Wednesday, September 14, 2016

58. Royal Portrush GC and Portstewart GC, September 8-9, 2016


Royal Portrush GC and Portstewart GC, September 8-9, 2016

Pat and I drove up to Northern Oreland’s north coast the morning of September 8…there is lots on road construction in progress.  With the Open Championship returning to Royal Portush in 2019 (held there once before, in 1951), the north coast is buzzing with activity as preparations for the Open proceed.

Royal Portrush GC, Dunluce Links, September 8, 2016:  We were being hosted by a former RP Captain, John M., and his wife, Lynda.  Craig W., a friend of Fergal’s who played with us at Portmarnock and is a member of RP and a former member of Portstewart caddied for us.  After a brief lunch it was off on #1 of RP’s Dunluce Links at 1:40pm.  As you may have read elsewhere, the R&A and RP agreed to a series of changes to the course for the Open and these were overseen by Martin Ebert.  Some new tees, a new green on #2, and a bunch of new bunkers are being added.  The biggest change is the addition of 2 new holes, while dropping the current #17 and 18.  RP has two courses, the Dunluce Links (its championship course) and the Valley Links.  The new holes have been constructed on land occupied by the Valley Links and are expected to be inserted into Dunluce as #7 and 8, which would mean the Open course would flow as follows:
           
            Holes 1-6…current Dunluce holes 1-6
            Holes 7 & 8…newly constructed holes
            Holes 9-18…current Dunluce holes 7-16.

While exact yardages have not been announced, I would expect the Open course to play at over 7200 yards (par 70).  The new holes #7 & 8 are in their “grow-in phase” and are expected to open for play in 2017.  While I was able to view them from a distance, I did not have an opportunity to walk them…but they certainly look imposing.  As such, my comments below refer to the current Dunluce Links. 

Royal Portrush Golf Club was founded in 1888 and was known at the time as The Country Club (sound familiar?...if so, please note that The Country Club in Brookline as founded and named in 1882).  A nine-hole course was constructed in 1888 and expanded to 18 the following year.  In 1929 Harry Colt laid out the original Dunluce Links.

I really liked the course.  I love false fronts and I doubt there is another course with as many greens with false fronts (except maybe Portstewart...see below)…my guess is that there are as many false fronts here as at the average 9th grade classroom.  It has:
--good elevation changes,
--rumpled land that rolls in every direction,
--almost no land with flat lies,
--firm-fast fairways and greens in excellent condition,
--deep, well placed bunkers,
--very special greens guarded well by humps and mounds, and
--has a wonderful variety of holes that blend together beautifully. 
What else can one ask for?  Without question, its two best holes are #5 and #14. 

#5 is a 411-yard par 4 dogleg right with a two-tiered raised green perched above a hill the drops straight down toward the beach and the Atlantic Ocean.  The back of the green is about 18” from the start of the downslope to the beach so watch out if you are pin hunting for a back pin.  The tee is elevated and I found it hard to force myself to aim far enough left off the tee.  See pic below.
 
#5 from tee...green is straight ahead but I had to aim left of the large mound in left center of picture.


#14 is a par 3 (perfectly named “Calamity”) that will play from about 235 yards from the tips during the Open, with a huge, 60’ deep ravine on the hole's right side extending from the tee to about 5 yards short of the right front of the green.  With any wind (and it can really blow here), this hole can terrorize.  RP is famous for this hole and deservedly so…  See pic of (R-->L) John, Lynda, Pat, and me in from 14th tee.

14th green in left background


I thought holes 1-16 were fabulous…not a weak or average hole among them.  On the other hand, holes 17 and 18 move away from the dunes and are disappointing.                              

I ended up with a 41-43 = 84.  Wind blew at about 15-20 mph most of the round but we remained lucky, avoiding any real rain for the 4th straight round.  Not sure what John M shot but he was a virtual machine, and both John and Lynda are very special folks.  Our friend and caddy, Craig, proved to be a terrible caddy…no matter where either of us hit the ball, he immediately went and found it, leaving me with some impossible lies to play from (when Pat hit it in these places, Craig would toss it back into the fairway).

Royal Portrush’s ratings on World Top 100 lists were included in my write up of Royal County Down posted a couple of days ago.  My sense is that based on the courses as presently laid out, the rating of RCD and RP are about right.  However, things could get a shake up after the new holes come into play and the Open Championship is played at RP in less than three years.  Too soon to tell but it could become very interesting.

Portstewart GC-Strand Course, September 9, 2016:  Portstewart is a mere 5 miles west of RP, and to summarize, despite RP’s long shadow, this one is absolute worth playing as well. 

