Duking it Out

The Dukes Course was built in the mid 90's by the Old Course hotel to have a place they could put their rich guests if they couldn't get a time on the Old Course. It's a parkland or in-land course, built on dirt as opposed to sand, so the knock was that it never drained well. When Koler bought the Old Course hotel, they also put a lot of money into redoing the Dukes Course. The renovations have turned out really well. They completely redid the last three holes and it seems to be a lot less marshy than it was in the old days.

I would recommend the Dukes Course if you are looking for a change from all the links golf in St. Andrews. It is a challenging course, especially from the back tees and the views are great. You can see all the way across St. Andrews on the 13th. I think the course plays better in the summer when it is dry as it can be a muddy slog if it has been raining a lot. There are a lot of bunkers and forced carries on the longer holes. The par threes are all interesting with tough greens. A lot of people take carts on this course as it can be a long walk from tee to green and the climb back up the hill on #9 and #18 is challenging. That said, if you are in half decent shape this will be an easy walk for you. The good news is that the food in the club house is great and it also has some of the best views in town, so plan to stay for at least one drink after you play. We stayed for lunch and I had a great burger and Dad had a giant portion of fish and chips, both were very reasonably priced.

Because it was quite cold and damp when we arrived this morning, we decided to play off the white tees. The decision paid off as I was out in 39 and back in 44, my best score in a long time.

Storming the Castle Course

We stormed the Castle Course in St. Andrews yesterday and the walls held. Without a doubt, I would say this is now the hardest course in Scotland. It is long and there are a lot of hazards. Most courses here rely on the weather to protect them, the Castle Course has a many well placed bunkers, high grass mounds in the middle of the fairway and tricky greens, so even on a sunny day this course would be a challenge.

Let's address the mounds first. They have been dubbed "Don Kings" by the locals as the stick up out of the fairway and have high grass on the top. They are well positioned, protecting the main landing areas on the fairways of several long holes. If you get behind one, all you can do is take a lofted club and hit over it, so they usually count for at least a one stroke penalty. Less conspicuous but just as deadly are the bunkers. While they are mostly off the fairways (unlike the Old Course) they can be very steep and difficult to hit out of. A miss-hit will again cost you at least one stroke. Another hazard that comes into play is the North Sea. This course hugs the coast much tighter than any of the other St. Andrews Links courses. There are several holes that a ball hit too strong into the green will carry off the cliff and into the water. The most dramatic hole on the course is the 17th. It is a 220 yard par three that plays into the the prevailing wind over the water. Both the tee and the green are on high points as close as you can get to the sea, with about 200 yards of carry over an inlet. It seems to be inspired by the famous hole at Cypress Point.

The final challenge, if you ever make it there, are the greens. There is not a flat area on any one of them. Even with all the rain they have had, they were still very fast. It is not hard to hit a put that almost stops at the hole, takes one more turn, then picks up speed and rolls off the green. There is even a story of a New Club member who putted off the green in a competition and couldn't find his ball. The grass mounds and the greens are a huge source of controversy. Almost everyone I talked to said the course is too hard. The greens keepers I talked to said there are plans to shave a few of the Don Kings back this winter, so the course will look different next year. The bigger issue is what to do with the greens. There are no easy pin placements and in the summer they can only get faster. I doubt they will invest the time and money to completely redo them, but some changes will have to be implemented. Overall this is an amazing course and a great addition to the St. Andrews Links arsenal, it'll be interesting to see how it changes over the years.

After the golf, we hit the New Club for a couple of pints while my Dad figured out that Mom had her Visa card stolen in Barcelona. They were walking down the street when a young guy came up and asked directions in English. A minute later two guys who said they were police, asked to see what was in their pockets and purse as they said this was an area well known for drug deals. Even though they were suspicious of the situation the person claiming to be a cop was able to lift my Mom's Visa card out of her purse. Luckily Chase suspected something was wrong and denied the charges as they tried to buy a bunch of electronics and cancelled the card. A good thing to remember when travelling if something feels suspicious, trust your instincts and get out of there.

