Very tough puzzle today from Radian, but I got there in the end, solving time 67 mins. The lower half of the grid I found particularly difficult.
Think I have seen Radian associated with golf in the past, either in comments he made here or previous puzzles – it was pretty clear from reading the clues that golf had a lot to do with this and the grid itself suggested a theme from the start. nmsindy has to admit his knowledge of golf is very limited and that might have made it a bit harder for him, tho, after doing the puzzle, he knows a few golfing terms he was not aware of before.
At the very end saw the Nina ie message in the outer columns referring of course to 8 down who sadly passed away at a relatively young age quite recently.
* = anagram
5 STYMIE M1 (big road) in STYE (eyesore) The first golfing reference ie where one ball blocks another’s route to the hole on the green, with the term having passed into the language in general
6 BY-LINE This was the only across clue I solved on first run through BY (Times = multiplied by) N (name) in LIE (story)
9 VICTOR VI (sixth) eg George VI to in cr (abbrev for crown)
10 AMERICAS (aims care)*
11 ACME M (first letter) Muirfield a golf course ace = hole-in-one (l learned today)
12 GOLF COURSE g = good of course = naturally L = first driver (ie learner driver)
13 SHANKS’S PONY to shank is to hit one particular type of bad shot in golf (this was new to me) sp (odds) on y (variable). The definition is just ‘pins’ I think from pin = legs ie to walk on foot. I thought for ages that the first word was CHINESE perhaps some golfing term I’d not heard of.
18 LIGHT (Illuminate) GREEN (putting area – golf). The ‘putting’ here was cleverly misleading.
21 SPIV VIPs reversed
22 ELDORADO hidden (took me ages to spot it)
23 B ROGUE Birkdale is another golf course
24 SWEDES turnips s (small) (weeds)*
25 SLICED This was a magnificent clue, I thought. decibels reversed less be = live with the definition simply ‘cut’
DOWN
1 EYE TEETH TEE = place to drive (golf) after EY (early empty) in ETH (the ground) ie ground indicating the anagram of ‘the’
2 OIL RIG girl 10 all going upwards
3 RYDER CUP c (clubs) in (prudery)* Golf competition between Europe and the USA with which 8 down was v much associated, I think.
4 MI (musical note) LIE (where the ball lands – golf) U (posh)
5 STITCH hits reversed over first letters in (the clubhouse) – golf term for the leaders who have already completed their round tho others still on the course could yet pass them.
7 ELAPSE E (Spain) S (special) PALE all reversed – refers to pale ale, I think
8 BALLESTEROS (a ter ble loss)* & lit, I guess
14 NO-GO AREA no (number) are (live) in Goa (now part of India)
15 NO SLOUCH (Coulson)* H (first letter of hacking). Reference to phone hacking controversy
16 TITLES ties = games containing tl (exceptional style ie alternate letters within style if I have understood this right)
17 LIQUID Along withj 25A, this was my favourite clue today “Just over £50” = 51 pounds ie LI QUID! definition; in cash
19 HOOKER this took me ages to get thinking it might be an anagram of ‘golfer’, in fact it refers to hook (another type of bad golf shot I’ve learned about today)
20 NO-BALL hidden reversal, which curiously after the golf references refers to cricket (which I know more about). If a bowler breaks a rule when bowling, the batting side is given an extra run.
I also know little about golf, but managed this with a struggle. Thanks for explaining ‘sliced’ which I guessed, but could not see why even though I thought of ‘decibels’ or ‘db’ for ‘sound measures’. Also ‘titles’ – I’m not familiar with ‘exceptional’ meaning ‘alternate’ in crosswords, but that’s what it must be. Saw the Nina quite early on, but was held up thinking there must be something similar at the top and bottom. The ‘s’s’ in ‘Shanks’s pony’ had me stumped for ages. Talking of stumps, I agree that the cricketing reference at 20dn was a bit odd after all that golf. Clever puzzle, but not my cup of tea.
Large grid (good). Sans serif type (bad).
Thanks nmsindy, and Radian for this tribute crossword.
This was to my liking, having dabbled in golf in the past, when Senor Seve was at his peak. He was noted for getting into trouble and getting out of trouble on the golf course; for those who remember, once playing out of a car park. It was a pity that his career was cut short by illness.
