Golfers Thread

[Mr Hahn]

Hope you guys play on courses that drain well!

We've really not been bad at all up here with the recent weather fortunately. My course doesn't drain well though so it was still pretty muddy at the weekend. Really don't know how it would cope if it got the kind of rain you lads are talking about.

[peasy23]

2023 Open coming back to Troon, only 7 years after it was last there. It marks the centenary of the first time the Open was held there, and on that basis you would expect 2026 to be a return to Lytham.

Turnberry and Muirfield continue to be overlooked.

[lichtie23]

So it’s
2020 - Royal St George’s
2021 - St Andrews
2022 - Hoylake (Royal Liverpool)
2023 - Troon

[Fuctifano]

2025 is St Andrews as well so 2024 will either be Birkdale, Lytham, or Portrush as they won't have 3 in a row in Scotland unless there are compelling reasons.

Muirfield and Turnberry out of favour, due ostensibly to lower crowd capacity but I'd assume the latter's owner might be a reason as well.

Also, probably better in here than the gaming section but I've started playing The Golf Club 19 on PS4, it's got quite a few licensed courses but pretty much all the PGA Tour courses that aren't licensed have been manually created by users. If you're planning on watching an event at the weekend then it's a good prep to get used to the layout and find out in advance what are the key holes.

PGA National (this week's venue) is a b*****d of a course, relatively short by PGA standards and a par 70 but water everywhere on the way in and wild greens. 

The one exception is Augusta who appear to have ordered a C&D order to ban folk creating replicas, dicks.  Apparently if the course was on your favourites before this came into force you can still play it but it's no longer searchable.

Also, at the other end of the scale someone has made a very reasonable go at Dalmuir Municipal, albeit it's a bit easy when -even on starting out level -you carry it 260 off the tee. Was nice to finally birdie the 13th tho 

Edited February 25, 2020 by Fuctifano

[Mr Hahn]

It's a shame about Turnberry. Obviously the owner isn't everyone's cup of tea to put it diplomatically but it's such an incredible layout so it's a bit sad not to see it hosting the Open.

Tbh, I actually know relatively little about Muirfield. I watched Mickelson's victory there in 2013 and remember that but have very little recollection of any of the holes. Also once got an invite to play there, one of my uncle's old friends is a member but unfortunately I was right in the middle of exams at uni at the time and couldn't justify clearing off to Edinburgh for a day.

Don't think I'm the only one who worries a little about St Andrew's Old Course on the rotation as well. The history of the place means it's always going to be on the rota but, with the distance players are hitting it now, can it actually stand up to the test of hosting a tournament of that magnitude? I just hope to f**k the wind is blowing something fierce while it's there, then of course it's a totally different proposition.

[KnightswoodBear]

10 hours ago, Fuctifano said:

 

Also, at the other end of the scale someone has made a very reasonable go at Dalmuir Municipal, albeit it's a bit easy when -even on starting out level -you carry it 260 off the tee. Was nice to finally birdie the 13th tho 

Any sign of Royal Knightswood?

[Mark Connolly]

2 hours ago, KnightswoodBear said:

Any sign of Royal Knightswood?

Don't think they have managed to write the code for neds running on and nicking your ball yet.

Expect that in the 2021 update.

[KnightswoodBear]

1 hour ago, Mark Connolly said:

Don't think they have managed to write the code for neds running on and nicking your ball yet.

Expect that in the 2021 update.

I always think the 8th has been cruelly overlooked on every "greatest par 3's in golf" lists for precisely that reason.  Do I play for the unsighted green knowing that my ball won't be there when I arrive, or lay up to the top of the hill? 

[8MileBU]

I always think the 8th has been cruelly overlooked on every "greatest par 3's in golf" lists for precisely that reason.  Do I play for the unsighted green knowing that my ball won't be there when I arrive, or lay up to the top of the hill? 

There’s a long par 5 at the bottom of West Lothian GC that goes over a slight hill half way up the fairway. Used to be (and probably still is) a prime spot for running out the bushes and pinching baws. When I played I’d always leave the driver in the bag and hit a 3 wood off the tee to keep it short of the brow of the hill.

[Fuctifano]

There are two courses for knightswood, one is not related at all and the other it looks like someone has had a crack at doing the first hole then given up and made the rest of the course random. 

I read that it takes about 50 hours to get a course spot on and I presume that's on pc as trying to do it on ps4 is impossible. I think there's an aid or plug in on the pc version that imports data from Google earth to give you a head start. 

Also I mention this every time but once playing the 8 th at knightswood we arrived on the green to find both balls about 25-30 feet away but the hole filled with human excrement. 

A half in 2 was agreed. 

