The Original Short

The 4th at Royal West Norfolk is a study in binary architecture. It does not seduce; it demands. The green is a raised plateau, shored up by heavy, tarred railway sleepers that hold the earth against the inevitable slide into the sand. It sits like a fortress. The premise is violent in its simplicity: find the putting surface, or find the bottom of the pit. The recovery from the base of the timbers is rarely graceful. It requires a steep angle of attack and a suspension of hope.

While C.B. Macdonald is often lauded for exporting the ‘Short’ template to the New World, this Holcombe Ingleby design stands as a rugged, salt-worn ancestor. The use of timber was born of structural necessity, not vanity, yet it defines the hole’s character. It has stood unchanged for a century, dismissing the modern ball and the titanium driver. The architecture proves that distance is irrelevant when the penalty is absolute.

The yardage book suggests a wedge. The gale off the North Sea usually suggests a low, punched 8-iron. It is here that the ego meets the ground. To hit the green is to feel a fleeting sense of mastery. To miss is to accept a double bogey and a shoe full of silica. We do not play this hole for the score; we play it for the sensation of survival.