The Players Championship

TPC Sawgrass

A Master Piece After All

Anyone watching the Players Championship last week could see that the golf course was in immaculate condition.  Quite possibly the best condition it has ever been in for the tournament.  Such a beautiful and natural setting for a golf course did not start out this way.  Arguably, the best “bad site” architect we have ever seen, Pete Dye literally turned the Sawgrass property upside down during construction.  A nasty layer of marl and organic matter was scraped off the top of the golf course and sand from underneath was excavated and stockpiled.  The marl was put back down, or maybe buried, and the sand was replaced so that the shaping of the golf course could begin. 

When Sawgrass first opened, it was not well received, coming under fire by many of the professionals the first few years of the tournament.  Initially, I did not appreciate the geometric bunkering, the miles of bulkheading and the tricked-up island green.  It certainly has grown on me.  Mr. Dye and the PGA Tour have made many adjustments to the golf course which has improved the playability, aesthetics and conditioning.  And, of course, the seventeenth hole is now must-see television.

There are many unique features associated with Sawgrass.  One of the most obscure for the casual golf fan is the amount of internal drainage basins.  At the time, it is one of the first “internally drained” golf courses ever built.  I have written previously that Jack Nicklaus’ early visit to Sawgrass gave him the idea to internally drain Desert Highlands Golf Club.  The extensive internal drainage, in theory, will help contain and prevent wayward balls from entering a hazard or going out of bounds.  It also prevents surface runoff from entering sensitive native areas or pristine water features.  Unfortunately, this style of drainage was taken to extremes during the 1980s and 1990s.  I once saw a set of golf course construction drawings with 300 catch basins.  Thankfully we have backed way off of that heavy-handed design style. 

I recently read a piece by National Golf Foundations’ David Lorentz, https://www.thengfq.com/2021/03/cracking-the-code/, where he points out how important “shot euphoria” is for golfer retention.  Well, I’ve played TPC Sawgrass and unless you have a high golf skill level, shot euphoria will be hard to come by!  That’s ok, because the golf course is supposed to do that.  It is designed to challenge the greatest players in the world and it does a very good job with that.  I’m not sure I would want to play it every day, but it is a truly remarkable test of golf for elite players.

Mr. Lorentz’ article also speaks to the need for creating a welcoming environment for all levels of player.  So, we need to make golfers feel welcome and we need to provide golf courses that give everyone a chance to feel like they can play the game.  I, for one, believe the customer service piece is maybe not easy, but certainly straight forward and achievable.  The golf design challenge should be taken seriously by all of us who have influence.  When the chance is there to provide a fun place to play golf, let’s tuck our egos away and do what’s right for the game. 

Do Golf Courses Really Need Bunkers?

Do Golf Courses Really Need Bunkers?

Yes, and they should be visible, playable and maintainable.

- Steve Wolfard

Most of us who are engaged in the game of golf have a love hate relationship with bunkers.  As players, many of us would like to see less of them in our way as we maneuver around the golf course.  Superintendents and their staff can work very hard and spend 30% or more of the labor budget on bunker maintenance only to have the golf professional staff report customer complaints regarding the consistency and playability of the bunkers.  Golf construction companies spend an enormous amount of time and resources with specialty machines and hand labor to craft the bunkering to an architect’s vision.  A vision many times communicated using cases of spray paint, sketches and detailed narratives from the architect.  There are about as many bunker “styles” as there are golf courses and every architect is compelled to provide a unique style for their clients.  Some even have specialty bunker shapers who only shape bunkers.

Why do we bother ourselves with a golf feature so expensive and problematic?  Well, let’s explore the benefits.

·  You can use the analogy that bunkers are icing on the cake.  A golf course sans bunkers is like a cake without icing.  Visually bland and forgettable.  Johnny Miller said to me once that all great golf courses have “significant” bunkering.  I really like that quote because significant can mean many things.  On an average piece of property, bunkering can be the most important visual component for creating interest and memorability.  Unless the property is on an ocean, carved through a mature forest or routed through natural sand dunes, bunkers can be the best tool in an architect’s tool box to create visual interest and strategy.

