Wychwood park .?

Why is this course so highly rated by so many , its nothing special , yes its a test like any course , decent greens , and you need to be straightish , but dont get why its a must play , i  would recommend a must play better courses around at better prices, not at the price, rip off , and if those who played there at golf shake open have any comments please let us know especially about the annoying marshalls..

The 'Must Play' reference is a feature article by a golfshake guest writer and as with everything is a review/opinion

Sorry if you thought I was annoying but the group in question was 2 holes down and verging on 'annoying' 28 golfers behind them. 

..............and talking of annoying Marshalls, David and James weren't even there!!

Can't believe you let that one pass Santo!

Dazza , wasnt talking of you , it was the other BERK in the buggy that pissed the guys off that i was with...the all felt under pressure, myself caddying on the day didint the think the group was that slow, and i've many comp with really slow players

WAYNE , dont even think i'd pay the £7 to play it...course doesnt interest me one bit..

Hey Wayne , i even rate Charnock above Wychwood so thats how bad it is , i've shot low scores on them both but nothing interests me about either one of them, and regarding the pace of play i agree our group was a little slow but the ones behind us were lagging aswell...

Sorry to dip in on this one but I tend to disagree.  IMHO the group behind would have been playing with course management.  How many times have we played, been held up and spent several holes waiting on the tee, on the fairway etc etc which generally effects your game.  Now this may not be right but what else can you do if the group in front is slowing you down and not offering to play through ?

Unfortunately this goes back to Wayne's point which is in the R&A Rules under Etiquette and pace of play stating 'It is a group’s responsibility to keep up with the group in front'  

it's not really an excuse if the group behind is also slow, this does not detract from the group in question who had lost 2 holes on the group in front and this was by the 9th hole!!

Finally the R&A do also have ruling for slow play so it's not something to take lightly and also issue the following guideline on rounds of less than 4 hours, now this is an whole other topic

As a guide, generally two-ball rounds should take no more than 3 hours 10 minutes; three-balls should take no more than 3 hours 30 minutes, and four-balls no more than 3 hours 50 minutes. In fact, shorter round times than these should be the aim of all players, where appropriate. However, as already mentioned, it is also appreciated that factors such as course design and heat may necessitate longer round time targets and administrators should be mindful of this.

HI Again , my main thing here was to say , i thought the course itself was Garbage , have spoken to other friends and they have the same opinion nobody whom i know who played it rates its, its not one of the best De-Vere has to offer , Only the name gives it the costly price, someones elses opinion is fine but they need to be honest when reviewing a course, and regarding pace of play i've played with quick guys and slow guys , 2 of our 3 were pretty slow to play, which over time does mount up ,but if the group in front had 3 quick players , then you can understand why these guys were lagging , i know cos i've played with loads of different players in lots of comps, and slow play is annoying , myself i dont take practice swings except for short game shots and putting , i usually just pick my shot chose the club and hit it , where some people seem to take an age practice swinging..2 or 3 it gets annoying..average speed for our 4 ball at weekend is 3 to 3.5 hours..

For what it's worth, I thought Wychwood was a cracking course from what I saw at the GS Open.  It was a good test of golf, but not stupidly difficult and good shots were rewarded. 

I had a really enjoyable day and was amazed when I found out how long the fist nine took us.  The problem was not helped by some long walks from the green to the next tee, but there was also a lot of waiting as well.  At least Darren kept us informed as to what the hold-ups were in front and the back nine was somewhat quicker.

I don't really see Graham how the course is "garbage".  Even if it's not one of your favourites, i can't see how it deserves that tag (and I have played some courses that could be described like this).  For me, it was certainly in my top 10 and I wouldn't turn down the chance to play it again.

I can't see how anyone can describe Wychwood as garbage, unless they're starting out with completely unrealistic expectations.  OK, some of the greens were firmer than I would have expected at that time of year, but that just meant that a slightly different, more links like approach was needed.  I also didn't think it was the most picturesque, more like the courses we played in Portugal running round a (albeit upmarket) housing estate and the slog between holes made it pretty hard work.  But as for the course, it was interesting and rewarded a thoughtful rather than a gung-ho, big hitting game.  This suited me as I managed to knock 12 shots off my score of the day before simply by knowing which percentage shots I could go for.

I know that slow play was a problem at the GS open, and for some reason it seems to happen at these events.  It didn't affect our group (1st out) as we ripped round in 4  1/2 hours, but I know from doing the photo's on the 17th that it really got up some peoples noses.  What we can do about it is another matter. 

It didn't affect our group (1st out) as we ripped round in 4  1/2 hours, but I know from doing the photo's on the 17th that it really got up some peoples noses

If 4 1/2 hours is considered ripping it round, then this only confirms what I have been saying on this forum about slow play.

When we all used to carry, and walked instead of ambling, then a fourball only took three hours.

Gone are the days of 36 hole competitions.

Hang on a minute, we were behind a three ball and after we'd gained a hole on the group behind us we didn't feel the need to push the group in front.  And three of us were carrying and with a quick look on Google Earth I reckon that the green-to-tee yardage for here is about 1800yds.

Race either of you two geriatrics round there anyday. 

Dream on Marshall, unless you consider beating me by a point or two over three rounds a great victory against a hacker.  And I haven't got a girlie electric trolley AND a wife to caddy for me - carry your bag around and beat me and I'll be impressed (but I'd better learn the Portuguese for 'can I have an ambulance, there's an old fool having a heart attack' first).

Better to learn the portuguese for a knife, Tim.

Play in the GS Open was slow, but you have to think of the context.  This is the final after six months of qualifiers.  Players will take a little longer over their shot than they would on Sunday morning with their mates because it matters more.  There were several holes that were a trek from green to tee, especially if you didn't know where you were going and we found that on several holes we walked up the fairway somewhat to see what was ahead as the shot was blind.  All this adds up and I don't think 4.5 hours is unrealistic (and I wouldn't be classed as a slow player by any means). 

As regards the course itself, I would like to play it again so I can play it differently;  local knowledge is definitely beneficial on here.  It'll never make it into a top 100 list, but it was a decent course.  You have to hit it straight, think your way round, choose the right club to give you position, give yourself the right approach to the green, make sure you hit the right area of the green and hazards were well placed.  What more can you ask of a course?  I know several courses where all the par 4's are 'driver-wedge' and where's the challenge in that?  I want to step onto the tee and think "what is the best club to keep me out of trouble and give me a good position?", not blindly pull out my driver without thinking.  Whilst it wasn't the most picturesque course, I play for the game not the scenery; it's a game of golf not a ramble. 

But you know I can't read Wayne

well i certainly got you lot chatting , my main thing was just to give my opinion on what i thought was a boring course , even after 3 visits nothing grabbed me although there were a lot of houses around and far too many long walks between tees, nothing particularly interesting about it , as for the final i thought it was good and well organised and as said earlier after qualifying for this final a few guys would take it more seriously than a sunday knock about, thats why i believe play was slower but 4 1/2 to 5 hours for a round is just too much. i believe the group i was going round with took nearly 3 hours to play front nine shocked me a bit , but i've played 18 on sunday in 2 hours 45 mins ( 2 ball )