22. Central CO October 22-24, 2015

Central CO October 22-24, 2015

YES…a hole in one!!  By my step-son, Clark Woolley on the 7^th hole of Lakota Canyon Ranch (went off on 10 so it was our 16^th hole of round), New Castle, CO (about 200 miles west of Denver) on October 24, 2015.  Hole played about 187 yards, slightly uphill, against a slight breeze.  Hole is a punch bowl and no part of the flagstick was visible.  Clark, who is a superb athlete, hardly plays any golf (I think this was his 3^rd round of the year) but can really launch it (hit a 7 iron, which is pretty strong even with a 10% reduction in yardage because of altitude…I figure the hole was playing about 175 yards adjusting for uphill/wind/altitude).  Twosome playing ahead of us was on 8^th tee (about 50’ above 7^th green) saw it go in and cheered!!  This was Clark’s first, and no doubt about it, he nailed it.  He was happy as can be, and when we got to the clubhouse 30 minutes later, no one was around for him to buy drinks.

Pat and I were in CO to see Clark, his bride Alexander, and their daughter Sarah (3 years 8 months) and son Owen (just past his 1^st bday) in their new home on Glenwood Springs, CO (about 50 miles west of Vail and 40 miles north of Aspen).  They moved there from Washington, DC and love it.  It was wonderful seeing all four of them for a few days.  Pat is flying back to NC, and I am heading west with my usual crazy itinerary.  Planning to play between now and November 12 the following courses:

USA

Seattle GC

Harding Park, San Francisco

Pronghorn GC—Fazio, Bend, OR

Crosswater Club, Bend, OR

South Korea

Anyang CC

Whistling Rock

Haesley Nine Bridges

South Cape

Jack Nicklaus GC Korea (host of President’s Cup 2 weeks ago)

Singapore

Singapore Island CC-Bukit Course

Indonesia

Bali Handara

Nirwana Bali

China

Spring City-Lake Course

Spring City-Mountain Course

Stone Forest- C Course (Leaders Peak)

Stone Forest-A Course

Mission Hills Haikou—Shadow Dunes

Mission Hills Haikou—Lava Fields

Sheshan International (host of HKSB Championship Nov 5-8)

Hoping for good weather and on time flights!!  If I can get all of the above in, will have made some serious progress on my bucket lists.

Clark and I played two local courses near their home, Ironbridge (which is literally in their backyard as they live off the 17^th tee, and joined the club), and Lakota Canyon, about 20 miles west of their home.  Both were built on mountainous terrain, which presents a lot of challenges for golf architects.  Outside of nanny goats, I doubt anyone had walked either course since they opened.  Par 5’s are a very real design challenge as it is difficult to find a stretch of land over 550 yards in length without a gorge intervening…and these gorges often create long carries without the possibility of a reasonable layup.

Weather was beautiful both Friday afternoon 10/23 (Ironbridge) and Saturday afternoon (Lakota).  Given the heavy rains Thursday through Friday morning, both courses proved to drain quite well.  Ironbridge is the tougher of the two (and at times too tough and bordering on unfair), and Tom Lehman has been renovating it to make some of the holes “softer”, which I applaud.  Lakota (designed by James Engh) is the better of the two courses and very forgiving (too much so) with slopes along both side of most fairways and greens typically surrounded on three sides by large mounds, causing many misdirected shots to kick towards the fairway or green.  Of course, the views on both are simply spectacular.  Both play to about 7100 yards from the tips (par 72) and we played both from about 6300.  Finishing late in the afternoon on both days, it became very chilly once the sun started hiding behind the mountains, but we got both rounds in.  In summary, both are good courses, but not  “top100 quality”…remember with some 15,500 course in the USA, the top 100 represents the top 0.6% and with some 35,000 courses in the world (I am guessing), the top 100 worldwide represent the top 0.3%...fairly lofty territory.

Lakota was #46 on Golf Week’s 2006 Top 100 Modern Courses in the USA list, but on the merged list of Modern and Classic, that came out to #105.  In 2007, Lakota dropped to #97 on the Modern list and then dropped off. 

Am now flying to Seattle, hoping the rain does not start till late this afternoon…

Seattle Golf Club October 25, 2015:  Made a very short visit to Seattle to play Seattle GC.  Main reason was to finish a mini-bucket list---playing every course that has hosted a Walker Cup Match.  There will have been 45 matches played to date, 23 in GB&I and 22 in the USA.  The 23 held in GB&I have been hosted by 13 different clubs, and I had played all of these 13 by 2013.  The 22 held in the USA have been hosted by 18 different clubs, and with my playing Seattle GC, I have now played all 18.  Additionally, I have played the announced venues for future Matches (2017, 2019, and 2021). 

To be completely forthcoming, I should point out that a Match had been originally scheduled at The Town & Country Club in St. Paul, MN to be played in 1940, but that Match was cancelled due to the start of World War II hostilities.  I have not played Town & Country, but since that Match was never held, believe that does not blemish my completion of the Walker Cup venues.

