153.  Boston Summer Part 2...July 28 --> August 31

One Day Trip to NJ and NY…Trip #15..July 28

Well, I may have needed a good rest after the July 18-24 week in OR (with half a day in WA), but that does not mean I was wise enough to schedule a rest.  Several weeks prior I had scheduled a round at the newly restored Baltusrol-Lower in New Jersey on July 28 and at the last minute added a round that afternoon at Blind Brook Club in Purchase, New York.  In many ways this was one of the more interesting golf days I have ever experienced.

Baltusrol Golf Club was founded in 1895 and was located across the Hudson River from Manhattan at an estate where its former owner, Mr. Baltus Roll was murdered during an 1831 robbery attempt...hence the club's name.  Golf started on a 9 hole course that soon was expanded to 18 holes, and from 1901 to 1915 the club hosted no less than five USGA Championships (US Women's Am in 1901 and 1911, US Open in 1903 and 1915, and US Am in 1904).  In 1918 the Club took an enormous risk by hiring A. W. Tillinghast to plow under its original course and build two 18 hole courses, which took until 1922 to to complete.  

In 1926 the US Am was back with George Von Elm besting Bobby Jones in the finals on the Lower Course and the Open was held on the Upper Course in 1936.  In total, since its founding the club has hosted 15 USGA Championships (7 US Opens, 2 US Women's Opens, 4 US Am's and 2 US Women's Am's) plus, more recently, two PGA Championships.  

I first played the Lower in 1977 (and the Upper in 1980) and probably had played about 8-10 rounds at the Club, mostly on the Lower.  I distinctly remember that after my first round, I loved thinking back to holes 1-6 and 16-18, but had difficulty remembering holes 7-15.  But there was no question of the course's pedigree and it was almost universally acclaimed as big, bold, and most of all, difficult.  

Despite this incredible history, in recent decades many observers had started to question the Lower Court's lofty position on US and World Top 100 listings. In the early 1980's the Lower consistently was ranked between #11 and #20 in the USA and about #25 in the world.  By the 2010-20 period, it had dropped to about #30-45 in the US (and even around #70-80 on my GolfWeek Merged list) and #55-75 or so on most World listings.  While no rating system is perfect...these falls most likely were noticed by Baltusrol's  proud membership.  

A few years ago Balusrol retained Gil Hanse to first restore the Lower, a job that was completed earlier this year and starting in about another year he will commence a restoration of the Upper.  The golf world eagerly awaited seeing the results of his work.  As a member of the GOLF Magazine panel, I was able to play the Lower in July and I played it with Adam M., a good friend, GOLF panelist, and highly regraded PGA member in North Carolina.  I had a decent round...42 - 45 = 87.

During the round, I noted several huge improvements to the Lower.  First and foremost, it was much firmer and faster than I had recalled from my prior visits.  Secondly, the greens had been expanded back to their original sizes which brought back many interesting pin positions, that had been "lost" due to shrinkage of the greens over the past 50-100 years (you may wish to see my comments regarding caused of green shrinkage in Post #128 and the write up of Quaker Ridge in that Post).  Third, removal of unnecessary and now overgrown trees opened up wonderful vista's throughout the course, and fourth, bunkers were rebuilt and repositioned as necessary to deal with today's increased length.  However, while these improvements are important and major, I walked off the 18th hole and realized I continued to have issues recalling holes 7-15.  The land these holes sit on is visually dead flat (except for the greens).  There are no overall slopes, or bumps and rolls to create sidehill, uphill and downhill lies that can add wonderful variety to hole design.  

For sure, that is one per observer's opinion...and not generally shared as the Lower reversed the clear slide in its GOLF Magazine World 100 position from 2013-19 in the recently released 2021 GOLF World list (see below):

            2013    #51        

            2015    #59

            2017    #74

            2019    #101-150 (not numbered within that grouping)

            2021    #57

After thanking the staff for their wonderful hospitality, and saying goodbye to Adam (who was facing a long drive back to NC), I headed north to Purchase, NY for a chance to visit Blind Brook Club ("BBC") for the first time in about 25-27 years.

