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Dibden Golf Course
by John Brooks Note: This course contains 1024x1024 textures and can only be played in version 1.07 or later of Links 2003
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 1929 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2010-01-03 |
85,162,813 bytes |
70 |
6012 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
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REAL |
PARKLAND |
DIBDEN1_locked.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
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| COURSE NOTES |
Dibden Golf Course, a public course opened in 1973, lies in the New Forest, overlooking Southampton Water, Hampshire, England. This is my local course, and has matured very well over the years and is a true test of course strategy and management. As well as the 18-hole layout, Dibden also has an interesting a 9-hole course and floodlit driving range. The views over Southampton and the Hampshire countryside are captivating, and even more interesting when world-famous cruise ships and liners such as Queen Mary and QE2 pass by.
Special thanks are due to John Slade, PGA Professional at Dibden for his help, and to Daniel Watson for his help and forbearance in preparing the panorama with minimal information.
Final version updated for (a) elimination of some repetitive planting (b) easier tree pass-throughs, and (c) seam blend problems associated with wrongly using updated mid- and far- versions of some terrains introduced in 2003.
John Brooks |
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CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Real, woodland course |
Location
TBC |
Conditions
TBC |
Concept 6/10
Dibden is sweet, but perhaps with a hidden set of teeth. It comes across as a relatively open and inoffensive home-town course, in the manner of John Brooks' other creations, and there are some unexpectedly tricky holes which set it slightly apart. The back nine will be taken on with gusto by most Linksters which diminishes the course's competitive edge, and the levels of customisation are a welcome sheen of polish on the design. |
Appearance 6/10
There appears to have been a significant amount of improvement since the early releases, and the textures particularly have been sharpened up, and much variety instilled in the planting. Probably a little too much, in fairness: there are a few trees that stand out like sore thumbs, especially greenside. The elevations do still come across as being rougher than anyone could reasonably expect from a course in this relatively flat part of the country. |
Playability 4/10
Dibden doesn't win friends. John has confessed to it being 'toughed up' to some extent, and this has been a grave mistake in my view. Steel trees are never welcomed, and some of the pin locations border on the ridiculous. A lot of strokes at Dibden will be taken with the putter thanks to the designer's misjudgements around the greens. This is undeniably a flaw, but the realism of the course presents a pretty adequate compensation. |
Challenge 6/10
Even with the artificial difficulty, this is a still a short course with little hazarding, and if pin positions are kept away from the silly ones, then there will be low scores for the taking. You still take a gamble with the trees though, and rather unfairly it is a gamble that has been removed completely from your hands. |
Technical 5/10
I find it hard to give too much credit when a course has been artificially adjusted for challenge. Sure, there is plenty of good work here, and scores are likely to be much closer to 72 than 62, but at what cost? With the demand for realism almost being omnipresent for fans of these courses, a decision to sway away from realism has been very much misjudged here. |
| Overall |
A good course, spoiled by steel trees and over-difficult putting conditions. |
27/50 |
Please remember that Clipnote reviews are the opinion of one person and do not constitute an 'Official' Links Corner review of the course. |
This course is available as a FREE download.
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