Seattle GC was founded in 1900 and hosted the 1952 US Amateur as well as the 1961 Walker Cup Match (which, as a historical note, was the last important Amateur event played by Jack Nicklaus before he turned professional in late 1961).  In terms of Top 100 listings, its only appearances were on Golf Week’s first six Top 100 Classic Course listings (from 1997-2002) including a peak of #79 in 1999.  However, it never appears on my “merged” Golf Week lists.

Seattle is a beautiful and superb club and is generally regarded to be the most prestigious Golf Club in the State of Washington.  The golf course (which was redesigned about 20 years ago by Arnold Palmer) is very very good, and is one I could play every day without being bored.  The greens are difficult and while the course is relatively short by today’s standards (6836 yards par 72), the climate in the Seattle area makes the course play much longer.

TPC Harding Park October 26, 2015:  Harding Park Golf Course (named after President Warren Harding) was completed in 1925 (originally designed by Sam Whiting, who also designed The Olympic Club’s Lake Course which sits directly across Lake Merced) and has been a municipal course owned by the City of San Francisco ever since.  About 12 years ago, an extensive renovation led by Sandy Tatum was completed which extended the course to its current 7169 yards.  Since then, it has hosted the President’s Cup (2009, and scheduled for 2025), the 2005 American Express Championship (part of the WGC series), and the 2015 Cadillac Match Play (also part of the WGC series).  The 2020 PGA Championship is scheduled for Harding Park.  Its only appearance on a “Top” listing was in Golf Digest initial “200 Toughest Courses in the USA” list published in 1966.  As you will recall, that list was purely alphabetical.

The course is very good and while its condition is very good for a municipal course, it is too wet, soft and slow to be considered to be in very good condition.  Played it with two members of California Club (where I stayed the nights of 10/25 and 27) and we were the first group off and finished playing in about 3:30.  Then back to Cal Club for lunch with a former club president who shepherded Cal Club’s phenomenal renovation completed in 2008.  Then it was off to Bend, OR to see a couple we met at our ISAGS trip to South Africa in March, and play 36 holes on Tuesday.

Pronghorn Golf Club (Fazio) October 27, 2015:  After my flight was delayed, arrived at our friend’s house around 9:30pm.  My first time here in the Oregon high desert and was interested in seeing Bend as I had heard wonderful things about it.  It is very late in their season and getting in 36 will require some luck, as there usually are frost delays here this time of year.  Sure enough, frost was on the ground Tuesday morning but we were able to tee off on Pronghorn Fazio by 9:45am.  This gave us time for a quick “drive-by” tour of Bend which is an old lumber mining town that is now a premier “destination town” for golf and skiing with tons of other activities.  Oregon’s Cascade Mountains provide a fabulous backdrop for a neat neat area.  Got the sense that the Chamber of Commerce boasts are pretty accurate.

This upscale club opened in 2004 with a course designed by Jack Nicklaus and Tom Fazio’s course opened in 2006.  In terms of my Top 100 listings, the Fazio course was on the Golf Week merged list in 2010 and 2012 (highest rating was #88 in 2010).  Plan was to play the Fazio and the Crosswater Club (20 miles south of Pronghorn) as both have been on my USA Top 100 lists (always keeping bucket lists in mind) rather than both at Pronghorn.  The Fazio course is very private and the Nicklaus course is open to the public.

The Fazio course is really very very good…one of the best Fazio tracks I have played (note:  I am not a big Fazio fan).  It is not in the same league as Gozzer Ranch (ID) which I played last year, and Wade Hampton (NC) is clearly better (in my always humble opinion) but otherwise it is one of the best Fazio’s I have played…in the same league as Diamond Creek (NC), Estancia (AZ), John’s Island-West (FL), and Martis Camp (CA) among others.  Back better than front and best holes are #7, 12, 14, and 15 and most interesting is #8:

            #7…tough 496 yard par 4 that starts with a fairly mundane looking tee shot and a superb setting of the approach (in that regard, similar to the brilliant #15 at Gozzer Ranch);

#8…187 yard downhill par 3 created by blasting out tons of volcanic rock which uncovered a long, deep lava tube underground (now visible from the “crater” created by the blasting and excavation) and created a green setting surrounded on three sides by a 10’ high wall of lava rock;

#12 is a short 500 yard par 5 that gets very interesting in its final 100 yards due to a small green (with a “false left side”) hidden behind a large fairway bunker positioned about 65-80 yards from the center of the green (and at the base of a small hill that blocks any view of the green if you lay up short of the bunker);

#14 is a short/drivable 312 yard par 4 uphill to a very very narrow but deep (56 yards) green that slopes from front to back over a crest and surrounded by small dunes left and right; off the tee, the player must decide whether to try to carry a very large bunker in the center of the fairway about 75-100 yards short of the green center;

#15 is a tough tough 515 yd par 5 favoring a draw off the tee and a fading second to a raised green angled from right front to back left.

