More Delays For James Webb Telescope

One day, they'll get this thing into space. Maybe. The James Webb Space Telescope, the successor to Hubble, has had its launch pushed back many times. Many, many times. Apparently the original plan was to have the telescope in space by 2007. The new launch schedule is for March 2021. So close. So very close.

Also, $800 million is being added to the price, bringing the total up to almost $10 billion. And this new inflated budget goes above the limit set by Congress, which means that in order for the project to continue, it has to be reauthorized by Congress. We'll see if we can manage it in our current political climate.

Don't get me wrong, James Webb will do great work. Eventually. If and when it does get to space. But to pretend its development has been anything other than a mess...no. It's almost become one of those perpetual "oh, it's just a few years down the road" sort of things, and that's unfortunate.

Beer of the Week

The beer: Dragons & YumYums Pale Ale

Brewed by: Dogfish Head Brewery, Milton, Delaware

Description (from the website): "An explosion of fruit in every sip, Dragons & YumYums is an intensely tropical - yet subtlety bitter - pale ale brewed with a combination of dragon fruit, yumberry, passionfruit, pear juice and black carrot juice. Clocking in at 6.5% ABV and 25 IBU, Dragons & YumYums is a first-of-its-kind beer and vinyl collaboration with American rock icons, The Flaming Lips." There's actually more to it than that, apparently this beer is the first with it's own theme song. You can go to the website to find the rest.

Would I buy it again?: No. It's a strange flavor, intensely fruity, and the beer pours a color I've never seen before. I'm not sure if you can tell from the image, but there was a distinct pinkish hue to it. It's kinda cool, and I'm glad I bought it once, but I wouldn't do it again. A little fruitiness with a summer beer is fine, but this is too much.

Review: Westminster National Golf Club (Part 2)

It's time for the back nine at Westminster National. Here's the front if you haven't seen it yet.

The tenth hole looks pretty similar to the first hole from the tee. And hey, it plays parallel to the first hole, in the same direction, and you can actually see a little corner of the first fairway on the right side of the picture. But on this hole, a 390 yard par 4, you'll want to lay up. About a hundred yards from the green there is a very steep dropoff, covered in long, native grasses. The green is small and is best approached from the left.

The tenth hole from the tee.

The tenth green is not a big target.

The eleventh hole is a neat little 355 yard par 4. The tee shot is once again a lay-up, but the farther right you go, the easier the second shot is. The green is nestled up next to a pond, and shots from the left side have less green to work with, and more pond to cross. There's a bunker behind the green that I would suggest avoiding. The green is shallow from there and slopes away towards the water. So hitting the green is basically the best option.

The eleventh swings to the right significantly.

Not an easy pitch shot to the eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is the shortest hole on the course at 141 yards. The green is over a small pond (the same one we just encountered on the last hole), and is also guarded by a small bunker on the left side. Another hole where hitting the green is really the best option.

The twelfth hole.

The thirteenth hole is the latest edition of my long-running series, "Oh crap, we ran out of room to put a golf hole." What we've got is a 330 yard hole that doglegs 90 degrees to the left. The tee shot is with a mid to long iron, whatever you can hit 200 yards. Do not try to hook it around the trees, there's a pond cutting the fairway off from the green, overcook it too much and you'll be wet. There's water long of the fairway and a ditch running along the entire left side. Beyond that is the tree line. Assuming you've laid up correctly, the second shot is a fairly simple pitch to a bunkerless green.

You can't really see, but there's a lot of water in play on the thirteenth.

There's the water.

After a significant commute up the hill and past several other holes, the fourteenth is another short par 4, but a far more traditional one than the previous hole. There's a pretty decent view from the tee out to the west, and even on a humid, hazy day, the mountains 20 miles west were visible. As for the hole, don't go right. It's O.B. over there, and it's closer to the fairway than it looks from the tee. The second shot will be a short pitch to a green that you really don't want to go over. Long is dead. Still, two smart shots and this is a birdie hole.

The fourteenth is drivable, and over higher, more open ground then the past few holes.

The crowned fourteenth green.

The fifteenth hole is another short par 4, but while lay-ups were probably the best choice on the previous two, a full blast with the driver is recommended here. Why? Well, you want to get as far as possible so you'll be as close to green height as possible. There's a bit of a steep slope cutting across the fairway, and if you don't get up that, your second shot will be blind. The green is pretty wide open, so once again, birdie is definitely a possibility.

Getting your drive to the top of the hill on fifteen is recommended.

A fairly simple pitch to the fifteenth green.

The sixteenth hole is, at 405 yards, the longest par 4 at Westminster National. This really isn't a long golf course. The tee shot isn't really that interesting, it's very wide open, but obviously, the more of the dogleg you can cut off, the better. The second shot is semiblind, no matter what. But there's no trouble around the green, so feel free to swing away without fear.

The sixteenth hole.

The semiblind approach to sixteen.

