How to judge the quality of a Golf course your are playing on?
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00:00Hello everyone and welcome to Walpoleston Golf Club and this video in
00:03association with Peter Millar in which we're going to take a look at how you
00:07judge the quality of golf course that you are playing. So I'm going to be
00:11joined by Rob Smith and Jeremy Elwood who run our Top 100 Courses panel and
00:15the editor of Golf Monthly Mike Harris as well to look at the Golf Monthly
00:19list of Top 100 Courses and in particular how we rank those golf
00:24courses. Now there are five different criteria that we use to help us judge
00:29where each of the golf courses sits. We're going to talk through each of
00:31those with some key discussion points along the way that well worth bearing
00:35in mind whenever you're out playing a golf course for the first time. Right
00:39let's get started.
00:47Okay so it's important to say right at the beginning of this part that the way
00:51in which Golf Monthly rank its Top 100 Courses is slightly different to the way
00:55some other people do it in that we have five different categories and we're
00:59going to look at those in order starting with the one that's weighted the most
01:03the most so the most important so 35% of a score of a golf course will be on
01:08Rob the quality of the test and design. Now obviously the Top 100 Courses have
01:14all got great test and design what makes those so good in terms of the way in
01:17which they're laid out? Well what you're looking at for this category and as you
01:20say it's the most important of the categories is that you want a golf
01:24course that has got every kind of variety of hole on it and will therefore
01:28keep you interested all the way around but also test you all the way around so
01:32you want to come off the course having probably used every club in your bag you
01:36want bunkers in different places you want strategic thoughts you want some
01:40risk and reward holes you want holes that turn to the right holes that turn
01:44to the left this is very much about how you would look at a hole if it was drawn
01:48for you on a piece of paper that's what you're evaluating that hole on where the
01:52hazards are where the landing areas are what how do you approach into the green
01:56and so on so you want something that's fair that all golfers can play but it's
02:01still testing so that you've really got to think about what you're doing so
02:05that's what we mean by the design and test it's really what the golfer has to
02:09do to get from the tee into the hole. Yeah and I guess it's a really good
02:14point that Rob that balance that you you want from a golf course in terms of
02:18testing you being challenging but also being rewarding as well if you play well
02:22now Mike and Jess give us some examples of golf courses on the list that
02:26performed well in terms of the quality of the test and design. Well I would pick
02:30out somewhere like Royal Lytton maybe where you know it's maybe not the most
02:36visually attractive surroundings enclosed by houses but each individual
02:40hole will make you think all the way from tee to green because of its
02:45bunkering because of its topography because of its shape and you're at the
02:49far end near the turn there's changes in elevation where you play up towards a
02:53couple of greens up there so it's got everything even though externally you
02:59know it's not got ocean views and glorious sights to behold but it is
03:04still very very well designed. Fantastic test of golf no matter what. And a tough closing stretch.
03:08What handicap you are. Mike? I think do you know where we are today Walthamston is
03:12fantastic for its variety of shots there's some nice elevation changes you
03:18play up some holes you play down some other holes again you know as Rob said
03:23you've got that variety of dogleg left dogleg right you've got some shorter you
03:27know par fives you can get out and then you've got a couple of really long par
03:31fours that are really going to test you the par threes are not all the same length
03:34got the lovely par three across the water which you feel like that's a really
03:38great chance have a birdie some of the other par threes here you know longer
03:42more testing but I think it's that it's that variety across the ATV. I'm gonna I'm gonna play devil's
03:48advocate here I'm not asking you to name any courses that are on the top 100
03:51because there probably aren't aren't any but what are the things that golf
03:53courses do that bug you in terms of the quality of the testers I'm gonna start
03:58one because I'm one that you always say to me Mike which is growing up long
04:01rough beneath the trees so you hit it in the trees and then you can't actually
04:04get out you're in the thick rough is there anything else that you can think
04:07of that that is a bit frustrating when you find that at a golf course? I think
04:11if you've got a relentlessly long carries right I think is something which
04:17is fine for tall players and for you know for low you know single-figure
04:23golfers but for the ordinary golfer too many forced carries I think is you know
04:29I wouldn't you know I probably mark a course down for that. Right okay. I think
04:35for me it would be that demand as I mentioned earlier for variety I don't
04:40want to have 18 holes that are the same regimented through the trees the four
04:45par threes are pretty much the same length and you've got the same shot
04:48coming I want that variety and that therefore to have to think about
04:52different things on each hole. Yeah Jez? I would go for already long par four
04:57testing long par fours 450 yards and then they throw a really tricky green
05:02and a very narrow entrance at you as well and you're thinking I've done the
05:05hard part here I've got the green now I don't want to you know take three or
05:09four more shots to get down I think you know if you've got a long par four don't
05:13make the green amongst the most tricky on the golf course. Yeah I would agree
05:17with that. I think there's always a really good principle of hard par easy
05:23bogey again I think it's something which you know yes there should be a test and
05:28you should feel like you know it's an achievement if you've made par but making a bogey
05:33it's like that gives you you know that option to have a bail out shot. A way out yeah
05:38you know to not you know cross 18 holes not keep on forcing carries whether it's over bunkers or over walls.