·  Ben Crenshaw has said that bunkers are supposed to guide you around the golf course.  They are incredibly important in this regard as they can tell you where to go and where not to go.  They can also be “friendly” bunkers as A. W. Tillinghast relates in Gleanings From the Wayside.  Tillinghast, a Golden Age architect, would position bunkers to catch wayward balls from going into trouble such as water, ravines or deep woods.

·  Strategically bunkers are important for obvious reasons.  Another Golden Age architect, Alister MacKenzie, was quoted as saying the best place to put a bunker is where the golfer wants to hit the ball.  This can be said another way.  Bunker placement can and should draw your eye to the target and help the player really focus on how to play the golf hole.

Now let’s explore why bunkers can be a problem.

· The use of bunkers can be a crutch for architects.  How do you fill space on a golf course, create contrast or frame a tee shot?  Well, all too often, to accomplish one of these important tasks, sand is the answer.  A bunker sometimes turns into a series of bunkers.  And those bunkers need to be offset with more bunkers on the other side of the fairway.  And the fairway bunkers need to be triangulated visually with greenside bunkers.  Now there are 8 bunkers where 3 would have sufficed.  Tillinghast was a consultant for the P.G.A late in his career and proudly said that he personally “condemned” 8,000 bunkers during his visit to nearly 400 golf courses.  Golf courses were over-bunkered then and are still over-bunkered.

· Bunkers should be visible, playable and maintainable.  Easy to say and hard to do, especially if you would like architecturally significant bunkers.  Honestly, this design skill takes years to learn and is too complicated to discuss in depth here.  Suffice it to say, mistakes are still being made on all three fronts.

·  It is amazing how many bunkers only penalize the lesser skilled players.  Unless these bunkers have a very important additional purpose, then what’s the point of them being there?  They just increase maintenance cost and slow down play.

The main reason I broached this topic about bunkers is to encourage golf course owners, operators and agronomists to really look hard at their golf courses from time to time and consider hiring a professional to partner with and perform a bunker study.  My eyes just glaze over when I see  golf courses “renovate” their 30 year old bunkers by simply pulling the old sand out and putting new sand back in.  This action is usually followed by a proclamation in the newsletter or on the website of “come see our new white sand bunkers”!  Many times, this is a fine approach especially if the bunkers are less than 10 years old and have been built and maintained properly.  But there comes a time due to over-edging, weather, flooding, the addition of sand for years and just wear and tear from the game of golf that every facility should take a step back and re-evaluate.  Also, does a public facility or lower end country club really need 80,000 square feet of bunkers (that is a lot by the way)?  What if they are also severely flashed due to over-edging and erosion?  Sparkly new sand and a liner are not going to help much.

Additional reasons to perform a bunker study or an Improvement Plan with bunkers as a central focus.

·  Restore the golf course bunkering to historical locations and strategy

·  Update the bunker locations and strategy to relate to changes in the game

·  Re-establish architectural style that has been lost due to over-edging, weathering and wear and tear or to establish an architectural style that was never there

·  Possible reduction in the number and size of the bunkers to reduce maintenance

·  Adjust the bunker style to improve playability, visibility or maintainability

·  Eliminate bunkers that are strategically or aesthetically non-factors

·   Eliminate bunkers that only penalize the less skilled player

As was previously mentioned, architects have created some of these problems.  You may ask why should I partner with someone who might not support the vision that is best for the golf course?  The architect may say all the right things, but how do I control that ego after they have been retained.  Well, that is exactly why you should go look at their work and talk with their former clients (especially the golf professional and agronomist).  Additionally, specific goals and objectives should be discussed and agreed to at the start of the bunker study and carried through the entire planning and construction phases.  Find an inclusive partner that will work transparently, keep everyone engaged and respect the history of the golf course.