The seventeenth hole is a 150 yard par 3, and is the least interesting hole on the course. No blindness, dead flat, and a fairly big green guarded by only one small bunker. Just don't go long and you'll be fine. Really kind of disappointing to have such a bland hole at the end of the round.

The seventeenth hole is not very exciting.

The eighteenth hole is the only par 5 on the back nine, and a good return to form to finish out the round. At 524 yards, it is reachable if you hit a good drive. I wouldn't call the hole narrow, because it isn't but there is O.B. left and thick vegetation right if you have a proclivity towards inaccuracy. Again, you'll want to get the drive over the top of the hill to get a view of the green, although this isn't a huge concern. This hole really encourages you to go for the green, because there is no good lay-up spot. The fairway tumbles down the hill towards the pond, lay up and you'll have an awkward sidehill lie for your third. The green is quite small, and there is the pond right, but there's plenty of room left to miss, and a pulled shot will probably bounce down toward the green.

The eighteenth hole. Another fairway disappearing over a hill.

If you can hit a big fade, you can get a boost toward the last green.

Right is clearly not a good place to miss. Guess what I did?

Last month I reviewed Little Bennett, and I compared that with its neighbor, P.B. Dye. Those two courses didn't share too much other than similar geographic locations. Little did I know that I would be soon playing a golf course that was far more appropriate for comparison. Little Bennett and Westminster National are much closer in nature. Both have incredibly severe terrain, and while you can walk Westminster National (you're not allowed to walk Little Bennett), you'll probably be glad to have a cart at both courses, especially on a juicy Saturday at the end of May.

So, of the two, which did I like more? It's not a wide gap, but I definitely enjoyed Westminster National more. Little Bennett wasn't bad, but I came off the course thinking that it could have done better. It was conventional, or at least as conventional as a course can be over the sort of terrain it traverses. This course was far from conventional. For one thing, it's shoehorned into a hundred acres, and considering the terrain, that is not really enough space. So of course, there's going to be some goofy holes. But you know what? I think there's something charming about that, I like when a golf course is offbeat and quirky. There are several holes at Westminster National that are intensely memorable. Holes I won't easily forget. They weren't examples of quality architecture, but they made an impact, and they put a smile on my face. The second hole may have been stupidly difficult, but when I walked onto that tee and saw it, I smiled. Well, it was more of a grimace, but you get my point. And the seventh? Coming around the corner of the dogleg and seeing the green on the other side of the Grand Canyon? I don't think anyone could forget a hole like that.

Now that I've talked about the quality of the course, I'm pleased to report that Westminster National is also fairly reasonably priced. I was able to make a tee time at 11:24 on a Saturday morning during Memorial Day weekend for $32. That also included a cart. At that time, Little Bennett (I keep coming back to it) would cost twice as much. Sure, it's much closer (25 minutes versus 50 minutes), but that's a lot of extra money to spend. I'm not sure I would play Little Bennett again, not when P.B. Dye is right next door. I would definitely play this course again.

Beer of the Week

The beer: Holy Moses White Ale

Brewed by: Great Lakes Brewing Company, Cleveland, Ohio

Description (from the website): "Refreshment or bust! Orange peel, coriander, and chamomile stake their claim in this unfiltered White Ale, named for our fair city's founder, Moses Cleaveland."

Would I buy it again?: Yes. It's yet another example of pairing a light, fruity sort of beer with a warm summer evening. Hard to go wrong with that formula, but this one was quite good. Just a note, this beer is unfiltered, and they really mean that. I noticed quite a lot of sediment and whatnot as I was about to pour the beer out. So if you're not a fan of that, this isn't the beer for you.

Review: Westminster National Golf Club (Part 1)

I really thought May was going to be different. The weather's been so bad so often this year, but for a few weeks there, it was incredibly nice. But of course, it couldn't last. I'm not entirely sure how much rain we've gotten in the past couple weeks here, but it has to be well over 10 inches. So yeah, it hasn't exactly been great golf weather, but somehow, I found time to play a new golf course.

Westminster National is, and stay with me here, located in Westminster, Maryland. Shocking, right? If you'll recall last month's review, I said many times that Little Bennett was a very hilly golf course. Well, we've got more of the same this month.

Funnily enough, both Westminster National and Little Bennett start with par 5s. Not only that, they both lead off with the longest hole on the golf course. The tee shots are even fairly similar, playing down and up to a plateau. The opener here is still reachable at 530 yards, especially with the second half of the hole playing downhill. All in all, a pleasant way to start your round.

The first fairway disappears over the hill.

Hit a good drive, and the green is reachable.

The first green.

The second hole is not pleasant in any way, shape, or form. I hope you got a good warm-up on the first hole, because you're probably gonna need it here. This is a 200 yard par 3, with water left, a massive slope right, and a tiny green in between. There are quite a few ways to get a golfer's attention, and throwing the toughest hole on the course (I don't care what the scorecard handicap says) at everyone so soon in the round is a great way to do that. A bogey can (and from my experience, did) win this hole easily.

If you squint, you can see the second green surrounded by a whole bunch of trouble.

