Royal Portrush

Royal Portrush (Dunluce) is the fifth-best course in GB & I according to Golf World's 2004 Top 100 list. It features 15 fabulous links holes and a closing trio that - although solid enough - aren't quite on the same stunning terrain as the ones that went before.

Though golf has been played there since 1888 the credit for the current layout belongs to Harry Colt, who visited prior to World War 2 and again prior to the 1951 Open Championship - the only time the event has been held outside Scotland or England.

Bernard Darwin was moved to remark that Colt had built himself a monument "more enduring than brass" and it was said to be the architect's own favourite - though he is quoted as saying Swinley Forest was his "least bad course" and others on his resume include Muirfield, Royal Lytham, Sunningdale (New) and St George's Hill.

It would be hard to create dull holes with such perfect dunes, rising and falling in great peaks and valleys, but it is the touch of a master to make so much of them, with virtually every shot challenging the swing and delighting the senses.

It was dull overhead for photos but if the sun was only going to come out for two minutes on St Patrick's Day at Portrush it couldn't have picked a better place than the sixth tee, allowing this shot of the fifth green with the castle ruins just visible in the background, above the gorse to the left of the flag:

It was windy enough to blow you off your feet, as some of these pictures show ;)
Back on the tee, David lets rip:

And Scotty:

Someone had to go in the bunker of the 17th:

Golf during wartime

The website www.ruleshistory.com reproduces some interesting local rules for golfers during World War 2.
They were made of stern stuff in those days, and although "a player whose stroke is affected by the simultaneous explosion of a bomb may play another ball" the rule goes on to say "penalty one stroke".
Here's the full list:
www.ruleshistory.com/misc.html#war

A baker's dozen at Brora

Dr MacKenzie set down his 13 points for the ideal golf course in his book Golf Architecture, published in 1920. In 2004, his baker's dozen is still a sound checklist.
Brora, a remote James Braid links even further north on the east coast of Scotland than Dornoch, ticks more boxes than most.
Here's MacK's list, with annotations for Brora:
1. Two loops of nine holes are preferable. No. Brora is essentially an out-and-back links, with some changes of direction, particularly for the short holes. (Click here for the routing). But MacK amplifies this point, stressing that though two loops are preferable, they should not come at the expense of good use of the terrain. Most of the great links, and many of his own courses, including Cypress Point and Alwoodley, do not conform to this point.
2. At least four one shot holes, two or three drive and pitch holes, and a large proportion of good two shot holes. Yes. Each of the par 3s face in a different direction, further adding to the variety. The opening hole is a particularly fine example of the drive and pitch genre, forgiving the stiff opening swing while exacting of those trying to force an early birdie.
3. Short walks from green to next tee, preferably forward to allow elasticity for future lengthening. Yes, though at 6,110 yards and par 69, Brora is perfect proof a course doesn't need length to be both fun and testing enough for most.
4. Undulating greens and fairways without hill climbing. Yes. The terrain is superb, as the pictures below show.
5. Every hole should have a different character. Yes - and the wind that blesses links means each hole will have a different character each time, depending on the wind strength and direction.
6. There should be a minimum of blindness for the approach shots. Yes - by 1920 standards. MacK was writing at the tail end of an era when courses had been laid out at the gallop by the star professionals of the day and blind holes were ubiquitous, because of a combination of carelessness, inability to move much earth and a belief that they were "sporty". Mac's stricture was directed at excessive and unnecessary blindness and though there are one or two approaches at Brora where the bottom of the pin is not visible even after a well-placed drive, I believe MacK would find them acceptable.
7. The course should have beautiful surroundings with the man made features indistinguishable from nature. Yes.
8. Sufficient number of heroic carries from the tee with the option of alternative routes for the shorter player if he is prepared to sacrifice a stroke or portion of a stroke. Yes, though in a few cases the only alternative to a heroic carry over the burn is putting across the bridge!
9. Variety in the strokes required to play the various holes, ie. challenging shot making. Yes. Like most links, a shot-maker's delight. Low, high, draw, fade - the options are endless.
10. No lost balls. Yes. The most Utopian of MacK's 13 points, but Brora scores here, thanks to the livestock that act as nature's greenkeeper on the rough. Go offline and you will generally have a tough angle to the green, often have a dubious lie but almost always find your ball.
11. Playing interest to stimulate improvement in even the plus handicap golfers game. I wish my own game were good enough to offer an opinion here, but for what it's worth a disproportionate number of crack Highlands golfers have apparently been members at Brora.
12. High scoring golfers should still be able to enjoy the course. Yes. A good test of a fine course this (and also of the golfer's own character). You always want to play well but if your game deserts you there's still ample pleasure here to be found in the architecture and the surroundings.
13. The course should be equally good in summer and winter with perfect texture to greens and fairways, and the approaches of same consistency as the greens. In as far as this can be true anywhere - and bearing in mind the reasonable fees for members and visitors - emphatically yes.

Here's some pictures. They're not necessarily the best holes - just the ones I managed to grab snaps of.
In the evening the sheep reclaim the course. This is the approach to the long 8th. As the excellent GolfClubAtlas review that inspired my visit points out, there's a pit short right that deters those "sort of going for it" in two:


This shot from the left of the 8th green shows the interesting green contours. The GCA review described the greens as slow, but the human greenkeepers can get them quick enough when they want to - when I visited for a 36-hole Open Brora's greens were faster than Dornoch's.


The attractive par 3 9th:

...and from the left:


Not quite sure, but I think this is the 7th:


Over the burn to the 11th towards the marker:


Club website is: http://www.broragolf.co.uk/home.html

Paint your driver for extra yards

I'm far from an equipment junkie but was interested by this: "A major shaft company took a group of identical drivers and painted the shafts black on half of them and champagne on the other half. During a "blind" test the majority of male golfers swore that they could hit the black-shafted drivers farther than they could hit the champagne-shafted drivers. Few realized that the clubs were identical."
However, many players could cut their handicaps by avoiding black equipment in favour of green, or even pink, as these 'softer' colours will encourage them to swing less aggressively.
Note: this post has been edited as the source article is no longer on the web and the domain is was posted on has been taken over by spammers.

Golf really is the new rock'n'roll

Lawrence Donegan, former bass player with The Bluebells and Lloyd Cole And The Commotions , is the new golf correspondent for The Guardian. He also wrote Four-Iron In The Soul, one of my favourite golf books.
His predecessor at The Guardian, David Davies, looks back on 21 years in the job here.