7. From Dublin west and north then south...almost circling ireland

Drove about 75 miles in a northwesterly direction to my hotel.  Good stay in Dublin…always wonderful to pick up a hidden gem (Island), and congratulation to the Golf Course Architects survey for their inclusion of The Island Club at #78…missed by all the others.  Also thought about three really good folks I had the chance to play with, Pat O’Leary and Humphrey Kelleher at Island and Huntly Lauder at Portmarnock.  And especially neat to meet Fergal’s dad.

Now…back to the business at hand.  Looking at the weather forecast for Saturday-Monday, it looked like I might get washed out (or blown away or both) all three days.  T’was not looking good.  Figured that perhaps there will be some breaks in the weather which with likely no-shows, might afford me the change to get in some quick 18’s wherever possible.  Key was to stay flexible.

Saturday May 30 Rosses Point

Left hotel early Saturday morning for 50 mile drive to Rosses Point (also know as County Sligo GC).  Weather was looking better, and due to cancellations, was able to play at 11:30 instead of 1:10.  Wind was blowing very very hard (probably 30 mph + higher gusts) but looked like rain would hold off for a few hours.  Fabulous surroundings.  A mountain named “Table Mountain” lies nearby and is strikingly similar in shape and size to Table Mountain in Capetown South Africa. 

Played w 2 guys from Chicago (Keith..a lawyer, and Jeff retired businessman) who were finishing trip.  Loved this course.  Very hilly in spots and I was walking it (w caddy).  Originally designed by George Combe and opened as a 9-holer in 1894.  Was stretched to 18 holes around 6 years later by Willie Campbell, and then remodeled by Colt and Allison in 1927. 

First hole is reasonably uphill and 2^nd is really really uphill and 3^rd downhill (reminding me of 2^nd  and 3^rd  at Gullane #1).  Started hitting ball great on front (had a 39).  Loved course.  It is also undergoing a bunch of renovations led by Pat Ruddy (founder/builder/architect/Mr. Everything at The European Club in SE Ireland…who grew up in the surrounding area and played it many times as a kid).  I very much like what Pat is doing here…some of which is the typical and necessary pushing of back tees back, but others are enlargements of greens, new greens, and other more sophisticated enhancements.  Looks like it had another 1-2 years to go and then this should be a true world class top 100 track (it is close now in mu always humble opinion.  Outstanding piece of land with fairways that pitch and roll in every direction, and some huge sand dunes.  Truly outstanding holes are par 4’s #14 and #17…14 looks fairly innocent from the tee (which is at the base of a large dune), a burn/creek runs diagonally across the fairway…requiring decisions of the tee regarding tee shot direction and lay up or blow over decision (easy decision for moi L), and a green tucked to the right behind a small dune with a false front that must be 12+ yards deep…and from experience I can say that it does repel shots that don’t reach the crest (and even does it 2x).  Hole reminded me of great #15 at Gozzer Ranch…which also looks innocent from the tee.  #17 is simply heroic.  457 from the back, turns slightly left, and while only slightly uphill for tee shot, 2^nd shot is a monster…way uphill with a huge hill/dune surrounding the green on 3 sides.  Tee shot must me right of second is totally blind…blocked by another dune.

As we left the 17^th green, the skies opened up (was still blowing real hard) and but we played 18 quickly and got back to the clubhouse without much damage.  Flexibity got me the earlier tee time and it worked.  Now the question was…what about the plans for 27 at Carne Sunday and 36 at Lahinch and Doonbeg Monday?

West to Carne and South to Lahinch & Doonbeg Sat 5/30-Monday 6/1

Carne:

Hit the road again after 4pm for drive to northwest corner of Ireland…a new course in Carne, called Belmullet GC, or more usually Carne.  Has 27 hours…an 18 (Hackett Course) and a 9 holer (Kilmore).  Drive was just 85 miles but took just over two hours due to rural roads and rainy/stormy weather.  I passed by my hotel and went straight to the club, arriving around 6:30, to find this rugged beautiful course with rain coming down sideways and the wind blowing fiercely.  It was clear even to this numbskull that golf was not on the schedule for that afternoon.  But the weather looked to be OK (but even windier) Sunday morning, so I got myself the first tee time and a caddy and cart reserved.  And thinks looked like they would be OK for Doonbeg Sunday late if I could get there in time (and not exhausted) and perhaps OK for Lahinch late on Monday (which looked to be the worst of the 3 days).  The plan was in place and sacrificed the 9 hole Kilmore at Carne, but that was never key to my plans.

Up early, stuff in the car and over to course (5 minute drive) before 8am.  Winds are a good 40 mpg in exposed areas…course sits on top of a hill with nothing within miles to dampen the winds.  Was about 50 degrees but felt much much colder in that wind.  I went out wearing 5 layers!!   Caddy was a 14 year old kid named Cormac…who was super and worked his tail off.  Hit the ball very well again, but even the slightest error with a wind against of across ended with disaster.  And this place has lots of disasters lurking.  Lots of 12-18” high thick rough…but fairly generous fairways.  Truth of the matter, even though I hit it well, I went without a single par through 17…but did pull off a birdie on the par 5 18^th to finish with a smooth 48-45=93 (and that is for handicap purposes…limit of double bogey per hole).  Wind was simply brutal and it was tough keeping hands warm enough to play. Rained only for about two 5-minute stretches so it could have been far far worse.  Finished feeling like I had just been through a prize fight (and lost).  Frankly, the conditions were so bad, it is hard to evaluate the course itself.  It is very very dramatic and I think would be fun to play in 15 mph winds…question is, how often is it that calm there.  Hard to reach a final conclusion based on a visit of about 18 hours, but frankly, an important question.

To the car!!! We’ve got 160 miles and 4 hours to get to Doonbeg.  Drive took every minute of the forecast time and maybe a couple more.

