|
Botany Bay Golf Club
by Ernie Barnes
| Links Corner Course Database ID Number - 574 |
Release Date |
CRZ Filesize |
Par |
Course Length |
| 2001-09-28 |
35,398,483 bytes |
72 |
7285 yards |
| Type |
Style |
CRZ Filename |
|
FICTIONAL |
WOODLAND |
Botany Bay Golf Club.crz |
| Course ID |
Course Key |
| ef6504a0b46111d5b8690001022a29ab |
f8850b12b2b1a3c43eba0482090f8b83 |
|
LINKS CORNER REVIEW |
Reviewed by Dave Campbell
Expectations: Not sure exactly what to expect from this course. I know Ernie is a fellow 'Powerstroker' so I'm hoping for a course I can score upon.
First Impressions: Botany Bay is Ernie's first design posted at The Links Corner and was made available on 9/28/01. It is a fictional, woodland par 72 measuring 7,285 yards from the tips. Ernie's placed five sets of tees and the ladies total is a mere 5,388 yards, so it can really play to any skill level.
This course grabbed me right from the 1st tee as the loving care and attention to detail is apparent. It's as good a first design as any I can remember, and the layout is quite unique and thought provoking. If you like courses that stray a bit from the norm, even borderline fantasy at times, then this one is for you. So let me dig a bit deeper into this design.
Playability: Botany Bay on first glance appears like your standard woodland type course. Dense tree planting borders most fairways and strong ground level planting is visible throughout. Standard rough and fairway textures are used along with a nice, very light green texture for the greens. You will have to take bunkers into account on virtually every shot, as there are many and all are placed with a purpose. Ernie has used water sparingly but wisely, and it is very pleasing to the eye. Where the course veers a little into the bizarre is the fairways. They have unusual shapes and angles and most are too skinny for my tastes, which is surprising considering Ernie favors the PS swing. I still found the imaginative layout very appealing and I was eagerly awaiting each new hole, anxious to see what the next surprise was.
The tee boxes are round with a nice extruded collar (grass path texture) around each. I like this look very much. You'll have wide-open drives to all of the 'different looking', fairly skinny fairways. Many have carries in excess of 250 yards but if you miss short you're only in the rough. Bunkers are ever present and I found myself clubbing down on occasion to take them out of play. There is a spacious cushion of rough before you get to the tree canopies and dense ground cover. You would have to miss the snap bad to end up in there, and if you did it may take a drop to get back out. Ernie's ground level planting is very nicely done and really brings the course to life.
The bunkers almost deserve their own review as they have a strong influence on how the course is played. Most holes have anywhere from 6 to 13 traps scattered the length of the hole, and the course must have well over 100. The 17th hole is literally surrounded from fairway to green with a unique looking network of thin bunkers that have to be seen to be believed. The par 5 7th hole has 13 traps from tee to green. Believe it or not I only landed in two bunkers the whole round, but if you played in breezy or windy conditions you might be in there every other shot! Make sure you can hit the 'pick line' before you tee it up on this bad boy.
The greens are a pretty color as I mentioned earlier. Some may think the texture is a bit light but I like that sun dried look. I noticed that Ernie chose not to make a green fringe which I think works well here. I usually like the delineated area between fairway and green but it's just another example of the different look and feel this design brings. The greens have subtle but constantly testing elevations. I know that I didn't see a flat putt all round (my 32 putts should tell the story). Almost all the greens are very spacious so there is a possibility of some very long putts. Ernie has offered greens of many shapes and sizes, including the 228-yard par 3 8th hole. This one is surrounded by four large traps with a little bomb crater bunker placed right in the center of the green. This is a green you may have to chip on.
As I mentioned there are some water hazards and two island greens (4th and 16th). All the ponds are gorgeous with great lakeside planting. A nice rock bank wall is along the water line on the 4th hole. A beautiful pond fronts the 8th tee box and water can come into play off the 18th tee but without question, sand is the dominant hazard in this design.
I noticed ball washers at most tees, a restroom, some fencing and a few signs but the course is very uncluttered with a feel of nature being prominent.
Drawbacks: Many carries are 240 yards or more, which can really test my 3W and chs. At least they are not forced carries over water and you'll end up hitting your second shot from normal rough.
