Wentworth Golf Club Preview: The One Nish Manifested!

Nish 0:35

Every good story is about the journey, and this is a story of our journey trying to play the top 100 courses in the UK and Ireland in just 10 years. This is the top 100 in 10 golf podcast. Episode 82. The Wentworth Golf Club preview, which I did not think I’d be saying, but here we are. So look, we need to go back way back when to when this podcast started. Very early on, I said something on this podcast that I haven’t forgotten. And I suspect this. Had you forgotten? I had forgotten this. I suspected you might have forgotten. I said we’re gonna be alright at Wentworth, because I have manifested it and we’re gonna be playing Wentworth Golf Club with a member. Now I’ve got the member.

Chris 1:24

You were more specific about that member.

Nish 1:25

Yeah, I was specific about the member, and I’ve obviously got the member wrong. And he might be there, you never know. Nick, if you’re there, please say hello. But we are playing Wentworth as a guest of a member. Really lovely guy. Um we’re really looking forward to the round anyway. But what a way to be playing this unbelievable golf club. The only way to play this unbelievable golf club, right? That’s it. It’s fully gate kept, right? But also, but a lot of people get on. So it’s it’s great. And look, I put it out there to the into the universe, and we are sat in the car right now on our way to that very place. So that’s amazing. Like I should put more stuff like that out there. That’s just basically what I’m saying. So look, the Wentworth club shouldn’t we put them all out there, right?

Chris 2:17

So we’re gonna play the top 100 golf courses. You you manifested the whole the whole 100. Correct. Yeah.

Nish 2:23

Well look, Wentworth Club uh in Virginia Water, Surrey. Sounds like it’s American, that doesn’t it? Doesn’t it? Yeah. We’re gonna be playing the West Course. It’s famous, it hosts the BMW PGA, it’s gonna be hosting the BMW PGA in about four to five weeks, I think, from today. Uh it has a nickname, it was called Burma Road for a bit, and we’ll explain the origin story of that. Um, but look, the BMW PGA event is like the jewel in the crown for the DP World Tour, isn’t it? It’s like the showcasing of Yeah, it’s one of the big kind of Rolex events, isn’t it?

Chris 2:59

And it’s always packed with a you know, you get your Rory McIlroy’s and your kind of big golfers, but you also get all the big amateurs, so you get your I know Andy Murray’s and your Gareth Bales and all those kind of people are always there. So it’s always a big event, isn’t it? It’s always Spider-Man, he’s always there. Spider-Man’s always there, yeah. Lando Norris, people like this. It’s just there’s so much is it still on the BBC or is it now all on Sky?

Nish 3:20

No, I think it’s all on Sky now. But it was on the BBC for a long time. It was, yeah. So like a lot of the the the holes of the club you’ve seen on telly with the city. Well, that’s it, it’s one of those things.

Chris 3:30

It’s a bit I mean, it’s not quite the same level as that Augusta in the mass. It’s one of those courses that you’ve seen a lot on TV, right? Because it was always in the BBC, so it’s and it was on every year. So you see it pretty regularly and you you you recognise on most of the holes, I would say.

Nish 3:42

It’s amazing, isn’t it? Yeah, yeah, like it’s a real pinch me kind of moment, isn’t it? This playing this golf course. But you know, forgetting that bit and that element of it all, it is also a former Ryder Cup venue, and there’s a history with the Ryder Cup at Wentworth. Um, so we’re ticking that element off as well. So how many Ryder Cup venues is that now? We let’s have a look. We will we we ran we rattled through the first a lot, didn’t we? I remember so we sort of did More Town first, we did Ganton, we did SNA. Now we’re doing Wentworth, we’ve also played Walter Heath, yeah, we’ve done Glen eagles, yeah. So we’re really firing our way. I think we’ve only got about three or four left, I think. Yeah, there can’t be many. Yeah, they’re certainly the UK um Ryder Cup venues. So yeah, brilliant. I mean, amazing. So we’re gonna tell you all about our excitement about this golf course and this golf club. Uh but before we get into it, I want you out there to hit follow Spotify, Apple, YouTube. That single button is the main. Follow us. Oh, don’t follow them. Follow us, yeah, definitely follow us. But um, that’s what’s gonna help golfers who haven’t heard this podcast or seen this podcast before get this get the content served to them. It takes two seconds, but it really makes a difference to our show, and it doesn’t cost you anything more than that little effort. Now back to this episode. Now Wentworth comes with a hefty name and reputation, doesn’t

Why Wentworth has an aura like nowhere else

Nish 5:08

it?

Chris 5:09

It really does, doesn’t it? Like in terms of it. I mean it’s up there in terms of like the heavy hitters in that list, it’s right all there, right? Like in terms of golf courses that people know and are aware of, it’s one of those people go, oh right, you gotta do it. Well, no about it.

Nish 5:20

Yeah, everyone’s heard about it. It’s and it’s got this kind of aura about it, I think. Yeah, definitely. I mean, you know, we’re like left at six o’clock this morning, and I’m like doing an Instagram story of like tapping in Wentworth into your Google Maps. It’s got that about it, hasn’t it? Yeah, um, and it’s just such a lush place to come play golf. Uh, I get the feeling today is gonna be as much about the experience as the golf.