The third hole is a little deceiving. From the pictures I took, you'd come to the conclusion that this was a flat hole. But we were using an alternate tee, there's another off to the right, 50 feet above the fairway. This is a very short par 4 at only 315 yards, and I imagine some people go for it, but this is a hole that calls for accuracy more than length. There's a big slope right, jungle left, and that green is not large. A lay-up and a wedge is the better play on this hole.

The third from the lower tee.

The third green is not a big target.

You get a better sense from this angle of the slope the green is perched on.

The fourth hole is a 350 yard par 4, but it plays a bit longer. It was into the wind when I played it, and drives are not going to get much roll going up that hill. The second shot is to a semiblind green. Not the most interesting hole in the world.

The fourth hole, up on top of the hill the third played next to.

The shot into the third is semiblind.

The fifth hole is another 200 yard par 3, playing slightly uphill, overall. It says a lot about the difficulty of the second hole when this isn't the toughest par 3 on the golf course. Clearly, you don't want to be short, as you'll be left with a very fun pitch from an extremely steep uphill lie. There's actually a big tier cutting through the green, something you can't really see from the tee.

The fifth is slightly more inviting than the second. Slightly.

The sixth hole is a short, drivable par 4, and unlike most of the course, this hole is lined with trees. This little corner of Westminster National is pretty heavily forested. If you can hit a big, sweeping draw around the trees, the green is accessible. I cannot do that, so I did the prudent thing and laid up with a long iron. Do that, and it's a fairly simple drive-and-pitch par 4.

The sixth hole bends off to the left.

The sixth green (I forgot to take a picture from the fairway).

The seventh hole a short par 5 at 486 yards, but that really doesn't tell the full story. Not even close. This is one of the most unusual holes I've ever seen, and just like at the second hole, I was really not expecting it. The fact that it doglegs right 90 degrees about 240 yards from the tee is notable, but not even close to the full story. The second shot, if you're going for the green, plunges down a massive slope into a valley with a stream at the bottom. The green is cut out of the hillside on the far side of the valley, elevated a fair distance from the fairway below. Well, I say cut out of the hillside, but it's almost more like a cliff. I'm not sure I've ever seen a hole built over such dramatic and abrupt landforms. To note, this is the same valley the fifth hole plays over, and is mostly maintained as a native area. Here? Nope, play right on through it. I'm not sure this is a good hole, but it is an incredibly memorable one. The pictures I took really don't do it justice.

The seventh tee shot is more than a little confusing.

You really don't quite get the sense of how dramatic these hills are from the pictures.

The seventh green, halfway up the mountain.

The eighth hole is a short par 3, under 150, playing down the hill to a small green. Not too much strategy here, other than "try to hit the green." I am glad that the landscape is still quite dramatic though. To follow up the last hole with something boring would be a terrible disappointment.

The eighth green.

The ninth hole is a very short par 5 at only 464 yards. Really, the main strategy here is "don't go left." There's a native area running along much of the left side, and then a pond takes over for the last hundred yards or so. If you're smart and mildly competent, it shouldn't be any problem to reach the green in two. Now, I think the second shot may be partly blind, but I'm not sure, since I am not mildly competent and spent the entire hole actually back on the first hole, which runs parallel to this one. Oops.

Quality image of the ninth here.

Another helpful and informative image. That's the eighteenth green to the left, the ninth is middle right.

The ninth green.

That's it for the front nine, next week we'll see the back.

Beer of the Week

The beer: The Love Wheat Beer

Brewed by: Starr Hill Brewery, Crozet, VA

Description (from the website): "The Love is an unfiltered wheat beer, also known as a Hefeweizen. It is distinguished by its extremely light body and fruity aroma, finished with spicy notes."

Would I buy it again?: Well, I like hefeweizens, and this was a perfectly decent example of a hefeweizen. So I'll say yes, but qualify that by saying that I'm not going to be busting down any doors in pursuit of one. Starr Hill does make a double bock though, which is my favorite style of beer, and theirs is very good. Not my favorite double bock, but excellent nonetheless. So I will definitely buy Starr Hill beer in the future.

Oh No, It's a Post About a Short Story!

Occasionally, there are times when I read something other than science news. And I found this little short story quite amusing. It's Bruce Springsteen related, which of course I'm gonna be a sucker for.

Beer of the Week

The beer: Sorachi Ale

Brewed by: Brooklyn Brewery, New York

Description (from the bottle): "Brooklyn Sorachi Ale is a bright saison built around the unique flavors of its namesake hop. The Sorachi Ale hop brings a zesty lemongrass aroma and complex citrus flavors, which we matched up with clean malts and playful Belgian yest. Golden, unfiltered, and cracklingly dry, Brooklyn Sorachi Ale glows in the glass and pairs wonderfully with seafood, fresh cheeses, and more. Go ahead, pour yourself some liquid sunshine."

Would I buy it again?: Probably not. Sorry Brooklyn, but I've had better saisons. This didn't do enough to really distinguish itself from the rest. Not bad, just forgettable.