Various factors determine how tough or otherwise a course is, among them length, bunkering, tightness of drives and approaches, nature of the terrain and, of course, the skill level of the golfer. Some courses might be fearsome off the back tees, yet a little more friendly if you wisely choose to venture forward. A few are just hard, full stop.
I now play my golf among the artisans at Royal Ashdown Forest in East Sussex, where the white tees are viewed with a degree of trepidation among the membership. Not that it’s particularly long by modern standards at just under 6,600 yards, but, for some, those extra 300 yards over the yellows are just enough to tip the balance between playability and too daunting a task to keep out of the punishing heather. This is particularly the case on holes like the par-5 12th, where the carry over the purple stuff off the tips may be a bridge too far for some unless the wind is lending