At 7456 yards (par 72), this is a big course which includes a 676 yard par 5 ninth hole. 

While it would be hard to consider this to be a “natural” course, it is really very well done.  We were the first played off and finished in exactly three hours…and it was off to Crosswater.

Crosswater Club October 27, 2015:  Located in Sunriver, OR about 20 miles south of Bend.  Opened just over 10 years ago, Crosswater was completed just over 20 years ago.   It is a very big course…stretching to 7683 yards (par 72).  The Little Deschutes River crosses the course seven times and results in a lot of wetlands coming into play.  It was designed by Robert Cupp and in terms of Top 100’s, it has been:

            --on Golf Digest’s USA list in 1999 and 2001 (peak rating #80 in 1999)

            --on my merged Golf Week USA list 1997-2002 (peak #58 in 2001)

It is relatively flat, obviously long, and very tough.  But it is also somewhat dated.  Good course but not Top 100 quality today.  It did however win the “battle of the par 5’s” having extended its 12^th hole to 687 yards, thereby beating Pronghorn’s #9 by 11 yards.  I played from the White/Senior tees…6138 yards total and 572 yards on this 12^th…and somehow did not reach #12 in three.  Not my style of course (although I sunk a 6 footer on 18 for a 79). 

We played Crosswater in three hours but it was chilly and damp especially on the back.  Got all 6 USA courses in over the past 5 days.  Actually made the 36 today with plenty of time to spare. 

List Status:

OK…where do we stand?  First, now have played:

            --785 courses over my lifetime;

            --125 courses to date in 2015 (94 of which were new for me)

            --166.5 rounds to date this year

In terms of bucket list, aside from completing all Walker Cup Match host courses, the following improvements (items in italics) in my lists were made:

1.     Worldwide Top 100 Ever from seven sources: 263 courses on list, 245 played, and 18 to go (Asia—11, Australia/NZ—5; Europe and Caribbean 1 each).

2.     US Open Venues: 54 in total, 52 played and two to go (Skokie-IL and Brae Burn-MA)

3.     1939 “First Top 100” (spoof): 101 courses (two tied for 100 spot), 81 played, 5 no longer exist, and 15 to go (England-6; USA-1; Cont Europe-3; S Africa-2; Canada-1; Sri Lanka-1; Vietnam-1)

4.     USA Top 100 Ever from five sources: 338 courses on list, 293 played, 2 no longer exist, and 43 to play

5.     Men’s Major Venues Ever:  total of 121 courses, 93 played, 1 no longer exists, and 29 to go (2 US Open...see #2 above; 27 PGA)

6.     “Cups”—Walker, Ryder, and Presidents: total of 69 courses, 56 played, and 13 to play (RC-12; PC-1)

The next 16 days or so will make major improvements in #1 and a small improvement in #6 if the trip goes as planned.  Will feed you updates as the trip proceeds.

Flight back to San Francisco went smoothly and again stayed at Cal Club.  It is now Wednesday mid-day as I get ready to fly to Seoul this afternoon.

Interesting Ride:

Made good use of Uber on this trip as I did not rent cars in Seattle or San Francisco.  Sunday night on my ride from SFO to Cal Club, I asked my driver a few questions…they are summarized below with his answers in italics:

1.     Where are you from?  Beirut Lebanon

2.     How long have you been driving for Uber?  Two years

3.     Do you have another job?  I am studying at U of Cal (Berkeley)

4.     What field and what degree are you seeking?  Masters degree in Nuclear Engineering.

5.     What do you plan to do when you get the degree?  Go back to Beirut.

You can draw your own conclusions, but my bet is that he has a federally funded grant paying his way for his studying here.

21. Continue Trip from MA to NC October 3-9, 2015

Continue Trip from MA to NC October 3-9, 2015

Medford Village CC October 7, 2015:  Medford Village lies in NJ about 15 miles from Philadelphia.  In 1969, Golf Digest published it’s first USA Top 100 (and perhaps the first Top 100 ever…as GD’s 1966/67 efforts were “200 Toughest” listed alphabetically, and the 1939 World list from golfclubatlas.com was a spoof).  GD’s 1969 list was intended to be the top 100 “Tests” in the USA, and Medford Village was in the 51-60 bracket.

Simply put, its inclusion is a prime example of the poor quality of lists way back then.  People didn’t travel like they do now, there was no internet (Al Gore was busy inventing other things), and the editors (I doubt there were panelists then) were in many cases just guessing or going off course ratings.  Not to mention the sacrifices your truly must make to complete his stupid bucket lists J

At 7135 yards (par 72), Medford Village is a long test.  It is flat, tight (every fairway lined with trees…a wee bit claustrophobic), over watered, and boring (for a top 100…compared to most to the 15,000 or so courses in the USA, it is OK to good).  One surprise...completed in 1964, its greens are very small for that era.  In any case, I am pleased to have it in my rear view mirror.