I first played Blind Brook in late August 1973....I remember exactly when it was as I had been scheduled to move to London (I was with Citibank) but at the last minute, due a a major reorganization of the bank, my transfer was cancelled.  On a Friday about 5 days before my scheduled transfer a group of four of us were scheduled for 18 holes at Blind Brook followed by dinner with wives (date in my case).  All I knew about BBC prior to that round was that its membership consisted almost exclusively of CEO's of large companies.  When we entered the locker room around 1pm on this late August Friday, our host asked the locker room attendant if "anyone was around?".  The response (and this is an exact quote) was "...Mr.  XXXXX, you are the first member here since Sunday".  The four of us (including the member host) had a good long laugh at that.  I looked at the computer generate list of member's handicaps and counted exactly 60 names on the list...and I recognized names such as Paul Austin, who was CEO of Coca Cola (headquartered in Atlanta) and others who clearly lived outside of the NY area.  Including our host I knew four Citbankers and retired Citibankers who were members.  BTW...no other members appeared that day.

At the time I did not know Seth Raynor has designed BBC, and frankly I don't think I knew anything about Raynor.  Over the next 20-25 years I probably played it some 20+ times and started learning some of its history and a fair amount about Raynor.   But it was always clear that the club did not care much about its architectural heritage and most of its members were certainly not looking for a "challenge"...they got enough of that at the office.

Over the past 20 years the character of BBC has changed in a number of ways.  Membership is now up to about 175-200 (don't worry...almost all if not all of its members belong to at least two other clubs) and is much younger (due the rapid growth in the Hedge Fund and Private Equity worlds).  And the club finally has a golf pro.  The clubhouse was been completely renovated (no club I have ever been to have better food or service...and that even includes Jewish clubs and ANGC...I will leave that comment at that so that I don't get in too much trouble).  Finally, as the last piece of the puzzle, last year I learned that Blind Brook had retained Jim Urbina to restore its course back to its Raynor roots.

I have not met Jim but have talked with him and traded emails.  He has a wonderful understanding of the works of C. B. MacDonald and Seth Raynor, having been a co-designer of Old Mac at Bandon Dunes (OR) and a consultant at Yeamans Hall (SC), Midland Hills (MN), and Mid Ocean (Bermuda).  I was fortunate to be hosted that afternoon by a BBC member whom I know from my days at Quaker Ridge, along with Mike F. of Quaker who played with me at Brookline's Curtis Shield two months earlier (Post #152).  

To put it as simply as possible, I would count the restoration of BBC as one of the five best restorations I have seen.  That is not saying it is one of the five best courses I have played...I am saying the improvement created by Urbina's work is only matched or bettered by 4 or so other courses.  Note that I must have played a course both before and after its renovation of restoration to be considered for this "list"...and I think the best (aside from BBC) would include LACC-North (CA), Old Town Club (NC), and Quaker Ridge (NY) (places like Cal Club (CA) and Moraine (OH) are excluded from consideration since I never saw the "before").  The greens are simply outstanding...loaded with putts that break two ways, fun to putt and very difficult to read/decipher...and the greens and pin positions dictate playing lines.  You must think your way around this course...an attribute of all great tracks IMO.  Best hole here IMO is the Redan (#10) with one of the most wonderfully outrageous greens I have ever seen.  This day the pin was back left and my tee shot was hit thin and stopped on the front right corner and just on the green  Had perhaps the best two putt of my 66 year golfing career for a par.  Other fabulous holes are 2, 5, 6, 9, and 15-17.  Had a 43 on the front followed by a good 41 on the back for an 84.

Because of the relatively small size of the membership, invites here are difficult to secure…but if you get one, take it for sure.

From a personal standpoint this day marked an important milestone.  I walked the front nine at Baltusrol and then utilized a cart for the back nine (given that I was playing 36 this day).  Felt pretty good upon arriving at Blind Brook so started walking there.  Started to feel it in my legs on #16…and was just about crawling by the time we reached the 18th green…but I had walked 27 of 36 holes for the day…far more important than the scores I shot!  Shower afterwards felt outstanding.

Drive home was not too bad and arrived in Milton, MA around 9pm.  Rest needed.

Five Day Trip to NE, SD, and ND…Trip #16…August 1-5

This trip had been planned for a couple of months as it started with a couple of days in the Nebraska Sandhills with some fellow members of the Global Golf Centurions Club ("G2C2").  Early on Sunday August 1 I flew to Sioux City, Iowa through Chicago.  After a short 25 minute drive I was in Nebraska’s northeast corner and approaching a new course named Landmand which was under construction.  Landmand was designed by Rob Collins and his partner Tad King.  I first met Rob shortly after playing his brilliant and highly unusual 9 holer named Sweetens Cove (see Post #103) just west of Chattanooga, TN.  Rob had arranged for me to get a tour of Landmand with the owner of the property (and low handicapper) Will Anderson.  The course is coming together and looks like it will be close to overwhelming.  I believe there is a fine line between a course that is brilliantly spectacular, and on that goes a little too far and is over-the-top.  I think this one will fall in the former category...but will be very close to that fine line.  Opening expected in 2022.  This is one to watch!