Originally founded in 1884, this course was redesigned by Willie Park Jr. about 90 years ago, but was totally transformed about 25 years ago by the addition of 7 new holes constructed among the dunes lying between the Atlantic Ocean to the north and the River Bann to the south (land known as “Thistly Hollow”).  The result is a course with a fun and brilliant first 12 holes and a very good final six. 

It all starts with a breathtaking first, sharply downhill off the tee (a good 60-70’ IMO) this 425 yard dogleg left is a cape hole over high dunes…at least high from fairway level (felt a little like a dramatic version of #1 at Bethpage Black).  Then after a walk sharply uphill, #2 is a short par 4 (366 yards) downhill off the tee then uphill to a small green made smaller by a false front.  A large chasm on the right side of fairway into the rough, that goes from about 110 yards to 35 yards short of the front of the green limits tee choices for big hitters to a max of 240 off tee or going for the green in a very risky effort.

#5, is the best hole on the course IMHO.  Stretching to 461 yards, it turns slightly left and gently rising between large dunes to a deep deep (56 yards deep) three tiered green with a postage stamp of a back tier.

#6 is a wonderful 143 yard par 3 to a green falling off on all sides and also protected by two small deep bunkers in front…and this hole was made better by my tee shot to about 3’ and birdie 2.

#9 is a superb 378 yard uphill par 4 turning slightly right around a massive dune to a deep narrow green with a false front and sharp falloff  over the green

#10 and #11 are both excellent 407 yard par 4’s; #10 turns right and slopes downhill with tee shot calling for you to hit to left side of fairway that is well protected by two bunkers; #11 also turns right but is uphill to a raised green and this tee shot needs to negotiate 5 fairway bunkers.

Through the first 12 holes the following have false fronts: 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11…or put more simply, holes 1, 3, and 12 do not!!!

By the time we reached the 15th tee, the wind was more like 40mph and the rain started coming down sideways.  We managed to play 15 and 16 and since 16 green is right near the clubhouse, planned to stop there.  Pat was smart enough to do that, but when I saw that the groups in front of us had also gone in, I talked Craig into quickly playing 17 and 18.  17 was dead into the wind and I played it from about 365 yards…with driver, 4-utility and 3 wood to the front!!  Fortunately, the rain had subsided somewhat but the wind kept up.  Was nice to get inside.  Our luck with the weather had to stop but it did hold off till the final 4 holes!

Portstewart plays from 7004 yards.  It has never been on a World 100, and that is clearly appropriate.  However, a mere 5 miles from RP…this is a stop well worth making.

The next morning we made the 3+ hour drive to Dublin airport and flew back to Boston

All in all an excellent trip.  Wedding was wonderful and five courses played were a superb collection.




 

Sunday, September 11, 2016

57. Ireland Trip September 3-10, 2016


Ireland Trip September 3-10, 2016

The Irish might be getting sick of seeing me.  Just realized that this is my fifth trip into Ireland to play golf in the last 28 months.  During the first four visits I played a total of 12 different courses (10 for the first time, and two revisits).  This trip is scheduled to hit five tracks…four of which are revisits and one new.  So assuming this trip goes without a hitch, that will mean 17 rounds on 16 courses (Portmarnock twice) of which 11 were/are first time visits for me.  And I need to come back to play Ballybunion-Old, Tralee, and Waterville again…as well as visit for the first time several others.  Both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are loaded with great tracks.  Because of the Open Championship, the courses of Scotland are certainly better known, but this Emerald Isle has more than its share of great ones.

This trip was scheduled to go to the wedding of our friend Fergal O’Leary to his wonderful and lovely bride, the Karen Lynch.  Both were born and raised in Ireland and live in MA.  Karen has no faults and Fergal has just one…taking golf too casually.😀  He is the youngest person to ever complete a Golf Magazine Top 100 list, having accomplished this at the tender age of 32 (I was a spry 69 when I did it…at the time, I think the oldest, but that has been surpassed since then).  I just went back and checked…and by the time I turned 32 (in late 1976), the most I had played of any World Top 100 list ever published thru today (there were none published by 1976) was Golf Magazine’s 1985 list…and I had 27 of those by my 32nd birthday.

Anyhow, the schedule for this trip is very simple:

Night of September 3---fly Boston to Dublin
Sept 4—arrive Dublin, play The European Club
Sept 5—play Portmarnock
Sept 6—Karen & Fergal’s wedding
Sept 7—play Royal County Down
Sept 8—play Royal Portrush
Sept 9—play Portstewart (new for me)
Sept 10—drive back to Dublin and fly back to Boston

The European Club, September 4, 2016:

The European Club was a vision in the eyes of Pat Ruddy, one of golf’s great entrepreneurs when he took a helicopter ride in the early 1980’s along the east coast of Ireland in search of land to satisfy his “golfing obsession”.  Pat had been a golf writer, then became a golf architect and wanted to build a great links golf course, because to his mind, a great course must be a true links course…built on land that links the sea to the land having been covered by glaciers in the Ice Age.