Plainfield CC, October 7, 2015:  Plainfield CC was founded in 1890 as a tennis club and evolved into more of a golf club over the decades.  I had played it once before in 1986 and hardly remembered it.  In those days it was choked with evergreens.  In fact, I could not recall a single aspect of the club or course during my visit this week.  In recent years Plainfield went through a set of brilliant renovations that included the removal of hundreds of trees and opened up the course and its vistas. 

Plainfield hosted the 1978 US Am (won by John Cook) and the 1987 US Woman’s Open (won by Laura Davies) as well as the 2011 and 2015 Fed Exp Cup Barclays.  The grandstands from the 2015 Barclay were still being disassembled on 10/7, about three weeks after the event.

The course was designed by Donald Ross and opened for play in 1921.  It has been a mainstay on the USA lists, only missing two early Golf Week lists and appearing in 56 of the 58 Top 100 lists.  When looking at the full Golf Week classic/modern lists and including the 1966/67 200 Toughest from GD, Plainfield has appeared in 59 of 60 (only missing the 1966 GD Toughest).  Its highest rating on a USA list was #34 (GD in 1985) and its highest current rating is #37 on my Golf Week merged list.

I must confess to have mixed emotions about Plainfield.  No question that the tree removal program and renovation have revealed the brilliance of the Ross design.  The land is excellent (with rolling fairways creating strategic decisions on many shots), the greens and bunkering are among Ross’ best (with more false fronts than my Junior High School classes), and the course is very fair, while being a real test.  It also was stretched to 7110 yards (par 72) for the PGA tour Barclays event…and that took some creative positioning of tees.  While these tees created a test worthy of the Fed Ex Cup playoffs, I believe they had a negative affect on the “flow” of the course, and I wonder if the club will come to regret this quest for hosting (every five years) such an important event.  Must say that I am not quite sure how I come out about Plainfield.  It is a brilliant design with one of the best sets of greens to be found anywhere, and I love the open vistas…but I am not enamored with the “feel” and “flow” with some of the new tees. 

One final point, it condition was good, and reflected the stress created by having such a large event three weeks prior with tons of play since, and heavy rains the previous weekend.  My strong sense is that on a regular basis, the playing conditions are excellent, firm, and fast.

Hollywood Golf Club, October 8, 2015:  The club was founded in 1898 and in 1916 its course underwent a major renovation under the guidance of Walter Travis (think Garden City GC and Ekwanok).  More recently, Rees Jones led a restoration project in 1998, and Tom Doak led one than was completed in two years ago.  It hosted the US Woman’s Senior Amateur won by Joan Higgins last year. 

While Hollywood has regularly been on Golf Week’s USA Top 100 Classic list, it has never been high enough to make the GW merged top 100.  It was, however, #59 in the spoofed 1939 World 100.

Over the years I had heard numerous positive comments about Hollywood.  The late Robert “Bobby” Jacobson won the club championship 25 times in a period of 28 years.  One of Bobby’s sons was a member of Quaker Ridge when I played there and Bobby’s golf exploits were legendary.  A friend in Pinehurst was a very senior partner at the Wall Street firm founded by Bobby as speaks in glowing terms about him.

On the other side of the coin, if you remember the demise of Bear Stearns, Hollywood GC was reputed to be where Bear Stearns’ chairman, Jimmy Cayne, spent a fair amount of time playing bridge while Bear fell apart in 2007-08.  While I played the course, I did not get a chance to see its bridge room.  Think that was the right choice.

The course is brilliant.  Sitting within a mile of the Atlantic (in Deal, NJ at the north end of the New Jersey Shore) it has a sand base, perfect for a great golf course.  The condition was just plain perfect…firm and fast with greens that were receptive to good shots but not to others.  The course was laid out on a large plot of land and has accommodated a stretching to 7,040 yards (par 71) without contorting the layout or flow of the 18 holes.  The greens and bunkering are fabulous, and the fairways are quite wide, creating strategic decisions for the player.  This is another “hidden gem” and certainly one that a golfer could play every day without getting bored. 

Best holes are:

            --#3…462 yard par 4 with green sharply sloping from back left to front right, places a real premium on the approach shot (do not be above the hole) while giving the player several strategic alternatives for the approach (since the front of the green is wide open albeit with a mild false front)

            --#4…150 yard uphill par 3 to a green with 7 deep bunkers in front and on both sides of the green…and a green sloping severely from back to front (thereby protecting the back of the putting surface and a very deep sharply sloping false front)…no place to hide on this one!  (See pic)

            --#12…460 yard par 4 from raised tee and then flat to green…with a mere 39 bunkers (yup, I did count them) guiding your way through a split fairway..a brute of a hole

            --#13…334 yard par 4 doglegging sharply left with perfectly place fairway bunkers (including a Principal’s Nose bunker) forcing a player to decide what direction and distance to play their tee shot.  Green is very narrow up front and widens in back, while sloping sharply from back to front and left to right (reminding me of the 3^rd green at Winged Foot West)…a great drivable par 4

            ---#14…438 yard par 4 uphill of tee to fairway that crests and then flows down hill to large green sloping from back left to front right and fronted by an angled stream (that was a mouthful).  Fairway protected by bunkers left and right near the crest of the hill.