Doonbeg:

Arrived Doonbeg around 4pm.  Very busy and very very windy…but party cloudy bright skies.  Donald Trump (that other guy from Jamaica, Queens, NY who has done OK) bought this pace last year and has been very busy transforming it.  Course was originally done by Greg Norman.  Opened in 2002.  Norman, who is not known for creating easy tracks certainly was not looking to change that philosophy here.  It is built amongst and near some terrific dunes hard on the Atlantic, and its most famous hole was the very shot (about 100-110 yard) par 3 14^th, where the green say near the top of a large dune right above the beach.  I use the past tense here because the dune was very much affected by a massive storm a couple of years ago, and the 14the green had to be closed down, as it was structurally unstable.  The Donald had fought to restore it but has been stopped (at least to date) from using the buffering technique previously used with much success at other Ireland west coast locations.  For now, the old 14^th remains closed and a new one had been built…very good but not nearly as dramatic.  Time will tell on this one. 

They have built a beautiful clubhouse and hotel (I did not stay there).  Thus far, about 8 holes have been renovated…and done very well…rest to be done next year.  Too early to tell how this place will play after it is all done, since more renovations to come.  Also, the new greens are very slow as the grass is being kept long while they grow in and get their strength.  So greens are very very slow but that is clearly a necessary temporary situation.  Afternoon was extremely windy…probably 40-45 mph.  Best hole I saw was #4…a 656 yd par 5 from the tips, with a huge yawning fairway bunker ( since it is the dead middle of the fairway that name fits perfectly) that requires about 310 yds from the tips to carry.  I just missed carrying it in 2.

The staff was super.  The head pro, Brian Shaw really knows his stuff, knows everyone there (members and staff), and is very focused.  Really good guy and could not have been more accommodating to me.

As I said earlier, it is too early to tell, but early signs are good.  Several of The Donald’s  key folks have assured me that Doonbeg (and Trump Aberdeen) will come in with sandy colored grass.  Here’s hoping so…it would make for some terrific places.  Overall setting is outstanding

For now, I will wait and see what happens.

Lahinch

After my second 18 of the day at Doonbeg, it was a 45 minute drive to Ennis, to what turned out to be a very funky “hippy-skippy” hotel.  But the room was nice and I needed some sleep…it was along day and I was very very lucky.  Got about 10 minutes of hard arin at Carne, and the same at Doonbeg.  Winds were very difficult, but somehow got in all 36.  Never expected that at the start of the day.  Forecast looked terrible for Monday morning, but indicated it might stop raining by 3pm Monday on the west coast…which would be fabulous.

Next morning, forecast looked the same.  Figured member-member event at Lahinch might have been cancelled and perhaps I could play earlier than planned if the forecast happened.  Drove to Lahinch and hung around waiting on the 2^nd floor of the clubhouse…while heavy rain simply pelted the place…coming down sideways.  About no one was playing (memb-memb cancelled) and then rain finally stopped around 3:30.  I got out around 4pm.  Had pre booked a caddy and a cart both of which seemed necessary given the elements.  T’was a wise choice.  Had not played Lahinch since about 1997 and literally forgot how good it is.  It is a rare combination of a true championship test, and a fun, exciting track to play.  It is hard enough to create a course with one of these two attributes…to create one with both is simply amazing.  Lahinch, like many great tracks, gets off to a somewhat slow start on #1 & 2, but then quickly starts roaring on the 3^rd and continues on a great roll on holes #4 and #5 (The Dell).  It is in wonderful condition and was a joy to play despite winds that made it, at times, almost unplayable.  If you haven’t been there (or if you haven’t been there for w while), it is a must see and must play.

I left Lahinch thinking how lucky I had been weather wise…since on Saturday morning it looked like no golf Saturday through Monday, and I ended up getting all four courses in.  Very fortunate.

Old Head

After the round, drove about 80 miles south to a hotel on the way down to Old Head…leaving a 50 mile drive to Tuesday morning.  Arrived at Old Head around 9:30 for my 10:30 game…and it was blowing harder than what I had played in the prior three days (not surprising given how exposed Old Head is…sitting on top of a headland extending 2 miles from the southern edge of Ireland.  The golf course is unlike what it looks like in any pictures I had seen…it is very hilly, and the pictures, usually taken from a helicopter make it look very flat.  So my decision to walk it with a caddy (rather than taking a cart) was at times one that I somewhat regretted, but in the end, I felt fine after the round.  A few comments on the course…it is as dramatic a setting as I can remember…and it is a reasonably well designed course.  It is NOT, however a “links” track…the fairways and think and lush like a typical US course and the greens, while firm, are very receptive to a well hit shot.  Since links courses were at one time covered with glaciers and/or sea water, it would be hard to imagine sea water rising to the level of this headland (in places about 300’…these are cliffs that make the 8^th of Pebble feel like it is just above sea level), although I am sure Al Gore is forecasting it to happen within the next 10 years.  And, in reasonable weather conditions (<15mph), the course would be very playable.

The wind was incredible.  At exposed areas, it was difficult maintaining your balance at address, often the wind would “grab” the club during a backswing, and the ball oscillated on both the greens and on tees.  All things considered, my 45-40=85 felt pretty good.

Ireland Summary

A superb and fortunate 6 days…playing 8 courses many in the midst of a major Atlantic storm hitting Ireland’s west coast.  Met some interesting and wonderful people, played some of the world’s great courses again (Lahinch and Portmarnock) and saw for the first time several very special tracks including Island and Rosses Point.  Picking favorites in this type of crowd is always difficult but here goes, in order:

1. Lahinch

2. Portmarnock (also best championship venue among the 8)

3. Island Club (one of those rare “hidden gems” golf architecture nuts love to find)

4. Rosses Point (also higher potential w Pat Ruddy’s work proceding)

5.  Doonbeg (too early to really tell…will it be green or brown?...how will other changes come out,,,also has great potential if it lives up to its promise)

6.  Carne

7.  Old Head

8.  K Club (a distant 8^th)

Seven interesting and wonderful; tracks.  More to explore (hopefully) on a return visit with Pat.  Ireland is a very special place.

But now…time to move on to England, Scotland, the Continent, and Wales.  And I need to get less verbose…falling way behind on this reporting (it is now the morning of June 11, and I have played and need to report on another 12 courses already!!).

