95. A Quickie in Connecticut and Massachusetts

A Quickie in Connecticut and Massachusetts

The next day, Pat and I were synchronizing calendars when I realized she was headed up to Essex County Club on Monday and Tuesday August 28 and 29 to play in a Member-Guest with her good friend Jill B.  Essex is a wonderful club and course and is about 30-35 miles from our house, but would be a real hassle to go back and forth from Milton each day…so she was going to stay up there Monday night so I started planning a mini trip for the following Monday and Tuesday.  As I was just playing 3 courses and had a good idea of which ones I wanted to play…and was not attempting Shinnecock, National, etc etc., I actually got it done with a few calls and emails.  Plan was to leave around 9am on Monday 8/28 and drive to Fairfield CT to play Country Club of Fairfield, then play Tamarack CC in Greenwich CT the morning of 8/29 and then drive to just north of Springfield MA to play Orchards GC the afternoon of 8/29…and then drive home.

 

Country Club of Fairfield, August 28, 2017:  Located right along Long Island Sound.  CC of Fairfield was founded in 1914 and the club hired Seth Raynor to build the course.  Due in large part to World War I, the entire project was not completed until 1921.  In later years, A. W. Tillinghast and Robert Trent Jones, Sr. oversaw renovations to Raynor’s original work.

I had played CC of Fairfield two other times, the first in 1990, and always loved the feel of the club and course.  It sits right next to the small boating harbor in Southport, CT and as such it “feels” like a course setting one might find in the British Isles.  Interestingly though, the only course that I have ever seen in the British Isles with such a feel is The Island Club, just north of Dublin, Ireland.

 

I actually played from the “tips”…not a big deal as the course is only 6374 yards from all the way back, but it is a gem of a course and wonderfully fun to play…and on windy days it can be a bear (but this day was fairly calm).  It is the type of course that makes you want to play another 18 holes as you finish your first round.  It has always played fast and firm and is generally revered by golf architecture affectionato’s.

I did not play particularly well, shooting a 41-42 = 83.  The course and club were very quiet and the clubhouse was closed (this being a Monday).  Best hole is the 9^th which is a “Redan” hole, a 196 yard par 3 build on top of a hill with a sharp drop off to the left of the green.

Redan #9 at CC of Fairfield

From 2006-08 CC of Fairfield made the GW merged USA Top 100, peaking at #93 in 2006.  In 2013 and 2015 it was included on GM’s USA Top 100 with a high of #95 in 2013 (but was not included on GM’s 2017 list released about 2 weeks ago).

After the round I went down to Greenwich (stayed there) and got some good sleep.  Had a tee time at just before 8am on Tuesday morning at Tamarack.

Tamarack Country Club, August 29, 2017:  In my years playing golf in the NY area (mostly in Westchester County as an adult), I had heard of Tamarack but frankly the message was always “decent course but not worth a special trip” (it sits about 3 miles from where I lived from 1988-2005).  Over the past year or two, I had heard word from several other Panelists that it was now something special, so I scheduled it for this trip to take a look-see.  That was a smart move.

Tamarack CC was founded in 1909 and its current golf course was designed by Charles Banks and completed in 1929.  Just as Seth Raynor was a protégé of C.B. Macdonald, Banks was a protégé of Raynor.  Like Macdonald and Raynor, Banks’ courses feature a number of the famous “template” holes that are adaptations of some of the great holes in the British Isles.  Banks earned his nickname “Steamshovel” because of his tendency to move prolific amounts of dirt to create dramatic holes.  However, over time and like many of the classic great old courses, Tamarack had become over treed, lost many of its distinguishing bunkers, and slowly had its massive greens shrink (from changing mowing patterns, especially during WWII when fuel conservation was essential).  Noted architect Brian Silva proposed a Master Plan which was fully implemented a few years ago.

I arrived at the club a little early and had a chance to spend some time with head pro Bobby Farrell.  The Farrell family is one of the NY area’s great golfing families.  Bobby’s grandfather, Jimmy, won the1928 US Open conducted at Baltusrol in NJ and also served as head pro from 1919-1930 at Quaker Ridge GC in Scarsdale, NY, my home club from 1975-2000, and later became head pro at Baltusrol.  His son (and Bobby’s father) Billy was head pro at Stanwich CC in Greenwich CT from 1964-2000.  But the coolest thing is that Bobby is head pro at a course where his grandfather played in the first foursome to play Tamarack when the course opened in 1929.

While I never saw Tamarack before Silva’s restoration, no question that it is an excellent course today…the CB Macdonald/Seth Raynor/Charles Banks DNA is clearly obvious throughout the 18 holes, but especially on the Cape (#2), Eden (#3), Bottle (#4), Redan (#7), Punchbowl (#11), Biarritz (#12), Road (#14), and Short (#15) holes….see pics below of #3 and #7.

Tamarack #7 Redan-187 yards- from right back of green---super sharp slope from  right side

Tamarack #3 Eden hole---184 yards...go over and it is over!

Tamarack plays to a healthy 6846 yards (par 70 from the back) and is in excellent condition (although I would prefer to see it a little firmer and faster and less green).  I had a 41-42 = 83, same score as at CC of Fairfield.  It has never been on w USA Top 100, but is certainly moving up in other ratings (#5 in GD’s CT best in state).  It is something special but not quite Top 100 material…except perhaps GW’s Top 100 Classics.  It is well worth a visit.

After the round, had another chance to talk with Bobby, thanked him and was off to MA where Orchards GC awaited.

Orchards Golf Club, August 29, 2017:  Located just north of Springfield MA, the Orchards GC started with 9 holes designed by Donald Ross and Ross added another 9 holes in 1927.  In 1941, the course was donated to Mount Holyoke College.  It plays from the tips at 6575 yards.  The course has a strong record of hosting important events, including:

            1987 USGA Junior Girls’ Championship

            1994 MA Boys Junior Boys Championship

            2001 MA Amateur Championship

            2002 NCAA Woman’s Championship

            2004 USGA Woman’s Open Championship (won by Meg Mallon).

Frankly, the course is now over treed and is fairly poor condition.  I would assume that its conditioning is not as high priority for Mt. Holyoke College.  I had a 42-45 = 87 and had trouble keeping my interest up.

After the round I made great time back to Milton MA.  It was Tuesday evening, Pat had returned from a fun time up at Essex with Jill and we had to get moving on packing for our trip to Scotland (leaving three days later on Friday afternoon).  Good thing I never over schedule!!!!