This was a wonderful way to complete by tour of New Jersey...especially with the help of a 10’ par putt to allow me to bring it home with 79 strokes.

Had to run after the round to try to avoid as much of Washington DC’s traffic as possible.  Drove down to Williamsburg VA for last round of journey the next morning.  But looking back, amazed that I actually got in all 10 rounds at the 10 courses that I had originally planned (plus a bonus 9 holes at Montclair GC) despite some horrendous weather along the way.  Patience, and flexibility pays off.

Stonehouse Golf Club, October 9, 2015:  Stonehouse is a Mike Stranz creation that in 1998 was rated #31 on Golf Week’s USA Top 100 Modern courses and #62 on my merged Golf week list.  Simply put, it ain’t no longer.  It is in terrible shape, requires immense drives (you wouldn’t dare try to walk it) from green to tee, has deep holes around sprinklers and drains in the fairways that are like potholes in NYC, etc etc etc.  This course is awful (to put it nicely) and I am pleased to have it in my rear view mirror. Enough said.

Roaring Gap Golf Club, October 11, 2015:  Pat and I made a quick trip to the NC mountains on Sunday to visit friends and play Roaring Gap GC, a wonderful Donald Ross creation (restored by Kris Spence a few years ago) with a fascinating history.  The Tuft’s family (founders of Pinehurst) and Donald Ross created Roaring Gap as a summer retreat for members of Pinehurst.  In late Spring, much of the staff from Pinehurst would move to Roaring Gap for the summer months, and members of both would be served by the same staff they knew from Pinehurst.  A little event known as the Great Depression created some problems with that business model, but Roaring Gap continued on as a separate entity controlled by the wealthy families of Winston-Salem, NC (big $$ there being associated with Reynolds Tobacco which was not as drastically affected by the Depression as other companies).  With Winston a mere hour away, Roaring Gap is a perfect weekend retreat for escaping the hot NC summers in the mountains (3600’ elevation).

While Sunday was a glorious day, it had rained heavily the day before, so the course was not playing its usual fast/firm conditions.  But the bones of the course are obviously superb, and I hope to get back when it is playing as it normal does…question is, when?, since we are in Boston from Late May thru early Oct each year.

Status of Bucket Lists

1.     --Worldwide Top 100 Ever from seven sources: 263 courses on list, 244 played, and 19 to go (Asia—11, Australia/NZ—5; Europe, USA, and Caribbean 1 each).

2.     US Open Venues: 54 in total, 52 played and two to go (Skokie-IL and Brae Burn-MA)

3.     1939 “First Top 100” (spoof): 101 courses (two tied for 100 spot), 81 played, 5 no longer exist, and 15 to go (England-6; USA-1; Cont Europe-3; S Africa-2; Canada-1; Sri Lanka-1; Vietnam-1)

4.     USA Top 100 Ever from five sources: 338 courses on list, 291 played, 2 no longer exist, and 45 to play

5.     Men’s Major Venues Ever:  total of 121 courses, 93 played, 1 no longer exists, and 29 to go (2 US Open...see #2 above; 27 PGA)

6.     “Cups”—Walker, Ryder, and Presidents: total of 70 courses, 56 played, and 14 to play (WC-1; RC-12; PC-1)

Next Trip—West coast quickie on way to Asia…South Korea, Bali, China, and Singapore…Oct 25-Nov 12!!!  Stay tuned.  Hoping to make a small dent in some of the above lists.

20. Trip from MA to NC October 3-9, 2015

Trip from MA to NC October 3-9, 2015

Before starting on my NY/NJ/VA trip, I need to add some thoughts about Timber Point and make a correction to my Top 100 Spreadsheet.

Timber Point: In my previous post, I was fairly negative about Timber Point.  It has been pointed out to me that the original club had only 18 holes and since the club folded (and the property was taken over by Suffolk County) another 9 holes were added with no additional land involved.  I was advised to read the description of it in Dan Wexler’s Missing Links.   The original course was designed by Charles Alison, one of the greatest architects ever and of the 18 holes I played, I believe 13 are “as they were” on the original.  The phrase “as they were” is in quotes, as they are not close to the original based on Wexler’s course layout drawing.  For example, #8 is shown in Wexler’s book with 23 bunkers along both sides…it now #7 and has one greenside bunker and lots of water and marshes on both sides (terrible hole with almost no place to lay up on a second shot).  The bunkers throughout the course are much smaller …and many have been eliminated.  So, I stand by my point regarding Timber Point today, but that is a not reflection of what it was like about 90 years ago.

