It’s the windy season in the Eastern Cape, and Humewood was a challenge with a big easterly blowing on my visit. You know the wind is stronger than usual when you see that the flags on every green have been tightly wrapped to avoid them flapping and the pins bending violently as a result. Without a fluttering flag it was tricky to see some pin positions and also get readings with a range finder. There’s considerable moisture in the wind and the air so heavy that the ball doesn’t travel far. Two days later I was back, to face a gusting westerly in the opposite direction. It was interesting to compare notes on how holes played. Downwind on No 5 in the easterly you could drive close to the green. Into the westerly it was a drive and fairway metal to get close to the putting surface. On the par 5s it was a drive and iron downwind, while it took three well struck shots into the wind to get home, the third shot being a medium iron. The bunkers at Humewood have been designed to hold their sand even in high winds, and as a result they are a mix of consistency. It takes a skilful method to extricate yourself, particularly up against a steep face, as with those deep bunkers guarding the green at the sixth, one of the most challenging of 3s in a cross wind. At 120-130 metres it should be a short iron, yet the higher the ball flight the greater the risk of missing the green.