05:44Yeah I believe that is what Bobby Jones wanted all the holes at Augusta to be. He used that very phrase effectively hard par easy bogey.
05:52Yeah and I think we can all agree that's a very good golf course and so so 35% of
05:57a course's mark goes on quality of test design 30% goes on the conditioning and
06:03the presentation of the golf course Rob. Well that's obviously vital because
06:08there's no point in having a lovely golf course in front of you but you can't
06:11play it because the surfaces aren't correct. What you want is true greens
06:14are of a consistent pace all the way through all 18. You don't want them to be really fast.
06:19Absolutely not but it's the consistency that's the only important thing really.
06:23Obviously you don't want them to be stale pace but you want them to be the same pace all the way through so that you don't suddenly get caught out because that's so different from what you've just played.
06:32And it's the same with the way all the way you want the bunkers to be well presented you want any hazards if you can use that word anymore such as walled houses and so on to be nicely lined and to look good.
06:42So the whole presentation first kind of rough if there is one second kind of rough and so on you want it to look and feel and then most importantly play consistently all the way through.
06:51Yeah and actually it's quite an interesting point here because I feel as if there are some golf courses that can look and feel rugged but that are also well maintained.
06:59I think sometimes when you talk about condition people get caught up in that sort of Augusta mindset of having it absolutely pristine but actually it can be rugged but it could also be in fantastic condition as well.
07:10Oh 100% I think if you talked about Royal West Norfolk Brancaster or someone like Royal North Devon they are meant to be natural golf courses.
07:20Some of the links in Ireland and Scotland they're not meant to be pristine it wouldn't be appropriate I think appropriate conditioning is so on an inland course particularly on a parkland course I think you do expect courses to be you know of course be immaculate.
07:35I know Adair Manor perhaps is the ultimate inland you know conditioning wise ultimate inland it's incredible you sort of the tees you could almost be greens you know at some golf courses the approaches are incredible.
07:50Yeah that comes at a cost too.
07:52Absolutely they obviously have you know sort of a lot of maintenance teams you know big green grouping teams I think almost you know they'd have as many for 18 holes as 36 hole course would have but that's appropriate for that type of golf course it wouldn't be appropriate for links to be absolutely pristine I think it needs to have that element of pristine.
08:14And feeling natural yeah totally natural to its environment.
08:17Yeah Jezza give us another course that you'd like to give a shout out to in terms of conditioning.
08:21Conditioning well Rob's home club it's probably better that I speak about Tannridge is not very far from it's probably the closest top 100 course to my home Tannridge in Surrey and I've played a few times and thought it's kind of on the cusp of top 100 I played it last summer with these two gentlemen and it was just absolutely immaculate and the best condition I've ever seen it and when you're on the cusp just that little extra percentage in that category can't be enough to be over the edge.
08:50Because there's so many great golf courses.
08:52Because it's important to say there's a lot of fantastic golf courses that are not in the top 100 that are well worth obviously considering and we do consider them very dearly.
09:01You know our next 100 you wouldn't be disappointed if you played any of them and probably the next 300 beyond that but somehow we've got to differentiate between them.
09:09Which is one of the challenges that you chaps face.
09:12Now the next one for me is really important because I always want to play a golf course that is fun and has an element of excitement about it and I think that probably manifests itself in the visual appeal which we give 15% of the weighting to.
09:29Rob tell us a bit about that side of things.
09:33Well it covers two aspects really.
09:35One is as you're standing on the tee or on the fairway what do you see in front of you?
09:39What's the test in front of you? How good does that look? How much does it get your juices going? How much does it excite you?
09:44But also you're really talking about the backdrop so behind the hole what's going on over there and outside the course and obviously you've got so many links courses.
09:51There's views over the sea if you're lucky enough to have those really count for a fair bit too so we've got 15% for visual appeal and I think that's really important.
09:59So it's what takes the original architect's design off the page and brings it into life.
10:04The visual appeal is really important.
10:06It's interesting I see Rob's got three courses down there that he's sort of picked out because I'm going to sort of steal Rob's homework there.
10:13I talk about Old Head over in Ireland you'll see many many many famous photographs of Old Head.
10:19It is a spectacular place.
10:21It's incredible.
10:24It's almost these high cliffs.
10:26You've got dramatic drops.