Top 100 Spreadsheet:  Many of you are on the distribution list for my Top 100 Spreadsheet (also often referred to as the “World’s Greatest Spreadsheet).  Several days ago, it was pointed out that I have a mistake on v76 (which has also been in most of the previous versions of the spreadsheet).  Specifically, on the “Worldwide” worksheet, the 1997 Golf Magazine Worldwide Top 100 (column “Y” in v76) excludes #96, The Estancia Club (AZ).  As Estancia only made that one appearance on any World 100 (of the ones I track), it does appear at all on this worksheet.  I shall add it for my next version (v77).  Please note that no other course is labeled #96 in 1997.  I sincerely apologize for this grievous error, which should have been found in the proofing process.  I have no excuses, but expect to have some (if not all) of my Spreadsheet pay to be withheld…and must admit this is deserved.

Knoll Country Club (West) October 3, 2015:  After several years driving together between Boston and Pinehurst, Pat and I realized that these long trips in a car were not healthy for our relationship (nicely put!).  She hated the long drive (especially my driving), and I wanted to stop and play golf courses..  Sooo, we worked out a great compromise, which made both of us happy…she flies back and forth and I drive and play “some” (of course never an excessive amount) golf along the way.  This year she was invited to a Woman’s Member-Guest in Chattanooga, and I decided to explore courses in NJ that I had never played.

I left Boston Saturday 10/3 at 7:35am to start the trip.  The weather all up and down the east coast was horrendous and my carefully planned trip could easily fall apart.  The plan was to start by playing Hollywood Golf Club on Saturday afternoon, but I called and it was closed due to the weather (Hollywood is in Deal, NJ and is very close to the Atlantic at the northern end of the NJ shore).  After several calls, I found that Knoll CC-West (originally scheduled for Monday morning) was open for play…so it was to Knoll (in Parsippany, NJ) that I headed.  I got there around 1:30pm and was able to get right off #1.  There were a few groups on the course, and they were very slow, so I hopped around in my cart (as the course was VERY wet, carts had to be kept on cart paths) playing in order: 1-2, 4, 6-7, 5, 8-9, 13-18, 10-12, and 3…got in all 18 in about 2:30.

Knoll has only made one Top 100 list…the “spoof” 1939 list where it was #85.  Knoll was built by Charles Banks, who took over Seth Raymor’s design and course construction business upon Raynor’s untimely death in 1926 (at the age of 51).  As Knoll opened 3 years later, it seems questionable that Raynor was its designer, but who knows?  Banks is generally given credit for the course.  It was certainly not in very good condition, and it was very very wet (tons of rain, it was all of 50 degrees, and the it blowing at about 25mph…what was I doing there?).  But it was fun seeing the “superb bones” from a Raynor?/Banks track…large bunkers, squared off greens with wonderful mounding, and the usual template holes (which one invariably compares to others one has seen).  The Biarritz here had the dip in front of the green.

Paramount CC October 4, 2015:  While never having appeared on a World or USA 100, I have wanted to check out Paramount because a friend (and fellow golf nut, who again will go un-named as per my policy) became involved with the ownership and management of the club, which previously was Dellwood CC on Rockland County, NY.

I stayed at Paramount the night of 10/3, but made a nostalgic stop on my way from Knoll.  The stop was at New York CC, which is about 5 miles from Paramount.  Back in 1973/74, the predecessor to New York CC was the world’s first “singles golf club” (and I was a member “in good standing” for two golfing seasons) and was perfectly named “Chateau de Vie”.  The golf course was not exactly of Top 100 quality, but when you grew up playing the Kissena Golf Course in Queens (a true “muni”) it was world class in comparison (Chateau de Vie even had grass on its tees). Today’s course has been renovated but the basic layout seemed to be unchanged (I didn’t play it but did walk around a couple of holes). 

Ahh yes, those were the good old days, at least as well as I can remember them.  What happened at Chateau de Vie stayed at Chateau de Vie!! 

Moving on…on Sunday morning at 7:30 I went off the first tee of Paramount.  The course is on the former home of the founder of Paramount Pictures, Adolf Zukor, and was designed by A. W. Tillinghast and opened in 1920.  Dellwood CC ran into financial problems several years ago and the club was sold to investors.  Noted architect Jim Urbina oversaw a major renovation of Paramount that was completed about 2 years ago.

It is located in a beautiful setting surrounded by foothills.  It is also very hilly with almost no flat holes.  I took a cart…it would be a very difficult walk (and I was playing 36 this day).   Best holes are:

--#2 (590 yard sharply downhill par 5, turning right to left),

--#3 (135 yard par 3 uphill to green well protected by bunkers in front and a green that slopes sharply back to front; #6 (406 yard uphill par 4 to an infinity green),

--#12 (394 yard dogleg left…with reverse camber (fairway slopes to right)…and a green with a brutal back to front slope…do NOT be over this green!), and

--#16 (450 yard par 4 bending right to left with a nicely rumpled fairway and a brutal green sloping right to left.