6. Update June 4, 2015...back at it

Rudo Golf---still out there but have not kept blog up to date

It has been almost 10 months since my last post.  Am presently in Scotland on  a BIG trip (more about that in a minute).  Between my last post on 8/8/14 and up until the start of this European trip, I played a total of 53 new courses (bringing my lifetime total to 719), including visiting to play in Columbia, South Africa, France, Spain, Morocco, and Belgium.  Plus in the USA, I have played new tracks in MA, PA, SC, FL, NC, MD, and NY.  These journeys would have been more extensive, but my travel plans were put on temporary hold in November for the insertion of two stents into my coronary arteries.  As a result, one trip to Florida was delayed about 6 weeks, and an extensive trip to Asia/Australia/New Zealand was delayed till late 2015 or early 2016 (subject to negotiations with Da Boss).  In any case, the stents seem to have given me a new lease on life.  It is an amazing procedure that is now almost routine.  I was out of the hospital the next morning and was walking around about 2 hours after the procedure was completed.

Lots of catching up to do…and will do that gradually and in an abbreviated fashion (I can hear you cheering now) as will be some of my descriptions of courses on this trip.  And no pics for now…this trip is too exhausting and busy to deal w that stuff.

Am still being guided (Pat might say driven) by my bucket lists.  At the start of this trip in terms of “World 100 Lists” I needed:

--9 more courses to be the second person to play all of the Golf Magazine World 100 lists (“GM World 100 Ever”) which totals 190 courses.

--8 more to finish Golf Digest 2014 World Top 100 (their first world list)

--15 more to complete Darius Oliver’s latest Planet Golf Top 100

--2 more to finish the final Links Magazine World 100 (dated 12/31/14)

--9 more to finish the Golf Course Architects Survey Top 100

--6 more to finish the Top100Golf websire listings published in ’14, ’12, ’11, ’09, ’08, and ‘06

--3 more to finish the first two editions of Rolex’s Top 1000 (courses with scores of 100 or 95…87 courses in Edition II and 88 in Edition I

--in total, there are 261 courses that have been on one or more of these listings, and at the start of this trip I had played 219, one no longer exists, and I needed 41 to complete this bucket list.

In terms of USA Top 100’s (as always, using my definition of a “merged” list of Golfweek Classic and Modern), I stand at having played all but 61 0f the courses that have ever been included on GM, GD, or GW’s top 100, the final Links USA Top 100, and the current Top100 Golf website.  Given my rapidly advancing age and focus on the overseas lists, it is not clear whether this is doable…but only time will tell…trust me, I am still working it.

GB&I and Continental European Trip

As of the start of this trip, with the progress made over the past 10 months, of the 41 courses worldwide I need to complete the 261 course “World All 100 Ever” list, 23 are in GB&I (Great Britain & Ireland)…16, and Continental Europe…7).   Plus, as of the start of the year, there were another six courses on the Continent (plus one nearby in Morocco) that I needed to play.  So, at the start of the year I had the large task of playing some 30 courses for the first time in GB&I, Continental Europe and Northern Africa.  I covered seven in Morocco, Belgium, France and Spain during an 8-day journey in April…leaving me with 23 to go now.

Planning for the current trip started in earnest in February with a flurry of emails.  As I was already deep into setting up the April eight day trip, there were a lot of balls in the air at one time.  Somehow, they have all landed in good formation.

The trip was a result of Pat planning a trip to London and The Cotswolds’ (garden tours) June 3-12 with some girl friends.  I of course strongly encouraged her to make the trip hoping that I might be invited along.  When that did not happen, I was forced to make alternative plans…and golf seemed like an interesting possibility.  And, as she wanted to play some golf as well, I reluctantly agreed to extend my trip so that we could play golf from June 12-21 in SW England, Wales, and in Surrey, west of London.  Always willing to sacrifice for her!!

So I left Boston on May 27 (one week ahead of her departure) with first stop…Dublin, Ireland.  There are so so many great tracks in Ireland, it was tough to limit my visit there to 8 days.  I had previously been to Ireland (referring in this case to both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland) five times, with my first visit in 1980 and last in 2014 (finishing the 2013 Golf Magazine World Top 100 at The European Club).  But some had been very brief, and to date I had only played 13 courses there (compared Scotland with 9 visits to date and 29 different courses played).

My list of 41 course to go for the “World 100 Lists” goal included 5 tracks in Ireland (The Island Club, Rosses’ Point, Carne, Doonbeg, and Old Head), so their inclusion was mandatory.  To those five I added Portmarnock and Lahinch, primarily because my memory of both was that they were very very strong, but frankly, that memory was faint.  Plus, my good friend Fergal O’Leary (who hails from Ireland…bet you never would have guessed that) basically threatened to dismember certain parts of me if I went to Ireland and did not play his home club of Portmarnock.  I chose to ignore Fergal’s sage advice and also added The K Club, since it would be fit into the schedule easily and I knew I could play it with a cart (known as a buggy over there) making the 36 hole day much more manageable.  As you may recall, The K Club hosted the 2006 Ryder Cup (the Euro’s stuffed us there) and I might want to add a mini bucket list of all Ryder Cup courses ever, so I figured why not.  In summary, while I get high points for following Fergal’s guidance with Portmarnock and Lahinch, most of those points get wiped out due to my stupidity in wasting a few hours at the K Club…More about these and others follows.

Island Club—May 28

Went directly to the course from the Dublin airport.  Arrived DUB around 11am…flew thru Heathrow (long story why) which is a pain in the butt.  Met my host, Humphrey Kelleher (a former Captain of The Island Club and good player) and his friend, Pat O’Leary (Fergal’s dad).  After a quick and good lunch, we headed to #1…a dauntingly narrow par 4, lines on both sides by very high dunes (not Royal Country Down or Trump Aberdeen high, but quite high in any case).  As I got over the ball on the first tee, I realized that I would be playing with 9 new sticks, which were delivered to TCC the day before…the Fed Exp truck arriving as I putted out on 18 and about 90 minutes before Pat took me to Logan airport.  Wondered how these would work, but suffice it to say that I have hit them well (although I did pull that first drive left).

