Cruden Bay
Number 12. Played Autumn 2011. Designed by Old Tom Morris / Tom Simpson & Herbert Fowler.
Well, where to start! G-Star and I had arranged a wee jaunt up the east coast to Cruden Bay. We had heard great things about the course but when we stepped out of the car and walked around the side of the unassuming clubhouse we were blown away! A truly spectacular golf course was laid out below us. If the course played as a half as good as it looked from the clubhouse then we both knew we were in for a treat.
Fortunately member Ray Matthew was on hand to guide us round this quirky course. There is plenty of gorse, tricky greens to hit and some impressive bunkers as well as a myriad of blind shots. I would highly recommend a strokesaver or a caddy - if its wasn't for Ray I don't know were I would have ended up with half of my shots! A tight opening hole with out of bounds on the left; gorse on both sides and some well placed bunkers. This makes the tee shot reasonably difficult but your second shot should be easier as long as you accurate with your irons. The greens were quick when we played the course and the traditional links bump and run golf is rewarded here.The second has a very scary table green - it is a large area but fear that you will be too big is unusually unfounded. Trust in your iron play and you should be fine - however this is definitely a hole that looks far easier on paper than it actually is. The first of the blind tee shots - I understand that this is one of the few par 4 holes in golf in which it is possible to get a hole in one, in fact the day before we played there were 2 at this hole! G-Star gave it his best shot with his drive shown in the picture below. However don't be fooled by this hole, if you are not big enough then it leaves a tricky down hill shot and the green was also the one that I had most difficulty reading.
The fourth hole is the first par 3 on the course - it is a daunting shot as you playing across a grass hollow. As with all links course - the wind here determines what club you will be using from an iron all the way to driver! Being big here is good as there is a bank that will gather your ball and helpful put it back towards the green. The next hole is probably the most spectacular tee position on the course. I was delighted to stand there and take in the view and also to realise that the wind was blowing right to left which meant my drive was the straightest I had ever hit! It is a long hole and the bunker in front of the green is a tough to get out. Even though the rough doesn't look too bad on the course - it did manage to snag a few of our balls on the this hole and that was only going to get worse! This is a cracking hole and as you can see was my number 1. The sixth is another fantastic hole - a proper par 5 with a testing tee shot followed up by a wood laid up before the stream before trying to hit another plateau green. An extremely testing golf hole.
At this point you really do start to feel the changes of elevation as you make your way through the various dunes - some holes are completely surrounded and you feel as though you have been transported back to 1895 and fully expect to see Old Tom himself smashing a guttie towards one of these fine greens. The seventh is another testing par 4 which is a dog leg left; two impressive sand dunes protect the green which is elevated. The 8th is a short par 4, as you walk towards your second shot you should spot the flag for the fifteenth - take a note of the position as that hole isn't called "Blin' Dunt" (Blind Hit) for nothing! The 9th is another spectacular hole offering you views across the course and towards Slains Castle. It is a cracking driving hole and if you are big enough (or have the wind) the second shot might not be too difficult. The tenth is another beauty of a driving hole - with out of bounds down the left and a burn which can cause concern to big hitters it tests accuracy over outright distance. The green has two tiers and is one of the most difficult on the course - the pro tip is to hit your second shot below the flag as you do not want to be putting downhill on this green. The eleventh is a short par 3, a quirky little hole which perhaps is a bit of let down after the proceeding grand driving holes however you do not want to miss the green as getting up and down could be difficult. The twelfth is a decent par 4 which is fairly wide and flat and, depending on the wind, should be a reasonable chance of par.
Another wonderful par 5 with dunes, bunkers and a burn to contend with. My main thought as I hit my 2nd 3 wood from the fairway was that hole still seemed miles away! However, it turns out to be nestled behind a large sand dune so it is best to play up the left hand side to give you some chance of seeing the flag. The next three holes are my favourite run of holes on the back 9. They run along the coast before turning back in through the dunes and towards the clubhouse. The fourteenth is a great hole - the pin position is shown on a box at the tee. As you drive you want to be right of the bunker on the fairway but not too far right as you will be playing from the rough. Your second shot will be blind to the sunken green shown above. You really want to try to miss the down slope as you don't know if your ball will stop if it does hit it! A great little hole. The fifteenth is the blind par 3; which if you remember the pin position from earlier would help you a great deal! Oh and just to make it more difficult it is a dog leg and you need to hit your iron over the top of a large dune! There is a marker post to help but a daunting tee shot none the less! For the sixteenth you walk back up the side of the dune you have just driven over, remembering to ring the bell, and you are facing another par 3. You play across a lot of rough to the green - you want to land short of the green and allow the ball to roll down the hill. However, that is easier said than done. This hole has one of the original Tom Morris greens.
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