Links virginity despatched!

Imurg

Imurg

The Grinder Of Pars (Semi Crocked)
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Mar 15, 2008
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Today's the day I played my first Links course after 24 years of playing this glorious game.
Richart invited me down to Hayling to play with some of the Mariners.
One of the biggest reasons I haven't played Links before has been a time and distance issue.
It's 2 hours down to Hayling and not much better to any other Links course.
But I've finally done it.
It was pretty breezy when we started and solid bogey set me off.
Then I lost 2 balls in 2 holes - one in ankle high rough ( amazing we couldn't find it) and the other, probably, in a gorse bush, although Rich and myself both reckoned it had cleared it.
A couple of poor shots and a couple of dodgy bounces saw me with a staggering total of 4 points after 7 holes - well this was going well then..!!
But then it started to click and I worked out how to play certain shots instead of ones I'd normally play and amassed 22 points from the remaining 11 holes. Hit some really nice shots.
Possibly could have been more but the greens had been spiked and sanded...Some rolled ok but some were full of bobbles....
Still, a great experience that I thoroughly enjoyed. Enjoyed it more when I found out I'd beaten Rich, although it was his 5th game in 6 days...
I'll almost certainly be heading out for more if the chances arrive.
One thing I did struggle with early on was visualising shots and seeing a defined "hole" in front of me. Rich and Andy ( who shot +3 gross off scratch👏) were giving me the lines and telling me what was where but sometimes I found it difficult to commit to a shot fully as my brain was telling me there was "nothing" there....Wierd feeling.....
Many thanks Rich.
It's been too long in coming and I hope it's not another 24 years until I do it again.....But I couldn't do it every week!
 
Yep we live in the worst part of the country for golf courses and seaside, but especially for seaside golf courses!!!!

Glad you popped your cherry :)
 
To be quite frank Imurg, I have played St. Andrews, skeggy, Goswick, and not one of them have impressed me one bit. Massively underwhelmed.
I went to Ireland last year and played Enniscrone and Carne and quite frankly they blew my socks off. What a fantastic experience both them courses were. And god how it blew. The courses were quiet and I lost count how many times I wanted to go back and play some holes again.
Totally get your jest on the visualising shots bit. What I did get my head around very early on was playing the percentage shots, trouble is even some of them once the wind had hold of them went massively wrong.
 
I too played my first links course last week. Royal Porthcawl. Was very hard going but absouloutley loved it. Was also a pleasure watching the same Andy go round in 3 over (iirc).

It's a completely different beast to parkland/heathland golf, and boy can that beast bite! As I say, loved every minute of it though. So much so, I may try and arrange a forum get together at Porthcawl over the summer.
 
Imurg said:
Today's the day I played my first Links course after 24 years of playing this glorious game.
Richart invited me down to Hayling to play with some of the Mariners.
One of the biggest reasons I haven't played Links before has been a time and distance issue.
It's 2 hours down to Hayling and not much better to any other Links course.
But I've finally done it.
It was pretty breezy when we started and solid bogey set me off.
Then I lost 2 balls in 2 holes - one in ankle high rough ( amazing we couldn't find it) and the other, probably, in a gorse bush, although Rich and myself both reckoned it had cleared it.
A couple of poor shots and a couple of dodgy bounces saw me with a staggering total of 4 points after 7 holes - well this was going well then..!!
But then it started to click and I worked out how to play certain shots instead of ones I'd normally play and amassed 22 points from the remaining 11 holes. Hit some really nice shots.
Possibly could have been more but the greens had been spiked and sanded...Some rolled ok but some were full of bobbles....
Still, a great experience that I thoroughly enjoyed. Enjoyed it more when I found out I'd beaten Rich, although it was his 5th game in 6 days...
I'll almost certainly be heading out for more if the chances arrive.
One thing I did struggle with early on was visualising shots and seeing a defined "hole" in front of me. Rich and Andy ( who shot +3 gross off scratch👏) were giving me the lines and telling me what was where but sometimes I found it difficult to commit to a shot fully as my brain was telling me there was "nothing" there....Wierd feeling.....
Many thanks Rich.
It's been too long in coming and I hope it's not another 24 years until I do it again.....But I couldn't do it every week!
Click to expand...
Good to hear you enjoyed your first time Ian.;) You were a natural on the back nine, and when you didn't have to rely on my advice. Some holes I was even doubting the best line myself, but thought I would just bluff it.:) Your 60 yards putts need a bit of practice though.