I loved The Island Club.  My one question is, where has it been…it is rarely spoken of in conversations regarding great Irish tracks but it absolutely belongs.  It was originally conceived in the late 1880’s but major architectural changes were not made until the 1980’s and 90’s.  For decades, members arrived at the club via a small boat from the village of Malahide (the Club was then on a true island).  Today it is a very strong track (made much tougher by 20-25 mph winds on a bright sunny day), built among wonderful sand dunes, with healthy turn throughout, and a wonderful collection of holes.  Rather than bore you by going through some of the best holes, I will bore you by giving some overall impressions:

            --the land is marvelous…aside from the massive sand dunes, it ground pitches and rolls in every direction, making for difficult challenging stances, and wonderful sights…great links land, not man made;

            --front nine consists of 1-8 being eight straight par 4’s, followed by a par 3 9^th; one might expect this layout to be boring, but I had no sense of that (felt a little like front nine of Main course at Brookline)…the holes play differently from each other but “fit” together beautifully;

            --the 13^th green (best hole on course…long tough par 3) and 14the tee (may be toughest hole with fairway about 20 meters wide and sloping LàR…and yes I hit the fairway and got my par) both sit where the old clubhouse was…across the estuary from the town of Malahide, which a marina occupying a good part of the estuary.  As I looked over, I tried to think of other courses in the British Isles with such a setting, and could not think of any (some of course give a feeling of being “part of the town” such as St. Andrews, Carnouistie, Prestwick…but I could not think of any where a marina and the town are seen from the course; please let me know if you think of any.  One great club/course in the USA evokes that feeling…Country Club of Fairfield (CT);

            --the 10^th hole reminded be of #1 at Royal Liverpool (Hoylake)…with OB jutting out  on the right side for well over 200 yards out form the tee.

In summary, really great track deserving of far more attention!!

We had a quick dinner (during which I came close to nodding off from exhaustion after the overnight flight.  Next day would start the grueling part of the trip.

Portmarnock May 29 Morning

Last played by me in 1979, and almost universally recognized as one of the real great tracks of the world.  Played with Huntley Lauder of Dublin, a very fine player and good friend of Fergal’s.  We teed off around 8:30am…t’was a little chilly but no too cold, but the winds were up again, about the same as yesterday.  Huntley played Brookline a few years back with Pat Grant, so we could spend time w Pat Grant stories, not to mention time spent talking about Fergal…was tougher to do yesterday with Fergal’s dad in the group J. 

Currently #54 on Golf Mag World 100 (highest rating since 2000 was #34 in 2001), it is #36 on the Golf Architects Survey, but unranked in Planet Golf’s 100.  So what gives here?  My sense is that Portmarnock is one of the great championship courses anyplace...as well as one of the great clubs.  It has, very simply, no weaknesses.  Conditioning is outstanding (real fast and firm , etc etc).  Holes are very very tough, yet very fair.  Surrounded on 3 sides by water, if sites magnificently and majestically.  Simple a great collection of pure, true links golf holes, that challenge but do not totally “beat you up”.  It’s land, however, does not provide as much drama (sand dunes, massive pitches and  rolls, in  fairways, etc.) naturally found at places such as Royal County Down, Lahinch, Shinnecock, etc etc…and which tend to linger in one’s mind longer.  Yet there are few better pure golf courses anywhere.  This is a tough one to resolve...me thinks a top 100 needs a mixture of both types.  I know that as I have aged, “fun” has become far more important that pure difficulty or ability to test.  But ultimately, picking a top 100 position is like picking a spouse (or like picking the top 100 spouses?????).  At this point, I think it is time to move on.

K Club—Palmer May 29 Evening

Since it was on the way between Portmarnock and Rosses Point, I figured why not go play another Ryder Cup track (since I might want to have played all Ryder Cup courses, ever.  Well, this dumb sxxt blew it again…like he did playing National outside of Paris in mid-April, and totally contrary to Fergal’s advice.  K Club, was boring, super tough from the back tees, and a classic “cookie cuttor.  Only good news is that I was able to get a cart and zip around playing it in about 2:45.  Pain is less painful when it doesn’t last as long.

More later…

5. Four Local Tracks...MA and RI...July 28-August 6, 2014

The old body was not really interested in big travel plans after the round-the-world trip and the Rockies trip.  So, after sorting my "Top 100" spreadsheet by region and state, I realized there were a bunch of local tracks that I should go see and play.  Net net...was a good decision.  Apologize for dirty of pictures.

Shelter Harbor GC (RI) July 28

About a 100 mile drive from our house in Milton, MA, in the southwestern corner of RI lies Shelter Harbor (SR).  Course is just under 2 miles from LI Sound as the crow flies, but the water is not visible from the course.  Course was completed in 2005.  Designed by Michael Hurdzan and Dada Fry (Erin Hills WI...20157 US Open venue, Devil's Pulpit...outside of Toronto, and Hamilton Farm NJ, it first appeared on GW in 2012, and has steadily climbed to #105 on GW's merged list (#46 on GW's 2014 Modern list).  Par 71, plays to 7,006 yards from tips and I played from 6,205.  Club also has a nine hole par 3 course, but I did not have time to play it.

Put simply, this one is underrated in my opinion.  While it is certainly not a USA Top 50, I would consider it to be a solid top 70-80.  The fairways are some of the widest I have ever played or seen...but they are interspersed with well positioned fairway bunkers (often near the center of the fairway...giving the player the choice of laying up, flying it over, or playing a left or right fairway...decisions that would vary depending on wind direction and pin position).  Favorite holes were:

#4 par 3 205 yards Biarritz hole...and a wild one.  Makes #7 at Yale look simple.  Green is 63 yards deep with some wild humps generally not found on Biarritz greens.  see pic

#7 par 4 363 yards.  Downhill turning right.  Deep bunker bisects fairway and is 243 to reach and 260 carry from back (201/218 from my tees).  Hitting slightly downhill into tiny green (32 deep and probably 16 wide at widest) perched on hill (was moved last year from right lower position...major improvement).
#9 par 5 533 yards.  Turns R-->L then L-->R and uphill to small 2 tiered green.  Eleven fairway bunkers all over the place that guide you through hole and define your options.  No green side bunkers and none needed w false front and green slopes back to front.
#13 par 4 367 yds.  Flat dogleg left.   Carry of 267 to clear bunker in corner of dogleg, and 315 to reach bunker on right side of fairway on same line.  Bunkers front right of green makes you want to leave tee shot as close to left side of fairway as possible...but do not come up short.  Green slopes sharply back rt to front left.
#14 par 4 462 yards.  Flat and turning slightly left from back tee, then slightly uphill to raised green, with huge dune bisecting back of green from behind it.  Difficult and superb par 4 from back tee and blur tee (437 yds), but because of wetlands, white tees play from 331 yards and hole not nearly as interesting.
#17 par 3 194 yards.  Flat excellent par three with water left and in front, bunker right of green protecting bail out zone (and green slopes away from bail out zone).  see pic.

