'Under the radar' courses you'd really like to play

[Thomas Dai]

I'm sure given time and money we'd all love to play the biggies, Royal this, National that, etc etc........but there are loads and loads of quality courses out there, 'downsizers'(?), wee gems and lesser lights etc.

So what lesser courses have you heard about herein or elsewhere or seen photos of or read articles about and would really like to play?

Some UK names to set the ball rolling -

Scotland - Fortrose & Rosemarkie
Ireland - Dooks
Wales - Conwy
England - Yelverton

atb

[Tom_Doak]

My list for this fall is Longmeadow, Glens falls, Teugega, Monroe, Cc of Buffalo, and Mayfield.  Not that I think they will be "lesser".

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Tom Doak

I seem to remember that LuLu was on your list.

[Emil Weber]

Thomas,
Among a few other courses I'm hopefully going to play in the Highlands in september, i'm really keen about Reay. I haven't heard anything too great about it but it looks wonderful and just could be a real hidden gem.  Quite likely though my expectations are waayy too high. I will report!

[Jon Wiggett]

Thomas,

England-Hunstanton
Scotland-Elgin, Fraserburgh

Emil, Reay is an excellent course with holes playing in all directions so as to make any wind direction. Good diversity of holes and spectacular views both seaward and inland. I am sure you will enjoy it.

Jon

[Sean_A]

I have lots of newbies, here are 22 for starters

Welshpool
Leckford
Sheringham
Reigate Heath
Windermere
Crosland Heath
East Devon
Thurleston
Rutland Water
Cumberwell Park
Arklow
Corballis
Seapoint
Bettystown and Laytown
Bann 9
Bushfoot
Kirkistown
Annesley Links
Dunfanaghy
Northwest
Bull Bay
Cullen

Ciao

[Jud_T]

 
Culver
Maxincuckee
Black Forest
Quail Crossing
West Bend
Warren Course
Pilgrims Run

[Tom_Doak]

Tom Doak

I seem to remember that LuLu was on your list.

Maybe I'll have time to get there, 22 months before that volume is put to bed.

There are still a lot of courses on my list.  But I've also got a lot of people depending on me in my day job and at home, so I don't get to see as many as I would like.

[Connor Dougherty]

Ever since Robin Hiseman's thread on Aberfoyle I've been extremely keen to get there. But it could be a while before that happens, so I'll add Northwoods, the 9 hole MacKenzie course in Monte Rio, to this list as well.

[Scott Warren]

Painswick

A train every hour direct from Paddington to Stroud. A £10 cab from the train to the course. And a pub on the platform (more or less) as you wait for the train home!

What's holding you back?

[Tommy Williamsen]

I'm not sure what constitutes a lesser course but I find these fun to play:
England--Prestbury
Wales--Bull Bay
Scotland--Pitlochery
Ireland--Valley course at Portrush and Arklow
USA--Country Club at Woodmore outside DC, Raleigh CC, The Reserve at Pawley's Island, Catamount Ranch in Steamboat Springs.

[Sean_A]

Painswick

A train every hour direct from Paddington to Stroud. A £10 cab from the train to the course. And a pub on the platform (more or less) as you wait for the train home!

What's holding you back?

Sunshine?

Ciao

[jeffwarne]

Thomas,
Among a few other courses I'm hopefully going to play in the Highlands in september, i'm really keen about Reay. I haven't heard anything too great about it but it looks wonderful and just could be a real hidden gem.  Quite likely though my expectations are waayy too high. I will report!

Reay ,Wick and Durness would be a great trip of gems I've not played with a repeat of Brora,Fortrose and Rosemarkie on the way up

[Eric Smith]

England
Cleeve Hill
Kington

Scotland
Shiskine
Dunaverty
Machrie

USA
The Fields (GA)
Penny Branch (SC)
Bunker Hill (CO)
Walden (TX)
The Mines (MI)
Pilgrims Run (MI)
The Rose (MI)
Sharon (OH)
Brookside (Columbus, OH)
Shelter Island (NY)

[Thomas Dai]

Thomas,
Among a few other courses I'm hopefully going to play in the Highlands in september, i'm really keen about Reay. I haven't heard anything too great about it but it looks wonderful and just could be a real hidden gem.  Quite likely though my expectations are waayy too high. I will report!

Reay ,Wick and Durness would be a great trip of gems I've not played with a repeat of Brora,Fortrose and Rosemarkie on the way up

Emil - looking forward to hearing how you get on.

Jeff - even without playing 'the biggie' at RDGC those courses you've named would indeed be a terrific 'gem trip', even more so if Golspie, Tain, Bonar Bridge, Helmsdale, Porthmahomac and a poster herein's own course with a name beginning with the letter 'B' were added.

Fort Augustus is a course that's been mentioned a few times as worth a visit - there are some great photos of it on Franks course architecture photographs website -http://golfarchitecturepictures.com/Web%20Galleries/Scotland/Fort%20Augustus/index.htm

atb

[James Boon]

Thomas,

I think some of us here, probably yourself included don't consider these courses "lesser" but don't worry I think I know what you are getting at! Here are the ones I've not played that I'm constantly trying to plan trips around and clearly failing...

Harris
Gairloch
Traigh
Glencruitten
Tobermory
Iona
Carradale
Dunaverty
Reay
Wick
Tarbat
Fortrose & Rosemarkie
Cullen
Fraserburgh
Carrbridge
Fort Augustus
Aberfoyle
Pitlochry

That's enough for Scotland! I need to start getting to see some of these quick before I do anything daft like join Brora! Also worth noting in reference to Niall Carlton's recent thread that virtually all of those are coastal!