Always good to play with Andy, as he makes the game look so easy. Not sure he should have beaten the society President on count back though. :whistle:
 
Imurg said:
Today's the day I played my first Links course after 24 years of playing this glorious game.
Richart invited me down to Hayling to play with some of the Mariners.
One of the biggest reasons I haven't played Links before has been a time and distance issue.
It's 2 hours down to Hayling and not much better to any other Links course.
But I've finally done it.
It was pretty breezy when we started and solid bogey set me off.
Then I lost 2 balls in 2 holes - one in ankle high rough ( amazing we couldn't find it) and the other, probably, in a gorse bush, although Rich and myself both reckoned it had cleared it.
A couple of poor shots and a couple of dodgy bounces saw me with a staggering total of 4 points after 7 holes - well this was going well then..!!
But then it started to click and I worked out how to play certain shots instead of ones I'd normally play and amassed 22 points from the remaining 11 holes. Hit some really nice shots.
Possibly could have been more but the greens had been spiked and sanded...Some rolled ok but some were full of bobbles....
Still, a great experience that I thoroughly enjoyed. Enjoyed it more when I found out I'd beaten Rich, although it was his 5th game in 6 days...
I'll almost certainly be heading out for more if the chances arrive.
One thing I did struggle with early on was visualising shots and seeing a defined "hole" in front of me. Rich and Andy ( who shot +3 gross off scratch👏) were giving me the lines and telling me what was where but sometimes I found it difficult to commit to a shot fully as my brain was telling me there was "nothing" there....Wierd feeling.....
Many thanks Rich.
It's been too long in coming and I hope it's not another 24 years until I do it again.....But I couldn't do it every week!
Click to expand...

It was good meeting you Ian and glad you enjoyed Hayling. Hopefully it's given you the bug to play some more links courses.
 
If you moved links courses a bit more inland, gave them a bit more grass, add a few trees, lakes and mountains, they would be brilliant

:whistle:
 
richart said:
Good to hear you enjoyed your first time Ian.;) You were a natural on the back nine, and when you didn't have to rely on my advice. Some holes I was even doubting the best line myself, but thought I would just bluff it.:) Your 60 yards putts need a bit of practice though.

Always good to play with Andy, as he makes the game look so easy. Not sure he should have beaten the society President on count back though. :whistle:
Click to expand...

Oooops :lol:
It was very enjoyable with a good bunch of guys, you both had some unlucky breaks on some holes and on another day would have scored higher.

Hope you've recovered from getting a bit too close and personal with the gorse bush on the 17th!
 
Always surprises me that most people, including me, have their first links experience in the winter when the general weather conditions are possibly at their worse 🤔

Ok, some of the scrub & hay may be cut down in places making it a little friendlier for those wild drives but the wet & windy winter conditions aren't an ideal introduction to links golf.

Due to busy summer seasons I've never been back to any of the many links courses I've played to experience them in much nicer, settled and less testing weather conditions, something I definitely want to change.

Glad you popped your cherry, it takes a few rounds I think to get to know Hayling's layout well as there are a few blind drives and approach shots.

I'll know how tough the wind was by what you took on the 1st and if you made it to the green 🤔
 
Yep been there, I hit my 4w to the same area into a decent head wind although I was in a gap amongst the bright yellow gorse bushes pin high, quick chip on the green and pleased with a bogey start as it looks an innocuous start but it can take a few prisoners.
 
Wind had died down a little
About an hour before it felt like it was going to lift the car up...
Died down on the way in but still enough to make a couple of clubs difference.
 
Enjoyed Hillside in the summer a couple of years back but got a rude wake up on the range, middling my driver and seeing it go less than 200 yards into the teeth of the breeze on the driving range. Teed off after watching the wind take some well hit drives from the middle towards the railway left and had to adapt very quickly. Enjoyed every moment, in great company on a great course, but showed me, even on the sunniest day this format can't be taken lightly
 
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