First rate club.  Love course design...and played quite well (40-38-78)...wish I had putted that was on Saturday in Club Championship...but that is another story.  Real story of Club Championship though was Pat's securing TCC's Woman's Super Senior Club Championship, winning the final 2 up on 18.  Well well done, my sweet!!

Conditions were a tough soft but fair amount of rain in past few days.  Close to a hidden gem.

Taconic Golf Club July 30

All the way in the northwestern conner of MA in the Berkshires is the town or Williamstown, MA, home of Williams College.  About 160 miles from our house here in MA.  Have been wanting to play this track for the last few years but it is a bit of a haul.  Pat was scheduled to play in a woman's invitational Aug. 4-6, so like a good hubby, I did the long trip and came out to scout the course for her.

Taconic is an old Donald Ross track, par 71 6808 yds from tips.  Built in 1927 and designed by Wayne Stiles, it is a very good course and fun to play, with some very very interesting and tough greens.  Was #85 on merged GW list in 1999 but has slipped to #192 today.  Course is on land owned by Williams College, serves as the home course for Williams' golf team, and operates as a semi-private club.  Best holes are #12 and #13, bot of which have greens that can leave you talking to yourself.  Course is fairly hilly.  and in good shape, but too soft.  All I can tell you is "stay below the hole", which is what I told wifey, but it didn't do much good.

Longmeadow Country Club August 5

Located outside Springfield, MA (100 miles from our home) near the old headquarters of Spaulding...one of the leading manufacturers of golf equipment 60-90 years ago (not to mention Spaulding Hi-Bounce balls that dominated the stickball market in the 1950's and early 1960's).  In times past, the greats of the game would regularly visit Longmeadow to test the new sticks produced by Spaulding, and Bobby Jones was a member of the club.  It remains is a very very good club and is a great old Donald Ross track.  Clearly, Taconic and Longmeadow are the two premier tracks in western MA.  Plays to par 70, 6756 yards from the tips.  Has not been on a true Top 100 list but was on GW's Top 100 Classic list in '97 and '98.  Played with two members, one of whom is a Golf Week rater whom I met playing Rich Harvest Farms (IL) in 2012.

Strongest part of course, not surprisingly is its Ross greens.  Best holes are #3 (excellent par 5 down off tee then up to crested green), #4 and #16 (both superb short par 3's), #8 (very tough long dogleg left par 4 whose tee shot reminded me of tee shot at #4 at Hirono GC in Japan), #15 (mid length par 4 with two tiered green sloping from left to right and a frightening small landing area on the green), and #17 (par 4 with green in a depressed area lying about 30 feet below fairway level.

Course was very soft, but that may have been a function of heavy rains in MA over prior 2 weeks.  No question that both Longmeadow and Taconic are wonderful layouts which one could play every day!!

Oyster Harbors Golf Club August 6

Had heard a lot about this track over the past eight years, and finally got down to the Cape to see what it is all about.  First first class in all regards.  Plays to par 72, and only 6807 yards, this Donald Ross track went through an extensive renovation by Tom Doak about 4 years ago, and continues to make progress along Doak's Master Plan for the layout.  Simply put, it is a wonderful layout, with some of the best and most interesting greens I have encountered.

Played with Kevin Patterson (former tournament director for Mass Golf Assoc, now ex dir of International Seniors Amateur Golf Society), Alex Duhamel (ass't ex dir of ISAGS), and Doug Mayo (GM go OHGC).  Started at #10, a bear of a starting hole, 207 yd par 3 with green that has too many superb pin placements to count...and wicked run offs.  Best other holes are #13 (uphill par 4 to infinity green w false front, 442 yds), #17 (175 par 3 to well bunkered and small green with wonderful segments), #2 (short par 5 491 yards straight and flat to a green sloping from left to right, but with ledge along the left...easy par 5 but wonderful test of shotmaking).  Played so so well...40-35-75.  Felt totally comfortable on the course...could feel the options on most shots and throughly enjoyed the way there land moved.  Great great play every day track.  Firm and fast conditions make golf so much better.

Only negative is that course is in the middle of an island surrounded by water...but almost no views of the water...home sites on perimeter and layout in the center of the island.  Too bad...can't even imagine what it could have been.  Not as good as Eastward Ho! but superb in any case.

Wrap-up

Well, four good to superb tracks..all fun to play (none of which are championship tracks...but who cares), that I had never played before, and all within 160 miles of home.  But, on the other hand, the four day trips racked up about 830 miles...still a lot of driving.  Have six other MA courses I want to see before we disappear in the fall:  Worcester, Hyannisport, New Seabury (Ocean), Sankaty Head, Whitinsville, and Vesper.

4. NE Golf--The Dismal River Club (Doak) and The Prairie Club (Dunes)...July 14/15, 2014

After taking a cart around SHGC to get the pictures in my last two posts, I headed over to The Dismal River Club.  DRC is located about 8 miles west of SHGC as the crow flies, but getting there by car is more like 30 miles (and about 45-50 minutes).  The last 19 miles used to be a gravel road, but most of that has now been paved (but is mostly one lane...but as you can imagine, not a ton of traffic even in "rush hour").  I arrived at a rather empty DRC around 4:30pm, registered and went to my room, which was very nice.  A good shower and a nap were much appreciated.

