Sunningdale - More Like STUNNINGdale.

The Old Course was a rollicking medieval adventure through the heathland woods where no two holes were alike. Heroic tee shots like the 10th were complemented by provocative uphill and/or blind holes like the par-3 4th and par-4s with big reveals like my favourite hole the 7th. The Old was incredibly playable, but if the big miss was in play (it was) then heather or worse yet, drainage ditches, were ready to make things interesting.

After a gentle handshake at the 1st, the walk through the trees to the 2nd tee transported you into another world. For the next 11 holes I traversed up, down and around the property like a knight on a heroic quest. Upon reaching the 13th tee, the property opened up into a flat-ish plain that still held plenty of interest between the mounds, ditches and greens.

The journey on the Old wound down with the approach to the 17th that transported you back to the original paddock containing the 1st & 18th Old and 1st & 18th New. These transitions into and out of the woods were reminiscent of Crystal Downs, as was the serene quiet out on the course where the only sound was the wind blowing through the trees.