Well that was a struggle. To be fair the writing was on the wall from before we even reached the first tee. Warning to all those planning on visiting Matarangi: the road from Whangamata is windy as hell and (at this time of year) full of inconsiderate campervan drivers. Now we know. But unfortunately we hadn??t banked on it taking 2 hours 40 minutes to drive 100km. Anyway...to the golf...
As you may have guessed ?? given the privilege of writing the blog is reserved for the victor on each day ?? I won. Michael lost again, although less heavily than yesterday (4&3 this time). 2-1 to JP. I should say though that we were both rubbish. And we can safely say that The Dunes was the winner. Overall impression: very challenging course, particularly off the back tees, but worth the pain. A stern test indeed. Bone dry at this time of year, but that??s to be expected ?? especially given it??s a links. The course defies pigeon holing: lots of holes were Melbourne sandbelt-esque (in character if not in condition); but others were more resort-y (the course snakes through an American-looking residential development, which for me detracts from its aesthetic appeal). That said, there were a lot of good holes ?? some with quite lovely views across the surrounding bays ?? and certainly enough trouble to keep the amateur golfer on edge. Some of the holes verged on unfair, particularly those that had fairways sloping off both ways into places where you won??t find your ball. But these were the exception rather than the rule, and I??d love to come back when there??s more water on the fairways (and armed with more balls).
My one real gripe is this: there are no drinking water taps. We had come straight from the beach (Hot Water Beach to be precise, down the coast, a must do if you are in the area ?? you can probably guess from its name that hot water emerges from below the beach at low tide). It was hot too; and we didn??t have time to fill our bottle before we teed off. So dehydration may have played a big part in the imperfect golf. If someone from The Dunes is reading this, PLEASE put a tap somewhere on the course. Or at least warn punters before they start. Anyway, I digress...
Today we ran into a fella Mike knows through cricket ?? a chap called Ben Orton. This has happened three times in three days, which just goes to show how small NZ is. Ben kindly offered his services as a caddy for Mike, which I charitably allowed. Didn??t make any difference to his golf! More importantly Ben was good company; and he arrived at a time when the golf was at its worst. Ben was also kind enough to buy us a (very welcome) beer afterwards. So I??ll take this opportunity to thank Ben publicly and dub him ??Good Punter of The Day?.
We??re winding our way around this treacherous road again ?? en route back to base camp ?? so I??ll stop now before the blog takes on an even darker tone. Although if I??m honest it??s been a dam good day. Great breakfast with mates on the deck; great time at the beach; great golf test; and I managed to make 3 birdies (nearly 4). No 3 putts either. So I??ll leave you all on a positive note, and hope your day has been as good as ours.
Oh and thanks again to The Dunes for hosting us ?? despite the pathetic golf we enjoyed ourselves and were glad to get the opportunity to play your challenging course.
Peace, JP
P.S. The shank counter is now active ?? I had 2 (on one hole, no less); Mike had 1.
Scores: Jamie 85; Michael 89
Birdies: Jamie 3; Michael 0
3 putts: Jamie 0; Michael 1
Shanks: Jamie 2; Michael 1s
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Thanks for the mention in your blog. Enjoyed catching up good luck with the next 360 days, hope to see you both on scatch by the end
Posted by Ben Orton, 10/01/2010 5:58am (3 years ago)
Pete you are quite right. The overall tone was one of frustration. And coming from Scotland I know exactly what an icy January feels like. And we are lucky bastards. Lucky bastards indeed. If you haven't visited NZ yet you'll find that there a spectacular backdrops aplenty - today was no exception.
Posted by Jamie , 05/01/2010 8:31am (3 years ago)
Overall tone of 3rd day blog is one of frustration. However, having just looked at the gallery and seen the beautiful weather and amazing views from the Dunes course I would like to remind you that some of us are unfortunate enough to be spending january freezing with snow, and ice. Looked like a spectacular backdrop for a golf course! Lucky bastartds.
Posted by Pete, 04/01/2010 3:10pm (3 years ago)
You spelt damn wrong. Good to see the goldy jim relationship cracks forming on day 3
Posted by Corky, 03/01/2010 10:51pm (3 years ago)
Chisholm Park
12 holes bart cape kidnappers christchurch christmas doak ed bayley hawke's bay heretaunga jane poole napier golf club new zealand puregolf2010 rangiora rarangi gc royal royal wellington the first tee the interislander waiohiki