There is a public road that transverses #1 and #7, which creates architectural issues (and perhaps insurance/safety issues), but design changes are presently being contemplated for the better.  Like any major renovation, this is a work in progress.  The course certainly has excellent bones, and while I never saw it pre-Urbina, the result to date is excellent.  However, one word of caution…the greens here are as tough as you will find.  They are in excellent condition, but they are among Tillie’s toughest, especially given today’s green speeds.  The course is only 6781 yards (par 70) from the tips and the greens are its primary defense, but you do not want to place any bets here without control of your putting stroke.  It is in very very good condition, and for sure, drains superbly…showing no after effects from the heavy rains of the previous couple of days.

Head pro is Steve Scott, who took Tiger Woods to 37 holes in the 1996 US Amateur at Pumpkin Ridge outside of Portland, OR.  Great guy and superb player.

In summary, despite not having the additional benefits offered some 42 years ago by its former neighbor Chateau de Vie, this one is definitely worth visiting.

Canoe Brook-North October 4, 2015: After a 40 minutes drive south into New Jersey, arrived at Canoe Brook CC in Summit, NJ.  Club was founded in 1901, it expanded from 9 to 18 holes shortly thereafter and then underwent a major revision in 1916 under the architectural direction of Walter Travis (noted architect and designer of Garden City GC—NY, Westchester CC—NY, and Ekwanok—VT).  The second course (“South”) opened in 1924. 

Around 1950, the Club completed a major land swap with Prudential Insurance that resulted in a relocation of 7 North Course holes, and the eventual building of the Short Hills Mall on the land that ended up in Prudential’s hands.  The renovation was guided by Alfred Hull.  In the 1960’s and early 1970’s, an major expansion of Route 24 resulted in a loss of land affecting both course and Robert Trent Jones was brought in to oversee the changes…and 20 years later his son Rees Jones oversaw a set of new changes.

It was included in Golf Digest’s 1967 “200 Toughest” and in the 91-100 bracket of the Digest’s 1969 “Best Tests” (both covering USA courses).

Quite a bit of turbulence over these 114 years, and the net effect was not very beneficial at least to my eye.  Canoe Brook-North is now a long, tough 7115 yards with a number of good holes (especially holes 6, 12-17 which lie on more interesting land than the other 12 holes).  It is a very good championship test, but feels a little like Winged Foot West without the brilliance of Tillinghast’s bunkering and greens, and lacks the charm and mystery necessary to make a fun course one might want to play every day.  To be fair, its greens had been deep punched 3-4 days earlier (I do not recall be told that during my phone conversation with the pro shop…but then again, my memory doesn’t always work real well, and Pat would tell you I am not the world’s best listener), but frankly, I do not think my conclusion would change much.

Atlantic City CC October 5, 2015:  The weather over the weekend forced a number of changes to a detailed 7 day, 11 course plan.  Driving to NJ from MA on Saturday, I wondered how much of the trip would be lost because of the weather.  Exhibiting some rarely seen patience, I was able to piece together a new itinerary (after a lot of cell phone calls from my car) that amazingly looked like I might be able to get in all 11.  However, it now included a couple of extra N-S round trips through New Jersey adding some 400 miles to the plan. 

I now had to go 110 miles south to Atlantic City, and my hotel reservation was 20 miles north in Parsippany…or so I thought.  When I got to the hotel, I discovered my reservation was for different dates (early November).  Hopefully, I will be able to get a refund from Hotles.com…we book a lot of rooms there.  But driving south at 5:30pm on a Sunday was certainly going to be easier than leaving at 4:45am Monday morning!!  And it gave me a chance to stay at The Donald’s (former) Taj Mahal casino/hotel…at a very cheap rate.  So, to the south I headed.

The next morning, I headed over to Atlantic City CC.  Went off at 7:30am.  I had a game arranged with a member, but he was a no show…clearly too scared to have a head to head against me.  No signs of him in the locker room…see picture below…his locker is the one on the left and it was closed.

Seriously, the club has an amazing history.  It has hosted the 1901 US Am (won by Walter Travis), the 1948, 1965, and 1975 US Women’s Opens (won by Babe Zaharias, Crol Mann and Sandra Palmer respectively), as well as the 1967 Senior Woman’s Am and the 1997 Woman’s Mid-Am (won by Marge Mason and Carol Semple Thompson respectively…simply an amazing collection of USGA Champions.

Visitors to the club since its opening in 1897 included Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Jackie Gleason, and my chicken opponent, Al Capone.

The golf course was originally designed by John Reid in the very late 19^th century.  More recently, Tom Doak was brought in for a highly successful restoration.  However, the club appears to have fallen on hard times.  Atlantic City’s casinos have lost market share to the numerous Native American casinos, and that has to have affected the club.

While the course was not in great condition, it was very very playable.  The front nine is good with several very tough holes, but the back nine is superb, with five holes on or in the vicinity of the tidal marshes, including an excellent Cape Hole, and two outstanding par 3’s.

In summary, worth visiting if you are in Atlantic City…but not worth a separate trip.

