Prestwick Golf Club Ayrshire, Scotland JNSE Rendition by Brent Blackburn August 1993 Card of the Championship Course Out In Hole Yds Par Hole Yds Par 1 Railway 346 4 10 Arran 454 4 2 Tunnel 167 3 11 Carrick 195 3 3 Cardinal 500 5 12 Wall 513 5 4 Bridge 382 4 13 Sea Headrig 460 4 5 Himalayas 206 3 14 Goosedubs 362 4 6 Elysian Fields 400 4 15 Narrows 347 4 7 Monkton Miln 430 4 16 Cardinal's Back 298 4 8 End 431 4 17 Alps 391 4 9 Eglinton 444 4 18 Clock 284 4 Outward Nine 3306 35 Inward Nine 3304 36 Total 6610 71 Credits John Kunyik - JNSEDT Palette Editor and Mark Willett Bob Polin for their magnificent objects, Jim Wildenhaus helpful insights, and unwavering Jim Matthews support, without which this course Lee Ritze would not have been possible. Gene Rodriguez Scott Chesney Marty Gleason Sources The "Matthews Papers" - an exerpt from a book bestowed upon Jim (aka Revery) by a gentleman who is an actual member of the Prestwick Golf Club. This material was quite detailed, chock full of tremendous photos of all areas of the course, and without it, I would have been guessing as to many of the details of this classic course. I am eternally grateful to both gentlemen. "The World Atlas of Golf" - by Pat Ward-Thomas, Herbert Warren Wind, Charles Price, and Peter Thompson "The Random House International Encyclopedia of Golf" - Malcolm Campbell "Classic Golf Links of England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland" - Donald Steel "The Complete Book of Golf" - Nick Lumb, Michael Hobbes, and John Pinner "The World's Best Golf" - William H. Davis "100 Greatest Golf Courses, (and then some)" - William H. Davis, and the editors of Golf Digest * * * * * Prestwick is the birthplace of championship golf. The British Open was first staged on its beguiling links in 1860, just 9 years after the course was opened, and here the Open remained for the next eleven times it was contested. In all, twenty-four Opens were staged at Prestwick, the last in 1925. That the Open has not returned in the years since, is both a shame and a tragedy, and owes more to Prestwick's inability to handle large galleries than to its qualities, which are many and varied. There are those who contend that Prestwick is too short for major championship golf today, but doubtless they have not played it in a howling wind, blowing in from the Firth of Clyde. Another point of contention is the multitude of blind shots which Prestwick boasts, the two most famous being the tee shot at the par3 Himalayas and the second shot at the par 4 Alps. Most modern pros have a great disdain for blind shots, particularly of the variety at Prestwick, but in the old days such shots were regarded as great tests of manhood. At their worst, they can shatter one's morale. At their best, they will separate the great players from the good ones. The course, by Old Tom Morris, was originally a twelve hole design, but in 1882 it was expanded to 18 holes. In 1987, the course was expanded to a par of 72, the 7th hole lengthened from a demanding par 4 to a relatively easy 5. I have elected not to incorporate this change in my design, so one could call this rendition the "Pre-1987 Prestwick". It is particularly noteworthy that the course record, set on the new par 72 course, is 68. For all of its shortness, it is not a course easily tamed, even in days when equipment has become sophisticated. I consider Prestwick to be the first in a triumvirate of the three greatest links courses in the world, the others being Ballybunion and Royal Dornoch. That is no knock against St. Andrews, which is the most FAMOUS links, but for combination of beauty, playability, and atmosphere, Prestwick, Ballybunion, and Dornoch are hard to beat. So, as if you didn't know this was coming, I would like to announce that Ballybunion will be my next project, a joint venture with Jim Wildenhaus. So much for advertisements. Back to Prestwick. About the Design ---------------- I decided that if I was going to undertake a project of this magnitude, it would not be taken lightly. Therefore I have used every trick I could think of to make this an appealing, realistic, and authentic JNSE design. At times, I pulled hair and teeth trying to replicate particular views. I hope I have succeeded. My greatest concern was not embarrassing the Prestwick Club with a poor design. I think I have done quite well. Background This is a Blackburn original, though I must confess that the sky was inspired by Mark Willett's Victorian course. The photographs from the material sent to me by James Matthews were highly detailed, and I reproduced them pixel by pixel, so I am confident that what you see in this background is what's there. At this point I would like to thank Gene Rodriguez III for his help getting me started with PC Paintbrush 5+, which I used in some areas of the background. Objects Most are originals, or are borrowed from my Nairn and version of Royal