Best Course / Worse Course

[IanM]

There must be such a thing as a bad courese.... bad design, bad build, poor land, no views, pigs in adjoining field etc!

 

[USER1999]

Well maybe it should have been most enjoyable course / least enjoyable course.

And I did think people would put a bit of rationale on why they didn't rate a particular course.

Ok, Hellidon lakes. Starts with a very short, scrappy par 3. Architecturally poor and unimaginative.
2nd hole, dog leg par 3 with blind pond to the right. Really? Yep. Rest of course, very dull, no outstanding holes, or views.
The only redeming feature was the Jamaican wedding, where my very drunk mate copped off with a 25 stone bridesmaid. He is no light weight either, so at least the beds must be well made.

 

[Imurg]

There must be such a thing as a bad courese.... bad design, bad build, poor land, no views, pigs in adjoining field etc!

I refer the Honourable Gentlemen to post #2
You've described it in a nutshell.

 

[Jacko_G]

Best - Royal Dornoch or Trump Aberdeen. Both really float my boat for different reasons.

Worst - Unlike me BUT I'm going to be controversial. West Lancs purely for the way we were treated. Staff were horrendous, pro was an arrogant so and so (not the current pro) and the course was submerged in places, not a great advert after a drive from Glasgow.

 

[Pathetic Shark]

There must be such a thing as a bad courese.... bad design, bad build, poor land, no views, pigs in adjoining field etc!

Horton Park in Epsom qualifies in all of those categories except you have horses instead of pigs.

 

[Orikoru]

This is the whole point of the thread? Some ones worst is not necessarily because of any under lying badness, they are just near the bottom of my list. I have played a lot of golf courses, most of which were better.

I do however have a soft spot for Ruislip. I learnt to play golf there, with my now deceased Dad. Yep, it is not the best golf course, but that is not what I am judging it on.

I could judge Ritchings Park on the noise from the M4 and Heathrow, but then I would also have to mark down Centurion, Mill Hill, and Walton Heath.

I could judge Grimms Dyke on it being an unimaginitive layout, built in a swamp. I would then have to similarly mark down Hillingdon, but I was a member there for 13 years, and I had a lot of good times there.

Worst course is not a good name for the category really. Least favourite might be a better description.

I am not a fan of the Belfry either.

Aldenham has some weird internal OB, which makes no sense at all. It is a ditch, in a copse, but it is OB. Odd.

That's fine I just wanted to hear your reasons, you never said them in the first post. I only played Grims Dyke once, and recently, and I think the layout suited my game because I had an excellent round, so that may obviously bias my opinion a bit. With Aldenham I didn't even know about the OOB you mention to be honest. And as for Richings, I've played so many courses where you can hear traffic noise that I would not notice that one jot.

I think my first ever golf lessons (group lessons when I was 14 or so) were at Ruislip as well. But then I didn't actually play the course until many years later! I'm still not sure what's happening to that place now, it's due to fall victim to HS2, but I don't know if they're closing it down completely, or just cutting some of the holes and making it a 9 or a 12 like they did Uxbridge.

 

[IanM]

Horton Park in Epsom qualifies in all of those categories except you have horses instead of pigs.

I mentioned pigs thinking about Burford in Oxfordhire.... an excellent course in every respect, except for the field down one side, where if the wind blows the wrong way, the smell of piggy poo is enough to make you hurl!

 

[Deleted member 1147]

I know the course which disappointed me the most, not the worst I've played, but one that didn't live up to expectations, and that was the Nicklaus Course at Carden Park.
Maybe because it was one of Jack's courses I expected it to be a great design, and a thoroughly great day on the course. But I was left a little flat by it.
Some rather dull holes made "interesting" by wacky greens, and a couple of par 4's where you have play around (or over) half a lake, such as the 17th.
The 18th was the best hole on the course, but by the time you get there (6hrs later) you don't feel in the mood to enjoy it as you would have hoped.

 

[Deleted member 1147]

The course I enjoyed most is probably Camberley Heath. It may not be one of Surrey's elite courses, but the two occasions I've played it I really enjoyed it.
A great mix of holes, with only one poor one, and the 8th is one of my favourite par 3's.