The course was built and nutured by Pat…and I mean those exact words.  He and his family constructed this course with oodles of sweat equity.  It opened Christmas 1992, an entrepreneur’s dream fulfilled.  Pat and his family have continued to manage the Club for almost 24 years since then, always tweaking the course in efforts to improve its design.

European Club has been on Golf Magazine’s World Top 100 since 2003 and currently is at #90 (it peaked at #85 in 2009).  The 2013 Architect’s survey pegged it at #75.  Top100golfcourses.co.uk has always included it on its World Top 100, peaking at #50 in 2011 and currently #86.  Golf World UK included it in both of its listings, #43 in 2010 and #47 in 2011.  It did not make the Top 100 on the other 5 sources (Golf Digest, Links, Rolex, GCA or Planet Golf).

My first visit to The European Club took place on May 19, 2014.  It was my last stop during my 2014 round the world journey  and where I completed the 2013 Golf Magazine Top 100 listings.  Pat Ruddy threw a party for me during the round and made me an Honorary Member.  My Melbourne buddy John Cornish (who was getting married in Manchester the following week) surprised me by meeting me at the Dublin airport on my arrival that day.  Real truth is that I was so exhausted at that point I hardly remembered the course or my round.  I do recall falling asleep in the car within about 2 minutes when we left to go back to the airport.  In any case, I absolutely wanted to get back to the Club, and have Pat Rudovsky meet Pat Ruddy.  As I expected, they got along fabulously.

The course was in very very good condition, playing fast and firm.  It is a very tough track.  Plays a total of 7355 yards (par 71) for 18 holes (note…a few years after its opening, Pat added two additional holes, both par 3’s, to be used in case other holes were temporarily closed for maintenance…and many players not involved with a tournament or event play all 20 holes).  The bunkers are deep and treacherous, usually braced by “sleepers” (wooded planks or railway ties similar to those often used by Pete Dye and on older Scottish tracks such as Prestwick), and the course is reasonably hilly and protected very well by Pat’s use of camouflage and other optical illusion techniques.  Best stretch of holes is probably #12 through #17, with #12-15 running along the beach and #12 featuring perhaps the world’s deepest green (127 yards).  This stretch is both long and fun.

The wind was moving at almost 15 mph…just strong enough to make playing interesting.  My play was a little sloppy and I ended up with a 44 – 44 = 88 for 18 at 6207 yards (I did par both of the par three extra holes).   Both of us were tired after the round and had a 60-70 minute drive back north to Portmarnock.

I highly recommend a stop at The European Club for golfers headed to Ireland’s east coast.  The course is a proven World Top 100, is an excellent test, and given the general lack of availability of true links land in the world, will probably end up being one of the last links courses built.  But most of all, a visit with Pat Ruddy is both informative and entertaining.  The man is smart, opinionated (but also listens), and entertaining.

Portmarnock Golf Club September 5, 2016:  With Karen and Fergal’s wedding scheduled for September 6, Fergal, who is a member of Portmarnock and was raised in the town, scheduled an outling for the afternoon of September 5 for about 24 members of the wedding party and wedding guests.  Many of these were a few years younger than I am (like 30-40 years younger) and as such, one or two of them could occasionally outdrive me.  But not in my group…and don’t listen to some BS claims/excuses about them playing from 6966 yards and my tees totaling 5851 (the back tees are 7466)…par 72.  

From any tees this can be a tough intimidating course…but I had it going this day, at least for 14 holes.  I was 1 over thru 8 and 3 over thru 14, but then things came crashing down very quickly and the round ended double, double, bogey and double for a 38 – 44=82.  What are the words to Frank’s song?  “Riding high in April, shot down in May.”  This can be a funny game…when the wheels fall off they really can do so quickly.  In this case, even the spare tire disappeared.  But it sure was fun while it lasted.

Portmarnock is a great championship test of golf.  Big and long, and very well bunkered.  Located on the southern end of a peninsula, it is surrounded on three sides by water.  This is a true links course, but “tamer” than many of Ireland’s links courses.  Best hole is #15 (204 yard par 3 with green sitting about 8’ above a  “valley of sin” to its left (and where my troubles began) and very well bunkered front left and right.

It currently sits at #55 on the 2015 GM World 100…which is its lowest rating ever (it has appeared on all 19 of GM’s listing, and was included in the World’s Top Dozen in GM’s inaugural 1979 list), and Planet Golf has excluded Portmarnock from its WorldTop100’s.  On the other hand, Golf Digest places it #25 on its 2016 list (a startling improvement from #83 in 2014), the Golf Architect’s Survey place it at #36, top100golfcourses.co.uk at #44 currently and Rolex within the World’s Top 15 in both of its editions.  Certainly a wide variety of opinions, perhaps due to Portmarnock’s brilliance as a championship test, yet, in the eyes of some, shortcomings in terms of “fun”.

