SUNNINGDALE'S Certain Something: THE OLD COURSE

[Mark Pearce]

Of all the courses I see pictures of on this site, Sunningdale is the one where those pictures most compel me to arrange a game there.  Beautiful.  Thanks, Sean.

[Mark Chaplin]

Mark - join the emergency service or clergy, Sunningdale offers a generous discount! £85 Old Course, £60 New.

[Tony_Muldoon]

I'd be interested in pencilling in a day next March if anyone would care to join me?
Must be nearly a decade since I played there and yet I can recall so many of these holes with absolute clarity. Much of what’s happened since, is now a blur. Never seen a better 36 hole complex.


http://www.sunningdale-golfclub.co.uk/greenfees

[Duncan Cheslett]

It'd have to be late March to get 36 holes in comfortably; unfortunately the clocks don't go forward until March 31st next year.

But yes, I'd be interested. These photos look fabulous.

[Dan Moore]

I'd be interested in pencilling in a day next March if anyone would care to join me?
Must be nearly a decade since I played there and yet I can recall so many of these holes with absolute clarity. Much of what’s happened since, is now a blur. Never seen a better 36 hole complex.


http://www.sunningdale-golfclub.co.uk/greenfees

Tony,

I am probably going to be over for the Brassey Easter weekend (3/28-31/13) festivities so would definitely be interested in 36 at Sunningdale before or after. 

[Mark Pearce]

Tony,

Looks good to me, if we can agree a date.

[Mark Chaplin]

Dan - that's great news look forward to catching up. Are you in Scottsdale late Feb/early March? Nicky and I are planning a few days at Whisper Rock, then non-golfing in Las Vegas and San Francisco.

[Dan Moore]

Mark, 

I'll be at Desert Forest March 7th to the 17th for the club championship.  Did you get to enjoy Deal week? 

Dan

[Brett_Morrissy]

Sean, thank you for taking the effort to post these great pictures of this wonderful course, I hope to get to see it soon.

Happy "Aussie" Fathers Day to you all.

Sean, are you able to tell me what turfs are used? ...and are hey drains in front of second tee, are they across the course and do they features part of the design?

[Tom Birkert]

There are narrow ditches on a lot of the holes (2, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 18) and they sometimes come into play. If you do go into one, then you have to drop out as they are too narrow to get a swing at the ball.

It has to be a pretty bad shot to go in one of the ditches though!

[Tommy Williamsen]

Thanks Sean.  Sunningdale is one of those magical places.  It is a pretty short list that has two courses of this quality.  It is certainly my favorite inland place to play in England.  Looks like you had a perfect day to play it.

[Tony_Muldoon]

Availablilty.

Apparently they won't be opening next year's booking until October!   Also the chap I spoke to suggests the last 3 weeks in March are unlikely to have any availabilty due to Club activities!!


I will bump this in October as I would be up for a game in early March.  Duncan I'm confident 36 holes can be done at that time of year as long as we're early out.


Dan, hope to meet you on your trip but it doesn't look like it will be at Sunningdale.

[Mark Chaplin]

Tony if memory serves me right the Sunningdale Foursomes is mid to late March

[Ivan Morris]

Either Sunningdale course is a wonderful test of golf. On a sunny day with a gentle, cooling breeze they are as close to Heaven as you can get.

[Bill_McBride]

Thanks Sean.  Sunningdale is one of those magical places.  It is a pretty short list that has two courses of this quality.  It is certainly my favorite inland place to play in England.  Looks like you had a perfect day to play it.

Tommy, how far back would you place Walton Heath?  I've only played the Old but wow!   Unfortunately have never played Sunningdale, fully booked when I wrote before my first trip to England 20+ years ago.

[Mark Chaplin]

Bill - I'd place Sunningdale as the best day out in the UK, it has everything, two great courses, history, nice clubhouse, etc.