This visit was followed by a drive of some 240 miles (just over 4 hours) to join a group of fellow G2C2 members at CapRock Ranch, a course designed by Gil Hanse and which had just opened about 6 weeks earlier.  This was for sure the most highly anticipated new course opening in the USA for 2021.  There were eight of us there for this part of my trip.  We were the guests of Mark L., who is president of G2C and one of the founding members of CapRock.  

I arrived in time for dinner at The Prairie Club...which sits just south of CapRock.  Prairie Club has two 18 hole courses, one by Tom Lehmann and one by Graham Marsh.  I had played the Lehmann course (Dunes)  in 2017 (Post #4) and thought it was very very good.  The other seven guys played Dunes that day.  Dinner was superb...the steaks in Nebraska are really special.

I was staying at a nice hotel in Valentine, NE (about 15 miles mostly north of CapRock and Prairie) and had a good night's sleep after a very good day...even with no golf!

Monday morning I headed to CapRock around 6:50am...and on the way, a deer darted out in front of my car as I was doing about 55mph.  The front left corner of the car struck the deer who immediate darted back into the thick overgrowth.  I had spotted it about 3 feet away from the car but there was no way to maneuver the car and avoid the collision.  I stopped and examined the damage...the car seemed very drivable but the left headlight and turn signal were not operating.  The experience shook me up a little but I think I came out better than the deer! Not much I could do at that point (I reported the accident to the local police after our round...they pretty much indicated that such events were not at all unusual).  Insurance would cover the car's damage although I was responsible for our $1000 deductible.  Given the hundreds and hundreds of days renting cars on trips such as this, I am still well well ahead of the game by not paying for insurance on short term car rentals.

We teed off around 8:30.  CapRock sits just east of and above the Snake River Gorge.  Seven greens sit near the gorge and the par 3's make fabulous use of the gorges leading down to the river,  only one or two  par 4 or par 5 fairways runs parallel and close to the river gorge.  The location is spectacular, but somehow, the course longer holes seems to avoid "close connections" to the gorge.  The par threes here are the best holes on the property, making wonderful use of "infinity green" sites.  The land has superb movement to it and level lies are difficult to find (and Hanse insured that efforts to find those level lies included some offsetting risks).  I thought there were too many "blind" drives but have heard than Hanse is planning to install natural aim points on at least some of these holes.  I have a sense that this track is going to be nurtured carefully by Hanse in the coming years.  He has done that at Applebrook (PA...Post #151) and the results are superb.  It can take some time and rounds to understand how to tweak a course to move it from very good to brilliant.  I absolutely will not be surprised to see that happen here.

Final details are as follows.  I had a 41 - 45 (3 3-putt greens on the back) = 86 from 5719 yards (long for this old man).  No Top 100 listings yet...as CapRock was not included on the only listing published since its opening, GOLF Magazine's 2021 World list published earlier this month.

My original itinerary called for playing CapRock again on Tuesday and then heading north to both South and North Dakota on August 4 and 5.  However, I was concerned about driving at night with no left turn signal and no left headlight.  I arranged to swap out the damaged car at the Sioux Falls, SD airport the evening of  August 3rd, and Fergal O'Leary said he would drive with me...and we decided to leave CapRock early on Thursday and play Sutton Bay in central SD the next day on our way to Sioux Falls.  Sutton Bay opened in 2003 with a Graham Marsh designed course east of and above the Missouri River.  The original course rated #26 on GolfWeek's 2005 USA Top 100 Modern course list...resulting in its being #35 on my Merged Golfweek list for 2005.  For a couple of years it stayed at about that position, until fissures developed and parts of fairways literally started collapsing into the Missouri River.  Fortunately, no one was injured in the process and since then the Club brought Graham Marsh back to build a replacement course on more secure land higher above the River.  I played the replacement course in July 2019 (Post #132) and thought it was outstanding.  Fergal had played the original but not the replacement.  We played quickly with the head pro on a windy day but somehow I found my game.  Through 4 holes I was one under par, but then bogeys on 6-7-8 and a double bogey on 10 resulted in a 40 - 38 = 78 from 5322 yards in tough windy conditions.  That round felt great! 