Lots of enjoyable references and the right hand column gave the clue to 8D. Favourites were 12A GOLF COURSE, 18A LIGHT GREEN and 4D MILIEU. SHANKS’S PONY was the last one in, having trouble with the apostrophe (am I right that some crosswords indicate apostrophes, as well as hypens?).
Never seen an apostrophe indicated. They always fool me.
Thank you for your explanation of TITLES, which I was unable to parse satisfactorily. All I could see was “style” as in “style of office” = “official title”, and I was thinking along the lines of “His Excellency” for an ambassador as an “exceptional style.” Doesn’t make much sense, I know.
I enjoyed this very much and found it a moving tribute when I spotted the Nina.
Thanks nmsindy and Radian.
Many thanks for the blog, nms, and also to Radian for a super puzzle – a lovely tribute, especially with the Nina.
Although I’m not a golfer, I knew enough terms to get by with this, and I knew enough about Seve to know that 8dn is. indeed, &lit. I didn’t know STITCH was a golfing term as well, but since we had the definition ‘spasm’, that didn’t matter.
I read 7dn as E [Spain] SP [special] ALE [beer].
Thanks for the blog, nms. I really enjoyed this puzzle! I’m not particularly up on golf, but I could gradually work things out and made steady progress. My last bit in was the lower left, helped by spotting the nina and giving me an extra letter to work with. SHANKS’S PONY was my last in as well; I knew the expression as “shanks’s mare” and didn’t make the connection for the longest time. A moving tribute to Seve and a wonderful puzzle. Thanks Radian!
Many thanks, nms.
Although I’m with Mark Twain on golf (‘a good walk spoiled’) I did manage this, actually reasonably quickly. I knew a few of the golfing terms, but never realised that STYMIE came originally from that sport. The clueing for BALLESTEROS was extremely clever, and the message was also a nice tribute to a figure who – although I don’t follow the game – was clearly a huge talent and a fine role model. Unlike Ryan Gig*s.
Hi Eileen@5. (Hope you don’t mind my saying so), but I think the golfing term nms was refering to was “clubhouse leaders” rather than “stitch” 🙂
Hi scchua
Yes, of course – and of course I don’t mind1 😉
I found this fairly easy apart from 13, 17 and 25, which took me ages. The golf theme came fairly quickly and I guessed 8 down as soon as I saw the clue. 18 across might have been a harder clue if it hadn’t been placed in the middle of golfing puzzle.
Bit mixed solve here lots done quickly and stuck in others and beaten by shanks’s pony.
Thanks the blog explaining titles as wel NMS. And thanks to Radian for the entertainment.
Fairly straightforward for me, not least because I’m only too familiar with shanking, hooking and cutting on the golf course.
I mean slicing. Cutting implies a degree of control.
As one who likes bigger balls (round, please) more than these tiny little white ones, I was surprised how quickly I went through this puzzle. Two clues stumped me eventually [I did the paper version, so no cheating]: 24ac (SWEDES) [one of the easiest of the puzzle … ahum] and, of course, SHANKS’S PONY (13ac) [never heard of it (nor had Mrs Chambers), even though I am keen on walking :)].
Very well constructed crossword compiled with love & dedication.
Didn’t spot the Nina though ….. 🙁 [will there ever be a time that … ?]
So, thank you Radian.
And NMS too. Agree about your favourites (25ac, even if I got it almost right away) and 17d’s LIQUID. And 8d was, as the French say, “hors catégorie”.
Not so enthusiastic about ‘exceptional style’ for TL, but I have seen Radian doing a thing like this before in another disguise. And it is defendable.
Once more, thank you NMS and hope to see you tomorrow (and flashling and ….)
Indeed Sil, see you and the others tomorrow.
Extraordinary, nms. Because this was about golf and not about football, and I play golf a lot, this took me 25 minutes (although I never saw the Nina at the sides), while usually your time is better than mine. Some very good stuff here I thought.
This took up a fairly small section of my 3-hour sojourn in A&E Oxford — cracked 5th metatarsal on left hand from tumble after a diving catch at short cover, alas. Tricky but whiled away enough time between triage and x-ray.