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Robert
Trent Jones Sr.'s reputation as one of last century's
great architects is owed to much more than just the
ubiquity of his family name. His own body of work is
extraordinary, counting work on more than 500 courses
in over 35 countries - a portfolio that can be
credited with a significant contribution to the growth
of golf worldwide in the last 50 years. In fact, much
of Sr.'s most lauded work can be found in the
international arena, including Dorado Beach in Puerto
Rico, the Royal Dar es Salaam Course, built for the
King of Morocco, and the Cashen Course at Ballybunion in Ireland. It was this last piece of work that undoubtedly led
to
Trent
’s fondness for Ireland,
and its promises for great golf. With the purchase of
the Adare Manor, Trent
saw a new and exciting parkland opportunity, and
personally pursued the owner to build a
golf course that would befit the restored Manor’s
character -- a gesture that flies in the face of the
typical demand great architects garner from resort
owners. A success in every
sense of the word, Trent
built a course here that will stand the test of time,
in a setting seemingly born for golf. Jones
never shied away from his interest in making
challenging golf courses, and with water hazards in
abundance on this 7,138-yard layout, his standard of
difficulty is matched here.
The
front nine foretells the adventures to come from the
first hole on, which measures 433 yards from the back
tees. The first approach shot, a long one without a
colossal drive, must carry a rock-walled stream to
reach the green. The water, benign enough at first
glance, portends its abundance later on the front
nine, especially the grand 14-acre lake that frames
the fourth through eighth holes.
From
five tee, this cavernous hazard flanks the right edge,
setting the perfect line for a strong drive over both
it and a fairway bunker. The effect, though, is to
force golfers to aim well left, which makes the route to the green even longer
on this dogleg right hole. The approach is to a very
elevated green, which is perched on some of the most
undulating ground on the property; an extra club (or
two) can be required on the approach. The green
protects itself with three bunkers, and along with its
tumultuous contours, reaching the green in regulation is
no guarantee for par.
It's
not until the seventh that a par five marks the card,
and this one is archetypal of the great long holes
Trent Jones Sr. has built over the years. Measuring 537
yards from the back tees, the hole is loaded with
strategy, dictated by the lake that it bends
around. The better golfer can take more daring lines
in hopes of shortening the hole and making it
reachable, while the high-handicapper can take the
safe route around the hazard and have a very realistic
chance at par. With the water craftily jutting out at
all the right spots, a great deal of thought must be
given for those who hope to attack the hole. Even the
Tigers of the game should give second thought if the
pin is perched on the perilous right side of the
green.
Where
seven boasts the merits of risk/reward strategy, the ninth
boasts raw difficulty and beauty. The second par five
on the front side measures a brutish 577 yards from
the back tees, and is one of the most challenging holes on
the course. The best play is to lay-up to the right
side of the hole, so that a clear shot into the green
is possible. The Manor House, in all its grand
splendour, provides a fitting backdrop for this, the
longest hole on the grounds.
The
back nine works its way back out in a loop, almost entirely on the eastern side of the River
Maigue. The
golfer crosses the river on the 11th hole, a
picturesque par three measuring 179 yards. The
flowing water next to the tee box adds to this idyllic
spot, but the task at hand requires navigating an iron
shot between
the trees and over the bunkers that protect both sides
of the green.
The
Adare Manor is surely one of the most impressive
homesteads to act as a backdrop to a golf estate and
its presence at the 15th, a terrific short par four
where the Maigue borders the right side of the hole and two bunkers
protect the sides of the green. Driver is rarely the prudent play,
though trying to scurry the ball up as close to the
green as possible can leave an easy pitch through the
open neck of fairway.
Following
is the 16th hole, a modest 167-yard par three that boasts
the title of being both the shortest and trickiest par
three on the course. The green is shallow in depth,
which is further accentuated by the fact that it runs
on a diagonal away from the player. The stone wall in
front of the green draws a severe line between the
fronting water hazard and the safety of the putting
surface. To add good measure to the hole, bunkers
guard where the water does not, meaning that a shot
long of the green poses a very difficult shot to a
sliver of green that is running towards the water. Par
is a solid score here and Jones should be commended
for leaving this delicate hole for so late in the
round, where it could have the maximum effect on the
golfer's round.
To
lavish ridiculous praise on new courses seems all the
rage these days, and seldom is it warranted. The
'buzz' wears off. Not at Adare Manor, where the
finishing hole, always an exclamation point on the
game's greatest layouts, is a worthy counterpart. The 548-yard
finisher is a great par five, with plenty of risk/reward for all levels of players. The ace player may
choose to flirt with the side of the hole and the river that
borders it if they have any hope of making the green
in two, but the average player has to play their
second shot with some thought. The play to the right
of the fairway avoids the water that eventually cuts
in front of the green, but it forces that one
flirt with the bunkers that stand guard. The
left-centre of the fairway requires a nervy lay-up, but
rewards the golfer with a better angle of approach to
this two-tiered green. The Manor house would alone be
the backdrop to end all backdrops, but the hole also
is graced by the Cedar of Lebanon -- the oldest in the
British Isles
at 395 years. With fly-fisherman on the banks of
the river, a purer setting for golf would be hard to
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