We still had a drive of some 265 miles (4:00 hours) and made it to the airport before the Enterprise counter closed.  Swapped cars, and we checked into the hotel...Fergal was leaving on an early flight the next day and I still had 4 courses to play in the Dakotas...and too much driving to go.

Wednesday August 4 would be a very long tough day.  I had 36 holes scheduled in Sioux Falls, followed by 18 at Fargo Country Club in North Dakota.  The first 18 were at Elmwood Municipal which was about half a mile from my hotel, right adjacent to the airport.  In 1966 and 1967 Elmwood was included on Golf Digest's "200 Toughest Courses in the USA" lists.  Back in the 1960's the course had 18 holes.  A long term employee in the pro shop advised that prior to the expansion of the facility about 10 years ago, Elmwood's 18 holes consisted of todays' West and North nines, which meant that those nines were the course on the 1966 and 1967 lists...and those were the holes I played.  Course is very flat and was in good condition for a muni.  I was the first one off at about 6am and played in 2 hours shooting a  41 - 42 = 83 in the process.  Then immediately headed to The Country Club of Sioux Falls.  

Country Club of Sioux Falls was founded (as Westward Ho Country Club) in 1959 and its golf course was designed by Larry Packard.  In 1996 it hosted the US Girls' Junior Championship.  Some four years ago, the club underwent a mammoth makeover which has includes a new clubhouse, new name, and golf course renovation by Jim Lipe.  I played quickly and had a 39 - 42 = 81, then drove north to Fargo, ND a drive of about 240 miles (about 3:25)

Fargo CC dates back to 1898 (no typo there) and is a very interesting track.  In 1995 it hosted the US Junior Championship, hence my need to play it.  The course dates back to 1923 but in 1961 9 new holes were built and the land containing 9 holes from the original course was sold to a developer.  So half of today's course dates to 1923 and half to 1961.  Also, in the early 1920's, prior to joining the PGA Tour and winning the 1934 and '38 PGA Championships, Paul Runyan served as the club's caddy master.

I arrived and was off the first tee around 4pm and had a solid 40 - 37 = 77 (just missing shooting my age again).  I liked the course a lot and there were some good young players there (one of whom played in the US Junior at CCNC this past summer).  Had to hop around on the back nine to finish quickly...as I still had an 80 mile drive north to Grand Forks ahead of me.  Long day...54 holes and some 320 miles of driving...helped out by the 80mph speed limit in SD.  Made it safely to my hotel, but one more tough day ahead...needed to play 18 and then drive 315 miles (4:25) to catch flight from Sioux Falls at 3:00pm.

Finally on August 5 I was off the first tee of Grand Forks CC before 7am.  Grand Forks was a good course but not in very good condition.  It had been on the Golf Digest 1966 and 1967 200 Toughest lists.  I played quickly and was in my car all packed and headed to Sioux Falls Regional Airport by 9:15am...arrived at the airport by 1:40pm with plenty of time for my flight, which ended up running very late.  Long story short, I arrived home at 1:30am a wee bit tired...but glad to have those 4 Dakota courses in the "played" column. 

Trip in total took just under 5 whole days...played 6 courses, toured another under construction, and drove just over 1550 miles (excluding two Uber rides between home and airport in Boston).

 

Five Days MI and OH...Trip #17...8/9 to 8/13

With things really rolling along, did not want to lose momentum.  I had arranged for a visit of GOLF Magazine Panelists to Oakland Hills on August 12 and then worked to arrange a trip around the Oakland Hills visit.  My good buddy Dave W. of Houston agreed to go to Detroit and join me on most of this trip.  I arrived early on August 9 and drove south into Toledo to play Heather Downs Country Club...a classic "used to be".  Heather Downs was an upscale country club during Toledo's better days.  Today it is a daily fee track and in poor condition.  But, given that it had hosted the 1956 US Girl's Junior, I needed to play it.

It rained for about 10 minutes before I went off the first tee but just remained cloudy the rest of the afternoon.  I posted a 42 -37 = 79 and quickly moved on.  There were a couple of holes that seemed to show some decent bones but this was a "check it off and post it" afternoon.  

I went back to Detroit airport and picked up Dave and we headed northwest to American Dunes.  The course sits directly west of Grand Rapids and less than half a mile east of the coastline of Lake Michigan.

On the morning of 8/10, Dave and I were playing at 8:30 at American Dunes, a major renovation by Jack Nicklaus underwritten by the Rooney family that established Folds of Honor, a large charity set up "to provide scholarships to the spouses and children of America's fallen and disabled service members."  Hard to walk through the exhibits in and outside of the clubhouse without a chill going through your body and some tears forming in your eyes.

