Da' Cliffs

Wow!  OK, I know I might have used that already, but the repertoire is limited....

Cabot Cliffs is like no other course I can recall, though portions of it strongly evoke obvious reference points.  There's only one large property sitting between the two Cabot courses, but there's a world of difference.  It's for now a minimalist affair there, with only two yurts providing for a pro shop and snack bar, though ground has been broker for a proper clubhouse.

The first impression is of being on bluffs above the ocean, very similar to the first two courses at Bandon Dunes.  Though you'll likely agree that this sitting area was a curious choice:

A few Adirondack chairs?  Sure....  Just really odd, though no doubt a pleasant spot for a post-round adult beverage.

Did I say minimalist?  This is the starter's accommodations:

But as long as they have the chocolate chip cookies protected from the elements, what else do we need?  The other early observation was of the firmness of the turf, far more so than at their sister course.  

The course is a standard issue Par 72.... well, nothing is standard, as there are a mere six Par-4's.  We'll find six of each flavor out there, three of each on both nines.  

Our day starts cloudy, with the possibility of rain in the early going.  We head south of the first tee, into the prevailing wind, and one is immediately confronted with the governing design philosophy, width.  Always a good idea in wind and for resort play, but I do mean really wide.  This of the unique second hole will demonstrate:

Centerline hazards are all the rage these days, though typically that concept relates to fairway hazards.  Here Coore and Crenshaw used that massive natural bunker to protect the green, offering egress from a wide variety of angles.  

Unfortunately for Employee No. 2, that bunker that defines the hole claimed a victim:

But we needn't dwell....

This was of interest to your humble observer:

The Marram grasses are prevalent in Ireland, most notably just off the fairway on the Glashedy Links at Ballyliffin.  I'll spare you the dissertation for now, but it's evil stuff and a graveyard for golf balls, and I'm amused that they think it should be kept away from my line of play.... If only.

The fourth hole also draws interest, the first one-shotter but with a twist.  See if you can suss it out:

To Theresa's left is a second green, longer but reportedly easier than the one to which we played, used on alternate days. 

The fifth is a great cape hole, I'll use the image from the website:

It's great because the green is a straight shot off the tee, just a mere 400 yards.... also great because of the green complex:

And I'm not at all bitter that Theresa got a free drop when she launched her third shot over the right bunker....  Environmentally sensitive, my ass!  Everything else played as a lateral, so I'm unclear as to why they didn't do the same here.

The seventh hole takes the players inland towards the woods, and here the comparison has to be with Coore and Crenshaw's Bandon Trails, where the architect uses all the tricks of the trade to mask the transition.  This is our playing partner on the 7th tee:

In terms of our little match, it was a mirror image of the prior day's.  This time I jumped out to a sizable lead, 3-up at the turn, and Tessie used the early holes of the back nine to claw her way back.  She was able to even up the match, but was then forcefully repelled.... or something.

But as we were playing the eighth, a Par-5 running parallel to the first, something struck me.  We were clearly playing into the fan, meaning that the wind had done a 180 on us.  Andrew, our caddie, noted that this happens with some frequency in September, but it would result in the second nine playing differently than contemplated by the designers.

Care for some more eye candy?

That's the short ninth, a little chip shot at most but we know how difficult such holes can play in the wind.

There's more holes to describe than time available, so let's fast forward to the 12th, a Par-3 of some 233 yards from my tees.  

It looks like nothing special perhaps, but that's 233 into a significant wind.  It would be a completely different kettle of fish downwind, but I was left to try to cut a driver in as my only viable option, as anything shorter seemed destined to run into that front bunker.

Shall we fast forward to our closing holes?  They're a hoot, though with a few quibbles....No. 16 gets most of the press, and you'll quickly intuit why:

Pretty spectacular, and I was quite happy when Andrew suggested the 6-iron, a club I was flushing all day.  Alas, my due diligence was lacking, as it remains unclear whether that was two or the more traditional one club too many.... 

At all times we did heed their warnings:

No. 17 is a driveable Par-4 on which I am forced to suspend judgement due to the unusual wind in which we played.  Here's the intimidating tee shot:

Those are the back tees, but there's not much difference in the angle.  Once you cover the headwall, everything feeds down to the green, as per this schematic:

It's designed to play into the wind, which would likely result in one of those scary pitches off rock-hard turf.  Theresa did drive the green, and was blissfully unaware of what has to be her first eagle putt ever.....  My drive caught the headwall, a tad annoying given that I did actually hit my intended line.  Let me just add that the width is very real and necessary, but that one still needs to hit the fairways.  Missing them is almost a guaranteed lost ball, or at least was in my case.

The finisher would no doubt test the player with the prevailing wind out of the South, but we had it at our back.  The scorecard yardage of 509 for a three-shotter won't sound like much, but the natural contours are used to great effect:

That section where the ocean cuts in short of the green can create a challenging lay-up on the second, though not for us.  I had a mere 185 yards in thanks to that helping wind, though it was quite the disappointing par when I slightly pushed my iron.  

A crazy interesting golf course, one that I do hope to have one more crack at.  With a troubling weather forecast for Tuesday, I'd have inquired about returning to the Cliffs today.  The bride, however, prefers the links, so in the interest if marital comity.....

We eschewed the curious lawn furniture of The Cliffs for something closer to home:

Things that don't suck....

I'll likely have more for you from here, but will ease up now that I've covered both golf courses.  Off to the Links.....