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The Reg
by Rob Moates & Colin Man
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 1020 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2002-09-04 |
24,679,293 bytes |
54 |
3926 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL Par 3 Course |
PARKLAND |
The Reg.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| 53f1e298c9a2428cafb31ec4d3113a6e |
06d5aaeb3a3a4724b448f205bb7ba23b |
|
LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by Robert Rundel
September 2002
What a jewel this course is! Set in rolling open British countryside, complete with heather and gorse and other nasty shrubs, this 9-hole par-3 course is a marvelous miniature, with a great sense of humor too. It is a tribute to Reg ('Donkeyreg') Giles, the founder of WireLS, a popular and active website for British Links fans. The readme file says, 'The emphasis with this course is to have fun!' The course rules are listed as follows:
1. Free donkey ride for anyone getting a hole in one.
2. You may not have a free drop if your ball lands in any donkey s**t.
3. Donkey's have right of way.
4. If you donate a bale of hay or straw it entitles you to free bag of donkey manure.
5. Fly swatting is allowed.
6. The club cannot be held responsible for anything that happens to the golfers person
or equipment by the donkeys.
7. Chipping is allowed on the 7th and 9th greens if the hazard interferes with your putting line.
Rob Moates has designed four previous courses, Cragga Moor, Bishops Amble Tournament, Jackollie Marsh, and Hopes Nose. Their user ratings and review scores have increased with each successive release. The Reg surely shows that Mr. Moates has mastered the APCD.
Hole 1 ('M6') The name refers to a well-traveled British freeway. This is a long straight hole, with a long straight rolling green, guarded by three ponds. The countryside is beautiful, with a few low trees and a lot of shrubs and brush. The textures and colors are nicely selected. It takes a light touch with a 3-wood to put your ball near the cup. The green, which is 42 yards long, has four levels, making for some interesting putts.
Hole 2 ('Spaghetti Junction') A shortish hole over two bunkers to a green with water on three sides. From this tee, we see (and hear) the first donkey (screenshot 1).
Hole 3 ('Donkey's Rest') A longer hole, with water at the front, and a bunker on each side of the green. The left bunker is unusually deep and nasty (screenshot 2). From the tee, there's a lovely low tree and a nicely-done rock outcropping. A stream surrounds the tee, and runs the length of the hole to the pond fronting the green.
Hole 4 ('Sky Blues') A burn (stream) surrounds this large green, which is also guarded by three bunkers. On the tee, someone (Reg?) keeps yelling 'Yee-haw!' Three gentlemen are standing by the green observing, no doubt wondering if I'm going to make that tricky sidehill putt.
Hole 5 ('Mrs. Reg') The green is guarded by six bunkers, and surrounded by standing stones (screenshot 3). There's also one stone in the middle of the green! Braying can be heard from the donkey corral near the green. A very picturesque hole!
Hole 6 ('Giles Drop') There's a huge bunker, 12 feet deep, fronting a green shaped like an inverted bowl. Very easy to roll off. There more donkeys on the hill behind the green.
Hole 7 ('Donkey Blues') This hole drops down 40 feet to a double green separated by a raised path (screenshot 4). There's a pond on the left and a stream on the right, with each green sloping towards the water. There's a lovely thatched-roof house behind the greens.
Hole 8 ('Meg') A medium length hole with 7 bunkers surrounding the green.
Hole 9 ('Reggie's Revenge') This is the first hole I've ever seen with a pond in the middle of the green! (Hence, the need for rule 7 above.) Several bunkers guard the front as well, and there's out-of-bounds behind it. There's that thatched roof house again in the distance.
I had great fun playing this course, as advertised, and I think you will too.
Summary :
Details: Fictional British Parkland course, par 27, 1648 yards, 9 par 3s, 5 tees per hole. Includes an artistic cameo, a splash screen with donkeys, hole previews with descriptions, no hole handicaps. Hole signs, plus a bell ('Ring bell to clear donkeys') on each tee. |
|
CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Fictional, short course. |
Location
TBA |
Conditions
TBA |
Concept 7/10
This good-humoured little Par 3 course is actually much more realistic than
you might expect. The terrain is believable as North Yorkshire, and the
presence of the donkeys makes it more so. It's a crying shame that the
designers didn't see fit to make this one longer than its nine holes, but it's
a fun little bit of fluff nevertheless, complete with oddball 'Local Rules' and
a host of good customisation. |
Appearance 8/10
The planting is brilliant and very convincing of a heathland local. Perhaps a little more care might have been taken around the
extrusion of the water features, and a few bunkers feature sharp edges, but the designer has (rightfully) pushed the boat out by
including all manner of obstacles and hazards, and the course looks wonderful as a result. |
Playability 8/10
You'll soon realise that the greens at The Reg are not to be messed with. They have been contoured to an extreme level of difficulty
and will make for an element of frustration. You might even find that a valid strategy is to play to the fringe and then chip, because
three-putts are woefully common. Other than the greens, this course is a hoot to play: rocks, water and deep pot bunkers all make for a
diverse yet fulfilling half-round. |
Challenge 5/10
Par 3 holes are the hardest to pitch in terms of a fair challenge, and this course - mainly because of unsympathetic greens - has erred
on the hard side. It's certainly possible to make birdies, but missed putts are all too common and on more than one occasion I found
my ball ending up further away than before I had hit it. It's not quite unfair, but certain holes (notably the 5th) border on it. |
Technical 9/10
In many ways, this is a little design showcase where many tricks have been crammed into nine short holes. Rocks are judiciously
used, water features throughout the course, and the customisation extends to donkeys and some suspicious-looking onlookers. The
planting is superb, wild and natural, and there's a handful of custom sounds (not least the donkeys!) to add an extra dimension. It's not
quite perfect, and every now and then you see a feature that hasn't had quite enough attention lavished on it, but it's pretty damn good
for all that. |
| Overall |
A one-off. Quirky, unique and lavish in turns, this hits the spot when you're looking
for some light relief. |
37/50 |
Please remember that Clipnote reviews are the opinion of one person and do not constitute an 'Official' Links Corner review of the course. |
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