DRC first course was designed by Jack Nicklaus and opened for play in 2006 and stretches to about 7400 yards.   It is Jack's first design in this type of geography, and many have said it is far too extreme.  Word is he went fro hating blind shots to going overboard with them.  Who knows, but based on this input (which was remarkably consistent) and a tight schedule for this trip, I decided not to play the Nicklaus course.  It should also be noted that the Nicklaus course never cracked any of the Top 100 lists.

Last year, the second course at DRC opened.  It is known as the Red Course or also the Doak course, since it was designed by Tom Doak.  As the club sits on about 3,000 acres, they were able to squeeze in the second course.  It was highly anticipated and opened last summer.  Rating wise, only one Top 100 listing has been released since its opening, the Golf Week USA 2014 list, and DR-Doak came in at #86 on the merged list (#39 on Modern list).  Course has no rating (neither does SHGC), and no tee markers, just posts for the back, regular, and front tee areas.  Stretches to 6994 yards (par 71) and I played from 6334 yards.  All yardages below are from back (except where noted)

While having dinner Sunday night, I met Chris Johnston ("CJ"), who runs DRC and is one of several investors who purchased DRC prior to completion of the Doak course.  This group is the third owner of DRC...not surprising given the downs (and slow ups) of the US economy since DRC first opened.  I did not realize it when I was at DRC but one of the investors is Charlie Mechem, former LPGA commissioner who I had the pleasure of playing two round with at Bandon Dunes in 2003.  Small world once again.  In any case, CJ is an interesting guy who seems to be devoted to making Dismal River a success...and, for what it is worth, I think the Red or Doak course is a major step forward in that process.  Quite simply...it is superb...and I think as it gets tweaked over the next 5 years or so (as happens with all new courses in their early years) it will get even better.  I do not think it is in Sand Hills' category, but that is hardly an insult.  To my mind, there are less than one handful of tracks in the USA that are.

One of the first things I noticed at DRC, is how different the terrain and sand Dunes were compared with the area around SHGC (just 8 miles east of DRC).  DRC sits in a valley with huge (400') dunes around it, and its final three holes are close to the Dismal River (which also runs through SHGC...but near the clubhouse and cabins...which are over a mile from the layout).  You may notice the difference in some of the photos below.  During dinner, CJ and I of course discussed golf architecture, etc and mostly agreed on things (especially on our mutual love of Camargo, outside of Cincinnati...his love benign much longer standing as he was a member there, whereas i have only played it once).  He did give me some hints regarding what i would see the next day.  First, Doak insisted (and CJ acquiesced) on having the 18th green some 500 yards from the 1st tee.  Actually, given that the 1st tee is about a mile from the clubhouse, it really make no difference (except in a match play if you need to go extra holes).  Also, with only one road going trough the property, Doak insisted on having the 9th hole cross over the road.  Again, no big deal, and think about the number of fabulous tracks with a roads crossing one of more holes (e. g., Cypress Pt, Old Course, Shinnecock, The Country Club)...and remember the tee shot from the back tee on SHGC #5 goes right over the 4th green...and SHGC has even more land!!  CJ also asked if he could join me (just walking) for part of my round.  I of course enthusiastically said yes.

After a good nights sleep, breakfast, and packing up my stuff, it was off to the range to hit a few (trips like these i spend little time on the range...hitting too many balls already), and then to the first tee.  I needed to play DRC to complete all three USA Top 100 lists and knock off another bucket list.

#1--535 yard par 5, starts flat then slightly uphill for last 150 yds and turning slightly right.  Good starting hole.  Big wide fairway...strategic track of course.  No obvious problem for opening drive.  Bunker in center of fairway 115-125 from center green needs to be negotiated for any layup second, and bunkers and dune right of green must be carefully avoided by anyone going for it in 2.  Green sits in natural amphitheater and angles LF-->BR, slopes to front and has two tiers...upper tier to back right.  Excellent opening hole.  Pics from tee and about 140 from middle green (note bunker and dune right).  CJ joined me for third shot in (got up & down from right dune)

 #2--472 yard par 4...slightly uphill and turns left...to green on top of crest with deceptively string false front.  Blowout bunker on left of fairway to be avoided off tee (230 to reach and 310 to carry) and a any layup must avoid left bunker 50-75 yds from middle green.  That's CJ's Bernese (spelling??) in the picture...you will also note the winterkill damage in the fairways.  Remember, this was very young grass last winter going up against some of the worst global warming in history.  Very tough hole and tough green to hit.

#3--195 yd par 3--slightly downhill.  Pic from back tee...regular tee is to left and has easier angle.  Obviously, best to avoid deep deep bunker on left front.  Tee shot requires fade but green slopes slightly L-->R

#4--388 yrd par 4--uphill and straight.  Fairway split by bunker in middle, leaving player with important strategic choice.  Narrow part of fairway to to the left of bunker, and leaves open shot to green.  Lots of room to right of bunker but two problems with that choice.  First, you MUST hit tee short far enough to carry big hollow on right...or your drive will roll back 20-40 yards.  Second, that angle forces your second shot to clear two bunkers carefully guarding right front of green. In strategic sense, hole very similar to #1 at Rock Creek Cattle Co. (also a Doak).  Unfortunately, the picture is worthless!!

#5--261 yard par 3 (no typo)...and 239 from regular tee...into prevailing wind.  And look at this bunker built (by nature) into the dune protecting the right side of the green.  Frankly, I think this hole is unfair for all but the best golfers.  It goes down into a valley and then moves up to the green, with only 5-8 yards of relatively flat land before the green (remember the length and prevailing wind), so almost impossible to run it up.  One of only two holes I didn't like.  In any case, put tee shot into bunker and got out and onto green...2 putt for heroic bogey.

#6--326 drivable par 4.  Slightly downhill and turns left.  Very good risk reward hole.  Bunker protects front right corner of green and large bunkers protects whole left side of green.  Several fairway bunkers and exposure tom wind makes player think carefully about how to play any layup off the tee.

#7--442 yd par 4...straight, downhill off elevated tee then uphill sharply to crested,  2-tiered green.  Tee shot protected by two bunkers (255 to carry), and send shot must carry large bunker right and short of green.