Chris 5:50

I think you’re gonna love Wentworth. I think you’re gonna be like a pig in shit today, aren’t you? It’s a bit of me, I think, this, isn’t it?

Nish 5:55

Yeah, I was doing I was built for places like Wentworth. You were absolutely right, yeah. Uh built for comfort, not speed. Built for comfort, and yeah, no technique, speed, or prowess about anything. So I’ll tell you how this booking came about. We’re playing with a a member, we’ve played with him at Swinley Forest, and he’s been very kind to invite us back to play at his home club, which is Wentworth, which is amazing. And we’re also playing with friend of the pod Jake, who’s been on a couple of podcast episodes, who’s also on this top 100 mission. So it’s gonna be a good it’s gonna be a good four-ball art, I think, isn’t it? Amazing in store already. Um now I think he’s gonna do the top 100 sooner than us at the rate that he’s going, so that’s a wonderful. We’re very happy for him. It but look, Wentworth factually is ranked on our original list as ranked 48. It has since the re-jigging dropped down into the 70s.

Chris 6:53

It’s

Ranked 48th… now the 70s. What happened?

Chris 6:54

an interesting one, isn’t it? I like there’s a lot of negative press out there about Wentworth, isn’t there? I thought there’s a lot of people getting on its back. Let’s say the quality of the golf course, but yeah, the actual challenge. I don’t know, there’s a lot of people saying it’s very difficult, right? It’s this hard golf course. I don’t know whether that plays into it or yeah, certainly the redesigns don’t seem to have landed particularly well. I can’t quite figure out why it’s sort of in your favour.

Nish 7:21

I have to say, I’ve had quite a lot of messages on Instagram from people saying, brilliant, your plane went with, you’re gonna have an amazing day out. Yeah. However, you have played many better golf courses already in what you’ve played. Which is kind of like this whole yin and yang thing going on with it, right? Yeah. Like the experience versus golf. How does that whole thing fit in? Equally, all those people who have said that have also said, but you will have the most amazing data. Yeah. Which is great, isn’t it?

Chris 7:53

I think. I I actually think we’re both gonna really like this. I think the the course setup, I think it’s gonna I think it’s gonna play into a lot of things that we like. Is that because we’re not purists, Chris? Maybe we’re we’re not pure dickheads. Yeah. I think we’re I think we’re both gonna I think we’re gonna like this more than certainly the rankings suggest. Yeah, I think so. I think we’re gonna come away and go like 71, that’s mental. Yeah, so there’s the there’s the title for the review already.

Nish 8:18

71, that’s mental. 71, that’s mental, yeah. I I yeah, I I feel like we’re gonna have we’re gonna have a great day anyway, because we know that. Yeah. We always do play in a top 100 golf course, but yeah, this is I think this has got something.

Chris 8:33

Yeah. But I just think you know those those feels that you get when you go into a top 100 golf course. I think he’s gonna get that times a million going here today, like going up Wentworth Drive, like seeing that clubhouse, which is just so iconic. Iconic. Standing on that first Tee, which you’ve seen so many times. I was saying to you earlier, wasn’t it? I was like, normally the like the first Tee of a of a golf tournament you never see, but the first Tee of the BMW is always the most coverage is that is that first Tee shot. Yeah.

Nish 8:59

I don’t know whether that’s just because of the setting behind it and like little flower box in front of it and all that kind of stuff, and it’s just a good visual for the for the TV um the clubhouse behind, haven’t you, and all that type of thing. And I think that does make a difference, doesn’t it?

Chris 9:12

So I I think it’s it’s the most excited I’ve I’ve been about standing on a first Tee for sure. Like it’s the most iconic first Tee we’ve been on so far. I’ve got a question for you. Okay. Are you feeling nervous about that first Tee? No, not really.

Nish 9:24

No, me neither. I’m quite excited about it.

Chris 9:26

It doesn’t really bother me, I think it’s gonna be pretty cool. I think it’s gonna be pretty cool. Yeah, elevated. I think it’s quite a hard tee shot though. Is it? I but I believe so, yeah. So I think it’s I think it plays for a part as a part five for the amateurs, but it’s a part four during the BMW for the pros. I think it all always or pretty much always plays the hardest hole on the course. Hardest fair way to hit, hardest green to hit, plays like 4.3. Welcome to Wentworth. Welcome to Webworth, yeah.

Nish 9:50

I’ve got a question for you. So what’s it it hosts on our mate? I know this is that charge. Genuinely curious about this sort of stuff now. Um the BMW uh championship when they they host that, they hold they host the Pro Am bit as well, don’t they? Yeah, that’s where you see all the celebs playing with the professionals.

Speaker 2 10:07

Yeah.

Nish 10:07

So a whole like that, you said it for us it’s a par five, it’s a par four for the pros. Yeah. Does that do they do that in the pro amate as well? Or do the amateurs have to play it as a par four as well?

Chris 10:16

I think they would play it as a par four, yeah. I’m not 100% sure, but yeah, I’m pretty sure they would play it as a par four. Right, so it’ll be as it as it was.

