137. Two local courses in Massachusetts, and Visitors from Down Under

137.  Two local courses in Massachusetts, and Visitors from Down Under

It took about a week to get over jet lag after getting back from France, and I spent most of that week catching up on things and didn't really starting playing golf again until about September 15.  Then last week I arranged to play two very good courses in Massachusetts (first time playing both).

GreatHorse, September 18, 2019: GreatHorse represents a complete makeover of club and 18 hole course near Springfield, MA (about 90 miles west of Boston and 25-30 miles NNE of Hartford, CT).  The site had been the home of Hampden CC which filed for bankruptcy about 9 years ago and was purchased in an auction proceeding for $1.4 million.  The purchaser was the Antonacci family of Connecticut, a very prominent family in the harness racing world.  Architect Brian Silva (think Black Creek in Chattanooga, TN (Post #106) as well as renovations at Fox Chapel (PA) (Post#18), CC of Charleston (SC), and Interlachen (MN)) was brought in and completed a total transformation of the course, while an equivalent transformation was made to the rest of the property.  It opened for play in 2015 and the results are visually stunning.

The property is divided into two parcels (see "Google Earth" shot below):

Wilbraham Road, running between 1 o'clock and 7 o'clock on the above photo, bisects the property (note that north in this overhead shot is at 12:00).  The clubhouse, practice area, and holes 1, 9, 10, and 15-18 lie on the eastern side of Wilbraham, while holes 2-8 and 11-14 lie west of Wilbraham.  The clubhouse lies just west of the parking lot and just right the words "GREAT HORSE" north of the woods and tennis courts on the right side of this shot.  As you can see, all of the 11 holes to the west of Wilbraham run East-->West or West-->East, and the holes on the eastern section run Northeast-->Southwest or SW-->NE.

The clubhouse sits on top of a hill about 220' above the section west of Wilbraham.  The holes on the eastern section are very hilly while the holes on the western section are virtually flat.  The views looking west from the clubhouse are simply spectacular...even if the following two photos are not:

View SW--18th fairway, then 1st fairway, and in background #11, 14 , and 2

View W--18th green front left, practice green to right, #1 and #10 tees behind

The clubhouse facility is outstanding and highly unusual for low key New England...but not IMO "over-the-top".  I have seen three different estimates of the amount of $$ spent on the renovations and rebuilding (course, clubhouse, roads, etc etc)...$30 million, $45 million, and $50 million.  Very casual atmosphere...even allow denim in clubhouse!!  Had lunch after the round and the food and service were excellent.

Now to the golf course.  It is a big one...7602 yards from way back (I played from 6018 yards)...and I counted 190 bunkers (but the head pro said I must have missed 14 others!!).  As you can see from the overhead shot, then fairways bunkers are in clusters that are staggered left/right and different distances from the tee.  As a result, it is critical to know the yardages to reach and carry these clusters.  I counted six par 4's and 5's with bunkers placed in the middle of fairways...further adding to the difficulty and thought required off the tee here.  Given the number and size of the bunkers, this place must have a very large maintenance budget, and I hope the Antonacci's understood that going in.  Interesting architectural features include:

      --a double green for holes #5 and #7,
      --a "horseshoe" shaped tee on the par 3 12th...with a small pond in the interior of the horseshoe, and tees stretching from 157 to 222 yards (where Watchaug Brook is noted on the left side of the overhead shot),
      --a wonderful 4th hole (415 yards from tips) with no bunkers and an angled green protected by water on three sides and a sharp bank along is left-back side, and

Approach shot to peninsula 4th green from rough left of fairway

Peninsula 4th green from back right...note banking on back left side of green  (right side of photo)

      --a very "different" (and superbly effective) Redan hole as the par 3 9th (186 yards)

Par 3 Redan 8th hole.

I started off by almost driving the down hill 1st hole which I played from 300 yards (485 from tips)...and hit the ball fairly well shooting a solid 40 - 41 = 81.  There were some aspects of the design I did not like (such as the long stretch of holes from 2-8 all flat going in just two directions)...but most  of these negatives were simply a function of the site, and I could not figure a reasonable alternative.  And the situation in somewhat alleviated by crossing Wilbraham RD for holes 9 and 10.

Tunnels under Wilbraham Rd are a very "tight fit" for the carts!   Surprised they don't make cart drivers take breath tests!

