a high capper and a low capper, both struggled (as did I) with the horrendous rough.  Some photos reveal very lush rough mixed in with heather. An extra 10 yards of fairway would be very welcome if missing the short stuff is to be so penal...more in tune with Dr Mac's original fairway lines.  Anyway, I still really enjoy Alwoodley.  Its still amazing this was Dr Mac's first design.  See the updated tour on page 1.

Ciao

[Michael Goldstein]

Great tour Sean.
It looks like they need to mow the fairways more than 3 times per year nowadays...

[MCirba]

Thanks for the update, Sean.  Alwoodley looks terrific and if I wasn't already greatly anticipating a visit there next month your pictures have me captivated.

[Sean_A]

Great tour Sean.
It looks like they need to mow the fairways more than 3 times per year nowadays...

Michael

I am not sure what is going on...maybe just a bad year weatherwise.  However, it does seem like much of the heather is invaded by lush under-rough and some heather is too high.  To a man I spoke with for the event (which included many archies), all could not fathom why the club would allow the rough to be in that condition with fairways of that width. 

Mike

Please report back after your trip.  Where else are you playing?

Ciao

[Jon Wiggett]

Sean,

was there still any heather in the fairway sward?

Jon

[Jeff Bergeron]

Fantastic my man!

[Sean_A]

Sean,

was there still any heather in the fairway sward?

Jon

Jon

With my neck getting red in the rough I didn't notice if there was heather in the fairways...I wouldn't be surprised if there was though.

Cheers Berg

Ciao 

[MCirba]

Sean,

I'll be doing a bit of a whirlwind tour with another GCA'er as I play my 1000th golf course.   For largely sentimental reasons, I've chosen Muirfield to be my 1000th and I probably could have picked something easier to set up but it's looking pretty good overall.

We'll be flying into Manchester and playing Alwoodley on the way to Edinburgh as course 999.   Then Muirfield on Thursday the 22nd as course 1000.   

Friday early we'll be playing the Renaissance Club, hopefully followed by Gullane #1 and sunset at Musselburgh Old before driving back to England.

We're staying at the Dormie House at Royal Lytham, which we're playing Saturday morning, followed by Fairhaven and flying home the next morning.   As you might imagine, I'm very excited.

[Sean_A]

The 2016-17 Winter Tour stopped at Alwoodley....there is some good news and some bad news.  First, the good news. The club has been quite busy since my last visit. Lots of trees have been removed which has opened up views.  For example, behind the 10th is more open to views beyond.  The 12th tee has trees cleared right which now offers a lovely view of the 9th.  I was very surprised trees were not cut near the 11th green.  This is the one green which stands out as cluttered with trees.  The club also cut back a lot of heather, gorse and rough in an effort to make the course more playable and eliminate disease.  It is especially noticeable left of the 3rd fairway.  Its difficult to determine the results playing in March, but I am hopeful.  Now, the bad news. One of the more distinctive greens, the 15th, has been neutered for the sake of more hole locations when big boys come to town...which in truth is nearly always very minor amateur events. The result is the back left bowl is now no longer 

See the slightly updated tour on page 1.
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,48951.msg1105392.html#msg1105392

Previous stops on The Tour:

Luffenham Heath
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,63819.0.html

Celtic Manor 2010
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,63796.0.html

Kington
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,30926.0.html 

Welshpool
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,63739.0.html

Northamptonshire Co
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,41336.msg1520020.html#msg1520020

Enville Highgate
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,44866.msg979077.html#msg979077

Cleeve Cloud
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,49796.msg1128469.html#msg1128469

Seaton Carew Bishop Course
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,64112.0.html

Goswick
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,64104.msg1527538.html#msg1527538

Huntercombe
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,32228.0.html

Reigate Heath
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,64197.0.html

Princes
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,44965.0.html

Deal
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,44965.0.html

Future Scheduled Stops

Dunbar

Ciao

[David Davis]

Interesting tour and very timely for me. I will have my first play at Alwoodley mid April. Looking forward to it. I guess I won't miss the back bowl having never seen it.

[Bill_McBride]

Sean,

I'll be doing a bit of a whirlwind tour with another GCA'er as I play my 1000th golf course.   For largely sentimental reasons, I've chosen Muirfield to be my 1000th and I probably could have picked something easier to set up but it's looking pretty good overall.

We'll be flying into Manchester and playing Alwoodley on the way to Edinburgh as course 999.   Then Muirfield on Thursday the 22nd as course 1000.   

Friday early we'll be playing the Renaissance Club, hopefully followed by Gullane #1 and sunset at Musselburgh Old before driving back to England.

We're staying at the Dormie House at Royal Lytham, which we're playing Saturday morning, followed by Fairhaven and flying home the next morning.   As you might imagine, I'm very excited.

Sean,

I'll be doing a bit of a whirlwind tour with another GCA'er as I play my 1000th golf course.   For largely sentimental reasons, I've chosen Muirfield to be my 1000th and I probably could have picked something easier to set up but it's looking pretty good overall.

We'll be flying into Manchester and playing Alwoodley on the way to Edinburgh as course 999.   Then Muirfield on Thursday the 22nd as course 1000.   

Friday early we'll be playing the Renaissance Club, hopefully followed by Gullane #1 and sunset at Musselburgh Old before driving back to England.

We're staying at the Dormie House at Royal Lytham, which we're playing Saturday morning, followed by Fairhaven and flying home the next morning.   As you might imagine, I'm very excited.

North Berwick?

[James Bennett]

Uncle Bill

That post was from September 2015!

Good choice all the same.

[Frank Pont]

Hope they surveyed the original 15th green before they changed it, probably not......

[Sean_A]

Frank

What does it cost to survey a green?

Ciao