The next day was Karen and Fergal’s beautiful wedding.  The reception was at Bellingham Castle in County Louth, a very special venue for a wedding.  We took the day off from golf (but a bunch of the “kids” got in a quick 18 early in the morning).  We needed the rest, especially since this was to be a typical Irish wedding.  The band didn’t get going until around 10:15pm, but we were in bed by 11:00pm.  Still have no idea when the party ended, but we were told that there were buses going back to one hotel at 1am and 3am!!

Royal County Down Golf Club, September 7, 2016: In August, 2015 I participated in an informal match between four members of RCD (three of whom were past Captains) and three members of Brookline and its head professional, Brendan Walsh.  It was a most enjoyable round followed by an equally good dinner.  Upon learning of Karen and Fergal’s wedding, I contacted one of the RCD participants and was able to secure a game for Pat and me on this trip at RCD, and as an added bonus, Royal Portrush.  These two clubs, located in Northern Ireland have been considered among the world’s premier clubs and courses by almost all keen observers for decades and decades.  Need statistical proof?  Try the following:           

            --RCD is one of only 18 courses that have been included on all 39 Top 100 listing published by the nine sources I have mentioned in previous posts;

--Royal Portrush is included on 37 of the 39…having been excluded from Golf Magazine’s initial Top 50’s in 1979 and 1981 (there are two that have been on 38 of 39, and two others that have been on 37 of 39);

            --RCD is currently ranked #5 on GM, #1 on GD, #3 on Planet Golf and #4 on top100golfcourses.co.uk; its worst current ranking among my nine sources (excluding Rolex where it is among an undifferentiated Top15) is #9 on Golf World 2011; outside of GM in 1979 and 1981 and Rolex’s 1st Edition, it has never been outside of any Top 10;

            --RP is currently #15 on GM and top100golfcourses.co.uk, and #11 on Planet Golf; its worst rating from these three publications over the past 25 years is #18, and it has been as high as #11.

Pat and I left for Newcastle, County Down around 6:45am and arrived in time for breakfast with Patrick J., a former RCD Captain and a participant in last years match at TCC.  After breakfast, we went over to RCD and were joined by David N., another former Captain and match participant.  Our luck with weather continued to hold as we played in mostly overcast skies with a 15-20mph wind. 

RCD opened for play in 1889 on a course built by Old Tom Morris.  That course was remodeled by George Combe starting in 1900, other modifications were added by Harry Vardon in 1911, and then Harry Colt from 1925-27.  For the next 70 years the course was essentially unchanged until Donald Steele made changes to hole #18 in 1997 and #16 in 2003 (plus adding some length with new back tees throughout the course).  I had played the course three times prior to this trip, twice in 1980 and once in 1981, and I was anxious to see the changes to #16 and #18.  Many have called the front nine of RCD the finest nine holes in the world, but I remember the last three holes being somewhat of a let-down back 35 years ago…still one of the world’s great tracks, but a relatively disappointing finish.

Today the course plays 7186 yards (par 72) from the tips.  We played from the Stableford tees which totaled 6675 yards while Pat played from the Ladies tees which are 6249 yards…pretty damn long for both of us.  The wind was from the south (if you have played it…that is quartering from the right and behind you on #1 and quartering against and from the left on #9).  As I walked on #1-3, I looked at the distant dunes to the northeast and remembered seeing them for the first time 36 years earlier…and had the exact same thought:  “It looks like I am on the moon”.  Those dunes (and all the dunes on the course) are simply overpowering. 

The course was as good as I recalled but there seems to have been a subtle change that was confirmed by our hosts.  I remembered RCD to be more “wild and wooly” 35 years ago…today it seems to be much more manicured.  Our hosts pointed out that in the 1980’s very few visitors were coming to play RCD, because of the violence (commonly referred to as “the Troubles”) that was occurring in Northern Ireland.  I would guess that in those days, the financial situation at RCD was much tighter due to shrinking guest fees.  Since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, tourism to Northern Ireland has increased dramatically, and for sure guest play at RCD (and Royal Portrush as well) has increased commensurately, providing funds to support a manicuring of the course.  Frankly, I preferred the “wild/wooly” look but this is still a brilliantly fun and challenging track.

The course has a large number of bling tees shots and approach shots.  I, for one, am a believer in the old Scottish phrase “a shot is only blind once”.  In other words, all great courses need to be played multiple times to be understood, so blind shots are simply another variable to be dealt with…so deal with it!!  My guess is that most Millenniums do not like blind shots.

