Golf Course Architecture
October 2023
Top Hat Tens
Tom Simpson used to say the best holes were the ones that caused the tiger (scratch man) pain and the rabbit (bogey golfer) pleasure. I play my golf at Portmarnock Golf Club (PGC) in Dublin and when I play alone, I often start on the 10th, my favourite hole on the course. Royal St. George’s (RSG) 10th hole has often been my starting hole in matches at RSG. Walking up the 10th at RSG I remember admiring the magnificence of the green with my opponent Dr. Alistair Wells (uncle of Nicola - 5* podcast guest) which falls off mostly on all sides, with some reprieve on the right. The green is hard to hit - cold and blustery conditions are the staple accompaniments of holes like this and make the hitting of the green a celebration. Both holes are an allegory for links golf really - freedom is achieved when [...]
July 2023
Hoylake to Hong Kong: Two Clubs Intertwined
Words by Charlie. In December of 1857, in Greenock, on the south bank of the River Clyde, a boy was born who would etch his name into the history of Hoylake and who would play a pivotal role in the transporting of the Royal and Ancient game to Asia. His name has understandably been overshadowed by the greats that line the oak-panelled walls at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club, but he was a golfing pioneer, nonetheless. That bonnie lad was Gershom Stewart. The young Gershom’s stay in Scotland was to be a mere sojourn for he was moved to Merseyside, on the Wirral Peninsula early in his boyhood. It was during this period that he first picked up a set of brass-heads and wandered the linksland around the racecourse at Hoylake. From a young age, he was characterised as a ‘stranger in a foreign land’, a facet, perhaps, of [...]
188 – Evolution of Hoylake with Joe McDonnell
Tom sits down with good friend of the podcast Joe McDonnell to chat through the evolution of Hoylake, through its ground breaking origins, Harry Colt changes and the new changes. Many mins ago, we stated the Royal Liverpool are progressive traditionalists, let’s dive deeper and find out why. Latest Products
187 – Course Diaries: Traigh Golf Club w/ David Shaw-Stewart
Sam & Tom sat down with David Shaw-Stewart, the owner of Traigh golf club to chat through all things 9-holer. It’s safe to say, this little place stole our hearts. A lovely, quirky 9 hole layout that you can whip round in no time, endlessly loop and never get bored. Latest Products
186 – Tour Diaries – The Outer Hebrides
Sam and Tom chronicle their journey across the Outer Hebrides in a van. Five days , eight courses and a product shoot. Very busy indeed. The courses we visited were: Southerness Carradale Machrahanish Dunaverty Traigh Askernish Stornoway Isle of Harris Latest Products
February 2023
176 – A budget friendly trip to the US with the Tie Podcast
Sam & Tom speak to Henry and Walker. A four way chat with two fellow podcasters: The Tie began in 2021 by two collegiate players Henry & Walker who shared a deep love for the game. Not just the competitive elements of the Tour and high ranking Amateur events, but also Course Architecture and the cultural side of the game. This is a beast of an episode. Before Christmas, Sam was a guest on their show talking about some trips in England on a shoestring budget and we were curious what $1,000 would get you for a trip round the Carolinas! Stand by for some really surprising picks. We also talk about the collegiate golf scene, podcasting and growing a presence in a world awash with golf podcasts. welcome to the podcast an absolute joy to get you guys on really enjoyed chatting to you guys when it [...]
175 – Jim Hartsell: When Revelation Comes
Jim joins the podcast this week to talk about his recent book: When Revelation Comes. The book is a story about his travels through Scotland following the tragic death of his son Jordan. Jim is one of the leading authorities on West Coast golf in Scotland, and the various nine hole / honesty box courses that seem to have been walked into existence over recent centuries. The book is hugely emotional, uplifting, and interesting, as well as being a great read on golf travel to some of the more remote corners of Scotland. Listeners can get 20% off this book by using code: '20OFF' at backninepress.com so head on over and make sure you get a copy of this for yourself! Jim also put together an Eclectic 18 for us in anticipation of the pod. His scorecard is attached.
171 – Netherlands Tour Pod Part 2
The second instalment of our two part tour podcast from The Netherlands. our time at Kennemer, Norrdwijkse, and Koninklijke Haagsche (just go with Royal Hague - much easier to pronounce)!Appreciate this is a beast of an episode and only Joe Rogan can really get away with 3 hour podcasts, hence why we broke it into two chunks!Big thanks to our series sponsor Footjoy for making this trip a reality, our friends in The Netherlands and of course the clubs who supported this and allowed us to bring you all this content! hello and welcome back to another episode of Jar golf podcast I am Tom Mills and today we are looking at parttwo of our tour Roundup this again is part of the Netherlands series contentwhich comprises of seven films that we're going to be releasing on YouTube and a number of podcasts to go with it again a [...]
170 – Netherlands Tour Pod Part 1
First instalment of our two part tour podcast from The Netherlands. We talk about why we went to visit the Dutch courses, the adventures on getting there, the rounds and the courses themselves and a few good stories along the way. We talk about Rye, Eindhovensche Golf & Utrechtse Golfclub De Pan. Pt II will be with you on Thursday morning, so you won't have to wait long! Appreciate this is a beast of an episode and only Joe Rogan can really get away with 3 hour podcasts! Big thanks to our series sponsor Footjoy for making this trip a reality, our friends in The Netherlands and of course the clubs who supported this and allowed us to bring you all this content! hello and welcome back to the cookie jar golf podcast I am Tom Mills and this is going to be the tour film Roundup [...]
December 2022
159 – Clyde Johnson: When Shaping meets Architecture
After getting an absolute 'hosing on' at Moortown Golf Club in the morning we took refuge in the Billiard Room to dry off, play some snooker and record a podcast with Clyde Johnson. Clyde works independently in the UK helping to restore the original character of many of the famous courses in the British Isles including Moortown, Alwoodley and Denham, as well as working for Tom Doak's firm 'Renaissance Golf Design' on all sorts of other exciting projects. In here we talk about his career path, his love for the game, his work at some notable new build projects like Tara Iti, St Patrick's Links and the most recent Te Arai. Clyde is extremely knowledgable and we could have sat there all afternoon if we didn't have a long drive ahead of us! For more on Clyde head over to http://www.cunningolfdesign.com/about are you looking at Orange like you're a [...]