Walton Heath is a distant 2nd but above The Berkshire and St George's Hill of the more than 18 hole clubs. Walton Heath lacks behind on 2 points, peace and tranquility - the M25 can be noisy, sadly there is nothing the club can do about it and secondly the New lacks balance with the last par 3 being the 10th and it's a long run in from there. I am still considering joining though!

[Ivan Morris]

I have played my fair share of golf at 'heavenly' Sunningdale but not for a couple of years. It was easy to notice an 'excessive?' amount of new bunkering in those beautifully shot pix. The overall impression might be described as having far too much orderly sameness but it might also be an extra picky attitude on my part. The new fairway bunkering at Nos. 10 and 16 may conceivably make those holes play easier by 'directing traffic' when in the past the lazy golfer was lulled into a false sense of security. Sunningdale GC needs to be careful. When something is so close to perfection, efforts at 'improvement' can turn out to be the direct opposite.   

[Dan Moore]

Ivan,  well said.  I enjoyed your interview and comparison of Lahinch and Ballybunion which I had the good fortune to play this year.  Lahinch seemed a better challenge with wonderful history and Ballybunion was simply a joy. 

[Ivan Morris]

Thank you, Dan. Next time you are in my neck of the woods - let me know. I'll try to join you for a game at Ballybee, Lahinch or Doonbeg which I enjoy playing as much as the other two. 

[Dan Moore]

Thank you Ivan.  I hope to be back to the homeland for a visit soon, maybe next year.  In a few years, once work obligations will permit, I would like to stay for an extended time somewhere in the vicinity of Ballybunion, Doonbeg or Lahinch.  We played Doonbeg twice with members who are related to one of my friends.  I had recalled it being somewhat maligned on here when it opened but all of us enjoyed playing there quite a bit and the facilities are great and the setting is magnificent.  I enjoyed some of the modern quirkiness.   I have some very nice photos so should start a Doonbeg thread so we can get back to Sunningdale on this thread.  Cheers.  

[Ivan Morris]

Doonbeg seems to be gradually recovering from the overly harsh criticism it suffered when it opened. A course can do a lot of 'maturing' in 10-years and Doonbeg certainly has done so. Bottom line is I enjoy playing there almost as much as I enjoy playing at BB, Lahinch or SUNNINGDALE!! ;-)))))) AND, and I definitely prefer doing my practice routines there over anywhere else in the Emerald Isle. A good PG is a good enough reason for me to enjoy a GC. I must start a new thread - naming my favorite 18-holes in Ireland in chronological order. I'll put some thought into my favorite 18 NOT IN Ireland too - that will be a bit of a world tour!  

[BCrosby]

About the prevalence of betting at Sunningdale (or anywhere else for that matter), I've often wondered if there is a connection between how a course evolves and the prevailing playing culture of a club. That is, will a course tend to evolve in a different direction if the club is oriented to member gaming versus a club where the focus is medal play events.

I can think of lots of ways in which those different ways of playing golf would affect the kinds of architectural features a club would choose to emphasize.

Bob

[Tom Birkert]

I personally find that having a bet on the game makes me play better and also gets you more used to playing under some form of pressure.

The way the matches are structured ensures that there is pretty much always something to play for over the last few holes, and if you finish with four pars you'll not normally lose money!

[BCrosby]

Tom -

Those are my preferences as well.

My suggestion is that such preferences raise architectural questions. If influential members of a club feel as you and I do about the pleasures of betting, doesn't that suggest that we/they would prefer playing on more dramatic courses? That is, on courses with the kinds of features that bring about wider separations between the outcomes of good and not so good shots?

As opposed to courses oriented to medal play where consistent ball-striking is of higher relative importance?

Bob

[Tom Birkert]

Indeed Bob,

I believe that a good shot should be rewarded and a poor shot punished, which often happens more on the better courses (as opposed to a lot of more open courses with less trouble and less strategic design).

Several gorse bushes have been cut back on the New course which has meant shots that would have been punished are now not. Personally I disagree with this.