[KnightswoodBear]

1 hour ago, Fuctifano said:

There are two courses for knightswood, one is not related at all and the other it looks like someone has had a crack at doing the first hole then given up and made the rest of the course random. 

I read that it takes about 50 hours to get a course spot on and I presume that's on pc as trying to do it on ps4 is impossible. I think there's an aid or plug in on the pc version that imports data from Google earth to give you a head start. 

Also I mention this every time but once playing the 8 th at knightswood we arrived on the green to find both balls about 25-30 feet away but the hole filled with human excrement. 

A half in 2 was agreed. 

We used to, when we weren't stealing their balls, move them to half an inch from the hole.  The look of joy, then disappointment as they came down the hill was something to behold.

I really need to get back and play a round, before they inevitably shut the place, for old times sake.

eta:  I feel that I should also point out that I never shat in any of the holes.

Edited February 26, 2020 by KnightswoodBear

[cas79]

[emoji38]
We used to, when we weren't stealing their balls, move them to half an inch from the hole.  The look of joy, then disappointment as they came down the hill was something to behold.
I really need to get back and play a round, before they inevitably shut the place, for old times sake.
eta:  I feel that I should also point out that I never shat in any of the holes.

I'm planning in doing a glasgow tour when the weather improves and if there still open, want to play them all before they go,
we used to steal balls at littlehill on the 4th, blind shot over the hill easy pickings,

[Fuctifano]

I think Knightswood might be the only one which is staying open based on what I've read, I also think that if my shoulder decides it doesn't want to fall off any more any time I try and swing a club, that I might try and get round Alexandra Park, Littlehill, Linn Park and Lethamhill before they go.

Ruchill was really good before they shut and re-opened it, blind shots everywhere and the 6th hole over the corner of the disused railway tunnel with literally nothing stopping you plunging down a steep grass bank to the bottom. 

Played it once since that was filled in and redesigned, really a par 3 course now but remains my lowest ever gross 18 hole score (68 on par 62). Not even sure if that's still open

[Mark Connolly]

Lethamhill (appropriately Lethal Hill on autocorrect) always had a willing group of kids from Smithycroft offering to “caddy”

[peasy23]

I think Knightswood might be the only one which is staying open based on what I've read, I also think that if my shoulder decides it doesn't want to fall off any more any time I try and swing a club, that I might try and get round Alexandra Park, Littlehill, Linn Park and Lethamhill before they go. Ruchill was really good before they shut and re-opened it, blind shots everywhere and the 6th hole over the corner of the disused railway tunnel with literally nothing stopping you plunging down a steep grass bank to the bottom. 

Played it once since that was filled in and redesigned, really a par 3 course now but remains my lowest ever gross 18 hole score (68 on par 62). Not even sure if that's still open

 

Not sure what is going on with Ruchill tbh, I've heard it has been unmanned for almost a year due to "staff shortages", but that also conveniently meant the council couldn't record any usage stats. 

The three 18 holers all have at least 2 or 3 clubs who use then on a Saturday and Sunday morning, I was a member of one of them at Linn Park for a few years. The club cost at that time £35 a year, and had competitions every week and as an SGU affiliated club got you a proper CONGU handicap. Linn Park was originally a par 3 course which was extended, so has a lot of short par 4s, but does have some terrific holes. My favourites were the downhill dogleg left 2nd, which was a drivable par 4 even for me if you got your tee shot to kick left in the right place, and the short par 3 16th.

 

Littlehill was the first course I ever played, aged about 14 with a set of wooden shafted clubs picked up from a BB jumble sale. My previous golfing experience was pitch and putt and knocking a 7 iron around the local park. I can still remember standing on the first tee and thinking how far away the flag looked. Plenty of fond memories of playing up there, and I can just see the top of the course from my back window. Will have to go up and have a final round on it if it is going to close.

 

Didn't play Lethamhill as much as the other two, but it was always a course I enjoyed playing. That 18th hole is an utter c**t though.

 

 

 

 

 

[Fuctifano]

Aye I was a member at Knightswood when I was in 6th year at school and then through uni as the club played on Wednesday and Friday mornings which suited me.  Was only 10 minutes on the bus which was ideal as I didn't have a car then. Getting to the other ones was a bit of a grind via public transport but I think Lethamhill was my favourite, if it was private and maintained properly it would be a cracking course.

[expatowner]

trying to keep my legs more stable (and failing badly) and also trying to stop swaying (partial success)

[lichtie23]

Steven Gallacher leading the way in Oman.

[FuzzyBear]

Steven Gallacher leading the way in Oman.

Not any more. 12th and 4 behind going into final round.

 

[Distant Doonhamer]

Not any more. 12th and 4 behind going into final round. 

Indeed. Dropped 4 shots in last 4 holes (bogey, bogey, par, double bogey). Pity.