There are so many great holes here…and I was too absorbed to take any pictures.  Best are as follows IMHO:

            --#3, 475 yard par 4 heading into northeast corner of course; teeing off from elevated tee, player must chose whether to play it down the right side (shorter route but blind second), left side (open approach but longer route), or middle (compromise but not ideal in either regard).  And all you see in the background behind the green is “moonscape”.

            --#4, 229 yard par 3, downhill (running parallel but in opposite direction of #3) over about 160 yards of gorse and some six bunkers guarding the front, simply a spectacular view (one of world’s most photographed holes) toward a deep narrow green with steep fall offs right, left and in rear.  Hole created by Harry Colt and is also one of the world’s great par 3’s.

            --#5, 440 yard par 4, blind tee shot over large dune turning right with the inside of the turn protected by 6 bunkers, and a green sitting in a wonderful natural setting surrounded by large dunes (nothing new with that!).  Tough hole to feel comfortable over the ball and align properly.  Great holes do that…they put doubt into the players head.

            --#7, 144 yard par 3…no elevation change here on this hole that is very exposed to the wind…much tougher than it looks (was most over par in 2015 Irish Open…due in part to very strong winds); I was smart enough to listen to my caddy and played it off the mound to the right of the green to about 2’ and got my birdie.

            --#9, 483 yard par 4, the other “most photographed hole”…drive requires a carry of almost 240 yards to reach a fairway that sits at the bottom of a 60’ sharply downhill slope that starts about 200 yards from the back tee (note…the rough on the hill can keep a tee shot form bounding down to the bottom despite the steep slope).  Tee shot reminds me a little of the tee shot on the par 5 5th hole at Sydney’s New South Wales GC.  Also, it felt different than I recalled…I remembered mostly rough leading to the top of the hill, and now there is fairway…but then again we are dealing with my memory…who knows?  In any case, the view from the top of the hill is amazing with the RCD clubhouse, the Slieve Donard Hotel, and the Mourne Mountains creating a wonderful backdrop.

            --#11, 442 yard par 4, tee off over a large dune about 40’ high and perhaps 40 yards from the back tee (very similar feel to that of the lower tee on the 4th hole at Brookline) to a hole that turns left to right…again through the dunes;

            --#13, 446 yard par 4, dog legs right and presents a choice off the tee similar to that on #3…shorter route to the right with blind second, and longer route to left with open approach to a beautiful green setting;

            --#15, 468 yard par 4, uphill off tee to crest (carry of 240-250) and turning right and down at crest, and very easy for longer player to run through the fairway’s left side.  At about 310 yards off the tee the fairway narrows to a single file walk then widens and goes back uphill to a difficult to hit green (the wifey holed a running hybrid from about 50 yards here…so it is her favorite hole).

            #16, 337 yard par 4 drivable but difficult to hold (green slopes front to back)…a worthy replacement for the previous 16th.  Laying up is not a picnic either as one must negotiate three well placed fairway bunkers.

I ended up with a 40 – 42 =82 including 3 double bogies, not bad for an old man from 6675 yards.  Played the four par 3’s par/bird/bird/par and was just 2 over through 7.  Happy with my game. 

Overall, this is a fabulous track.  The front nine is simply great and the back is very very good.  The land here is just perfect for a golf course…very rumpled and flat lies do not exist off the 18 tees.  Certainly the best course on the moon, and one of the very best on Earth as well.  And of of the great clubs anywhere.

The next two days were at Royal Portrush GC and Portstewart GC along Northern Ireland’s northern coastline.  Always a debate as to which is better here…RCD or RP.  I finished RCD anxious to return to Portrush!

Sunday, September 4, 2016

56. Golf July 14-August 30


Golf July 14-August 30

Have you ever been in a restaurant that was really empty, and the service was still real slow?   Well, its been almost seven weeks since I played Piping Rock and Friar’s Head, I have played all of four courses (two that I had played before and two new ones) other than Brookline, and here I am finally getting around to updating the blog…just like those slow waiters in the empty restaurant.

Myopia Hunt Club, South Hamilton, MA July 22-24:  There is a small number of golf clubs and courses that have a wonderful historical “feel” to them…you feel like you have stepped back at least a hundred years when you arrive…and it is a very special feeling.  To paraphrase a well-known jurist…it is like pornography, hard to define, but you know it when you see/feel it (although is some circles, that analogy may not be appreciated).  Courses that come immediately to mind are places like Yeamans Hall, Palmetto, Gulph Mills, National Golf Links of America, Shinnecock, Brookline, Chicago, Merion, Cypress, Newport, Garden City, and a few more (I apologize for those I have missed in this listing).  Two others are Essex County and Myopia Hunt, located about 5 miles from each other north of Boston.  July 22-24 I had the pleasure of playing in the Herbert C. Leeds Senior Four Ball event at Myopia Hunt Club with Dr. Tom O., a fellow member of Brookline.  I have played Myopia about 10-12 times previously, and won the Leeds with Charlie B. (a member of Essex County) about 7 years ago.  Often, the Leeds is played the same weekend as TCC’s club championship, but with no overlap this year it was wonderful to return to Myopia.

