So, I have just returned from my first round back at Foxhills. I managed to get the first tee time of the day. The first person to make a swing onsite for 4 weeks. I felt very lucky indeed. So many other golfers out there, not part of a club, will struggle to get a tee time this week due to the sheer demand for play. Us golfers are quite an obsessive and eager lot, especially after such a contested hiatus.
I originally titled this post as ‘Managing Expectations’, however I felt that this had too many negative connotations for a title. But I shall be explaining what I mean.
For the last four weeks I have been sporadically hitting balls into a practice net in my garden, which has since moved to the garage. In addition to this, I also purchased a PuttOut mat and have been sinking 6-footers like there’s no tomorrow. Two great pieces of kit and I am very glad to have been able to keep my eye in. Again, many others would have laid dormant this last month and rolled out of the car this morning hoping to make some sort of contact. I wasn’t far off. It was bloody freezing, and where I have been practicing in just a t-shirt, wearing three layers was like wearing a straight jacket. Despite this, I lined up down the first fairway and tonked a hybrid like a dart right down the middle. I then proceeded to make bogey after finding a greenside bunker with my second and then skulling the ball over the green, desperate not to leave it at my feet. Funnily enough there hasn’t been much bunker practice over lockdown. At least I know what I have to work on first.
The remainder of my play could have been better, especially with the big stick. I haven’t wanted to pull my driver out at home due to the resulting noise pollution and lack of clearance in the garage. Tough scene. Despite this, a 3-over-par for 9 holes after 4 weeks out shouldn’t be too disappointing. However, there were a number abrasive conditions that didn’t help play.
As I mentioned in a previous post, the ONLY saving grace of a golfing lockdown was that greenskeepers would be able to care for the course, carry out their Winter maintenance programme and get the course/s looking great upon member return. This is where ‘Managing Expectations’ comes in. Now I have a lot of good things to say about Foxhills and have hosted many guests over the last two years that love the courses and facilities on offer. The summer that’s just whizzed by brought with it some fabulous conditions and great memories. However, the course I played this morning was a far cry from those days.
I don’t recall the last month being particularly wet. I know that the weekend before lockdown, courses across the country were closed for play due to rain. However, I do not remember any such days since. In fact, The Environment Agency states that the South East received a total of 77mm of rainfall across the region from 28th October to 24th November 2020. Compared to October 2020, this is 96mm less. Don’t say I don’t do my research. In any case, the course was soaked. It was obvious that all the hollow-tining work had been completed, but this process had torn up the fairways resulting in Ground Under Repair (GUR) in a number of unfamiliar locations. It felt like Augusta out there, by that I mean ‘mud-balls’. In addition to this, the greens all needed a haircut. Yes it was early and the dew slows things up a bit, but they can’t have been running faster than 7 on the stimpmeter. That PuttOutt mat runs at approximately 10. Another tough scene. There was also no sand in the tines which meant that when you chipped onto the green, there was a high chance that your ball would bounce 90° à la Warne vs Strauss, Edgbaston 2005.
What was most upsetting though was the lack of bunker care. The majority of bunkers were unraked and littered with Earthworm casts and tufts of seeded grass. I know there are those out there that say bunkers should be a hazard and not raked, akin to the waste areas at Pine Valley, but I am not one of those believers. Bunkers are often the epitome of course presentation and some of my favourite shots are those from tight bunker lies up over a crisp riveted edge. Me and my playing partner were saddened to see our traps in such a state of disrepair.
Now, Foxhills has in place 9-hole only golf. Both the Bernard Hunt course and the Longcross course will be operating 9 holes only from the 1st and 10th tees. The temporary change to 9 holes means that 400 members will play this Saturday. This is great for ‘growing the game’, however not so good for the course. I understand the requirement to satisfy member demand with limited day light but I cannot understand allowing so much play on courses that will resemble the aftermath of The Somme come Monday morning.
Good news is that the Bernard Hunt will be an 18-hole course from Saturday 12th – Friday 18th. With the Longcross following suit from Saturday 19th – Friday 24th. I don’t want to end on too sour a note as I know the greens staff and maintenance crews have undertaken some great work on the Bernard Hunt course, extending the 7th fairway and relaying a number of buggy paths across the site. I really do hope that the courses can recover quickly and aren’t too churned up. Drainage capacity will be key from December to February. Regardless, I will be getting in all the golf I can over the next few weeks.
Manage your expectations out there folks. It’s cold, wet and muddy. Unless you’re playing Sunningdale …
The Surrey Golfer 