Some other very good holes are pictures below:

8th hole (623 yd par 5) coming back to Wilbraham Rd and uphill to green; hole has 27 bunkers!! 

16th (440 yard par 4) uphill all the way

#17 is downhill dogleg left off tee to here and then sharply uphill (389 yds)

#18 is uphill dogleg right of 499 yds and reminded me from the tee of #18 at Muirfield Village (OH)

Overall I liked the course...and while I would not want to play it every day...I certainly would want to play it again to get a better feel.  Best word for it might be "intriguing".  Very different "feel" than most New England courses but does not feel "out of place".  This year GW placed GH in its Top 200 Modern list and that placed it at #343 on my Merged GW Top 400.

Charles River Country Club, September 20, 2019:  For some reason I had never played Charles River even though it lies a mere 3 miles west of Brookline and was the second stroke-play qualifying course during the 2013 US Amateur conductor at Brookline and Charles River.  Back in June of this year I was scheduled to play CRCC with three other Golf Magazine panelists but we were rained out.

Charles River was founded in 1921 at its current site with a course designed by Donald Ross...and if you do not know that when you tee off...you certainly know it when you arrive at the first green.  The greens here are big and bold...with very strong slopes and lots of small contours spread throughout the green surfaces.  And, as with many other great courses from the first Golden Age, Charles River has more false fronts than an eighth grade classroom.

The practice green seemed pretty quick but I only took one or two putts there, and then my putt on #1 was very uphill.  I arrived at the green of the par 5 second having "short sided" myself on the right side and hit what felt like a very good pitch from the right rough...only to watch in horror as the ball rolled out about 70 feet and off the left side of the green!  Firm and fast?  No question.  They were rolling about 13.5' on the stimp, perhaps as fast as any greens I had ever played.  I can proudly say that I avoided having a five putt green (but will plead the 5th when asked the length of my gimme 4th putt).  Terrifying is too weak a description.  The greens were perfectly true but you had to be on the correct side...below the hole.  Overall, the course was in nearly perfect condition...fairways could have been a drop drier and faster but the conditions were outstanding.  Learned later that Bill Spence, who retired two years ago after a long career as greens superintendent at Brookline, was consulting for CRCC and I sent Bill a brief email congratulating him on CRCC's superb conditioning.

The course is squeezed into a relatively small plot and is today plays 6701 yards from the tips...relatively short by today's standards.  In 2006 CRCC hosted the Massachusetts Open and exactly one played shot under par (the winner at one under).  The course has 6 blind tee shots that I recall, so local knowledge here is critical...and as the saying goes, "the greens here are the course's main defense...and everything backs up from there."  I ended up with a smooth 43 - 44 = 87 and my tail between my legs!

CRCC has been included in GW's Top 200 Classic courses for most of the last nine years but that just makes the USA Top 400 on my Merged lists.  IMO it is not a USA Top 100 but should be a little higher (perhaps #175-250 range on the Merged list, compared with #382 today).  If you want to test your putting on fast tough greens, this is a place to do it.

Visitors from Kingston Heath GC (Melbourne, Australia), September 21-24, 2019:  It was an Aussie invasion in the USA.  Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison was honored at a state dinner at the White House on September 20, a group of 12 members of Kingston Heath GC was touring USA courses in the Northeast (and played Brookline 9/21), and our good friend from KHGC, John C, visited Boston 9/22-24.

Pat and I were delighted to be amongst a group of 12 Brookline members playing with the KHGC group.  Brookline was beginning to look like a construction zone as modifications planned for the 2022 US Open were proceeding and interesting to observe.

On Monday, I played Brookline with John (and his namesake member) who was last here in 2012.  Then on Tuesday we went down to Old Sandwich in Plymouth, MA...one of my favorite Coore-Crenshaw designs (see Posts #83, 131, and 1005).  OS was in excellent condition and I played fairly well shooting a solid 41 - 41 = 82.  John is in the midst of a quest with which I am familiar.  He is trying to be the 50th person to finish a Golf Magazine World Top 100 and apply for admission to GGCC.  As of this instant he stands at 98 on the most recent lists (2013, 2015, and 2017) and should be at 99 by tomorrow, Friday 9/27.  One to go...and I hope he makes it!!

One final note...we now have proof that the fairways at Brookline are getting much firmer and faster.  When playing with the Aussies, I was able to reach (in fact put it over) the par 4 18th for the first time in over two years.  Definitive proof as I ain't getting longer!!