St. George's. Undoubtedly, you will recognize objects from the brilliant works of Lee Ritze, Bob Polin, Gene Rodriguez III, Mark Willett, Jim Wildenhaus, James Matthews, and Scott Chesney. The clubhouse, church ruins, most grass objects, the sleepered bunkers, flag, bell from the SS Grama, are mine. A big thanks goes out to Jim Matthews for his work on the sleepered bunker on Royal St. George's, for that convinced me that it was possible to do the same on Prestwick, where the sleepers are such a distinctive feature. GRIII's fabulous birch from Burnt Mill was appropriated and modified somewhat, the town buildings are derived (remotely in some cases) from those created by Mark Willett and Lee Ritze. There is a grass object or two from Bob Polin's Pebble Beach. And I simply had to borrrow and modify Scott Chesey's wonderful flagpole from Medinah. There are some fenceposts and sheds done by James Mattews, and two grass objects by Jim Wildenhaus, somewhat modified here. Last, but certainly not least, I have appropriated three objects from Marty Gleason's version of Prestwick: the circular white disk which marks the line from the tee at no. 5 (how many ways can you design a cirle?), a nice house which shows a good degree of perspective, and the funny-looking building which is next to the Prestwick airport. That, I believe, leaves the bulk of the fifty objects as originals. The Color Palette I know that there are many JNSE-ers out there who are satisfied with the standard green color palette that comes with the game. I am not one of them (you). If you have seen my Nairn and Royal St. George's courses, you know that I like to modify the palettes substantially to create browner, dryer links-type course terrain. Prestwick also has a modified palette, though this palette is somewhat different from Nairn and Royal St. George's (I like to keep them a wee bit different, something to distinguish them), and has received high marks from playtesters and observers. If it is not to your tastes, please feel free to change it. In addition, please feel free to modify the course to your liking and distribute to any local JNSE bulletin boards, though I do ask that should you upload the course anywhere, please do not upload a modified version. I put an extraordinary amount of hard work into this project and would appreciate it if those who download the course could actually see my vision of the course before they modify it. The Holes I shall not provide a hole by hole narrative, for discovering the eccentricities of a course is half the fun of playing. But I feel compelled to provide a warning (defense?) about a few holes in particular: Hole 1 The drive is meant to be tight here. It is a diabolical opening and makes a legendary 19th. Hole 3 Be careful which flag you aim for on this famous par 5. Most players will go for the green in two, but I have routed it as a three shot hole, and as a consequence, you won't be lined up on the flag for your second unless you simply drive it as far as the Cardinal bunker. Hole 5 I don't care. This is the most famous blind shot in all of golf, and it was going to be done accurately or not at all. A perfect tee shot will find the green. Anything less, and you may want to drive the club through my heart. It is a tough hole. Live with it. Hole 7 The centerline leads over the left-hand rough here, so aim right or readjust the centerline. With practice, you'll find a suitable target to aim for. But if you must readjust, back up the hole, delete it from the hole routing screen, re-route it with a dogleg, and then copy the hole back to your golf directory. Move the tees and the pins, then move them back to their locations, and the centerline will re-align itself onto the championship tee and first pin. Hole 11 A wicked slope, I know, but the ball should not drain off of the green. I played the right-front pin position more than 100 times, and while it is POSSIBLE to get the ball close, any shot to the left 2/3 of the green will filter to the left-hand side, leaving a long uphill putt for birdie. Hole 17 (The Alps) see Hole 5, supra. Land Plot Thanks to Jim Wildenhaus for inspiring the "title screen" logo, which, in the event that you find my artwork unintelligible, is a map of Scotland. The quilted patchwork of fields was my idea, and in the design module, at least, I think it adds some flavor to the land plot. Lastly, I would like to thank Jim Wildenhaus for all of his support, prodding me onward toward finishing this course (when I needed to be pushed after the Bar Exam), playtesting, and friendship. I hope that my design efforts were not in vain. I hope you will cherish this old gem as much as I do. I wish you success on your round. Comments, critiques, and criticisms are welcomed and may be directed to Brent Blackburn (user ID DJDG83A on Prodigy, E-mail address BBLACKBUR1 on NVN) 5304 Morgan Place Court Atlanta, Georgia 30324 August 13, 1993