Nish 10:23

I don’t know. I’m just wondering, because you know, when they invite me back, I might am I next year for the PGA. I know. Well it was I think the the starter will just go, hang on a minute, mate, you’re no professionals, that kind of thing. You know. Um yeah, I mean, how amazing would it be to play?

Chris 10:38

Well it’s just sound like a I would love to of all the things that I would like to do in golf, I think playing that. Or the um what’s it called? St Andrews, Kings barns, um Oh, the Alfred Dunhill.

Nish 10:50

The Alfred Dunhill.

Chris 10:51

That’ll be a lot of things. I think playing one of those two things would be like absolutely just top drop. You’ve completed it golf, haven’t you, if you’ve been invited to that. I did hear something about um about the BMW. So if you go play it as a as a pro or an amateur, but basically that the freebies that they give away are incredible. So you get like free foot joy shoes, you get free like Hugo Boss sunglasses, yeah, all sorts of just ridiculous freebies. I mean, how does one enter this?

Nish 11:18

Sign

The clubhouse moment that invented the Ryder Cup

Nish 11:19

me up. Absolutely. Wow. Uh well, should we just end it there? That’s a good way to end the that’s a bit I didn’t know earlier. Um right, well look, we we’ll we’ll we’ll try and give you some idea about why we’re interested in in what’s going on. I’m gonna I always do a bit of history. Um it’s hard to find stuff about the history of Wentworth, even though it’s a very it’s not a very old club, it was only built in like 1922 or something, 23. But it’s um it it’s it’s got a lot of golfing history associated with it, but it not in the most conventional way, I don’t think. Because it’s so synonymous now with this BMW. I feel like that’s kind of and rewritten everything, and then it’s that or the Ryder Cup. Those are like the two things. Um that’s what kind of gives it its stature, isn’t it? I think correct, yeah. And I think it’s the thing with Wentworth is it’s the like you’re saying about the top 100 feels, it’s that it’s an exclusive club. It’s you know, look, I’m not divulging anything here that people can’t just find off googling it, but you know, but there is a hefty uh uh bond that you have to leave with the club as your joining fee. There’s a a you know, probably comparatively speaking, uh relatively expensive annual subscription you pay to the club. Um and it has that plush exclusivity about it. However, I know loads of people who’ve played with it.

Chris 12:46

Yeah, it does. So I don’t think it’s inaccessible. No, it doesn’t seem like I guess they’ve probably got quite a lot of members. I think it’s quite a big club, isn’t it? So I think it’s quite a lot of members there. So I guess that probably makes it a bit more um a bit easier to kind of to get in there because we can find some of them. There’s just more people around, I suppose. Yeah, and some of the more exclusive ones, you’ve got like a handful of you know, a couple of hundred members or whatever, and that’s it.

Nish 13:06

We’ll talk about Delamere, for instance, you know, near us. Four was it 400 members? Something like that. So it’s like good luck finding a member sort of thing.

Speaker 2 13:13

Yeah.

Nish 13:13

Um so yeah, you don’t have that access problem as such.

Chris 13:18

Um, but I feel like yeah, literally it’s the only way to get on is to well, yeah, be invited by a member or be famous enough to get in the BMW PGA, which we are getting out there. Potentially, yeah, now both.

Nish 13:28

Yeah, absolutely.

Chris 13:29

You know, gotta dream the dream, haven’t you?

Nish 13:31

Absolutely, we’re putting it out there, mate. Yeah, putting it out there. There you go, manifesting. Absolutely. So I’m gonna give you a very quick rundown of some of the historical stuff that I’ve got. So the main one is the Ryder Cup. So um in June 1926, there was a match played between uh a British team professional golfers, an American team, and the American team was led by Walter Hagen. Um and it was officially billed as an international match, that’s what they called it. Now, while the Ryder Cup officially started in 1927, it started because Samuel Ryder was in the clubhouse when the match finished, and he was so impressed and taken in by the whole camaraderie between the teams and the friendly rivalry and banter that he said, right, we should have this as a biennial international match that we should play. Um, he went into down to London, uh, got a silversmith over there to uh uh to make a gold trophy, create a gold trophy.

Chris 14:33

Might have picked the wrong man for the job there. May have got a goldsmith to do it.

Nish 14:37

And the rider cup was born. Don’t trust what you find on the internet. Um but anyway, so that happened. But then weirdly, it then took 27 years before the first official Ryder Cup match took place.

Chris 14:51

Wow, it must have been a pretty labour-intensive trophy to make that.

Nish 14:55

Yeah, oh that’s it.

Chris 14:56

So 1953. Was that yeah, yeah, I’ll have it for you. Uh yeah, like 1953, I’ll have it ready for you, mate. Yeah, that’s that’s fine.

Burma Road: the WWII story behind the nickname

Nish 15:02

Sounds like a classic London silversmith that to me. Um but uh so obviously, because of that, we are then doing our side bet today, which we do at all of our Ryder Cup venues that we play, uh, is a match play between myself and Chris. Um, so that’s fact number one. Factory number one. Fact number two, uh, this course was nicknamed Burma Road. It’s got a second name, the West Course. Um, and that is because apparently, during the Second World War, the fairways were deliberately allowed to grow completely wild, and that was because they were afraid of enemy aircraft using them to land, which does make sense, to be fair. So, because they decided they weren’t gonna maintain the the course, it had obviously grown quite wild. And after the war, uh the club apparently employed some German prisoners of war from the nearby camp to clear it all back, and uh the And they’re still there today. They’re working in the clubhouse, yeah. Um, and the officer apparently who was in charge of the operation said that it reminded him of uh the wartime construction of the infamous Burma Road.

Chris 16:16

Um sounds like a Bruce Springsteen album, doesn’t it?

Nish 16:20

Yeah, um so yeah, apparently that’s why it had that that nickname. Um and then another interesting thing I found out about Wentworth, and I think this is what plays into this whole experience versus golf thing. So um the club was exists because of a gentleman called Walter George Tarrant, probably granddad or dad of Chris Tarrant. I would imagine so, yeah. But he was sort of apparently the son of a Portsmouth policeman, but he was a property developer, and he basically um commissioned Harry Colt to design the East Course first and then the West Course, um, purely as a selling tool for residential developments off the side of the golf course. I mean, that’s what a sales tool that is.

Chris 17:03

It’s a fair length to go to, isn’t it? To sell a few houses. Yeah. That’s a sales meeting. I don’t know what we should do this week, lads. We should build two golf courses that’ll sell these houses.

Nish 17:12

And we’ll get one of the best golf course designers in the world, in Harry Colt, to come and do it. But the house has already been built at that point, then I think it’s not. They built the houses already, and then they built the golf course and like link it all up. Which is yeah, it’s mental absolutely mental. Um so there was that, and then Chris alluded to it before. This is my last historical fact, I suppose. But uh Chris alluded to it before about the redesign. So a little-known South African gentleman called Ernie Ells was hired in 2005 to redesign the Wentworth West course, and he did a couple of things. He apparently was like to redesign and modernise it, which is a bit of a strange um phrase, I think, to use. But apparently he rebuilt some greens, he deepened some bunkers, repositioned some hazards, and made the course longer. So 7,300 yards, he stretched it to, um, and famously added a hundred-yard stream on the 18th, which everyone would have seen on telly.

“I don’t like this golf course. Period.”

Nish 18:08

And the 2010 BMW PJ Championship was the first sort of run-out of that new uh layout, yeah, and it drew fierce criticism from a couple of notable players. Paul Casey really didn’t like it, it said the course had lost its character, and then Ian James Poulter criticised the um course.

Chris 18:34

And what did he say, Chris? He said, I don’t like this golf course, period. End of story. So there we go. Dramatic. It’s gonna be awful.

Nish 18:43

Says IJP. Yeah. I mean, I love that I love the period in there. Yeah. Living in Miami, are you, mate? Yeah. Um but uh bizarrely, they then hired Els again in 2016 to fix this problem.

Chris 18:57

Do what you’ve done, mate.

Nish 18:57

Start again, which is which is crazy.

Chris 18:59

I mean, uh yeah, I’m not sure what I know he’s built a few courses, doesn’t he? But I’m not sure what his credentials are compared to Harry Colt’s built originally, and then all of a sudden you’re getting Ernie Els to do your update. It just seems a bit of an odd choice.

Nish 19:10

It’s odd. I mean, I know he’s got a house off the he’s but he’s bought what I’ve said Chris Tarrant’s houses off the the side of one of the fairways or whatever it is. But yeah, I mean, I mean that payment for he is a fucking legend though, Ernie Ells.

Chris 19:22

What a swing. If I could ever play golf like someone, he’s the one, it would be him. What was his nickname?

Nish 19:27

Was it Big Easy?

Chris 19:29

Yeah, Big Easy, yeah.

Nish 19:31

It was that incredible golf. There was there was a there was a a group, wasn’t there, who all swung it really easy. Ells was one, Vijay Singh was another one. Yeah, they just had gloriously smooth, buttery swings in there. Montgomery had that as well, to be fair. It was there’s not a lot of effort going. Not quite in the same same echelons as the other two, though. But yeah, they were they were I was standing saying, I wanted to use the word triumvirate, so that’s why I chucked in Montgomery there, but I don’t think I can well I’ve used it now. Done. Um so they’re my historical facts, and I think that kind of does play into this whole like it’s Ryder Cup, it’s P BMW PJ, and kind of that’s it.

Chris 20:07

Yeah.

Nish 20:07

Um you said you knew something about the greens, didn’t you, Chris?

The only greens in England with this technology

Chris 20:11

Yeah, so the greens are the first in England, I think probably still the only place in England, as far as I’m aware, that have the sub-air technology, which basically means that they’ve got technology underneath, sits underneath the greens that kind of draws and puts moisture in at the right times to keep the greens firm and green, I suppose. Which is amazing, isn’t it? Which is pretty cool. So, like whatever, whatever time of year you’re playing in it. And like we’re playing in it after like four months of searing heat every other golf course in the UK is just brown and burnt out. I’m hoping that today we’re gonna get to get to Wentworth and it’s gonna be lush and green, and yeah.

Nish 20:46

We could be the only people in the country playing on green fairways and lush green like yeah greeds and all that kind of thing.

Chris 20:52

So yeah, so I think like the the condition of the course today, I’m I’m hoping it’s just gonna be incredible.

Nish 20:59

It promises that, doesn’t it? Yeah. They’ve got a crazy microclimate, haven’t they, at Wentworth? It must just rain just at Wentworth. Yeah, tropical. Some would some would call it that, some would call it flouting a hose pipe band. But anyway, um, yeah, so well look, we’re we’re we’re gonna we’ll talk about the course a little bit, and then I’m gonna tell you about what’s got me excited, which isn’t the golf course, it’s the stuff around the golf course. But let’s talk golf course.

Chris 21:21

So you

First-tee nerves and the holes we can’t wait for

Chris 21:22

mentioned the first. Yeah, so I mean that first tea is again it’s iconic, isn’t it? Like it’s always on the BMW PGA, it’s that kind of raised tea box, you’ve got the big castle-like clubhouse in the background, and then you’ve got like a flower arrangement kind of thing just down below that you can kind of see when you’re on the TV. I’m sure you can’t see it when you’re on the TV because it’s down below and in front of you, but I assume when you walk down, you’ll be able to see it as you as you kind of walk back. As you’re walking back, yeah, absolutely. And it’s got like I think it’s got 100 in there, hasn’t it? For the centena a year, I think these days. Yeah, um, so yeah, that’s gonna be a pretty cool t-shirt. Yes. I think I think I alluded it to earlier, didn’t I? But it’s the one of the most difficult t-shots on the on the golf course. It’s gonna be a difficult start. Um you you sort of said as well, it’s like it’s generally a just a tough golf course. I think it is just a generally tough long, long and just hard. Yeah. I think there’s quite a lot of blind t-shots. Um, so where you kind of got play up over a hump and sort of around a corner and then it’ll open up. Oh, is that right? Yeah, so there’s quite a few of those. So luckily, I mean you have to play with the member anyway, but luckily we are playing with the member to kind of guide us and the right direction because there’s going to be a bit of that. Um I’ve heard a few people say it’s a bit like Augusta in that you when you watch it on the TV, it doesn’t look like it’s that undulating. Yeah. But then when you actually get out there, it is quite. It’s pretty undulating.

Nish 22:35

There’s quite a lot of little sneaky slopes and which for that type of course is relatively rare, isn’t it?

Chris 22:41

Yeah, but I think it’s not really sure what type of course it is. It’s like it it is I mean it is a Heathland. It traditionally it was a Heathland golf course. But it’s been I guess when you put in streams and that kind of stuff in there, it becomes a little bit more Parkland. Heatland, yeah. And it’s kind of tree lined, so it does feel a bit more Parkland. So I guess I I I wonder whether that’s why Do you think that’s why it’s tapped in the rankings? In the rankings, is because it’s it’s not really got that identity of either a Heathland or a um or they’re a Lynx or a Parkland. It’s kind of somewhere in between, and I reckon that’s why people get upset with it. Unexpected point of discussion, that isn’t it? Yeah.

Nish 23:14

I mean I reckon guys going, oh Hoofland, Parkland, Duneland, whatever. Like we’re we’re we’re getting into these terms now. Yeah. I mean, does a golf course need to be classified as something to be a great golf course?

Chris 23:26

I mean, no, it doesn’t, but if you look at the rankings, I mean he’s literally Heathland all links. It’s Heathland or Links. I mean, if there’s a how many Parklands are in that are there?

Nish 23:35

There aren’t many. There aren’t many. It’s not many. Yeah. If maybe Wentworth is maybe the only one, I don’t know.

Chris 23:41

I mean, I think you could class that as a Heathland, I think, to be fair. So it would be it’s part of that Heathland belt. There’s plenty of heather kicking around.

Nish 23:48

Yeah, there’s lots of heather.

Chris 23:49

Is it?

Nish 23:50

Right, okay.

Chris 23:51

Heather, yeah, I mean it’s tough. Long rough, heather, lost trees. I was always alright with until we hit Walton Heath, and then that’s what I mean. That was brutal heat. And I mean it’s mid-August, so the heather is going to be up and purple, which will be good, hopefully. See. It’s not so good for the golf balls. Oh my god. Right. All the scores. Amazing. Um, but yeah, I mean, there’s loads of really iconic holes at the BMW, isn’t it? So there’s obviously that first hole, that first Tee. You then got go into the second, so one of the lots of cool part threes they’ve got. So I think that’s the one where you play, you kind of play over a valley, so you’ve kind of got a raised Tee and a raised green, and then like just nothing in between. So you’ve got to get it there. You’ve got to get up to the green. Only a short one. Um, and then you kind of go up to the so you’ve got the short, shorter eighth part four. I you know, you recognise that when you’ve got a kind of pond to carry just as you just in front of the green. Yeah, yeah. It’s a little bit like the eighteenth. Which again kind of is probably why it loses that its identity as a as a heathland, really, because it’s not something you would expect. You’ve got big kind of lake pond like things. Yeah. Um, and then the 14th uphill par three again. I think if you hold in ones that happened there, I’ve got something here for you, Chris.

Nish 25:00

So our our mate, Bernie Darwin. Okay, yeah. We know him well. He’s uh he called the West Course the Tiger Course. Um, and he said it was because it’s the 14th that that led him to use that, and he said it’s because it was designed to test that rampacious animal to the full. I don’t know whether he’s referring to woods or an actual tiger. Actual real tiger. But yeah, apparently this 14th is where this kind of monster closing stretch. Yeah, that’s it, isn’t it?

Chris 25:30

I think it starts at the 12th, I think, doesn’t it? Does it? I think so, yeah. It’s a long, a long stretch. It’s a long closing stretch, it’s a whole back nine. Yeah, essentially. Um but yeah, I think exactly that. So there’s a long, a long, tough stretch towards the end. We’ve got a lot of long par fives, you’ve got back-to-back par fives, 17 and 18, I think, haven’t you? Yeah. Um is it back to part five?

Nish 25:51

It is 17 and 18 by both par fives. Yeah, I mean the 18th is obviously very iconic because you see all the stands up and the carry the stream and yeah, exactly. I mean all that kind of thing.

Chris 26:01

Yeah, massively iconic hole, isn’t it? That that kind of second shot into 18 or third shot for us, probably.

Nish 26:06

Yeah. Um I feel like we’ve got to be a bit strategic today, actually, to keep I think so.

Chris 26:12

I think yeah. To keep the scorecard in check. Yeah, I think you kinda I I think it’s gonna be hard to keep your scorecard in check. Well, however, however you play today, speak for yourself. I think it’s gonna be a tough day today. Because you kinda gotta be long, but I think you’ve probably also still got to be accurate as well. And you probably, if you want to score well here, you either got to be either take no risks or take on a few of the risks and try and try and get a few birdies and eagles.

Nish 26:35

Another

One round at Wentworth: go for it or play safe?

Nish 26:36

unexpected point of discussion here, Chris. I’m loving this, this is great. Um this is the fruits of being on a lone car journey. You can take this in all sorts of directions. However, interesting this because you’re weird, we’re for all intents and purposes, this is the one and only time we’re gonna play Wentworth. Yeah. Uh unless our uh guest is so impressed with how we play in our conduct that he just wants us there all the time. But and we will gladly accept further invitations, by the way. However, um, it’s your one and only time playing it. Where do you sit on the look? I’m only gonna play it once, I’m gonna take the shot on, versus I’m gonna be strategic to keep my scorecard in check, which helps me feel better about how I’ve played that day. Because the scorecard, it doesn’t matter, but it does matter. If you walk off with like if you walked off with a hundred today, you’d be like, oh my god, what have I done? I feel terrible about my golf. It taints your impression of the place a little bit, doesn’t it? You have to really work to detach yourself from that.

Chris 27:41

Where do I stand on it? So I think if a hole is laid out really well strategically, I will probably play it strategically. Do you know what I mean? So like playing in places like Ganton where like you took a lot of irons off the T’s and like, because that’s the shot I’ve got to hit.

Nish 27:55

Yeah.

Chris 27:56

So I think if if the course is gonna lead you to play strategically, then I’ll play strategically. If it’s not, if it’s so kind of somewhere in between, it’s like, oh, like, I don’t know, you’ve got, you know, something like maybe the 18th year where you’ve got a long, a long second over water. Like, I’m not gonna take that on because I know it’s I know I’m not uh these days I’m not good enough to hit that shot. So I think it’s I think where you’ve got I think where you’ve got the right level of risk and reward where there’s a decent amount of reward available, I’ll probably take it on. Take it on. Like you know, I’ll I’ll take on most shots, you know what I mean? I’ll be I’m quite aggressive in my golf, generally, and I’ll take on most shots because I don’t really care what I’m gonna shoot. I’d rather hit some really nice shots as I’m going round.

Speaker 2 28:35

Yeah.

Chris 28:35

But then also like there is an element of there has to be some kind of worth to it. There’s got to be a check and balance, hasn’t there? Of course there is.

Nish 28:45

Um I’ve got a new phrase for you. You can strategically risk take. Strategically risk take. Yeah, of course you can, yeah. Because the reason is like what I mean by that is you kind of you go, right, this is uh I’ve identified this hole as a place where I’m gonna go for it. Yeah. Rather than I’m gonna go all 18, just go hell for leather kind of thing. Yeah. And then feel beaten up by it. It’s interesting, you know. I’m I mean it’s I think I think it’s how you approach a golf, I suppose, really, right? If you can be so detached from your score that it doesn’t matter, you’re just like, you know, you you can be that person who can just be like, I can lose 20 golf balls today, trying everything.

Chris 29:22

I mean, I think my my nature is generally to be pretty aggressive. Like when I’m playing golf, certainly, is just go for it. Yes, just life. Yeah. An aggressive muthafucker, aggressive in life. Um, yeah. So I think generally speaking, interesting. Yeah, if there’s an opportunity to take on a bit of risk, I’m probably gonna take it.