The property formerly was owned by Grand Haven Golf Club and Jack has done a brilliant job with the course.  Grand Haven opened in 1965 and was designed by Bruce Matthews and his son, Jerry.  In 1998, it was purchased by Dan Rooney's father; the renovation project commenced in 2018 and was completed last year.  With the exception of the first two holes, this is really a very very good course...certainly USA 200 and perhaps higher.  On the first two holes the houses lining the fairways are too close but there seemed to be nothing Jack could do about that and have an 18 hole course.  Regular readers of this Blog know that while I am a huge admirer of Jack's playing career...I do not feel that way about his architecture.  Well, this track shows that maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks!!  There are greens very different than typical JWN greens and wonderful fairway width, center line bunkering, greenside bunkering, and views throughout (views created by extensive tree clearing).  I highly recommend this one.  Best holes IMO are par 5’s #6 and #13.  

We were not able to secure a tee time at Egypt Valley Golf Club in Grand Rapids and instead, headed up to northern Michigan to play True North Golf Club, located north of Petoskey, MI and near Boyne.  Pete G., a friend from CCNC had agreed to host us that afternoon at True North.  We arrived at the club around 5:30 or 6pm...and finished just before darkness set in (even with the late sunsets in this part of Michigan in August).  Not sure I have ever played a course with hillier terrain that True North.  The 8th hole is 562 yards from the back tees and the vertical rise of this hole is some 125 feet.  Standing on the tee it looks like the hole never ends.  True North was designed by Jim Engh (who seems to specialize in this type of terrain).  It opened in 2004, and local knowledge is very important here with all of the elevation changes and resulting shots to blind fairways and greens.  If you are playing it for the first time try to keep to "Nassau" stakes as low as possible.

After dinner Dave and I joined Pete for dinner and traded golf stories...few golfers I have known have enjoyed experiences even approaching those of Pete.   Finally got to my hotel around 11pm...and just crashed.

The morning of 8/11 I slept in...a luxury that I cannot remember from a previous golf trip!  Dave was off playing the Heather course at Boyne, which I had played in 1969 (and still remember three holes).  After he finished his round, we were off to Belvedere, and as soon as I arrived at the first tee I knew this would be special.  The club was formed in 1925 and William Watson (think Olympic's Lake Course) designed this masterpiece.  A very good first hole is then followed by very simple par 4's on holes #2 and 3 and then the golf course really begins.  The holes make wonderful use of terrain that moves beautifully, and the green settings are varied and outstanding.  Everything looks very simple and easy, but as you get near the greens you realize their slopes have been beautifully camouflaged.  Getting on the wrong side of the pin on these greens is easy to do but not a recipe for fun.  This one is well known throughout Michigan but was a Hidden Gem for Dave and me...when you get to Northern Michigan, be sure to play it.

After the round we had a long drive back down to the Birmingham, MI area, in Detroit's northern suburbs...and it began to rain.  Throughout the night it rained very hard and there was a lot of thunder and lightning.  

At 6:47am I woke up and realized I had set my alarm for 5:45pm instead of 5:45am.  But given the rain that fell overnight, a quick look outside made clear this hour would not matter.  When we left the hotel parking lot early that morning, we had to take a detour to avoid heavy flooding in the parking lot.  Oakland Hills Country Club was about 15 minutes away and the rain was starting to subside but it was clear that the course could not open for at least an hour to two.  Adam M., another GOLF panelist was scheduled to play with us but he called the Bloomfield Hills CC for a quick round there with the HP (a good friend of his).  In the meantime, Dave and I simply hung out around the OHCC Proshop most of the morning.

Some background on OHCC's South Course is appropriate.  Designed by Donald Ross it opened in 1917.  In preparation for the 1951 US Open, it was "toughened up" by Robert T. Jones, Sr. and after winning that Open with a 67 in the final round, Ben Hogan pronounced that he was pleased to have been able to bring "the monster" to its knees.  Since then, the nickname "Monster" really stuck.  

The South Course has hosted no less than 16 significant events including 6 US Opens, 3 PGA Championships, 2 US Senior Opens, 2 US Amateurs, and one Ryder Cup.  I have played it three times previously (first time in 1977 and twice in 2014) and considered its greens and green side bunkering among the very best in the world.  From the 1970's thru the late 1990's it consistently ranked in the USA's Top 20.

