Date: July 2012
Location: Carnoustie Scotland
Golfers: Cody and I
Conditions: Overcast and cool temps, 13-16 C (56-62 F). Championship course was in great condition, no complaints there.
Details: Four memorable courses in a seven day stint with a great friend from home. Final two rounds were played at the 7 time Open Championship venue (Part 3 of 3).
Overview: I booked a full day of golf at Carnoustie back in early May once I found out our friends would be coming to visit. The course has held the Open Championship (British Open for us Americans) seven times and most recently in 2007 where Paddy Harrington won. Naturally in the summer the tee times go quick, but I was able to get a mid morning slot for the Championship course and a mid afternoon round at the Burnside course. We were spoiled with the two great courses earlier in the week, but this didn't take away from the excitement of playing an Open venue. We headed out early to make the 1.5 hr trip south of Aberdeen.
Golf Details: After the winding roads led us to Carnoustie, we stretched (which consists of about two shoulder leans and a weak attempt to touch my toes), hit a few putts and were now ready to take on Carnoustie. We decided to play the back boxes, which were playing around 7000 yards that day. We figured why not, it'll be a test of our games which felt pretty solid after the previous golf that week.
 |
| #1 Green, two pars to start |
#1 is a 401 par 4 with the hotel at your back when you tee off. It's a gentle test to ease into the course, a couple of fairway bunkers on either side of the fairway and a slightly sunken green. We both had a few nerves going, but managed two decent drives, approach shots and two putts for a couple of solid pars to being the round. Something about making par on the first hole of a famous course just feels good. We hoped to carry that momentum for the next 17..
Our even par round didn't last long as #2's tee shot is a cruel joke. 435 yard par four that made up in difficulty what #1 lacked. Three strategically placed bunkers along (and in the middle) of the fairway. I don't think I've ever analyzed a tee shot as much as I did here. Bunkers at 200, 220 and 260 with a sliver of fairway in between. I did hit the fairway but walked away with a bogey as my approach came up short and wasn't able to get up and down. Cody took 3 wood off the box but went astray which led to his first blemish on the card as well. #3 was a shorter par 4, 351 yards with a burn(small stream) that protected the green. The marshall gave us some local knowledge and a story about Tiger hitting the middle of the green and the ball rolling back into the burn in 2007. The green wasn't shaved that tight but Cody and I both hit just over the burn on the green and ended up in the drink. We thought we played the hole smart by taking less club off the box and hitting a safe wedge in but that wasn't the case. We walked off puzzled at the hole and a 5 on the card.
 |
| Fairway View |
The next few holes we played pretty steady and we were really enjoying the course. It has some amazing fairways that have exaggerated rolling landscape which can help or hurt you depending on the bounce you get on your drive. The fairways are far from flat which makes for some interesting shots off uneven lies!
 |
| #6 Tee Shot, OB left all day |
#6 is the only par 5 on the front nine. It's short at only 512 yards but plays the second hardest hole on the course. The out of bounds fence line on the left hand side of the fairway that gives you about 8 yards of error if you tug it left. In addition, the bunkers are again strategically placed in landing areas. The fairway bunkers are basically a penalty as all you can do is chip out. We were paired up with a Swedish guy who managed to find more bunkers than Cody and I combined, lucky for us. It was tough to watch his ambitious full swings which led to hitting the face of the bunker and tricking back to his feet. It's always best to take your medicine and chip out of these monsters...he just wouldn't give in to them. I'll highlight Cody's play on #6, named Hogan's Alley, because Hogan couldn't have played it any better. After a big drive that found the fairway, Cody hit a great approach that left him about 15 feet for Eagle. The green is protected by bunkers and has sloping front to back elevation which made it even more impressive that his 200 yard shot managed to stop so sweetly on the green. He just missed the eagle and safely tapped in for birdie, well done. I bogeyed the hole with not a lot of excitement to share but that's golf sometimes.
 |
| My tee shot on 9, too close for comfort.. |
The finishing hole on the front nine is a 413 yard par four, called Railway. The green backs up to the EastCoast Railway Train Tracks. This is the main train route from Aberdeen to Edinburgh, so usually quite a bit of traffic. We didn't consider it a distraction nor do I think many golfers do as it adds a little character to the closing 9. I made par on the hole after a friendly kick to the left kept me out of the fairway bunker.
The back nine gets noticeably more difficult and starts off with a gem of a hole. #10 is a 446 yard par four that's well designed which that rewards two really good shots and penalizes anything less than that. The green is protected by a small tree and a burn that surrounds two sides of it and gobbles up any short approaches in. #13 is a great par three guarded by bunkers. Sadly I found my first, second and third bunker shots on this hole and walked away with a dismal triple.
 |
| #13, Par Three |
 |
| Drivers out on #16 |
Carnoustie's final three holes are arguably the best finishing and most difficult holes in golf. #16 is a 245 yard par three that just happens to play into the wind on most days. Drivers off the box on a par three just doesn't feel right, but was necessary. #17 is a 433 yard par four that has a burn sneak into the fairway twice. An accurate shot off the box is required as the burn will swallow anything pushed right or hit short of the first burn. We managed two good drives, I went astray on my approach and Cody made par. He had made par on 16 and 17 with the hopes of finishing E through the last three walking up towards the 18 tee box.
 |
| Poor Van de Velde |
#18 is a great finish with the Carnoustie hotel in the background and burns coming into play on the right with out of bounds (OB) to the left. There have been a few colossal collapses, none more famous than Van de Velde in 1999. He needed a double bogey 6 to win and made a 7 to force a playoff in which he lost. This sounds familiar to some of my friendly matches over the last ten years, fortunately when I stepped onto the tee box of 18, the only thing on the line was a cold pint of Tennent's in the clubhouse. Cody tees off first, pulls one left, hits a provisional and hopes to keep the par finish alive. I push mine right but not far enough for the burn, so a sigh of relief there. I have a ways back, decide to play smart and lay up short of the burn guarding the front of the green. Cody plays the provisional and leaves himself with a decent chance at a great par. I hit my third to about 20 feet and hope to save par to finish. We circle the putts back and forth as if the claret jug's on the line but come up short and walk away with respectable bogey's on Carnoustie's final test.
 |
| #18, Home Sweet Home |
 |
| 50/50 of getting out of there |
Round Two: We played another 18 at Carnoustie's Burnside course, which was no walk in the park, but much easier than the open venue. I would call it the Championship course's little red headed sister as she still had some fight to her. I managed to find the rough a few times and I can attest that it was just as difficult as the morning round. All in all we had a great 36 holes of golf and managed to shave 10 shots of our second round while playing similar golf, just an easier test of our skills.
Favorites: #16-18 were awesome, really enjoyed walking the home stretch of an open venue. #9 &10 had a lot of character with the train rail and design of the holes. Nasty rough, wide burns and large greens provided plenty of thought before each shot, truly a test of a golfer's skills. Finishing a great week of golf with Cody on a top ten course in the UK.
Final Thoughts: I've heard that St Andrews and Carnoustie stack up pretty close to each other, with majority of golfers picking Carnoustie for the overall better golf course. I hope I have the chance to compare the two, if not, it will be tough to beat a better links course in the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment