preston golf club
preston, lancashire
Sunday 28th june 2015
this event was won by
chris warbrick
Preston Golf Club was a welcome surprise. I don't think anyone was expecting such a beautiful course and superb set up.
The course requires accuracy from the tee to give you a chance of attacking the slick greens and that is what Chris did in abundance here. More often than not, electing to take a long iron off the tee to guarantee himself prime position on the fairway - when others were lashing at the ball robotically with drivers and fairway woods. He will also feel like he left a few shots out on the course, which would only have rubber stamped his comprehensive victory even more. Congratulations Chris. |
official bunkers reveiw...
The course is beautiful and is certainly a stand out from lots of the ‘run of the mill’ tracks that are out there. The first thing to note is that there are some great facilities on hand, with a driving range, pitching area, practice ground and putting green all well presented. The clubhouse is impressive and offers lovely views back over the course with reasonable prices and good service. These views of the 18th green and 1st tee whet the appetite as you can clearly see that this place is going to be good.
The greens look immaculate and play better and for us, this is the main feature of any golf course. If the greens are smooth and consistent then it offers the golfer the chance to play confidently and shoot a good score. Preston’s were smooth, slick and extremely consistent throughout – and the practice green was a true reflection of the course [which often isn’t the case]. Subtle undulations and breaks make them a real challenge, and you need to sharpen to them quickly before they start ruining your card. We’ve played on some superb greens in the last couple of years and these are right up there with the very best around. Within that list we are including Royal Liverpool/Birkdale, Hillside and Gleneagles. Fine company I think you’ll agree?
With such strongly regarded greens you may expect to find that the course does not live up to them – as is often the case, it does tend to be one or the other unless you are visiting the premium venues in the UK. However, Preston excels in course design and layout and every turn offers you something different.
The course is undulating [and this should be noted for those with poorer mobility as a buggy may be the way to go] but these variations land make for some extremely unique holes, which are as aesthetically pleasing as they are challenging. The course is designed into the landscape fabulously and the natural contours of the land are used to provide some very tricky holes that may look short on the card, but play entirely different.
There are elevated tee boxes and elevated greens. Holes with water hazards just before the green and brooks and ravines that run across fairways. Holes with huge elevation changes to the green [both uphill and downhill] and a couple of blind shots thrown in for good measure. All in all, it’s fair to say that every hole at Preston Golf Club offers something different. It was a round where you came off and there were lots to talk about in the clubhouse with our members chatting about various hole layouts and how they played them different – which we think is superb as it gets people engaging enthusiastically about the days play.
Multi level fairways and greens, the ball lying above, below and high and lower than your feet – it certainly tests a players creativity as well as ability and although this may all sound a bit too much for some – it really is lovely to play a parkland course that provides something a bit different to just straightforward lies.
Group 1 - Andy Roper, Chris Warbrick & Paul Davies JNR
Roper started off colder than Jean Claude Van-Dammes danglies in that Coors advert and took a while to find his range - especially on pitch shots within 100 yards [which posed a constant thorn all afternoon] However, 4 over gross in the next 8 holes gave him a solid base to build on and a hope of victory. But a wobble at the start of the back 9 put pay to that. Some solid enough play and he kept the "big stick" in the bag for most of the round which helped, but the wedge play punished him badly. An unlucky lie on the 10th [photo below] saw his approach shot land in the lip of the bunker [which had crumbled] and instead of a chance for a birdie he was faced with a unique and difficult bunker shot.
The plus of the round was the putting - which for 80% of the day was 'on fire' and some delightful 8-12 footers dropped to keep the round ticking nicely. All in all, he will be happy with a solid 2nd place on a new handicap - but it could have been so much more.
Chris on the other hand started quicker than Usain Bolt on speed! 10 points after 4 holes and he was starting to dream. The new irons were praised for this delightful start - but in truth it was just great course management and even better play. Chris chose to tee off with long irons for the most part to put himself in prime position on the fairway, and with the course being tricky and undulating, this proved to be a very wise decision. Leaving himself with full shots into the greens with shorter irons and wedges and from the fairways - this meant he was able to make full use of his ability 'check' the ball and keep it on the glass like greens. A bit of a wobble in the middle of the back 9 saw his shoulders slump a little as he thought he had thrown it all away, but some great saving putts kept the score ticking and on a tough course, in a tricky swirling back 9 wind, Chris was fully deserving of his victory on the day.
Paul again started well......VERY WELL. A birdie 2 on the first and his continuing consistency on the par 3's was highlighted again. A lost ball on the 3rd hole [index 1] saw him start to get a bit wound up and this seemed to carry over for 2 or 3 holes as a couple of cuffed chips and missed putts saw the round running away from him - especially as he is usually so consistent with the wedges. To be fair, he did have a fair bit of bad luck on the greens with a few lip outs and his pace was a bit inconsistent meaning the ball over broke or he putted through it. Paul persisted with the driver int he middle of the round and found himself out of position a couple of times a result, but on the holes where it was kept straight he was a mere flick away from the green and scored well. All in all, a solid enough round.
Group 2 - Kev Givnan, Peter Woolley & Allan Gunn
Peter Wooley had a frustrating return to Bunkers after a recent layoff, His choice of club off many tees, his 3 wood, was either very, very good or very, very poor with no happy medium to help Peter score a bit more steadily. A few excellent approach shots where the highlight of Peters round but Preston golf clubs fantastically tricky and fast greens left Peter unable to take advantage fully. Overall, a steady return for Peter and everyone was glad to have him back.
Alan Gunn, the man of the usually short but laser straight drives, had a unusually poor front 9 with his driver which improved on the back 9 when Alan realised he'd been using an orange tee that was far more than all the others he had! The long undulating course is not ideal for Alans game and he struggled to gain any momentum. Alan was very relieved to see he had gained enough points to avoid the dreaded losers shirt.
Kevin Givnan had a fantastic front 9 with accurate iron play allowing him to score heavily with a 21 point halfway total. Several 3 putts, as Kev struggled with the pace of the slick greens, stopped him from scoring even heavier. The back 9 was a complete reversal for Kev unfortunately. His solid ball striking deserted him and he found himself scoring a paltry 8 points on the back 9 to blow a golden opportunity to win his 2nd event of the season.
Group 3 - Phil Williams, Chris Berry, Paul Scally & Lee Carroll
Group 3 all started in reasonable form. Lee had an excellent start and after 7 holes was level to his handicap. Not even Lee would kid you that he is the straightest off the tee but good recovery and half decent putting kept him steady. His promise to leave the driver in the car never came to fruition and as holes passed by a few hard pulled drives caused issues. The only highlight on the back nine was a great tee shot on the tough par 3 downhill. Should have been a birdie.
Paul Scally had a decent day and he does sensibly leave the woods alone. Tee shots were generally straight and only one blob soiled the first half of the card. 16 points could have been 20 or more but his putting was not quite on point and three putts became the norm. He didn't capitalise on his two shot holes and too many single points on the back nine kept him out of the top three. A good each way bet for a top three finish soon though.
Bez like the others started well and was level to the 9th. Distance was not the problem off the tee, approaches were good but a few bad chips and the offensive comment "my putting is as bad as yours" showed were the problem lay. Any chance of success went on 11-15 with only four points but his play was sensible and he deserved a better total than 28.
So who's putting was Bez's as bad as? Phil's that's who. His first tee shot luckily thinned into the pin and gave an opening par and that was his only luck of the day. He eagled the 7th and birdied the 4th but add the lost ball penalty shots and the card didn't quite read like that. Putting from distance was ok but he could not sink anything from 3ft and that's always gonna cause an issue. Excuses aside the back nine was woeful and by the time he realised someone had to come last and that may be he the driving had gone East and it was all over.
Group 4 - Craig Evans, Scott Seddon, Rob Botterill & Paul Davies SNR
Craig was very inconsistent. 3 off the tee on the first 2 par 4’s didn’t help. Wayward off the tee all day and despite 3 birdies didn’t give himself enough chances and was often having to manufacture shots out of the deep stuff - which is never ideal, especially on a course as tricky as Preston.
Paul Davo started very steadily and for the front 9 we thought he had a real chance to be the first player to retain the black shirt. From the 10th onwards however Paul’s game vanished like one of Paul Daniels' cards. With missed short putts and wayward tee shots it meant Paul came home in half of what he went out in. Maybe the strong winds had a part to play, but either way the back to back win is still the stuff of legend.
Rob Botterill bobbled the first hole and as the group looked out on the second tee we though to that the course maybe too long and challenging for him. However, we were quickly proven wrong and "Steady Eddie" was soon getting to grips and plotted his way round under the radar. Indeed a better putting display could have seen Rob challenging for top honours and certainly one of his better performances in recent times and one that he should be rightly proud of. Good work.
Scott Seddon started off very well with long straight hitting. The middle part of his round was his undoing and a few dodgy holes ruined what would have been a winning score. It was one of the first times that the handicap secretary had observed at first hand the ball striking of Seddon and, as was pointed out to him, he has moved into the gaze of mordors eye - it is now only a matter of time before the scythe strikes down upon thee!
Group 5 - Kev Murphy, Steve Evans, Allan Gannon & John Standley
The final group approached the par 3 1st with optimism...no green hit by all!! Unperturbed by this; 3 pars and a bogey later they were all pleased having missed the green! The light drizzle early on didn't dampen the mood, each player struck majestic drives down the 2nd fairway except Gannon...The Captain, Steve Evans, was immaculate off the tee 1st to 18th...The best that Alan had seen from anybody in the society to date but he was also the worst he had seen on the greens which led to him teetering around the wooden spoon places...7 lip outs drove him crazy!!
John played steady all round with some great puts keeping him in contention. Kev found himself waiting on the tee on some par 4s to unleash the bomb drive he is known for..Whilst Evo JNR was putting out on the 14th the shuot of "FORE" may have unnerved him as Kev's drive bounced on the green 12ft from the pin. Anunbelievable draw shot.
The group thought Kev might be in for an ear full off Craig when they reached the green, fortunately though it was a congratulatory "well done, some shot that Kev". Had it not been for a blob on a fairly easy par 3 Kev could have well won this time out. With his huge drives his final score of 32points could have been so much better had he managed to find more fairways off the tee. Had the captain putted better he would have sailed away with this title. Gannon scrambled well overall with 1 in 3 drives hitting the fairway, once this is addressed he is almost certain a maiden victory is just around the corner!
The greens look immaculate and play better and for us, this is the main feature of any golf course. If the greens are smooth and consistent then it offers the golfer the chance to play confidently and shoot a good score. Preston’s were smooth, slick and extremely consistent throughout – and the practice green was a true reflection of the course [which often isn’t the case]. Subtle undulations and breaks make them a real challenge, and you need to sharpen to them quickly before they start ruining your card. We’ve played on some superb greens in the last couple of years and these are right up there with the very best around. Within that list we are including Royal Liverpool/Birkdale, Hillside and Gleneagles. Fine company I think you’ll agree?
With such strongly regarded greens you may expect to find that the course does not live up to them – as is often the case, it does tend to be one or the other unless you are visiting the premium venues in the UK. However, Preston excels in course design and layout and every turn offers you something different.
The course is undulating [and this should be noted for those with poorer mobility as a buggy may be the way to go] but these variations land make for some extremely unique holes, which are as aesthetically pleasing as they are challenging. The course is designed into the landscape fabulously and the natural contours of the land are used to provide some very tricky holes that may look short on the card, but play entirely different.
There are elevated tee boxes and elevated greens. Holes with water hazards just before the green and brooks and ravines that run across fairways. Holes with huge elevation changes to the green [both uphill and downhill] and a couple of blind shots thrown in for good measure. All in all, it’s fair to say that every hole at Preston Golf Club offers something different. It was a round where you came off and there were lots to talk about in the clubhouse with our members chatting about various hole layouts and how they played them different – which we think is superb as it gets people engaging enthusiastically about the days play.
Multi level fairways and greens, the ball lying above, below and high and lower than your feet – it certainly tests a players creativity as well as ability and although this may all sound a bit too much for some – it really is lovely to play a parkland course that provides something a bit different to just straightforward lies.
Group 1 - Andy Roper, Chris Warbrick & Paul Davies JNR
Roper started off colder than Jean Claude Van-Dammes danglies in that Coors advert and took a while to find his range - especially on pitch shots within 100 yards [which posed a constant thorn all afternoon] However, 4 over gross in the next 8 holes gave him a solid base to build on and a hope of victory. But a wobble at the start of the back 9 put pay to that. Some solid enough play and he kept the "big stick" in the bag for most of the round which helped, but the wedge play punished him badly. An unlucky lie on the 10th [photo below] saw his approach shot land in the lip of the bunker [which had crumbled] and instead of a chance for a birdie he was faced with a unique and difficult bunker shot.
The plus of the round was the putting - which for 80% of the day was 'on fire' and some delightful 8-12 footers dropped to keep the round ticking nicely. All in all, he will be happy with a solid 2nd place on a new handicap - but it could have been so much more.
Chris on the other hand started quicker than Usain Bolt on speed! 10 points after 4 holes and he was starting to dream. The new irons were praised for this delightful start - but in truth it was just great course management and even better play. Chris chose to tee off with long irons for the most part to put himself in prime position on the fairway, and with the course being tricky and undulating, this proved to be a very wise decision. Leaving himself with full shots into the greens with shorter irons and wedges and from the fairways - this meant he was able to make full use of his ability 'check' the ball and keep it on the glass like greens. A bit of a wobble in the middle of the back 9 saw his shoulders slump a little as he thought he had thrown it all away, but some great saving putts kept the score ticking and on a tough course, in a tricky swirling back 9 wind, Chris was fully deserving of his victory on the day.
Paul again started well......VERY WELL. A birdie 2 on the first and his continuing consistency on the par 3's was highlighted again. A lost ball on the 3rd hole [index 1] saw him start to get a bit wound up and this seemed to carry over for 2 or 3 holes as a couple of cuffed chips and missed putts saw the round running away from him - especially as he is usually so consistent with the wedges. To be fair, he did have a fair bit of bad luck on the greens with a few lip outs and his pace was a bit inconsistent meaning the ball over broke or he putted through it. Paul persisted with the driver int he middle of the round and found himself out of position a couple of times a result, but on the holes where it was kept straight he was a mere flick away from the green and scored well. All in all, a solid enough round.
Group 2 - Kev Givnan, Peter Woolley & Allan Gunn
Peter Wooley had a frustrating return to Bunkers after a recent layoff, His choice of club off many tees, his 3 wood, was either very, very good or very, very poor with no happy medium to help Peter score a bit more steadily. A few excellent approach shots where the highlight of Peters round but Preston golf clubs fantastically tricky and fast greens left Peter unable to take advantage fully. Overall, a steady return for Peter and everyone was glad to have him back.
Alan Gunn, the man of the usually short but laser straight drives, had a unusually poor front 9 with his driver which improved on the back 9 when Alan realised he'd been using an orange tee that was far more than all the others he had! The long undulating course is not ideal for Alans game and he struggled to gain any momentum. Alan was very relieved to see he had gained enough points to avoid the dreaded losers shirt.
Kevin Givnan had a fantastic front 9 with accurate iron play allowing him to score heavily with a 21 point halfway total. Several 3 putts, as Kev struggled with the pace of the slick greens, stopped him from scoring even heavier. The back 9 was a complete reversal for Kev unfortunately. His solid ball striking deserted him and he found himself scoring a paltry 8 points on the back 9 to blow a golden opportunity to win his 2nd event of the season.
Group 3 - Phil Williams, Chris Berry, Paul Scally & Lee Carroll
Group 3 all started in reasonable form. Lee had an excellent start and after 7 holes was level to his handicap. Not even Lee would kid you that he is the straightest off the tee but good recovery and half decent putting kept him steady. His promise to leave the driver in the car never came to fruition and as holes passed by a few hard pulled drives caused issues. The only highlight on the back nine was a great tee shot on the tough par 3 downhill. Should have been a birdie.
Paul Scally had a decent day and he does sensibly leave the woods alone. Tee shots were generally straight and only one blob soiled the first half of the card. 16 points could have been 20 or more but his putting was not quite on point and three putts became the norm. He didn't capitalise on his two shot holes and too many single points on the back nine kept him out of the top three. A good each way bet for a top three finish soon though.
Bez like the others started well and was level to the 9th. Distance was not the problem off the tee, approaches were good but a few bad chips and the offensive comment "my putting is as bad as yours" showed were the problem lay. Any chance of success went on 11-15 with only four points but his play was sensible and he deserved a better total than 28.
So who's putting was Bez's as bad as? Phil's that's who. His first tee shot luckily thinned into the pin and gave an opening par and that was his only luck of the day. He eagled the 7th and birdied the 4th but add the lost ball penalty shots and the card didn't quite read like that. Putting from distance was ok but he could not sink anything from 3ft and that's always gonna cause an issue. Excuses aside the back nine was woeful and by the time he realised someone had to come last and that may be he the driving had gone East and it was all over.
Group 4 - Craig Evans, Scott Seddon, Rob Botterill & Paul Davies SNR
Craig was very inconsistent. 3 off the tee on the first 2 par 4’s didn’t help. Wayward off the tee all day and despite 3 birdies didn’t give himself enough chances and was often having to manufacture shots out of the deep stuff - which is never ideal, especially on a course as tricky as Preston.
Paul Davo started very steadily and for the front 9 we thought he had a real chance to be the first player to retain the black shirt. From the 10th onwards however Paul’s game vanished like one of Paul Daniels' cards. With missed short putts and wayward tee shots it meant Paul came home in half of what he went out in. Maybe the strong winds had a part to play, but either way the back to back win is still the stuff of legend.
Rob Botterill bobbled the first hole and as the group looked out on the second tee we though to that the course maybe too long and challenging for him. However, we were quickly proven wrong and "Steady Eddie" was soon getting to grips and plotted his way round under the radar. Indeed a better putting display could have seen Rob challenging for top honours and certainly one of his better performances in recent times and one that he should be rightly proud of. Good work.
Scott Seddon started off very well with long straight hitting. The middle part of his round was his undoing and a few dodgy holes ruined what would have been a winning score. It was one of the first times that the handicap secretary had observed at first hand the ball striking of Seddon and, as was pointed out to him, he has moved into the gaze of mordors eye - it is now only a matter of time before the scythe strikes down upon thee!
Group 5 - Kev Murphy, Steve Evans, Allan Gannon & John Standley
The final group approached the par 3 1st with optimism...no green hit by all!! Unperturbed by this; 3 pars and a bogey later they were all pleased having missed the green! The light drizzle early on didn't dampen the mood, each player struck majestic drives down the 2nd fairway except Gannon...The Captain, Steve Evans, was immaculate off the tee 1st to 18th...The best that Alan had seen from anybody in the society to date but he was also the worst he had seen on the greens which led to him teetering around the wooden spoon places...7 lip outs drove him crazy!!
John played steady all round with some great puts keeping him in contention. Kev found himself waiting on the tee on some par 4s to unleash the bomb drive he is known for..Whilst Evo JNR was putting out on the 14th the shuot of "FORE" may have unnerved him as Kev's drive bounced on the green 12ft from the pin. Anunbelievable draw shot.
The group thought Kev might be in for an ear full off Craig when they reached the green, fortunately though it was a congratulatory "well done, some shot that Kev". Had it not been for a blob on a fairly easy par 3 Kev could have well won this time out. With his huge drives his final score of 32points could have been so much better had he managed to find more fairways off the tee. Had the captain putted better he would have sailed away with this title. Gannon scrambled well overall with 1 in 3 drives hitting the fairway, once this is addressed he is almost certain a maiden victory is just around the corner!