Nish 29:40

I feel like there’s a few shots you need to take on, right? You know, it’d be nice to, you know, uh yeah, interesting. I don’t know. I mean, but it will come more to me when we’re actually on the golf course and you do suddenly remember through the iconic holes that you’ve seen on tele. Oh, I’d like to play that shot.

Chris 29:57

Yeah, well exactly. And I think this is only probably the what else have we played that’s like really I mean, probably. This is probably the next yeah. And I’d say even for television. You probably see this more than you see Carnoustie on the TV because on every year, right? Every year, yeah. And it’s something that yeah, I generally watch because it’s always got a good feel, and there’s always like I say, it’s always entertaining because you’ve always got the the amateurs as well, like listed celebrities. So he’s what generally one that I watch. I probably know this course better than any course we’ve played so far, yeah, in terms of having seen it on the TV. I think that’s gonna be an interesting, yes, interesting. I think it’s just gonna be so cool. Yeah, so it’s just cool.

Nish 30:34

It is gonna be really cool. Yeah, I mean, I’ve so I’ve got a couple more that we talked. I think you the 17th we were talking about was one of the things that yeah, so it’s the butt bunkerless, you’ll be you’ll be pleased to hear Nish.

Chris 30:44

Bunkerless, mate.

Nish 30:45

600 yards. I’m all over that. Is that I’m I’m all I’m all in for a bit of that, a bit of bunkerless. But I mean that’s our signature hole challenge. Oh actually, yeah. That’s the like Have you fucking made that up? It’s a path, it’s a part. I think it’s ratified by Jim. Well Jim would Jim set it, but uh Jim but it is an iconic hole, isn’t it? They should read the preview going no bunkers on the 17th. We’ll have that one. I don’t want to get stuck in a bunker at Wentworth.

Chris 31:10

I mean surely the 18th is the signature hole, right?

Nish 31:13

Um no, because Ernie Els ruined it with his stream. Oh, I’m sticking to my guns. Um, but that one is like it’s iconic. You know, we’ve seen it just recently. There was a I think it was the last year they beamed up with, there was a playoff, wasn’t there? And they kept going back 1718, 1718, 1718. So they kept playing the t-shot over and over again, didn’t they? And it was like that that happened. Um, and obviously it’s this narrow, it’s not narrow as such, but like the fairway cambers, yeah, doesn’t it? So you kind of your placement of your t-shot is what helps you figure out whether you can go for it in two or not. Yeah I mean, at 566 yards, but I’m probably not gonna play that for us, is it? But uh might be a bit shorter for us. But yeah, I think we’re letting up we’re going for it, I don’t think. Yeah. Although having said that, if we catch a drive, um, you never know, we might do. Um, but there’s a couple of things obviously you’ve happened on that. We mentioned last year there was that rerun. I think they had to end up playing 17, 18 three times or something, didn’t they? Um, but then also there was a there’s a really famous clip of um Sevi playing at Wentworth on the 17. And he’s about to play, and then there’s a rust rustling in the crowd, and he stops and he goes, Please don’t make any noise. I know you’re nervous, but I’m nervous too, so I need to I need to play this shot sort of thing. And it’s like it’s quite a famous, famous clip. So I’ll recreate that for doing a signature hole uh challenge. And then 18, yeah. I mean you mentioned 18, like back-to-back par fives to close. Yeah. How do you feel about a back-to-back par five stretch to close? You’ve not seen that before.

Chris 32:50

I’ll tell you in about four hours’ time. I mean it’s gonna be it’s gonna be a searing hot day today, isn’t it? For some reason, I’ve not brought my trolley with me. I’ve decided to carry today. I know. So I’m I might not even make it to the 70s. Yeah, and you were like, no, no, I’m not taking the trolley out.

Nish 33:07

Oh, you just dawned on me. Yeah.

Chris 33:09

Maybe I’ll hire an electric one or something, I don’t know.

Nish 33:12

Oh, here we go. There we go. Here we go. Chris is going old Hollywood now with his electric trolleys. But yeah, it’s unusual, isn’t it? Closing par fives back to back. Two of them. Yeah. Um do you do you normally see a par five? How do you see a par five nowadays as a as a fading over? I don’t know.

Chris 33:28

I used to see a par five as an opportunity. Is it still an opportunity for me? I think it probably still is. Yeah, it’s still usually a birdie opportunity for me, at least. Maybe not so much an eagle opportunity these days, but I’d be disappointed if I’m walking off with a bogey. I’ll be ecstatic with a bogey on a on a par five.

Nish 33:48

I I don’t know why par fives are unusually aren’t a great scoring hole for me. And they should be. Absolutely. I mean, you’ve got tactically two. Three bites at the cherry, haven’t you, really? Exactly, yeah. It’s uh it’s an odd it’s an odd thing, isn’t it? That um and obviously 18 had this hundred yard stream that was controversial, that was added on. Yeah. Um to the uh added on to the uh the redesign that Ian Poulter didn’t didn’t like. Um anything else golf course wise, Chris, for you?

Chris 34:16

Uh I don’t think so. I think I’ll say it’s just it’s kind of iconic, isn’t it? I think it’s gonna be presented immaculately. Um yeah, I think we’re gonna have a great day.

