DriftWood was the debut course release by Mike Jones back in early 2001 and this is where this designers story begins. This was a highly manicured USA style course with excellent well thought out strategy and some lovely course views. Some of its inspiration i am sure came from Augusta and it was without doubt one of my most played courses ever. It has retained a soft spot for me ever since. This course is mix of lush green grassland for the fairways and rough bordered by dry burnt brown grass. The effect back on its release was to add real visual depth and frame the holes distict from the unkept areas. It also added colour to the ground planting. It is not a difficult course to play, fairways are pretty generous by todays standards and the strategy is clever but negociable in most cases without any real difficulty. After a relatively easy start to your round, the toughest holes are the long par 4's at 5, 6 and 8 and followed by the lakeside par 3 at the 9th which can be awkward in gusty wind.

Four Favourite Holes

Hole 3 - This is a truly great hole. The fairway bends away from you back behind a forested area so if you overcook your draw round the corner you can end up in really deep trouble in the trees. You do have a nice safe option of laying up well back but the green is tiered so this makes the approach harder to judge. The green itself is beautifully framed by coloured bushes, one of the great early visually masterpieces and the back tier just borders a lake. Whilst not tremendously difficult you do have to make the right choice and it is a lovely hole to look at.

DriftWood (3rd hole)

Hole 6 - This is probably the toughest hole on the course. A 499 yard par 4 and one of the narrowest to drive onto the fairway. You really need to take the driver here and it is very easy to lose this tee shot into the trees or deep rough. The approach into the green will normally be a long iron so control is important. Hopefully you will have started the round quite well as the run of holes from 5 through to 9 is much tougher.

DriftWood (6th hole)

Hole 9 - This was Mike Jone's tribute to the Augusta 12th, back at the time when we never believed we would get a proper version of the real thing. It plays very much like the real thing, here short or right and you are in the water, long and its the bunker or flowers that catch you. It is a short hole but if you have the gusty wind in play then it becomes much more thought provoking. Again i loved this hole when i first saw it and it still remains a real gem.

DriftWood (9th hole)

Hole 16 - This is a par 5 that at 529 yards is very reachable in two shots. The tee shot is over a nice large lake, which makes it a great looking hole. If you find the fairway you then have a key choice as the green is fronted by a creek with lovely boardings similar to The Belfy. Decide to go for an eagle and you must not be short or right, a lay up gives you a nice view of the green and a clubhouse building hidden in the trees . A good hole that you play in different ways depending on your condifence level.

DriftWood (16th hole)

DriftWood was subsequently remade for Links 2003 with upgrading to the textures and planting, and by todays standards it holds its place well and with some nostalgia built in it remains high in my top 40 chart. Whilst it is not an overly difficult course it is one where you can add faster greens and some wind to make it play a bit tougher. As you dont want every round to be grind this course is perfect for a friendly Sunday afternoon chat and play round. Elements of this design can be seen as forerunners to some of Mike's even better designs since and is therefore an important part of his course design history. When it was first release i was so taken with it that i named all the holes in a short guide which can be found here. DriftWood also contains the first example of great hole previews.