We had dinner at Ziggys, a great steak and burger place that has been around for just over 20 years. They started out as a take out cart, then moved up to a store front, then in 1985 moved into a great space behind Ma Bell's. We had the nachos and quesadillas to start, which were both great, then we all had a burger and chips which was huge and very tasty. We closed out the night with a beer at Ma Bell's, a bar I used to work at back in 1987. It has gone a lot more upscale since I worked there. Monday night was open night mike and there was a young guy singing county songs that we could not understand a word of because his Glasgow accent was so thick.

Saints Win in London

A big win for the Saints in London tonight against San Diego. We watched the game at the golf club before a great dinner at the Balaka, our favorite Indian restaurant in St. Andrews. We mixed in a few curry dishes with chicken tikka, garlic nan bread and Indian beer.

The day began with a traditional English breakfast around brunch time. Then Stephen and I played the New Course. We both played pretty well, but the putting woes continue. I went out in 41 and back in 50. In my defense we were hit with a squall around the 8th hole that left us both very wet and cold. We dried out but never really warmed up again.

Looking forward to playing the Castle Course tomorrow.

Windy Start in Scotland

My brother Stephen and I arrived in St. Andrews, Scotland around 11 AM on Friday morning. After a quick lunch we got straight to the golf, we were able to walk on the Old Course with a couple of local guys just after 1 PM. The sun was out, but it was very windy, I am guessing there were gusts around 35 mph. We both played pretty OK considering we just spent 12 plus hours sitting on a plane. One of the guys we were playing with didn't look like much of a golfer, but he was only one over after nine, which is pretty impressive given the conditions. Stephen had a great par on 16, I hit a great drive, but left my second shot and my first put way short. On 17 I watched everyone draw the ball perfectly over the sheds, in one case almost hitting the hotel. I whimped out and went way left leading to a double. On 18 I had a first, my shot stopped dead in the middle of Granny Clarkes Wynd, the road that crosses the course. I punched a low running shot off the road to within 15 feet, but missed the put.

That night we hit the Central pub for a couple of beers and a great dinner. They have a different pie every night and so far I have not been disappointed. Last night it was a steak and ale pie that was amazing. We hit the wall about 8:30 PM and still had to walk back from the pub. I was pretty happy to hit the hay and slept for 12 hours.

Today we played the Balcomie Links course in Crail and it was windier than I can ever remember. On the first tee the wind was so strong I couldn't stand up straight. There was also no one else on the course which was erie. Dad decided not to play and walked around with us instead as he is playing in a competition tomorrow at Kingsbarns. I don't blame him, it is not a day you would like to go outside never mind going for a four hour hike. Luckily Crail is a short course, so we didn't have to walk too far. Unluckily it is one of the most exposed courses on the Scottish east coast, so you get the full force of the wind. Stephen and I both played well, but we could not make a put. It is very hard to judge the speed of a put when the wind is gusting over 40 mph.

Tonight we are heading out to dinner at the Vine Leaf, one of my favorite restaurants in Scotland.

Havana Nocturne: How the Mob Owned Cuba- And Then Lost It to the Revolution by T.J. English

I saw an interview with T.J. English on The Daily Show with John Stewart and John talked this book up a lot. I have to say I agree. Havana Nocturne: How the Mob Owned Cuba- And Then Lost It to the Revolution is an amazing overview of the mob scene in Cuba after the second World War. Cuba, one of the most corrupt countries in the world, and the mob were a perfect fit. The Batista government welcomed Mob leaders Meyer Lansky and Charles "Lucky" Luciano with open arms and allowed them to operate casinos, brothels and night clubs unfettered as long as they got their cut.

While the mob stories are very interesting in their excesses and detail, the thing that makes this book a great read is the way English weaves the story of Fidel Castro's communist revolution into the mix. In fact, it is amazing that Castro ever succeeded, as inept as his group was they were able to overcome Batista because he was blind with greed.

If you are looking for a fun read with a little history mixed in, you will enjoy this book.

Eminem - The Marshal Mathers LP

There are many reasons to have the Marshal Mathers LP in your collection, but the song "Stan" is the number one. Who would ever put Dido and Eminem together? This is a scary, dark, confessional song that on the one hand creeps you out and on the other makes you laugh. I loved Dido's comment about this song, "finally my little brother likes one of my songs." I like this song and I like this entire record.