Maumelle CC 16 Green

Maumelle CC 16 Green After

Jack Turns 80

Jack Turns 80!

He means more to me than many know. Personally, I owe him a lot!

- Steve Wolfard

It has been a few days since Jack Nicklaus’ 80th birthday and I have had time to reflect on my time working with him and just being around him for 13 years.  To say he had in impact on my golf career path is an understatement of the highest order.  Jack also had a lot of talent working with him and I was fortunate to learn from them as well.  Guys like Jay Morrish, Bob Cupp, Scott Miller, Jim Lipe, Tom Pearson, Ed Etchells and many others who supported Jack were more than willing to share everything they knew and help me along my golf design path.  Pete Dye was a significant influence on Jack and I am blessed to be from that golf design lineage. 

I don’t have a ton of Jack stories by I do have a few.  When I first moved to Florida to begin working with Jack’s agronomic team, I was helping out at Frenchman’s Creek in Jupiter.  Jack had just finished up a 1979 PGA Tour campaign that resulted in no victories for the first time since joining the Tour in 1962.  Approaching his 40 birthday, the experts were predicting that Jack was past his prime and certainly in the twilight of his amazing career.  Over the winter I saw him most every day on the range at Frenchman’s with Jack Grout his first and only teacher. His hard work paid off in 1980 when he won the U. S. Open and PGA Championships.

In the early 1980’s Jack was scheduled to play Tom Kite and Ben Crenshaw at the first Nicklaus designed golf course in Texas, The Hills of Lakeway, where I was the superintendent.  The exhibition match was close. After completing the front nine, Ben and Tom were leading Jack by a stroke or two.  Jack was clearly not happy with his play and proceeded to shoot a 30 on the back nine for a round of 65, besting the two UT alums by several strokes.  Jack’s competitiveness was clearly evident even in an exhibition. 

The 1986 Masters is an event that, if you were old enough to be a fan of golf, you certainly know where you were Sunday afternoon watching Jack win his sixth green jacket.  I was alone in a Scottsdale condo leaping in the air and yelling encouragement to the guy who was scheduled for a site visit the following week at the Desert Mountain project.  When he arrived onsite I really wanted to thank him for my thrilling Sunday afternoon, but that would have been really awkward and we just got to work as if nothing had happened!

It was during that same period of time that on another site visit Jack wanted to try some volcano bunkers.  A chocolate drop mound with the top scooped out was what he described.  He was back out a few weeks later and someone had the brilliant idea to put a couple of old tires in two of the bunkers, throw some diesel fuel on them and set them ablaze just before we walked up on the tee to look at the hole.  The flumes of black smoke were just amazing but Jack did not say anything for a bit until he quietly muttered “smart asses”.  We thought it was much more humorous than he did and the volcano bunkers did not make the cut.

Working with Jack was amazing in many ways.  His memory was incredible.  He was a designer who would gather a ton of information in order to make design decisions.  Providing that information kept me on my toes and educated me on what information was needed to design a great golf course.  One could argue that the strategy favored by Jack suited his game and fit his eye, but I contend that every golf designer does that even if it is unintentional.  I have my own approach to golf design now, but I still pull from my time with Jack and those exhausting site visits.  A few of those most basic principles are:

1.     Never compromise on quality construction means and methods

2.     Defend the Cardinal Rules of Golf Design

3.     Strategy is important, but not at the expense of beauty or visibility

Happy birthday Jack and thank you for all the memories!

The State of the Game

For ten years now many professionals in the golf business have been looking to diversify as a buffer to a stagnant golf industry.   Looking everywhere for more legs to add to the stool while trying to stay engaged in the core work that they are passionate about but for which there appeared to be shrinking demand.  Had golf just been overbuilt or had society changed and left golf behind?  Probably a bit of both.  The competition that was created was fierce and many golf facilities, golf companies and golf consultants did not make it.  The golf participation statistics had many questioning whether golf was a dying sport.  In fact, it had many questioning whether it made sense to be in the golf business at all.  The sell off of both private and public golf facilities has fueled a remarkable surge in the growth and development of golf course management and ownership companies.