The 5th and 15th holes are borderline unfair, at least from the back tees. The 5th is a 495-yard par 4 dogleg right. Your approach is over water from an elevated fairway with tree trouble on your right. I was slightly open on my approach and clipped the trees and eventually bogied. The 15th is a 478-yard par 4 dogleg left with a demandingly skinny fairway and 9 sand traps. Even without looking at the scorecard I knew these two were the #1 and #2 handicap holes.
I noticed on one tee that the area was marked with two sets of markers (4 black, 4 blue, etc.), when all the rest had only one set. I just checked all my screenshots and I didn't take a picture of it but contact me if you want some further info Ernie. This doesn't affect playability at all; in fact it would have been nice if all the tees were that way.
As mentioned previously most fairways are pretty tight, not necessarily a complaint but just make sure you know this going in. This may be a good course to play if you want to get some practice in the sand because there will probably be a few chances each round to hit from the traps.
Best Hole: Most are good and very creative. I really liked the par 3's on this course, particularly the 4th, 8th and 16th. The par 5's can all be scored upon if you negotiate the thin fairways safely. On the par 4's I was just happy to make par. I think I'll give the nod to the 8th hole, a tough 228-yard par 3 with all the elements of this great course used. Your drive needs to carry over an awesome looking, well-planted pond to a green surrounded by bunkers. Oh, and there is a trap dead center of the green. Just different enough to make it stand out from the crowd. My screenshot is from my tee shot on this lovely hole. Check the top cam for that funky green.
Test round stats: -2 71%FIR 83%GIR 32 putts. Like I mentioned earlier I only hit the sand twice, which I still can't believe. All in all a fun, fair round of cybergolf.
Comparable courses: Kerry Glen CC by Brent Aschacher, Capdepera Golf Resort by Jorg Jobmann
Overall: Botany Bay is an exceptional first design, among some of the best firsts from any designer. Heck, this would be a good 10th design! Ernie has really stretched his imagination on this one and offers up a very dynamic, challenging and unique golf course. I'm sure it's not going to be to everyone's liking because it's not your standard layout, but I would suggest everyone give it a try. You'll have to be patient and pick you spots carefully when to attack but for me that always makes a satisfying round. Well done Ernie, can't wait for your next one.
Course Info :
Cameo Screen? Yes
Splash Screen? Yes
Text file? Yes
Hole Previews? Yes
36mb
Reviewed October 2001 |
|
CLIPNOTES by Ben Bateson (ousgg) |
Description
Fictional, woodland course. |
Location
TBC |
Conditions
TBC |
Concept 5/10
Obviously, this is intended to be a course set around the infamous part of Australia. This is not immediately apparent, though, in what is a pretty standard woodland course. Although none of the holes were badly designed, there was an unshakeable feeling of 'seen it before', which is unfortunate. |
Appearance 7/10
This course has been built up well, and looks very convincing as a result. Only the poor extrusions on the tee boxes and some bunker cloning let it down. But the planting is sumptuous, particularly at ground level, and the land rolls nicely and convincingly. The panorama is pretty and fits in very well indeed. This course has obviously seen a lot of care and attention. |
Playability 5/10
Due to the aforementioned déjà vu element, a round doesn't exactly fly by. Add this to the frustration of repeatedly not hitting fairways, a lot of enforced bunker work, and the fact that most holes only play one way, and the course isn't a stroll in the park. In fact, playing it became somewhat tedious towards the end. |
Challenge 5/10
This course is a tough test because of the fairways, which are ridiculously narrow and almost always bordered by continuous bunkers. The greens are receptive, but hitting them in regulation is a problem, because if you miss your snap even fractionally, you'll be in the sand. As such, this remains a fundamental design flaw, and does nothing to help the playability of the course. Par 5s were tedious and offered little variety; the Par 3s were the best holes on the course by far. |
Technical 6/10
The planting on this course is very carefully done, and the forested areas are convincing and have clearly taken a lot of work. The water regions were equally competent. It's a shame that the tee box extrusions were all mis-aligned, and that the bunkers were clearly so unnatural. My final issue came with the greens, which were clearly missing a fringe, making short approach shots much harder and meaning a lot of frustration if the green was missed by inches. I can't see any obvious reason for neglecting to include a fringe. |
| Overall |
A good-looking course, but a stern test. Be prepared to put in a lot of practice for bunker escapes. |
28/50 |
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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