10:28You've got amazing the lighthouse.
10:30It's almost like one of those fancy golf holes.
10:32Yeah absolutely.
10:34And then you've got Hollingwell.
10:36Which is interesting because it's so different to Old Head.
10:39It's like a totally different thing isn't it?
10:41And I think that's about inner beauty that makes the holes look lovely.
10:46Really really fantastic peaceful place to play golf.
10:50And then the other one you put there is Gleneagle.
10:52And actually interestingly for this ranking we have brought in the centenary course that's been sat outside of the top 100.
10:59I think we just feel like the presentation of the golf courses all three of the Gleneagles have been moved to another level.
11:05And then of course you've got the beauty of the you know Perthshire Hills.
11:09You know sort of the backdrop for all three of the courses that we've moved the centenary course in alongside the Kings and the Queens.
11:19I think to carry the Gleneagles on a bit further.
11:23The first time I played there it didn't stop raining the whole day.
11:26I played 36 holes and I loved every minute of it because the setting just blew me away.
11:31So you know I couldn't hold a club by the end but it was just such a beautiful place to play.
11:35It is it's spectacular.
11:36Now so you go from 15% for visual appeal to 10% for the facilities.
11:42Which is again a really important part of the mix because you want to play a golf course.
11:48Great golf course.
11:49But you also there's other stuff that goes on around that that elevates the experience even further.
11:54Well it's a big day out for all of us to play a top 100 course is a real treat.
11:58For many people it's a treat they can't do that often.
12:00So it's absolutely the whole day out that we're looking at here.
12:03So you want to be in a clubhouse that's comfortable, is welcoming, is friendly.
12:08You want if you're the kind of person who warms up beforehand.
12:13You want a practice ground where you can get your swing going.
12:15Which you're not Rob.
12:16A halfway hut that's not as nice as good and sometimes it's at the clubhouse.
12:20Sometimes and we've got some real crackers.
12:22We mentioned Sunday earlier out on the course as well.
12:25You want the whole thing.
12:27You want the whole package for your for your day out I think.
12:30Without a doubt.
12:31So give us just something that you think.
12:33Well let me say Dun Donald is another course that's come in this time.
12:36And it's always been a strong golf course.
12:38It's hosted the Scottish Open and it's on that glorious stretch of coast in Ayrshire.
12:43But it never had a clubhouse.
12:45And now it's got a fantastic clubhouse as well as the accommodation.
12:49Which is a separate thing.
12:50But just getting that proper clubhouse rather than all right it's a nice cabin.
12:56Nice temporary clubhouse.
12:58But now it's got the proper facility to match the experience you're getting out on the golf course.
13:03And when you're right on the cusp again.
13:05It's just enough to take you from outside to inside.
13:09I think it's really important.
13:10I mean as Rob said to play a top 100 golf course.
13:12It's a significant investment on the green fees.
13:15Because the green fees are really high.
13:17So we are ordinary golfers.
13:19We're not professionals.
13:21You know that's the whole thing about the golf club here.
13:23It's sort of for golfers by golfers.
13:26And if you don't play brilliantly.
13:29And if that perhaps the quality of test and design is you know sort of beats you up.
13:32Yeah yeah yeah.
13:33You still want to see a beautiful golf course that's well presented.
13:36And from when you arrive to when you leave.
13:38The facility that is for us part of our rankings.
13:42I know for some other rankings they're literally first tee to 18th green.
13:48And that was just really looked at the golf course.
13:51We don't take into account accommodation.
13:54But it's pretty much everything else that as a regular visiting golfer you will experience.
13:58So the locker room.
13:59So the shower is good.
14:01You know the quality of food is really good as well.
14:03Yeah.
14:03You know and again appropriately priced.
14:06I've got a good section of beer behind me.
14:08But for us three or four of us.
14:11You know a really nice pint of beer at the end of the round.
14:14Or good you know a good glass of wine is you know.
14:16That's that's what it you know is encapsulated in that facility.
14:20Yeah 10% of them are.
14:21I think I just mentioned you know the facilities don't have to be grand.
14:24You have to match the you know.
14:26I've just been to Porthcawl.
14:27And the clubhouse there is not grand in any way.
14:30But if you sit in that wood panelled room looking out to sea.
14:34With a little tipple of something up around.
14:36However badly or well you've played.
14:39All is kind of well with the world.
14:41That's a place I love going to.
14:43Okay so 10% of the weighting goes to the facilities.
14:47But 10% also goes to something that we're calling experience.
14:51Which is a bit more subjective isn't it?
14:52It's hard to kind of put an exact mark against it.
14:55But it's a really important part of the mix when it comes to judging these golf courses.
14:59It's very important.
15:00But it recognises the fact that we're all different.
