Write a Review Competition Winner June 2010

Write a Review Competition Winner June 2010

5th August 2010

More than 200 golf course reviews were posted and scrutinised in our second “write a review” competition, which ran from June 1st to July 14th 2010. Once again the quality was simply fantastic.

The selection process was much easier this time as we had only one prize to give away (albeit an excellent one) and at the very beginning of the competition, a review was posted that firmly struck the chord.

The Machrie, for those who have not played it, is an enchanting links course that is romantically located on Islay, between the Antrim coast and Kintyre Peninsula. I took the ferry to Islay (pronounced Eye-la) last November (2009). Warmed by the Gulf Stream, the island is known in Gaelic as the Queen of the Hebrides and was once the heart of the kingdom of Clan MacDonald who ruled the Western Isles for four centuries. Today, Islay is better known for its peaty whisky than its medieval history.

There are some that do not like the course at The Machrie because of its blindness and I too generally prefer to see where I’m going and have fair chance to find my ball after an errant bounce. However, I simply fell in love with the entire experience. It is simply an enchanting course that stimulates all the senses and puts a broad smile on your face.

John, our Bermudian based winner, penned the winning review in a style that stimulated my senses almost as much as playing the course itself. He’s a talented writer and I would personally love to read more of his golf essays:

“It is time. Time to pack my bag. Time to go to Islay. The greenness. The stiff cool breeze; maybe rain, but do I care? Or even a glorious sun, high in the infinite sky, but bereft of tropical sear. The links beckon come hither. The Machrie. My Innisfree.” Click here to read John’s complete review dated 03 June 2010.

Kind regards,

Keith Baxter
Editor