While it did become a brute in 1951, at the same time it lost some of the brilliant and subtle features designed by Ross.  There became one way to play most holes due to the narrowing of the fairways...eliminating many risk/reward trade-offs.  And over time, the course's trees continued to grow and narrowed the course (and shot choices) further.  Its ratings started to slip on almost all Top 100 lists.  About 4-5 years ago, OHCC asked Gil Hanse to develop plan for its South Course and the plan was voted down the first time...but after some revisions, it was passed by the membership.  The course reopened early this past summer and I (among many) were eager to see the finished product.

IMO (and that of most others) the results are simply marvelous.  The greens were expanded back to their original size, bringing back some wonderful pin positions.  The fairways are firm and fast and continue to bump and roll in every direction, and many of the Ross cross bunkers are now in play if you hit your drive in the thick stuff and try to get to the green in regulation...bringing back risk/reward choices.  And the greens have slo that can defy belief.  The course is still very very difficult, but if you play from the appropriate tees, it actually is a ton of fun.  It will be interesting to see if the club secures an Open or a PGA...or if it can secure both over time.  This is once again a great Championship test.  And by the way...it moved from #72 in 2019 to #31 this year on GOLF Magazine's World Top 100 listing...a very strong vote of confidence.

BTW...playing from 5431 yards I struggled and posted a 43 - 50 = 93.  Too old for OHCC...perhaps true.  One factor was walking and pushing a push cart (due to the weather, the club was short caddies).

After the round, I dropped Dave off at Detroit Metro Airport and then headed back south to Toledo.  These last four days of the trip would represent one of the best 4 consecutive days of golf on different courses that I have ever experienced.

I was scheduled to play Inverness Club on Friday morning August 13 and the night before had dinner with A. J. Sikula, the HP at Inverness.  AJ was an Ass't Pro at Brookline about 8 years ago and has since been HP at Grandfather Golf & CC in western NC.  In recent years I would see AJ at Member-Pro events at CCNC.  Also had the chance to play Charlotte Country Club with him in February 2018.  He moved to Inverness about two years ago and is loving it.  

Arrived early Friday morning at Inverness...and it looked like "construction central".  Facilities were being set up for the Solheim Cup Matches which were scheduled for about three weeks later (and proved to be a huge success).  Must say my reaction was...if this is the infrastructure required for the Solheim Cup...I can only begin to imagine what is coming to Brookline in 2022 for the US Open!!  Will be interesting.

The Inverness Club was founded in 1903.  The early years of the 20th Century was a period of remarkable growth for Toledo.  For example from 1900 to 1920, the population of both the USA and Ohio grew by 38%, and during that same 20 year period, Toledo's population grew by 85% to 243,000.  In 1916 Inverness hired Donald Ross to design and build an 18 hole course (yes, he was a busy man and a big time entrepreneur...but that is a story for another day).  The course opened for play in the fall of 1919...and was awarded the 1920 US Open to be played 8-9 months later!  That Open was the first of 4 Opens and 3 PGA's conducted at Inverness and it was the first time participants were welcomed in the host club's clubhouse...a practice which has continued since then.  In an expression of deep appreciation, the participants in that Open presented the Club with a magnificent cathedral clock which still stands in the clubhouse.  

Inverness' last US Open was in 1979 and was won by Hale Irwin.  It became famous for the "Hinkle Tree" planted Thursday night of the event (after the first round).  Lon Hinkle led the event after the first round and played the 8th hole by hitting a 1-iron to the 17th fairway and then a 2-iron onto the 8th green, thereby cutting off the 8th hole's dogleg.  That night a 20' high Black Spruce was planted to the left/front of the 8th tee...designed to cut off that option (in a later round Hinkle hit a driver over the tree and had a 6-iron into the green).  The Hinkle Tree died earlier this year.

A few years prior to the 1979 Open, George and Tom Fazio designed three all new holes at Inverness.  I played the course in August 1979, two months after that Open and, while my architectural knowledge was fairly low at that time, it was clear to me that these three new holes (I believe they were #3-5) were brand new and looked/felt totally out of place...like a sore thumb!!  

To say that Inverness has been a regular on USA Top 100 lists in one of the great understatements.  In fact, it is one of only 6 courses included on every one of the 81 USA Top 100 lists (stretching back to 1966) covered by my spreadsheet...the other five are Southern Hills (OK), Pinehurst #2 (NC), Los Angeles CC-North (CA), Riviera (CA), and Pebble Beach (CA).  Think of some of the giants that cannot make that claim, including the likes of Pine Valley, Merion, Oakmont, Shinnecock, National, Augusta National, etc.  Simply remarkable!