Myopia was the host for four of the first 14 US Opens (1898, 1901, 1905, and 1908…talk about being in the “rota”).  The course is cut through heavily wooded property and was designed by Herb Leeds who also designed Palmetto GC in Aiken, SC…perhaps the best example of the term “Hidden Gem” in the USA (the title Hidden Gem may be highest praise we golf nuts can apply to a course). 

In terms of World Top100’s, Myopia is #74 on Planet Golf’s current list and was #67 on Links Magazine’s final list published 12/31/14.  On USA Top 100 lists, it was #33 on Link’s final list, and is currently #69 on Golf Magazine and #44 on Golf Week’s merged list.  It has never made a Golf Digest USA Top 100, most likely due to not meeting the minimum number of evaluations (45 over the prior 8 years).

At about 6550 yards (par 72) from the tips, Myopia is not long but trust me, it is tough.  The greens are brutal (and in a couple of cases close to unfair), and lots of tall fescue punishes wayward shots more than appropriately (I would not have enjoyed this course with my 1970’s game).  The variety of architectural features is amazing…featuring convex (#6, 8, and 12), concave (#2, 10, 16), and sharply sloping (#4, 5, 11, 13, 17) greens, wide and narrow fairways, etc. etc.  Yet, it all fits together beautifully. 

Over the past five years the club has substantially pruned many of its trees.  This pruning became necessary as Myopia lost a few greens over some of these years due to insufficient air circulation.  This work has substantially improved the turf quality and I also think more work needs to be done. 

Best hole is probably #9, a par 3 of about 140 yards with the narrowest, deepest green you can imagine (about 10 yards wide and 35 yards deep) surrounded by a series of very deep bunkers.

Myopia is both a golf club and an equestrian club, and one passes a couple of polo fields driving into the property.  One senses the “horsies” run the place, but golf is back after many decades of neglect in the 1950’s through 1970’s or so.  Good to see…museums such as these should not be lost.  And if you think about it, Myopia is to the US Open what Prestwick is to the Open Championship.  It took until 1995 for The Old Course to exceed Prestwick’s 24 Open Championships, and it took until 1973 for another course (Oakmont) to exceed Myopia’s four US Opens.  And as of today, only six courses have hosted more than four US Opens: Oakmont, Oakland Hills-South, Merion-East, Olympic-Lake, Pebble Beach, and Winged Foot-West (Baltusrol has hosted seven but on three different courses).

Sand Hills Golf Club, Mullen, NE, August 3-6, 2016:  The most frequent question I am asked about my trips, quest and bucket lists is “what is your favorite course?”…and the answer to that is easy…Cypress Point.  The next most frequent question is “how long did it take you to play them all?”  That is a tough one.  For example, the first World 100 Ever I ever played was Bethpage Black, which I played in 1960 (it was the 10th course I played).  However, in 1960 there was no World or USA Top 100.  Yes, when the lists started coming out in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, I would check off how many I had played…but when did I really start focusing?  If my memory is accurate I think it was June 2010.  Pat and I went to a wedding in Steamboat Springs, CO and then drove back to Denver, eastern CO and a course in Nebraska’s Sandhills region that had opened 14 years earlier…Sand Hills GC.  We played 36 at Sand Hills, which was the last time Pat played 36 in a day.  We were both blown away by how good the course was.  I remember our drive west from Sand Hills (we were heading to Ballyneal GC in northeastern CO) and saying to Pat that there were 10 more USA courses I really wanted to make sure I played before I hung up my spikes (Newport, Chicago, Crystal Downs, Yale, Kiawah-Ocean, Honors, Friar’s Head, Sebonack, Somerset Hills, and Fishers Island).  One year later, in June 2011,  I completed those 10 by playing Fishers Island…and of course did not exactly stop there.  But it was the brilliance of Sand Hills that made me realize I had to do it.  Outside of the Old Course, I cannot think of another course that captures “Zen” better than Sand Hills.

I went back to the list of 295 courses that have appeared on one of more of the 39 World Top 100 lists from nine publishing sources.  When Pat and I left on that June 2010 trip, I had played only 127 of these 295 (to be fair, at that time 55 of the 168 had not yet appeared on a World 100 including many had not even been built)…so in the six year time span from June 2010 through early July 2016, I played 168 that I had not played before.