Hallamshire
Reddish Vale
Delamere Forest
Ogden
Crosland Heath

All these are reasonably easy trips for me so I hand my head in shame...  Lastly...

Berkhamstead
Reigate Heath
Crowborough Beacon
Minchinhampton
Church Stretton
Cleeve Cloud
Yelverton

Afraid I'm going to miss out Wales and Ireland as that's enough for me to list without getting depressed! I feel bad that I often can't help myself in ticking off a big gun when travelling but the "lesser" courses I've gone out of my way to play recently have all been delights and so I'm determined to play more of these!

Thanks Thomas, wonderful little thread 

Cheers,

James

[Jon Cavalier]

Here's my list of the lessers that I'm hoping to play in my area (though, to be fair, I'm not sure it's fair to call all of these "lessers"):

Philly area:
Plymouth CC
Squires
Meadowlands
Llanerch
Bidermann/Vicmead

A little north of Philly:
CC of Scranton
Schuylkill CC
Glenmaura National

New Jersey
Hollywood GC
Deal GC
Ridge at Back Brook
Roselle
Hackensack
Rumson

New York:
Cold Spring
Blind Brook
Brookville
Westhampton
Southampton
Belleport
Nassau
Thousand Islands
Lake Success
Engineers
Glen Head
Huntington
Gardiners Bay
Whippoorwill
Rockaway Hunting Club

Clearly, I've got a lot of work to do.

[Jon Wiggett]

James,

you should add Abernethy which I don't think you have played and in England Baildon and Fixby (Hudderfield) if you have yet to play them.

Jon

[Mark McKeever]

Here's my list of the lessers that I'm hoping to play in my area (though, to be fair, I'm not sure it's fair to call all of these "lessers"):

Philly area:
Plymouth CC
Squires
Meadowlands
Llanerch
Bidermann/Vicmead

A little north of Philly:
CC of Scranton
Schuylkill CC
Glenmaura National

New Jersey
Hollywood GC
Deal GC
Ridge at Back Brook
Roselle
Hackensack
Rumson

New York:
Cold Spring
Blind Brook
Brookville
Westhampton
Southampton
Belleport
Nassau
Thousand Islands
Lake Success
Engineers
Glen Head
Huntington
Gardiners Bay
Whippoorwill
Rockaway Hunting Club

Clearly, I've got a lot of work to do.

Jon, you will not be disappointed at Schuylkill, some fantastic Ross greens that are worth the drive from PHL.

Mark

[Paul Gray]

I'm really never too sure what constitutes a 'lesser' course but, keeping it pretty local, I must get to both Hockley and Worthing one of these days. Otherwise a Cleeve Could, Painswick and Old Minchinhampton needs to be undertaken at some point. I'd also like to get back to East Anglia at some point for a tour of a few courses a bit further from Ipswich.

[Tim Martin]

Here's my list of the lessers that I'm hoping to play in my area (though, to be fair, I'm not sure it's fair to call all of these "lessers"):

Philly area:
Plymouth CC
Squires
Meadowlands
Llanerch
Bidermann/Vicmead

A little north of Philly:
CC of Scranton
Schuylkill CC
Glenmaura National

New Jersey
Hollywood GC
Deal GC
Ridge at Back Brook
Roselle
Hackensack
Rumson

New York:
Cold Spring
Blind Brook
Brookville
Westhampton
Southampton
Belleport
Nassau
Thousand Islands
Lake Success
Engineers
Glen Head
Huntington
Gardiners Bay
Whippoorwill
Rockaway Hunting Club

Clearly, I've got a lot of work to do.

I guess the term "lesser" is open to interpretation or needs to be defined. Both Whippoorwill and Hollywood are in the Golfweek Top 100 Classic List while CC of Scranton, Engineers, Southampton, and Westhampton are in the Next 100 Classic list. A number of the others most would beg, borrow and steal to play as well. "Lesser" really is a nebulous designation.

[Jon Cavalier]

Here's my list of the lessers that I'm hoping to play in my area (though, to be fair, I'm not sure it's fair to call all of these "lessers"):

Philly area:
Plymouth CC
Squires
Meadowlands
Llanerch
Bidermann/Vicmead

A little north of Philly:
CC of Scranton
Schuylkill CC
Glenmaura National

New Jersey
Hollywood GC
Deal GC
Ridge at Back Brook
Roselle
Hackensack
Rumson

New York:
Cold Spring
Blind Brook
Brookville
Westhampton
Southampton
Belleport
Nassau
Thousand Islands
Lake Success
Engineers
Glen Head
Huntington
Gardiners Bay
Whippoorwill
Rockaway Hunting Club

Clearly, I've got a lot of work to do.

I guess the term "lesser" is open to interpretation or needs to be defined. Both Whippoorwill and Hollywood are in the Golfweek Top 100 Classic List while CC of Scranton, Engineers, Southampton, and Westhampton are in the Next 100 Classic list. A number of the others most would beg, borrow and steal to play as well. "Lesser" really is a nebulous designation.

Exactly. And yet I think we'd agree they're all "lesser" than, say, NGLA. It's an odd term to use to try to describe a golf course. Not to mention, having never played any of them, it's tough to really know which are really lesser than others, so to speak.

[Chris DeToro]

It seems like "under the radar" may be a better term?

[Thomas Dai]

When I started the thread I used the term 'lesser' as it was the word that came to mind. Even though I knew it wasn't a spot-on description of what I was trying to get at it seemed near enough.

But you folks are correct and I like Chris's suggestion so I've changed the title in the lead post accordingly.

Some very interesting selections have been mentioned, indeed some I would like to visit.

atb

[Robert Emmons]

Jon, Your invited to Huntington CC anytime...RHE