In 2016, 100 years after Ross was hired to design and build Inverness, a young architect named Andrew Green was hired to restore Inverness.  Green has become the leader of the "next generation" of architects, overseeing fabulous restorations and renovations at the likes of Oak Hill-East (NY), Congressional-Blue (MD), Huntingdon Valley (PA), CC of York (PA) as well as Inverness, and currently working at Scioto (OH), Wannamoisett (RI), and Interlachen (MN).  An incredible portfolio. A key component of the course, Deline Ditch, plays an important role on many holes.  This is now a course that can be set up for fun...or it can be a brute.  The sort par 4 18th has the most compelling set of angles I think I have ever seen on a golf course, especially when the pin is on the right side.  In 1969 it was listed at 6815 yards and at the 1993 PGA it played to 7025 yards...today it measures a hefty 7730 yards from the tips (par 71).  I played from 5205 yards and fired a 44 - 43 = 87.  Played with members Jerry and Carolyn L.  Jerry is a USGA Rules official and they both are wonderful people.  

Fabulous to see such a historic gem returned to its greatness!

I had to hustle...was scheduled to play Bloomfield Hills CC in MI and then catch a late flight home to Boston. I had never played Bloomfield Hills before and had heard excellent reports regarding its recent restoration.  The course opened in 1913 and was designed by Harry Colt...considered by many to be the finest architect to ever live (think Muirfield, Royal Portrush, Swinley Forest, and both Old and New at Sunningdale)...and this is one of his few USA designs (he also designed CC of Detroit and contributed to Pine Valley in NJ as well as Old Elm in IL).  Bloomfield Hills has always been the most exclusive club in the Detroit area...akin to Blind Brook in New York, and it remains a phenomenal course and club today.  It has never been on a "Top XXX" list as it has always wanted to stay "under the radar".  The recent superb restoration by Mike DeRives and Frank Pont is sure to make that anonymity more difficult to maintain.

I arrived some 25 minutes behind schedule...and the HP had planned on having me join a threesome for their back nine (and then go on and play the front by myself).  He drove me out to #12 to meet the threesome...and, small world again, one of the members of the threesome was the son of a Citibanker I knew well in the 1970's!  I loved the course...great piece of land that bumps and rolls continuously and a fabulous set of greens.  Despite stupid ugly doubles on the par 5 1st and 18th, I had a 44 - 42 = 86.  This would be a great course to play every day.  No question that Oakland Hills is better as a championship test...but that South course might wear you out trying to play it every day.

After the round, had a great shower and headed south to Metro Airport...for my very late flight to Boston.  Despite a couple of courses having to cancel, this was an outstanding trip!  

Park City, UT and Big Sky MT...Trip #18...August 22-->August 28

Pat and I were invited by good friends from CCNC in Pinehurst to visit them at their summer place in Big Sky, Montana at the Yellowstone Club.  With no direct flights from Boston to Montana, it became a choice of where to fly through and we quickly agreed that Park City would work best.  First and foremost, friends from our Global Golf Centurions Club have a summer place in Park City and had suggested we visit when it worked, and second, it was very close to Salt Lake City which made for easy flight connections.  I had a couple of courses to play in the Park City area and Pat could get in a round there as well and some time at a wonderful resort area.

Pat and I departed Boston around 6pm on Sunday 8/22 and arrived SLC about 9:30 Mountain Time.  The drive to Park city was about 40 minutes and it was late so we were off to sleep and slept in the next morning.  The rest of the day was spent driving around the area...this place has exploded in terms of population, prices etc in the past 10 years.  The scenery is very special and the weather was superb.  

On Tuesday in the early morning, Mark L. hosted me at Victory Ranch, located about 10 miles east of Park City.  The course was built in 2009 and designed by Rees Jones.  The views from every hole are just spectacular, and even better than that on the downhill par 3 17th (with a backdrop including the slopes at Deer Valley and the glistening Jordanelle Reservoir).  This is a first class facility and club in all respects.