Nish 34:25

We’re gonna

Elite breakfast, silver honours boards & predictions

Nish 34:26

have a fantastic day. Now, let me tell you about some of the things I’m looking forward to that um aren’t covered by a golf course, but it’s all the stuff around it. I’m all about experience, aren’t I? So there’s a few things I found out, and I was like, this is freaking amazing. Number one is there’s a walkway that leads up to where you go and sort of get a bit of food and and drink and all that kind of thing. And they’ve got these amazing display cabinets of like clubs that is all like past champions and whatever, and they kind of like like jot out from the wall in like a pyramid kind of thing, and the club’s inside there. Right just looks cool as fuck, basically. And like again, just looks amazing how they presented that. Um, the honours boards, and I’ve got to get a picture of this, but the honours boards are engraved into silver, of course they are. Like, how amazing is that? Um, the food, like we’re we’re gonna have breakfast there, and we’re having breakfast there because our host has said that it’s an elite breakfast. Elite level breakfast. I think as soon as you hear that word, added onto the word breakfast, you know you’re in. Um then the locker rooms. I’ve seen a few videos, usually when it’s about BMW time, those locker rooms look like the plushest things in the world, so they’re gonna be like hotel lobbies. Yeah, so I cannot wait for that. Yeah, it’s gonna be pretty cool. Um the practice facilities are described as world beating, not just world at best, but world beating, which is again music to our ears. We might get the fabled pyramid of golf balls. I don’t know. We’ll see. We’ll we’ll keep you updated on that. Um, and then the last thing for me that I’m looking forward to is uh I’ve cleared off a lot of space on my credit card for the for the gift shop slash pro shop. Um I mean, you know, you’re gonna play it once, aren’t you? You’re gonna be here once. I can’t wait for that. Just can’t wait to get to that pro shop and like, right, fill your boots, feel like a new new clubhead cover coming of some description. So, look, those are a few of the things that we’re looking forward to about Wentworth. As you can tell by how we’ve structured this today, we’re just mega excited about it. Yeah, this is one of the ones that I’m looking forward to the most, I think. These are one of the ones that biggie, isn’t it? When you first decide to do something like this, it comes up as I cannot wait to play that place, however, it happens. Um and look, we’ve got to recharge Chris’s car now, because um it’s electric and we’re not polluting the world, but we have to now stop for a coffee. Um but before we finish, uh I want to go for some predictions. Obviously, we’ve got a match play going on. Who are you who are you are you backing yourself here, Chris?

Chris 37:03

Do you think you’re gonna know I’ve not been playing a huge amount of golf recently, and like I told you earlier, I had to go for an emergency golf lesson on Friday because I tried emergency golf lesson. I went to the range on Wednesday and I could not hit a golf ball. So, I mean, my my lesson was good and and made some improvements, but I’ve not had a chance to drill that in. So I need to I need to use those world-class facilities today to have a little uh get yourself muscle group before we play. Um I’m backing you today, Nish. Yeah. Brilliant. I’m backing me as well. Yeah.

Nish 37:35

I’ve actually been playing quite well recently, it’s also played for a while, but it’s the first day in Surrey, so always I’ve got a shooter on this today. The first day in Surrey. Yeah. Uh what about the signature hole? It’s a par five. Do you feel that gives you an advantage?

Chris 37:50

I mean, it’s got no bunkers on, so that gives you an advantage. We’re both gonna have a shot. I don’t know. I I’ve had some shockers on the par fives on the um You have? On the signature hole challenges. It’s not Yeah, it’s not done.

Nish 38:03

You feel like you need to get off the Tee really, don’t you? That’s your that’s your secret, your key today. I think if you can do that, I think you get you it’s advantage you then, isn’t it? Yeah. Um Right, and my final closing thought before we finish our preview and we plug the car in is um I think today I’m gonna find this place hard to rate objectively. Because I think the experience element of what we’re doing is so intertwined with Wentworth. We’re gonna have to have a bit of like healthy debate, I think, about where we think it ranks. So I think that separation of the two things is gonna be hard for me. It always is. Yeah. I’m all about the experience. So uh look, we’ll we will fill you in on all of this. Yeah. Our intention and plan.

Chris 38:52

Oh yeah, I think it’s gonna tick both boxes today, because I think it’s gonna be a tough kind of strategic golf course, which I like, and you’re gonna have all the refineries around the sides that you like. I think we’re both gonna enjoy today.

Nish 39:01

We’re gonna walk off and go, this is that was yeah, that was everything. Yeah. Gave us everything as a pair. Yeah. Where do we sign up? That’ll be that’s what we’ll walk off saying. Yeah. What’s that bank account for the bond, the bond money? Can you imagine? Send it over. Imagine the call home. Um, Lucy, uh You’re moving out. You’re moving out. We’re we’ve just put our bond in for Wentworth. Uh sorry, sorry guys. You’ve got a caravan in real.

Chris 39:26

We’re gonna live. Yeah, that’s it. As a commute as a communal, a communal top 100 in golf uh top 100 in 10 golf podcast family.

Nish 39:34

Exactly. Yeah. Um wonderful. Well look, we will fill you in on the review episode. Uh so until next time, the top 100 in 10 golf podcast.