The noteworthy thing about the downturn in golf is that from this negative we may have learned some things that will help us revitalize the golf business.  This troubling period has forced us to re-examine every aspect of the golf business and discover new ways to nurture this centuries old game back to health and in an exciting new direction.  But we had to answer some questions of which these are just a few.

How do we better introduce kids to the game?  
The short course with holes ranging from 30 to 125 yards is one that everyone can play and afford.  There is a great one at Pecan Hollow Golf Course.  www.pecanhollowgc.com

How do we get millennials interested in golf? 
To better fit their lifestyle introduce shorter golf play options (6, 9 and 12 holes), simpler rules, music in carts and technology into the mix.

How do we encourage women to play golf! 
It is important for them to have the right equipment and golf courses designed for learning the game without the intimidating atmosphere.  There is a fun par 30 nine hole golf course and onsite club fitting at Watters Creek.  watterscreekgolf.com/

How do we make golf practice more fun and interactive?  The best way is to provide larger practice ranges and short game areas with multiple options, angles and distinct targets.  Midland Country Club is a great example of a practice facility with something for everyone.  www.midlandcc.com/

How do we reduce the cost of maintenance and the use of water?  We can easily stop mowing from fence line to fence line and begin increasing non-maintained area without slowing down or negatively affecting play.

It's not that these amenities and strategies were not being created or addressed before 2008, but certainly we are less focused on the ROI potential of innovative golf strategies and more on providing the golf customer what they want.  There was a press release shared on the PGA of America website yesterday, which happened to be National Golf Day.  WE ARE GOLF, a coalition of the game’s leading associations and industry partners unveiled its new U.S. Golf Economy Report at the National Press Club in Washington, D. C.  The study, conducted by TEConomy partners, reported a 22% rise in activity directly driven by golf in 2016 compared to 2011.  Let's hope this is a sign that we are making an impact and that we are beginning to provide for an express lane into the game of golf.  It is a great game and can provide a lifetime of fun and friendships!

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Golf Insights are written by Steve Wolfard. Steve is the chief principal designer and partner at Wolfard Golf Design. He focuses on architecture, routing, construction, agronomics and how these elements impact both the playability of the game he has loved his entire life and the business of the golf courses he has worked or collaborated on. Wolfard brings a personal and balanced approach to his clients that is built on trust as their project partner.    To learn how Steve can help your next project contact him directly at:  swolfard@wgolfd.com 

The Challenge of Course Set Up

The hand wringing over course setup at PGA tour venues always seems to hit a peak during U.S. Open week. During the U.S. Open, the USGA has a reputation of pushing the course setup limit and they did nothing to disparage that reputation last week at Shinnecock Hills. Many amateurs might enjoy watching the best players in the world struggle to make par, however Saturday afternoon was not good theater. Course conditions crossed the line Saturday from difficult to unfair.  
 
There are a couple of take away thoughts here. One is the length that a golf designer pushes the strategic difficulty of a golf course to challenge the best players does not always marry with elements of course setup or maintenance practices. There were a couple of 66s posted Saturday, albeit in the morning before the wind dried the greens and some of the pin locations became unreachable. Shinnecock has long been recognized as one of the best golf courses in the world and is designed to play hard and fast. When Coore and Crenshaw removed many of the trees in the recent restoration they exposed the course to the wind as per the original William Flynn design. It wasn’t the golf courses design elements that were unfair; it was the agronomic and strategic setup. Still, challenging these guys sometimes requires a course setup that pushes the limit.

US Open Course Review 2018. It’s important to walk the course.