Bunkers Golf Society Members £45.00 per person
Sunday 28th June 2015
Tee times from 10:00am [arrive no later than 9:00am]
Prices include 18 holes + tea/coffee and bacon roll on arrival
Website: www.prestongolfclub.com
Tee times from 10:00am [arrive no later than 9:00am]
Prices include 18 holes + tea/coffee and bacon roll on arrival
Website: www.prestongolfclub.com
format for the event
Format: Stableford Singles
Handicaps: Players will play off full handicaps. [Except new members who are 3/4 handicap]
Groups: Will be drawn in the 2 weeks prior to play
Tee: Players will play off the yellow tees.
Mini Comps: There will be TWO nearest the pins and 1 nearest the pin in 2 shots. [Will be added before we visit]
Prizes: Will be for 1st, 2nd & 3rd & "The Wall of Shame" for last
Captain v's President competition will be in operation.
Handicaps: Players will play off full handicaps. [Except new members who are 3/4 handicap]
Groups: Will be drawn in the 2 weeks prior to play
Tee: Players will play off the yellow tees.
Mini Comps: There will be TWO nearest the pins and 1 nearest the pin in 2 shots. [Will be added before we visit]
Prizes: Will be for 1st, 2nd & 3rd & "The Wall of Shame" for last
Captain v's President competition will be in operation.
tee times & groups
The Handicap Secretary is currently stood with his scythe working out the new handicaps!
10:00am tee timeAndy Roper [13]
Chris Warbrick [9] Paul Davies JNR [9] 10:24am tee timeKev Givnan [8]
Ben Warden [14] Allan Gunn [18] Peter Woolley [13] |
10:08am tee timePhil Williams [11]
Chris Berry [13] Paul Scally [24] Lee Carroll [16] |
10:16am tee timeCraig Evans [8]
Scott Seddon [17] Rob Botterill [27] Paul Davies SNR [14] 10:32am tee timeKev Murphy [9]
Ste Evans [13] Allan Gannon [17] John Standley [19] |
nearest the pins
There will be 2 nearest the pins on the 8th and 12th and a nearest the pin in 2 shots on the 2nd.
CLICK THE IMAGES TO ENLARGE
CLICK THE IMAGES TO ENLARGE
the venue
The legendary golf course architect and former Open winner, James Braid lent his Midas touch to the design of Preston Golf Club, and even if you didn't already know this, you may well guess as the course exhibits all the traditional trademarks of a classic Braid design. The Fifer's plans were laid out on some fabulous parkland in 1892 - making it one of the oldest courses in the region - just a stone's throw from Preston and provides a sound test of golfers for all levels of player.
At 6312 yards from the tee on the first hole to the pin on the eighteenth, it is also a nice length for those looking for a leisurely round but we a good test of their golfing ability.
Additionally, Preston have superb practice facilities including a 16 bay driving range [CLICK HERE]
VIEW A HOLE BY HOLE PHOTOGRAPH GALLERY HERE
At 6312 yards from the tee on the first hole to the pin on the eighteenth, it is also a nice length for those looking for a leisurely round but we a good test of their golfing ability.
Additionally, Preston have superb practice facilities including a 16 bay driving range [CLICK HERE]
VIEW A HOLE BY HOLE PHOTOGRAPH GALLERY HERE
directions
Preston Golf Club is in North Preston near Preston Hostpial. It is 2 miles from Junction 31A of the M6 and is 35 minutes from Skelmersdale and 1 hour from Liverpool.
The full address for Sat Navs is:
Preston Golf Club, Fulwood Hall Lane, Fulwood, Preston, Lancashire, PR2 4DD
Tel: 01772 700011
The full address for Sat Navs is:
Preston Golf Club, Fulwood Hall Lane, Fulwood, Preston, Lancashire, PR2 4DD
Tel: 01772 700011