I was able to get back to SHGC for a quick 18 holes in 2014, and when Dr. Dennis K., a fellow golf nut, invited me for a four-day trip, I jumped at the opportunity.  Since Dennis is a good friend of Dr. Mark S. (an old friend from Quaker Ridge), catching up with Mark on the trip was to be an added bonus.

The day before leaving, I started to come down with a summer head cold…and by the next morning, it was going at full throttle, and flying from Boston to Denver did not help.  Our group of eight included 5 physicians (including Dennis and Mark) so I figured I was in good hands.  We met at the gate for the flight from Denver back to North Platte, NE. After arriving at SHGC around 4pm and dropping our luggage in our rooms, it was off to the course for a quick 18 before sunset. 

Our schedule called for 8 rounds (one on Wednesday afternoon, two each on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday and one Sunday morning).  I ended up playing three rounds, and departing Saturday morning as the cold would not subside. 

The golf course is just as good as I remember it.  There simply are no weak or average holes and there at least 14 superb or better holes.  By Friday morning, I had fairly well figured out probably about 50% of the nuances of the course and one can score on it at that point.  My last round on Friday was a 37-43 = 80…really had it going on the front nine.

The overwhelmingly simple beauty of the area is hard to describe.  The Nebraska Sandhills covers some 20,000 sq miles (approximately 200 miles x 100 miles), and is the largest contiguous area of sand dunes in the Western Hemisphere.  Just over 25 years ago, a Nebraskan named Dick Youngscap purchased an option on some 8000 acres of land south of the town of Mullen, NE (population today about 600).  He then brought in the architectural team of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, who relatively quickly found some 140+ holes (crisscrossing each other) within the area best suited for a golf course.  Coore and Crenshaw then spent the next two years walking the property to find the best combination of 18 holes, with the right routing….hence Sand Hills GC was “discovered” and not “built”.

Although it is one of the country’s most exclusive clubs (approximately 160 members), no one would call it “over the top”.  Part of its attraction is its total isolation from most of the modern world (although these days a wi-fi signal is available in part of the clubhouse and a cellular signal can be found near the maintenance building).  The rooms are very spartan but more than adequate…and the food is superb.  But let’s be clear, if you are coming here to be pampered you will be disappointed.  If you are coming here to experience of the great courses in the world, you will certainly find that.  There have been many great tracks built since 1960 (generally considered the start of the “modern” era) including (in alphabetical order) Ballyneal, Barnbougle Dunes, Bluffs Ho Tram, Cabot Cliffs, Cape Kidnappers, Cape Wickham, Friar’s Head, Harbor Town, Muirfield Village, Pacific Dunes, Shanqin Bay, and Tara Iti.  But to my mind, Sand Hills stands alone at the top.  When thinking about possible candidates for the greatest course in the world, Sand Hills is the only Modern course I would consider along with the following Classics (again in alphabetical order):  Augusta National, Cypress Point, Merion, Muirfield, National Golf Links, Oakmont, Pine Valley, Royal County Down, Royal Dornoch, Royal Melbourne-W, St. Andrews-Old Course, and Shinnecock.

SHGC stretches to about 7075 yards (par 71), has not been rated for course ratings and slope, and is not known to have a prevailing wind…but trust me it is generally windy (full disclosure…my 37 on the front nine was during a very calm morning).  It has appeared on every World 100 published since it opened in 1995, has never been listed worse than #17, and its best rating was #5 on a list published on GolfClubAtlas.com.  Its highest USA rating was #2 on the merged Golf Week list in 2007 and 2008.

If you get the opportunity to play it…do it!

Vineyard Golf Club, Martha’s Vineyard, MA, August 16, 2016:  Vineyard Golf Club opened in 2002 and was the first new golf course on Marth’s Vineyard in about 35 years.  In order to secure permitting, the developers agreed the course would only utilize organic fertilizers and would never use pesticides, thereby making it the most environmentally sensitive course in the world.  Donald Steel and Tom Mackenzie were the architects and shortly after construction commenced, were faced with the loss of substantial acreage when a nesting area for a protected animal was found on the property.  This severely impacted their original design plans.

About 8 years later, the members bought out the original developer and then, under the direction of Gil Hansen and Jim Wagner, in 2012/13 redesigned the front nine followed by a major overhaul of the back nine that was completed last year.  The changes were substantial enough that Golf Magazine named Vineyard the “Best New Private Course” of 2015 (note “New Course” as opposed to “Renovation”).  My host was a fellow Golf Magazine panelist and is head of the club’s Golf Committee, so he was well versed in the history of how the club progressed from its original design to today’s layout.