The second takeaway when reflecting on championship caliber tournament preparation is how much the course setup can affect the opinions of the participants about the golf course and it’s design. An architect designs a golf course typically with a myriad of ways to play it.  It is the intent of the architect that the course setup explores all the options of the golf course. I have experienced this with the Byron Nelson Championship when it was held at TPC Four Seasons in Irving, Texas. Upon our urging, the PGA Tour staff used some of the options we incorporated into the renovation of the golf course in their tournament setup, but on many days, they did not adjust the golf course setup to better enhance the playability, particularly when there was wind. The setup negatively affected the performance of the players and their attitude toward the golf course as much or more than the actual design. I believe the architect would be a valuable resource when determining course setup.
 
Variety is an extremely important golf course design component - maybe the most important. However, if the persons in charge of setup, either for a tournament or just daily play, do not pay attention, the golf course could garner a reputation it does not deserve.

CLICK IMAGE TO SEE PHIL Tap it, Hit it, Tap it again!

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Golf Insights are written by Steve Wolfard. Steve is the chief principal designer and partner at Wolfard Golf Design. He focuses on architecture, routing, construction, agronomics and how these elements impact both the playability of the game he has loved his entire life and the business of the golf courses he has worked or collaborated on. Wolfard brings a personal and balanced approach to his clients that is built on trust as their project partner.    To learn how Steve can help your next project contact him directly at:  swolfard@wgolfd.com 

Balance in Golf Design: Part I

The common denominator in successful projects?

The focus of this two part series is to address the concept of balance in golf course design.  Not the balance that should be an intricate part of routing, strategy or hazard location, but the balance necessary within a design team.  As a former superintendent and now designer, I have worn multiple design team hats and have seen my share of balanced and unbalanced projects.  For the superintendent who will ultimately be responsible for maintaining the golf course, this issue is incredibly important.  Maybe even the difference between success and failure.  There has been a great deal of attention directed as to the influence that golf design has on the ability of superintendents to successfully maintain their golf courses.  Entire books could be written on the design and maintenance of each single component of a golf course, but let's consider the general issue of the balance required between golf design and golf maintenance.  

Not to disparage the magic that can happen in the field, but the most important phase of the design process for renovation/restoration or new course design is the planning phase.  This phase involves the development of the Master Plan or the Design Development Plan and includes most of the decisions that establish the “road map” for successfully meeting the goals and objectives of the project.  I learned early on in my Golden Bear years that it is important during this phase that a balanced team is put in place to make these decisions.  We have all been a part of or have knowledge of projects where the superintendent, engineer, irrigation designer or golf architect is left out of the early planning and the project becomes slanted or unbalanced as a result.  

The focus of the planning phase is to clarify and then satisfy the objectives that the golf developer, the club or the municipality have for their golf course.  The focus is not what decisions can the team make to satisfy the architects’ ego or what needs to happen to make the superintendent’s job as easy as possible.  If the developer has a goal to build a golf course that will be distinctive and unique, then certain maintenance concessions and/or commitments may be required to accomplish this.  If a municipality has a goal to upgrade their golf course in comparison to the competition, the historical mentality of their approach to golf course maintenance may have to be adjusted.  The point is, that the role of the individual superintendent and the superintendent industry should be to provide information and comment but not to dictate all the parameters that could handcuff the creativity of the design team.  Limiting the design creativity for maintenance simplicity, can result in golf courses that are uninspiring to look at and boring to play resulting in a lack of repeat business.  Conversely, a golf course that is too expensive to maintain versus revenue is also a loser. Anyone who plays the game has a love/hate relationship with bunkers.  Golf course superintendents probably fall on hate end of the ledger.  In Part II we will discuss how superintendents can be a part of the bunker design process.

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Golf Insights are written by Steve Wolfard. Steve is the chief principal designer and partner at Wolfard Golf Design. He focuses on architecture, routing, construction, agronomics and how these elements impact both the playability of the game he has loved his entire life and the business of the golf courses he has worked or collaborated on. Wolfard brings a personal and balanced approach to his clients that is built on trust as their project partner.    To learn how Steve can help your next project contact him directly at:  swolfard@wgolfd.com