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Woburn - The Duke's - SE
by Ray Smyth
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 1333 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2003-09-09 |
23,244,032 bytes |
72 |
6996 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
REAL |
PARKLAND |
Woburn.SE._locked.crz.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
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LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by
Simon Kent
September 2003
Designer: Ray Smyth has previously designed two courses, Forest of Deane - UK (now discontinued), and the original version of this course, Woburn Golf Club - UK (now discontinued). Since his first course was released in 2001, Ray has come along way, and even though his course portfolio is not as large as others, he has had enough experience to now be working on multiple courses at once, with the other two Woburn Golf Club's, the Duchess and Marquess, being released shortly.
Course History: With three world class courses to choose from, Woburn Golf and Country Club is one of the best golfing experiences in the British Isles. The three courses, the Duke's, Duchess and the Marquess are exceptionally good quality, so much so that the Duke's course was the home of the British Masters for 20 years. The Duke's course was designed by Charles Lawrie in 1974, and with a vast array of tree species throughout the course, it is a truly an experience that a golfer will not forget. With many awards under its belt from top golf magazines, the Duke's course provides a tournament quality atmosphere that you'll always remember, so much so that you'll more than likely want to play it over and over again. More information can be found at www.woburngolf.com.
Playability: The fairways look easy enough, but with dips and slopes everywhere, positioning of the ball is important to set your next shot up, as on Hole 1, I thought I had an easy second shot to the green, but instead placed it in the bunker, however I was lucky enough to hit the ball out of the bunker in for eagle, so I wasn't too annoyed at myself. The greens are generally easy to read, however as I found out on the last holes, don't under estimate the short putts, as putting for birdie at one stage, could mean putting for a bogie soon after if you are not careful. Three of the Par 5's are easily reachable in two shots, but if you don't have a good drive to start off, trees, fairway dips and deep rough can mean a bogie instead of a birdie. The Par 3's are very target oriented golf (Screenshot 3), as they are generally short holes, but with sharp declines in elevation like on Hole 3 (Screenshot 2), shots will never be easy. Hole 13 is the riskiest drive of the round, as trees interfere with where you want your drive to land, and with a big drop off into n area of rough, the distance you hit needs to be perfect. Hole 18 was a great way to finish, and in the end I had a -9 (63) round, with 100% Fairways and 72% Greens in Regulation, with a total of 23 Putts.
The Course: The best feature of this course is definitely the feeling that a golfer like me has, knowing that this is where numerous British Masters were won, by many legends of golf. The course itself seems to have its very own 'mood', and to fully immerse yourself in the tournament nature of this course, I would recommend using a really good soundscript. I didn't like the tower behind the 16th green, and I think the designer could have used some artistic interpretation and left it out, as I found myself looking at the tower, rather than the actual hole. It was hard to spot the flags on many holes, due to the white background on many of the signs, so make sure you know exactly where you are aiming before you hit the ball. From what I've seen of the real course, the colours and textures have been matched very well, and with a diverse and widespread amount of plants and trees, this course is certainly one of the best 2001 releases in recent times.
Favourite Hole: My favourite hole would have to be Hole 3 (Screenshot 2), as I think the challenge and playability aspects of this hole are great, but I think the hole is exceptional due to the planting found around the back of the hole leading up the hill.
Technically: As soon as you step up on to the tee of Hole 1 (Screenshot 1), you immediately notice how clean and neat the textures have been made to look, and right away, it is actually quite hard to realize that this is a 2001 course, and not a 2003 version. As it is a 2001 course, there is no seam blending, however the designer has blended the textures together perfectly for a 2001 course, using natural curves and lines that aren't obvious or stick out. The bunkers were made well, but could have been lipped better, as they were clean, but not perfect, and if the designer intends to follow through and make a 2003 version, they will I'm sure be much better. Some of the outstanding features I noticed were the fences along the side of Hole 1 (Screenshot 1), and the tee area at Hole 9 (Screenshot 3), which really made this stand out as one of the best Par 3's on the course.
Other: I originally noticed that Ray's previous course, Woburn Golf Club - UK (now discontinued), hadn't been reviewed, and when the review was about to be posted, the designer said he was going to update the course, and so a few months later with this new release, I have finally been able to complete this review. The zip file is quite good, as it includes the usual course file and read-me, but also has preview shots of the designer's next courses, a recorded round and a saved shot. The tournament options were of a high standard, with ball washers, crowds and signs, but what I especially liked was the personal touch on the signs. The splash screen was nice, but the designer may have missed the fact that it still displayed the 2002 date from the previous release. The course came with the usual cameo, custom flags, handicaps and hole previews, which were simple, but yet very informative.
Download Value: Considering this is a relatively small download, even for dial-up users, this course is a very worthy download for any fan of real courses. As the Duke's course has been used for numerous British Masters, having the opportunity to play on a course that you may not get a chance to play in real life, is something that I think makes this a valuable download. This course will be burnt to CD, but with a 2003 version possibly coming out, it won't stay on my hard drive, however I will play this course again.
Course Statistics: Links 2001 Course, Par 72, Real Woodland, 5 Tees, Distance: Back- 6388m, Forward- 5922m, Par 3's- 4, Par 4's-10, Par 5's- 4.
Round Statistics: Played- Back/B/M/M/Pro/Classic, -11 (60)
File Sizes: Zip- 22.5mb, Crz- 25.2mb, Sha- 12.9mb |
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CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Real, forest course |
Location
Bedfordshire |
Conditions
Not really feasible on anything but S*/S* |
Concept 10/10
One of the most prestigious and austere of British courses, Woburn is dominated by dark and forbidding woodland and features some
surprising and challenging elevation changes off the fairway. Emphasis is very much on pinpoint position off the tee, and there are some
outstanding short holes. The PC conversion remains impressively fresh and playable - as with other great courses, it's enough just to put
yourself in the midst of it. |
Appearance 7/10
This looks impressive for a 2001 design, but it's not without its flaws. The cloning in the forest is obvious at points and parts of the custom
planting, especially the radio mast, have not been prepared carefully enough. But the elevation changes have been carefully handled, and
the forests - despite the clones - look authentically dark and menacing. A pleasant and inoffensive choice of textures is a good final touch. |
Playability 9/10
You'd be a fool not to want to play this course. It radiates class and is a treat from start to finish. Nearly all shots will require careful
assessment of the potential advantages, and while the course doesn't offer anything as trite and obvious as a definite risk/reward
option, there is strategic merit to all holes. Some well-customised and planted sound effects guide you round and help to make a good
course all the more immersive. |
Challenge 7/10
Part of the reason that this course hosted the British Masters for 20 years is the fact that it's no pushover. It's tough stuff, even with a
computer-assisted swing, and missing the fairways will almost certainly cost you strokes. Rolling elevation changes mean there are no
formalities, but the greens are pretty poor when viewed through Mod eyes. The Par 5s seem to give up perhaps a bit too easy. But for all
that, an impressive test has come from a course with probably less water and sand hazards than virtually any other track. |
Technical 6/10
It's a shame about the clones and customisations, because the planting is excellent at all levels: there aren't many of its contemporaries
with such solid underplanting. The bunkers are a little flawed, though, and often show signs of insertion. These problems aside, though, it's
a credible effort which has done a very solid job of reproducing a famous course. |
| Overall |
Has aged well: not completely without flaws, but a great enough course to make it
easy for you to overlook them. |
39/50 |
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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