Montclair CC October 5, 2015:

Drove north about 115 miles to West Orange, NJ to play Montclair.  Montclair, founded in 1893, has 36 holes, three nines designed by Donald Ross in 1920 (#1, 2, and 3) and one nine designed by Charles Banks in 1928 (#4). Just as Seth Raynor was “passed the baton” by C. B. Macdonald, after Raynor’s death at the age of 51, Banks assumed the baton, and carried on with the same basic architectural philosophy.  Montclair has not appeared on any of the Top 100 list that I follow.  It did host the 1985 UA Am, won by Sam Rudolf (no relation…and neither are our golf games related).

The property is extremely hilly…given I was planning on playing 36 or more, I took a cart.  Would be a very tough walk.  I went off first on the Banks Nine (#4) and enjoyed it a lot.  Then played #2 (# 2 and #4 are the two nines used in the 1985 US Am).   Being a Ross design it certainly felt different that the Banks…the lack of geometrical lines was very obvious, but of course the greens were diabolical.  Must admit to liking the Raynor nine the best.  Then again, Raynor is my favorite architect…just love to compare the various treatments of the template holes in my mind, and to imagine the thought process he went through to fit them in.

Played the three nines (#2-#3-#4) in 40-39-41…pretty good for playing this place for the first time without a caddy.  Interesting that the 41 was on the Raynor Nine.  Net net, good golf course but not great…land too hilly to really make a great course.

Tuesday night stayed at the home of my friend who is involved with Paramount.  Was wonderful to meet Melissa and Steve’s beautiful daughters, and to have one night without checking into a hotel!!

Morris County GC, October 6, 2015:  Up early and was off on a relatively short 20 mile drive to Morris County…knowing absolutely nothing about the course except for a short comment from Steve the evening before and that it hosted the 1898 US amateur (yup…1898!!).  The course was founded in 1894 and by the end of that year had a membership roll listing almost 400 members.  It was at the time the only club in the country organized and managed by women (take that Martha Burk!).  For years, it was run by the wives of the members of Baltusrol, and in 1916 reorganized and became totally unaffiliated.  At that time, the golf course (which started with 9 holes) was redesigned and renovated by Seth Raynor, whose fingerprints are happily all over the grounds.

Morris County have never been on a World or USA Top 100...something I do not understand.

As soon as I saw the first fairway, I knew I would love the place and I did.  That fairway and many others reminded me of the land at Minneapolis GC and White Bear Yacht Club in MN...rolling with huge mounds and nary a flat lie anyplace, wonderfully rolly-polly and humpty-dumpty.  The first green, which slopes sharply from right to left was also a wonderful wake up call.  BTW, on #1, I faced blind shots on both my drive and approach…loved it…as the Scots say “ a shot is only blind once.”  The first six holes are relatively short and I was even par through 6, but then the real golf course started and I cooled down.  Best template hole in my mind is the Eden 17^th…186 yards and slightly downhill to sharply sloped green…but the most dastardly green is certainly #18….right in front of the clubhouse so everyone can see you three or four putt.

Ended the round without a thee putt on 18, which allowed me to have a 79…which felt real good given the number of blind shots here.  Have to come back and play this one again next year…it is a true Hidden Gem.  May only be 6522 yards, but that is 6522 yards of pure fun!

Somerset Hills CC, October 6, 2015:   Pat and I had the privilege of playing SHCC four

years ago, and we both loved it.  Well, it is now much better!  But first some background

information.  SHCC was organized in 1899 and was then located along the Raritan River. 

In 1918 the club moved to its present location and retained A. W. Tillinghast to design

and build the new course…and he built perhaps his finest, and certainly his most unusual

course.  Tillie was not known for building template holes, but here one finds a Principal’s

Nose as well as a Biarritz…both on the same hole (#13 “Corner”) as well as a Redan (#2),

that is not just a Redan, but one of the best anywhere (see picture below taken from #8

and showing the slope on the Redan green from a distance).  And the greens here are as

fine a set of Tillie greens anywhere.

Since our last visit, hundreds and hundreds of trees have been removed, thereby opening

up brilliant vistas, especially on the front, and further improving the quality of the turf. 

Best holes in my mind are 2, 3, 5, 7-9. 11, 13, 15, and 17.  But there is not a weak hole in

the 18.  Some players strongly prefer the back to the front, and they are very different, but

I love both.  Only 6746 yards from the tips, it is no pushover.  It hit it well and ended the

day with an 85.  Playing with Steve (who has played it many times) and his friend Dave

was great.  

SHCC has been a regular on the World and USA Top 100 lists, peaking at 64 in 1991 in

the GM Worldwide list and 38 on the GM USA 100 published last month.  My strong

sense is that it will continue to rise in the rankings in future years.

As good as the course is, the club is even better. The words “quiet” and “understated “ do

not begin to describe the atmosphere.  In summary, if you get the chance to play it, do so!

Hard to beat Morris County and Somerset Hills on the same day.  But had to then drive about 75 miles south to be ready to play Medford Village the next morning.