That afternoon Pat joined us as we played the Painted Valley Golf Course at Promontory which was designed by Jack Nicklaus.  The 18 holes travel an unusual route with all 18 sitting on the valley floor.  Holes #1-5 all head north, then you turn 180 degrees and head south for #6-13, and then northbound again for #14-18.  Not outstanding in terms of routing as golfers should be faced as many times a possible during a round with the confusion that switching direction provides...and feel the wind in all 4 directions.  While little else could be done with a site like this, that brings into the question site selection.  Anyhow, my game which had been relatively absent all day reappeared for the final 6 holes of Painted Valley, culminating with sinking a 50' putt for par on the long par 4 18th (was 1 over par for holes 13-18).

Both Victory Ranch and Painted Valley have been on the GolfWeek USA Top 200 Modern lists within the last three years...Victory Ranch in all three years and Painted Valley in 2019.  By the way...I chose not to play Painted Valley from the tips (it stretches to 8098 yards..although the altitude makes it play shorter).

That evening we drove into Salt Lake City to stay overnight and flew north to Bozeman MT, to see Michale and Gay F., friends from CCNC at their home at The Yellowstone Club in appropriately named Big Sky, MT.  Also there were good friends Richard and Dolly B. from CCNC (and now live in SC).  Many readers of this blog will have read all sorts of stories about Yellowstone Club being the escape place for billionaires (when that status was meaningful😁).  The Club was founded by rail estate developer Tim Blixseth who was able to purchase 100,000 acres and through series of land swaps with the US Federal Government  ended up with a large area of developable land next to Big Sky Resort.  He then used this landed as collateral to borrow $375 million from Credit Suisse Group, and used these borrowed funds to purchase a series of high end resorts worldwide.  When some of these investments soured in 2007 and 2008, Blixith's wife divorced him, and Yellowstone was thrown into bankruptcy court in November 2008.  Finally in 2012 with various appeals extinguished, Yellowstone was free to operate.  Today it is a very different club, and interestingly, a highly vibrant community.  As was the case in the Park City area, housing construction is moving along as fast as possible as developers hope to cash out before today's now 13 year market run-up finally ends.  There are hundreds of families here who are enjoying this club and many are here on year round basis.  While the more famous members such as Bill Gates, cyclist Greg LeMond, Google's Eric Schmidt, Tom Brady, Dan Quale, and Ben Afflack were not to be seen, the "regular folks" (not exactly middle class) are enjoying this place.  It is spectacularly beautiful, and superbly run.

It also has an 18 hole golf course designed by Tom Weiskopf (who also lives here).  Aptly named Yellowstone Club is a fun golf course and well designed on a very difficult piece of land to place a golf course.  Measuring 7124 yards from the tips, it plays much shorter and its fairways are fairly generous.  As with all the courses we played on this trip the conditions were near perfect...but of course should be firmer and faster.  While it has never been included in any USA Top XXX list that I am aware of, I was pleased to see it and play it.  And I was much more pleased with my game on the front nine than the back as I shot 39 - 45 = 84 when we played it on August 26.  I thought the best holes were # 3-5, 9 (when the right hand green was used as it was this day), and 13.

The next day, August 27, we played Spanish Peaks which sits adjacent to Yellowstone and also features a Weiskopf track (opened in 2007) of similar length.  Different but equally impressive views of the Rockies here.  Again...good design given difficulty of placing a golf course on this type of terrain.  This one was on the first GolfWeek Top 200 Modern list published in 2011 but has not reappeared..but may have disappeared because of the bankruptcy proceedings.

We never considered playing at Reserve at Moonlight Basin...I had no desire to play it.

The next day Gay drove us to Bozeman, we had lunch with old friends of Pat's from Milton, and flew back to Boston thru SLC airport.  Arrived home after midnight.  Rest needed for both of us.

*****************

So this brings me up to date through the end of August 2021.  Here is where I stood at the time...and where I stand as I "hunt and peck" this Blog today, 12/8/2021:

Lifetime Courses Played:  as of 8/31--1330 courses; as of 12/08--1383 courses

New Courses Played in 2021:  as of 8/31--69 courses; as of 12/08--123 courses*

Total Courses Played in 2021: as of 8/31--87 courses; as of 12/08--143 courses*

Number to courses left as of 12/8 to finish bucket lists:

USGA Championships--44.5 to go (I need to play back nine at one course in MI )

World Top 100 EVER /All Sources--5 to go

USA Top 100 EVER/All Sources--DONE!

USA Top 200 EVER/All Sources--44 to go (42 from 1966/67 200 Toughest and 2 from #101-200 in recent years)

* 2021 is a record year on these numbers...with more time to go!

The light at the end of the tunnel is a wee bit brighter!!  The bad news is that I am still have some 54 courses left to write on on da Blog!!!!