#8--554 downhill par 5 with green angled LF-->BR an sloping sharply L-->R.  Tee shot must avoid fairway bunkers down right side and approach must carry bunkers built into dune 80 yds out from green.  Dune also makes any third shot from  right side blind to entire right side of green.   2 tiered green with upper tier on left and hollow to back right.  You do not want putt from upper tier to hollow.  Wonderful green setting.

#9--374 yard par 4... turning slightly right to small angled green (angle from LF-->BR with large bunker protecting right and small bunker protecting left side.  This is hole where drive goes over the entrance road.  Excellent "sleeper" hole...looks very easy, and player must concentrate to maintain focus, and avoid a "stupid" bogey.  Overall hole is flat but important to hit drive about 250 to reach crest of fairway.  Green is "infinity"and small...and look at that dune which is way in the background...that is on the other side of the Dismal River and is about 500-600 yards past the 9th green.  Nothing like it at SHGC 8 miles away.

#10--546 yard par 5.  Elevated tee, then downhill and uphill to green (from 150 short of green next shot is totally blind).  Three sets of bunkers along right side.  First set not in play, second set 300 to 335 off back tee, and third set 75 -100 from center of green.  Two bunkers and dune protected left side of green.  Green is deep and narrow (20 yd wide and 40 yd deep) and spores sharply L-->R and back of green slopes toward back.  See pics from tee and left front of green.  Superb hole and the start of a magnificent back nine.

#11--174 yd par 3...flat to narrow deep green (but front of green angled to back right...making for much longer carry over junk to right side of green).  3 bunkers protect front and right side.  Green is tiered and has 3 sections...back left (highest point of green), back right, and front (lowest section).  Pin was in back left, hit ok 5 iron that ended up about 3' and got my birdie.  Despite this bit of good fortune, a super hole.

#12--430 yard par 4.  Blind tee shot uphill and then downhill to green...something I have seen very little of on this trip, and really enjoy (think #4 at Pine Valley).  Deep, narrow green protected on left and in back.  

#13--Very tough, spectacular and even fun 496 yd par 4.  Uphill off the tee then downhill to green and doglegs right.  Two sets of fairway bunkers guide right side  First is 300-300 off tee and second is about 60 from green.  Large dune at corner of dogleg  Approach shot is spectacular...with  "bison run" over dune about 500 yards behind green as aim point...see pics first from tee and second of approach shot:

#14--419 par 4---turning left, and slightly uphill to raised green.  This is the second hole that i think needs some changes (other one was par 3 #5).  Dune on left side of fairway and bunker on right side (both about 155-165 to green) leave a gap between them which is only 20 yards wide....a gap which is too narrow (in my always humble opinion).  Especially from at least 160 yards out, to a raided green protected by a bunker on left front of the green.

One side note...I had trouble figuring out where 14th green was (lack to tee markers contributes to this) and saw what i at first assumed as the 14th hole...and thought it was the best looking hole on the course from the tee...but it turned out to be the par 3 16th green that I was looking at...see below

#15---start of a fabulous finish...315 yard drivable par 4...downhill and straight.  Two fairway bunkers  on left (carry leaves you 200 to green) force you to think a little about layup (as you would prefer to layup on the left side of the fairway).  Large dune with 4 bunkers carved out protected right side of shallow green (21 yards deep)...and there is a very sharp drop off on the left side if the green, and getting up and down from the bottom of that drop off is a tough chore (trust me anything left will run off at least 30 years from the green)...but probably easier than going for the green and putting it in the fescue on the right hand dune or one of the 4 bunkers there.  Great strategic hole with lots and lots of choices/options.  Think your way around this one.

#16---166 yard par 3 to seemingly large green divided into 3 sections...like a three leaf clover.  Front left of green protected by a bunker.  Two bunkers on front right, two other back left and one back right..total of 6 bunkers around this sucker.  Lowest portion of green is front of it (to right of for mentioned bunker), highest portion is back right, and missile height portion is behind front left bunker...three very small greens.  Behind green (but not close to in play) is the Dismal River and behind river  is a towering (400' I would guess) sand dune...see picture below.  2nd pic from back of green.  Spectacular and wonderful golf hole.

#17--454 par 4...blind drive to top of huge dune (probably 50-60 in height) and then tumbling downhill and from left to right to green sitting near Dismal River, same huge dune mentioned on 16 to right across river. Very simply, the most fun hole on the entire trip (perhaps because i played two spectacular shots to about 15'...but you guessed it, missed the putt).  Seriously, just loved this one!!  At first had trouble figuring out what line to hit my drive, but them spotted the cattle's skull on top of the hill.  See pic below..line is to left of big bush middle left (click on picture and zoom it out...line is just right of left tee post (there are two...one is far right) just over rough just ahead of this back tee...that is where i played from...411 yards).

In any case, I guessed right and was in perfect position on top of the dune.  Fairway is very very wide up here, but too far left and hole much longer...to far right and go back to the tee and reload.  Wind was behind me and I had 215 to pin.  Hit 3 hybrid...planning (to be honest...hoping) to run it in.  Hit career short and put it 15' behind back pin.  Green is narrow (26 yd) and deep (39 yards)...20' further and I am in junk.  So so much fun watching this shot tumble down and onto green and come to rest so close.  See these pictures from various spots on top of the dune.  BTW...that is the clubhouse on top of the hill in the distance.

#18...447 yard par 4, downhill slightly and dogleg right.  Tee shot has to carry some marsh (I played from 420 and no problem carrying it...but had following wind)...and if the wind is against, you can play tee shot further left for a shorter carry, but of course this leaves a longer approach.   Here is tee shot from back tee (green is directly below 4 cabins on hill to left of long clubhouse:

If you choose to lay up, you need to negotiate patches of marsh and one fairway bunker in middle of fairway.  Green angles from back left to front right and slopes strongly in that direction.  Spectacular and tough but playable (and fun) finishing hole.  I put my approach back left and had an 85' long putt for my birdie...missed it but sunk a 6 footer for par and a 40-37-77 to complete all the current USA top 100's!!  See pictures of approach shot and green along line of my 85' putt.  Trees beyond green in last picture show where Dismal River runs, and clubhouse is behind the photographer in the last pic...about a mile behind.