From the tips the course stretches to 7146 yards (par 71) and we played from 6223 yards.  My ugly twin stayed home this day so I completed the round without a double bogey or a six on my card and fired a 37 - 40 = 77.  Days like this the game is actually fun!! 

I liked the course…it flows beautifully and Hanse made fabulous use of the land, and shaped the fairways and greens beautifully.  The bunkering is also superb.  The holes vary in look and feel yet come together as a beautiful 18 holes (note…it is located inland on Martha’s Vineyard so it does not come with water/ocean views).  Clearly, the course is meant to be played in firm and fast conditions…but it was on the soft side on this day, which helped my score, but took some of the fun out of the course.  I should note that we were in the middle of one of Massachusetts’s longest heat waves and I would suspect that this affected Vineyards GC more than most courses in the Northeast given the fertilizer/pesticide restrictions it is governed by. 

I thought the best holes were:

            --#3 (136 yd par 3), with two sets of tees and very different “looks” from the two angles…front bunkers form a virtual “wall” protecting the front of the green;
            --#6 (308 yd par 4), uphill and turning right with a well placed fairway bunker, green with some outstanding pin positions, false front, and a sharp drop off if you are over the green;
            --#9 (550 yard par 5) gently uphill off the tee and then gently down hill the rest of the way, to a narrow but deep, well contoured green protected by water left;
            --#11 (529 yard par 5) very well protected by bunkers left off the tee and bunkers and a sharp fall off on the right side of the fairway about 100 yards short of the “infinity” green;
            --#14 (305 yard par 4) well bunkered fairway and trouble right cause player to think hard about how to play any shot here whether going for it or laying up (similar to the decisions one faces at Newport’s #11);
            --#17 & #18 (442 and 438 yard par 4’s) into prevailing wind create tough but fair finishing holes.

Given the issues that were faced by its original design, Vineyard GC has never been included on a USA or World 100.  It will be interesting to see what happens with Hanse’s substantial improvements.  To my mind, the design has the clear potential, but the conditioning is tough with only organic fertilizers and no pesticides.  This type of course has to be firm/fast.

Sakonnet Golf Club, Little Compton, RI, August 27, 2016:  Tucked away in southeastern Rhode Island is the Sakonnet Golf Club, with its first few holes abutting the Sakonnet River (which, like the East River in NYC separating Queens and Manhattan is not a river).  The course is also within a mile of RI’s Atlantic Ocean coastline.  Founded in 1899, the golf course was designed by Donald Ross.  Sakonnet is one of the few courses where Ross really did spend a fair amount of time, as he has a vacation cabin 5 minutes away.  There are numerous stone walls bisecting the property which leads me to believe that the property was pieced together from several estates and/or farms.

Pat has played Sakonnet many times in an annual woman’s invitational, but this was my first time. 

More recently, Gil Hanse completed a renovation the course. While I never played the original course, I very much liked the results of Hanse’s work.  Best holes to my mind are:

#1-- 383 yard uphill par 4 to “infinity” green sitting totally exposed to the elements; fairway bunkers right and left and OB left are to be avoided off the tee as are bunkers short right and left of the green;
#2—180 yard down hill par 3 running westward (same direction as #1) with Sakonnet River and Newport in the background…stunning view from the tee and very tough green to hit and hold…again very exposed to elements;
#9—202 yard par 3 to raised “infinity” green;
#10—412 yard dogleg right par 4 with swampland protection the right front of green that slopes in every direction imaginable;
#17—310 yard par 4 90 degree dogleg right “cape hole”…drivable by the long boys but with a a hazard occupying the entire right side of the hole, and a green sloping sharply back to front (right to left as one looks from the tee).

Sakonnet is only 6337 yards in length (par 70) and is certainly not a championship test, but it is fun to play.  The club is quite simple to say the least…no “over the top” here…just a quiet place to hang out, if you are fortunate enough to be admitted>  The locker room consists mainly of some cubby holes to hold shoes…similar to some of the great clubs of Scotland and Gulph Mills in outside of Philadelphia.  I sensed a strong unanimity of purpose among the membership…something one finds at all great clubs.  It has never made any Top 100 and probably never will…Sakonnet is not a “Trophy Club”, but a wonderful place to spend one’s summers..

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Summer is coming to a close.  It is now September 3, 2016 as I write this. Relaxing these last two months has been good for me…even still, I am up to 128 rounds to date for the year on 90 different courses (69 of which I played for the first time this year)...so the calendar has not been empty.

Tonight Pat and I head to Ireland for the wedding of Karen Lynch and Fergal O’Leary…and perhaps a wee bit of golf during our 6 days there.  Our only other overseas trip will be to an ISAGS event in Cabo, Mexico in late January 2017.

Next posting…from Ireland.