 

[shortgame]

Hold my beer
Sub section, courses that should be potato fields

Reminds me of a quote that they ruined a perfectly good potato field by turning it into The Belfry? :rofl:


Actually my worst (for the price) was The Derby (we were fairly new to the game and thought it must be good being there) - guess it has it's place as an absolute beginners course but couldn't find any other positives. Dudley the worst for everything else (terrible condition, hills, internal ob, clubhouse like a 60's office block and a horrible atmosphere) - hopefully caught them on a bad day, but won't be going back to check. Walsall left me the most underwhelmed after hearing so much about it from members. Just another parkland course IMO.

Best - St.Enodoc (everything just perfect). Honorouble mentions for West Cornwall, Nefyn and Mullion - not in the same class but still just about as much fun as you can have playing golf in the UK.

 

[merv79]

Best courses I have played Royal County Down and Sunningdale New.

Worst and most overrated course I have played is Downfield up near Carnoustie, I had high hopes as it used to be an open qualifier etc, but i walked off feeling that if the land and course was in other parts of the UK it would simply be a housing estate.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

what do you find good about it?

I just really enjoy playing it - a bit of a hike up Craigower to start with - but great views and a great variety of holes - some very quirky. Not sure I'd necessarily want to play it 2-3 a week as a member mind. And I've only ever played it in summer.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

More towards SLH, though i suspect he won't reply, as he rarely does to my comments

I just thought it was wet and poor condition and the holes were just not my cup of tee. as for the views, nothing spectacular IMO, nothing you can't get from any course around me. But i don't pay to look at the scenery, you can get that for free

I always do...well I try to

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Quite comical given the way you've criticised certain MP's, Boris Johnson and Theresa May, Nigel Farage and 14m Brexiteers 👍

Of course - I forgot - freedom of speech means I can criticise or slag off anyone or anything regardless of whether or not someone gets hurt by it. And since you brought it up - how silly and remiss of me to not equate members of golf clubs with front line influential politicians such as Farage and Johnson. Clearly my thinking is a bit squinty today

Someone asks me 1:1 whether I'd played a certain course and I had but didn't that much enjoy it - I'd tell them as much - but I'd also say that what I enjoy as a course is not going to be the same as what someone else will (see Pitlochry)

 

[Captainron]

best courses for me are Turnberry Ailsa, Royal County Down and The Old Course. My favourite is Cruden Bay

worst courses - Ecclestone Park or Exeter Golf and CC. Not setting foot on there until they are potato fields.......

 

[patricks148]

I just really enjoy playing it - a bit of a hike up Craigower to start with - but great views and a great variety of holes - some very quirky. Not sure I'd necessarily want to play it 2-3 a week as a member mind. And I've only ever played it in summer.

you get great view driving down the A9 but i wouldn't play golf on it.

Drive past it on a reg basis, but i wouldn't bother again if they paid me TBH

 

[jim8flog]

I have yet to play the best course I have ever played but I have played loads of great courses.

The worst course I have played it now shut down one of the Dorset Courses which used Dorset in their name. Located just South West of Sturminster Newton.

One of the course built in the great golf rush of the late 80s/ early 90s . Built on land a lot of which was unsuited to golf and a layout that just did not work.
First time I played there we had real trouble actually working out where we were supposed to hit the ball from the tee, one par 5 where it was impossible to fire at the green for the third shot, trees all across the fairway short of the green and too high to go over (and I hit a very high ball).

The second time we played there we walked in. Mid summer and balls hit to the middle of the fairway just disappeared in to the ground.


Luckily on both occasions we were visiting under the old county card scheme so did not have to pay a green fee.

 

[patricks148]

I always do...well I try to

so what does your Wife think of Dustin Then?

by the way thats from a few weeks ago when you said she didn't like Tiger due to his conduct

 

[Captainron]

Best - haven't played a vast amount of courses but my favourites have probably been Richings Park, Grims Dyke and Aldenham.

Worst - we lot a lot of cheap courses. None so bad that we wouldn't return. Ruislip I find very boring, and flat, and a couple of times the greens were not in the best nick. But as I say, I'm happy to hack my way round anywhere that's local and cheap really. :lol:

You need to stop splurging all that money on polo shirts and save some for some decent courses.

 

[Cols_Ears]

Best - Royal County Down or Penha Longa Atlantic course near Lisbon.

Worst IMHO - East Aberdeenshire (now closed need I say more). Built alongside a main road, on clay covered hills, boring tedious architecture, terrible conditioning (brick hard in the summer, bog in the winter), greens were Sh!te too as I recall..