15:02And we all like different things.
15:04And get pleased by different things.
15:05But ultimately we kind of end up marking these in the same way.
15:09It's the most subjective of the five criteria.
15:12Because it's about how did you feel?
15:14How great was the occasion?
15:16How warm was the welcome?
15:17So it's about the touchy-feely stuff.
15:20That you really can't write down and define very clearly.
15:23But it's still important to the overall experience of your day out.
15:26At a lovely top 100 course.
15:27Yeah because I guess a lot of people watching this.
15:29May have been to a fantastic golf course.
15:31Where perhaps the welcome hasn't been perhaps as good as they were looking for.
15:35Because you really want to be treated like.
15:37And feel like you're a member for the day.
15:38When you go to these golf courses don't you?
15:40Yeah I think it's interesting.
15:41North Berwick actually have it as a sign.
15:43There is a sign.
15:45Juicy coming in.
15:45Paya Vista, Greenfield.
15:46You are a member for the day.
15:49Interesting again.
15:49I'm cribbing off Rob's notes again here.
15:53It's the welcome from both staff.
15:55And from members as well.
15:57I think that can be.
15:58You guys will Neil and Jez.
16:01You'll remember the time that we went and played at.
16:03A course that shall remain nameless.
16:04Where we were running late.
16:06We were on the way back from the Turnberry Open.
16:08We stopped in.
16:09We've been held up by traffic.
16:11We had to get out the car.
16:12Onto the tee to make our tee time.
16:15And quickly change shoes in the car park.
16:17So we could get out quickly.
16:19And a member came over.
16:20Because you can't change your shoes in the car park.
16:22And it sort of you know.
16:24You could have said.
16:24Do you need to know you know.
16:25Do you need to know where the locker room is?
16:28It makes a difference.
16:30You know you really.
16:31You know when people are investing their hard-earned money.
16:34And going to the top 100 golf course.
16:36Really want to make it feel like it's a special day.
16:39And so Jez tell us somewhere that you feel.
16:41As if comes out really well.
16:43When it comes to the experience.
16:45Well I think a lot of them do.
16:46Because they as Mike says.
16:47They're charging a lot of money.
16:51And it is the ones that.
16:53Maybe in the last 10 to 15 years.
16:55A lot of them have really come on in that regard.
16:57And a lot of you know.
16:59The top clubs.
16:59The traditional members clubs.
17:01Maybe 15 years ago.
17:02Did think you know.
17:03It's a privilege for you to come here.
17:05So you'll do it how we want to do it.
17:07And there's definitely been a real change in focus.
17:09That these people are paying.
17:11Two three hundred pounds.
17:12Yeah it gives.
17:13They need to be treated like customers.
17:15Yeah and I think interesting.
17:17Because I think it's the.
17:19The number of club managers.
17:21Secretaries is probably.
17:22You would have called them.
17:24Have experience in hospitality.
17:27They go and do a lot of research.
17:28In the hospitality sector.
17:30To see how.
17:31Great hotels.
17:32Great restaurants.
17:33What do they do.
17:35To again.
17:36Make their.
17:37Customers feel really welcome.
17:39Have a really special experience.
17:40So again.
17:41You want to come back.
17:42Regardless of how well you play.
17:44You go.
17:44Do you know.
17:44I had such a great day there.
17:45What did you see?
17:46I don't know.
17:46Probably millions.
17:47But I want to go back.
17:48Yes.
17:48And I think that's something.
17:50For me is always the mark of.
17:51Really great experience.
17:52Doesn't matter how you play.
17:54I want to go back.
17:54Because I had such a great day.
17:55Yes.
17:56And if you can add that.
17:57That sense of occasion.
17:58That you get from turning up.
17:59To play somewhere.
17:59That has that sort of spectacular look.
18:01And feel to it.
18:01And you're onto a real winner.
18:03So there you have it.
18:04That's our look.
18:05At how we rank golf courses.
18:07At golf monthly.
18:08Now it's important to say here.
18:09That we haven't actually changed.
18:11The criteria for.
18:13Just like.
18:14How long.
18:14I think we had a minor recalibration.
18:16Maybe 10 years ago.
18:17Where we waited something.
18:19Slightly differently.
18:19In essence.
18:20Yes.
18:21Very little has changed since day one.
18:22Yes.
18:22So it shows you that.
18:23Hopefully the consistency.
18:25That we brought to the rankings.
18:26Provides a bit of confidence.
18:27That hopefully what you're getting.
18:28With our top 100.
18:29Are just fantastic golf courses.
18:31That are going to.
18:33In different ways.
18:34Tick every single box.
18:35That you've got.
18:36But that's it for now.
18:37From Warpaston.
18:38Thanks very much for watching.
18:39We'll see you next time.