Post #160--Another Brief Update:

So when I published Post #159, I was a couple of days into a 12 day trip...and had played 4 courses on that trip (starting in Colorado).  Please allow me to go back to the start of this journey when I departed Boston very early on Friday August 12 for Denver, CO.  Arriving in Denver I stood at 1470 courses played.

My plan was to play (from August 12 through August 24) a total of 21 rounds on 20 courses (of which 19 would be first time playing for me).  The "replay" course was one of my Top 10 in the World...Sand Hills GC in Nebraska and I was planning to play two rounds there.  The trip would include courses in the following eight states (listed in order of play): Colorado (7 courses), Wyoming (1 course), Montana (3), Nebraska (1), Idaho (2), Washington (1), Nevada (1), and California (4).  I was visiting a good number of courses in remote areas that would be difficult to fly to...so this trip would log lots of car mileage.  In fact the mileage on my four car rental totaled 3,558 miles.  That is further than going from the northeast corner of Maine to the southwest corner of California...and about 140 miles short of a drive from Key West, FL to the northwest corner of Washington!!  So while I would have wanted to play some courses a second time, I needed to take whatever opportunity I had to get some rest. 

Highlights of the trip by state were as follows:

Colorado...played Greeley CC, Kissing Camels CC, US Air Force Academy Eisenhower-Blue, Common Ground, Lakewood CC, Frost Creek, and Sonnenalp Club.  In terms of architecture and design no question that Tom Doak's Common Ground (located within Denver) was the highlight...simply another brilliant piece of architecture on what clearly started as a fairly ordinary piece of ground.  Setting sun meant I could only get in 16 of 18 holes (skipped holes 14 and 15) but love it.  And this is a muni, folks...certainly unlike any muni I played in NY in the 1955-1966 years!!  Just further proof of Doak's genius.  

Frost Creek is an excellent course by Tom Weiskopf (who passing this past week was very sad to note) located just west of Vail.  Course was in close to perfect condition and is fun, fair, and challenging.  Worth a look see!  My sense is that Weiskopf was an outstanding golfer, broadcaster, and architect.  Based on input from good friends of ours who have gotten to know him well in recent years, he was also an outstanding person.  In my opinion, he uttered the greatest single line in the history of golf broadcasting (and maybe the history of sports broadcasting) on April 13, 1986 as Jack Nicklaus stood on Augusta National's 16th tee during the 4th and final round.  Sitting about 800 yards away from Tom, Jim Nance asked Tom what he thought was going through Jack's mind at that moment.  Tom's immediate reply was perfect..."If I knew the way he thought I would have won this tournament..."

Kissing Camels was interesting as they hosted the US Women's Senior Amateur in 1982 when the club had 18 holes.  Since then it had added a third nine and reconfigured one of the two original nines.  After a couple of phone conversations with the Director of Golf and views of old scorecards and maps, the original routing became clear and I got to play those 18 holes.  See the photo below with the stone from which the Colorado Springs club  derives its name:

Look just to the left of the center of the photo along the top of the red rock in the foreground.  Just to the left of the highest point on the red rock, there is a point where it looks like two camels kissing (note the "hole" in the rock just below the camels' chins.  Anyhow...moving along.

Lakewood CC in Denver is very good.  It was built on a very good piece of land and makes excellent use of two creeks than run across the course.

Most disappointing were the Air Force Academy's Eisenhower-Blue and Sonnenalp near Vail. 

Wyoming...Only course played was Old Baldy Club in Saratoga, WY.  Simply loved the place!!  Great course, no.  But this is a club that knows what it wants and does that perfectly.  Not a club with a lot of young turks as members...mostly retired executives from what I saw.  But course is fun to play, does not beat you up, greens are as perfect as can be, and the views and service are equally perfect.  I had the immediate sense that this is exactly what its members want...and I have always thought the best clubs have a "unity of purpose" among their members.  And this baby has that in spades.  Yes the fairways are not cut really tight...but that is not what the members want...they are there to have fun.  

Montana...played three courses in MT and re-learned what a huge state this is.  Have now played a total of 7 courses in MT.  This trip included Stock Farm Club (about 40 miles south of Missoula), Meadow Lark CC (in Great Falls) and Yellowstone CC (in Billings)...played in that order as I was driving east towards Nebraska.   Stock Farm was clearly the highlight among these three.  This is one of Tom Fazio's better courses...built in a stunning setting and making excellent use of the land.  Greens here are superb and in perfect condition.  I sensed a very relaxed atmosphere around the clubhouse.  