Summary of DRC--I was surprised by the greens...very tough but much tamer than early Doak tracks (e.g...Ballyneal and Barnbougle Dunes).  Don't know if he is becoming more conservative, or if owners (like CJ) are successfully putting a "leash" on him.  Whatever, it is working.  Greens are very tough but on average I overplayed the breaks...how often does that happen on early Doak greens.

Layout has a wonderful flow.  You always know where you are, and the finishing holes are simply great.  Who cares about the distance between 18 and 1...and the road that the tee shoot on #9 crosses doesn't exactly have much traffic.  Besides...that is the insurance carrier's problem.

No question these eras conditioning issues due to this past winter.  As i wrote earlier...this had to happen with young grass (course opened about 13 months ago) and the winter.  I am fully confident that these problems will be easily fixed which will also enable the fairways to be cut lower and become even faster.

am also sure the course will evolve over time (see my comments on #5 and #14) as it gets more play...and with proper management (I think that is in place) should be able to rise to a top 20 USA track with ease.  It is really really good!

One last thought...Sunday night as I made my way back to my cabin, the sun had set but the sky above the huge dune was still 'warm" with light.  As I looked up on the sand dune, I saw a solitary tree at the peak..on the horizon.  Incredibly beautiful.  There was not enough light to get a picture with my iPhone...but here is that tree as it looked Monday afternoon:

To Next Stop; The Prairie Club--after lunch, drove about 75 miles (18 miles east to state road, then 60 miles north) to The Prairie Club outside of Valentine, NE, just south of the South Dakota state line.  Prairie Club is back in the Central zone.  Arrived around 4pm.  Prairie has two 18 hole layouts (Dunes course by Tom Lehman and Pines designed by Graham Marsh), and a 9 hole par 3 course.  Located at the northern end of the Nebraska Sand Hills region, its terrain is again different than that of SHGC and DRC.  Less dramatic dunes, and much thicker fescue (very much like Muirfield in Sclotland after a wet spring season...mote like hay).

I was scheduled to play Dunes at 7:20 on Tuesday morning, but figured I would be better off playing the back nine Monday afternoon and the front nine early on Tuesday.  So, feeling pretty good after a 10 minute rest, took a few swings with my trusty orange whip, and drove on cart about 3 miles out to 10th tee.  It was 5pm and sunset was at 9pm.

Course is 7583 from tips (par 73)...I played from 6838 yards.  In terms of ratings, Dunes is currently rated #86 on Modern course list by GW...comes out as #169 on the merged GW list so not really a top 100...Pines never made any list.

Course winds its way throughout the fescue (hay)...over fairways which roll in every direction.  Very natural in feel, but not compared to SHGC and DRC (Doak).  Best holes on back are 15 and 17 (602 yd par 5 uphill left dogleg...and 457 yard par 4 uphill right dogleg respectively.  Pics below are 10, 11 and 15.

Played front nines early Tuesday morning.  Best holes are 2, 4, 5, 8 and 9.  Course is beautiful but suffered severe damage from winterkill.  Many greens and fairways with major damage...do believe it will come back but will be a tough road....they have already started but so much work to do...

I found the course fun to play but tough...lots of choices on shots but certainly not in the class of DRC Doak much less SHGC.  But, it is tough to have them as you "neighbors" and stand out in the crowd.  And the real truth is that I was anxious to complete the trip and get to Omaha for my flight.  Would like to return in about 2 years (assuming conditioning improves and my game does not deteriorate too badly).  In any case, had a 79...so finished trip strongly!

Left Prairie Club at about 10:30am leaving what I thought was tons of time for drive to Omaha.  Turns out drive took longer than shown on Google Maps (construction along the way).  Caught my plane (Omaha-Chicago-Boston) but it was touch and go.  Flight from Chicago a little late...and it was so so wonderful to get home!!

Trip in Retrospect

Some thoughts on this journey:
1.  It was exhausting.  Actually tougher than the world wide trip in May, because of all the driving and different hotels.  Drove about 1900 miles in 9 days...and stayed in a different hotel for the eight nights of the trip.  Me is getting too old for this type of schedule.  Or did I use the wrong tense here, perhaps it should be: Me is too old for this type of schedule.

2.  Incredibly beautiful sights along the way.  Had never been to ID, MT or WY and this is a big country.  But big means long distances.

3.  Interesting how golf architecture has changed in last 30 years.  In the first third of the 20th century ("Golden Age" of golf architecture in USA), there was wonderful land available for golf courses near large cities...and having wonderful land is critical to creating (either by building or discovering) a great track.  Then after WW II, when golf course building restarted in the 1950's, there was a paucity of good land near urban centers...so a lot of courses were built from 1950-1990 on bad land (for example...the CA and AZ desert, the swamps of FL, etc.).  Starting probably with SHGC, developers stopped worrying about location (based on the unheard of assumption that if you build...or discover...a great course, they will come) and the likes of SHGC, Bandon Dunes, DRC, Prairie Club, and dozens of others were (mostly) discovered and the new "Golden Age" led the by the likes of Coore/Crenshaw and Doak was underway.  This meant, for folks like me...some fabulous new tracks to discover, but some very remote places to get to.

4.  It is great to get my three bucket lists under my belt.  There are many other potential ones, and I need to be judicious in selecting them and which to go after.

5.  OK...now for comparisons of the layouts on this trip:

Best 18 hole courses:  1.  Sand Hills  2. Old Macdonald   3.  DRC--Doak   4.  tie--Gozzer Ranch & Rock Creek (note...when DRC Doak recovers from conditioning damage caused by this past winter...it may move ahead of Old Mac)

Most Fun:  1.  Bandon Preserve  2.  Sand Hills  3.  Old Macdonald

Biggest disappointments: 1.  Sanctuary  2.  Black Rock...so so over watered  3.  Shooting Star

Biggest positive surprise:  Gozzer Ranch by far

Next???
1.  Rest
2.  Some local tracks in New England
3.  Figure out next bucket lists
4.  Get my short game back
5.  Rest