Nebraska...after the second 10 hour drive on this trip I arrived back at Sand Hills Golf Club for my 5th visit.  I first played it with Pat in 2010 followed by visits in 2014, 2016, 2021, and 2022...for a total of 11 rounds.  So I thought I knew the course but continued to learn its subtle but brilliant architectural features.  After these last two rounds I decided to move Sand Hills out of a big tie for 5th place and into 3rd place in my favorite courses on this planet...fixed (at least for now) as:

1.  Cypress Point

2.  Royal Dornoch

3. Sand Hills

4. Shinnecock Hills

5. Oakmont

6-10(tie). Muirfield/National Golf Links/Royal County Down/Royal Melbourne-West/The Old Course

Idaho...after driving to Denver, caught a flight to Boise, ID and on 8/20, played BanBury Golf Course and The River Club (was Plantation Club).  Both mildly disappointing and good to have in the rear view mirror.  Then flew to Seattle.

Washington...Very quick stop over in order to play The Home Course in DuPont, WA (south of Tacoma). a superb muni which is scheduled to host the 2023 US Women's Amateur Four-Ball.  Teed off at 6:10am on 8/21 and was on a plane to Reno, NV by 11:40am that morning!  Loved the course which was designed by Mike Admundson and opened in 2007.  Big bold bunkers are true hazards.  A very worthy muni, and worth playing it if you are near Seattle.

Nevada...drove south from Reno to the north end of Lake Tahoe in order to play Incline Village's Championship Course, a Robert Trent Jones Sr. creation from 1964 that more recently was touched up by Kyle Phillips.  When I told people I was going to play it, the usual response was "Why?" (it was on the initial Golf Digest 200 Toughest lists in 1966 and 1967).  So I was not surprised at what I saw...not a bad course but nothing special here.  Good to have it done.

California...last two days were spent in central California and on the Monterey Peninsula.  Played Peach Tree CC, Del Rio CC-Oak/Bluff, Sunnyside CC, and Del Monte Golf Course.  By far the best of these four was Del Rio (in Modesto, CA)...a very very good track designed by William Bell and opened in 1946.  Worth a visit.  The last course on the schedule was Del Monte Golf Course...the oldest course west of the Mississippi and it looks its age.  Cannot understand why The Pebble Beach Company does not spend some money to bring it back to its glory days.  

So that was my trip.  Brought me to 1489 courses to date (and 26,232 different golf holes).  Major progress made especially with USGA Championship hosts, playing 10 of courses that hosted events throughout 2022 and two that are scheduled to host events in 2023 (Eisenhower-Blue in CO and The Home Course in WA) now only six left to play through 2022 and one scheduled for 2023:

California CC

Westmoreland CC (IL)

Meridian Hills CC (IN)

Town & Country Club (MN)

SentryWorld Golf Course (WI)

Grand Reserve GC (PR)

Daniel Island Club-Ralston Creek (SC)...2023 US Junior 

And I am scheduled to play Town & Country on August 30!

On the Golf Digest 1966/67 200 Toughest lists, I have just 13 left to play (note...the old Cherokee CC in Madison, WI is undergoing a major re-do and becoming a TPC property but will not reopen until August 2023).  And have 8 left to play to have completed one year (2020) of the GolfWeek 200 Classic and 200 Modern...and am playing two of those eight this week as well.  Plus have to add Salina CC in Kansas...which hosted the 2022 Senior Women's PGA Championship last month...brings me to 29 to play in the USA (plus Puerto Rico) which I hope will be down to 26 after next week.  Importantly the 29 are concentrated in a few areas:

IL (Chicago area)...7 courses

WI...7 courses

MN...3 Courses

CA (Los Angeles area)...5 courses

HI...2 courses

IN (Indianapolis)...1 course

KY (Lexington)...1 course

SC (Charleston)...1 course

Kansas (Salina)...1 course

Puerto Rico (San Juan)...1 course

Overseas...there are of course three courses now on my Top 100 World list that I have not played:

Lanhai International-Yangtze Dunes, Shanghai, China

Santapazienza, São Paulo, Brazil

Woodlands GC, Melbourne, Australia

and the following which could be included on a reputable World 100 shortly:

Lofoten Links, Norway

Peninsula Kingswood-North.

And to complete the World Golf Championship hosts EVER, I must still play:

Mission Hills Dongguan-Olazabal

Club de Golf Chapultepec, Mexico City, Mexico

so that is 7 courses overseas.

BUT note...the real sleeper that is being talked about is in Nepal...Himalayan Golf Course.  I am NOT kidding.  See the following link...it is a piece written by Tom Brown, a good friend from Los Angeles who is also a GOLF magazine panelist and travels more than I do.  Tom is very bright and has a fabulous eye for golf architecture.  This is VERY much worth reading:

https://golf.com/travel/himalayan-golf-course-best-par-5s/