Indianwood old in mich.

[mark chalfant]

I think this course has nice routing, good bunkering, and neat
architecture.
please share your impressions.

thanks !

[Jeff_Mingay]

Mark,

I played Indianwood Old earlier this summer, with Ben Dewar in fact.

It's a neat old golf course, with many original, old time design 'quirks' intact. There are very few trees on the property, too. From certain perches throughout the round you can see clear across most of the course. And, the 'native grass areas' that separate holes provide the property with a very attractive texture.

The holes are quite good, right from the first thru to the eighteenth; and, lay of the land indeed. Most importantly, they're fun to play!

But I'd describe the bunkers these days as 'pretty stale'. Most are a bit too clean; round, regularly edged, with white sand in them. A more rugged look for the bunkers would better suit the rustic nature of the property, I think.  

I found the fairways to be excessively narrow at several holes as well; admittedly though, I can't hit my driver straight! So, I'm likely unqualified to judge adequate fairway widths  

[David_Tepper]

Didn't they play the US Women's Open on this course 10-12 years ago? If this is the course I am thinking of, I recall it looked very good on TV and other pictures. For an inland course, it had an open, linksy look to it, with fescue grasses and mounding between the fairway rather than the tree-lined fairways you see on so many USGA-host courses.

[Gary_Smith]

I think the Women's Open has gone there twice in the last 15 years.

The place has sort of a Shinnecock look to it.

[Will E]

Wilfrid Reid's fantastic work north of the DTE Energy center. I consider the Old course one of the best in the state. More fun than Oakland Hills. An excellent combo of quirk, fun and objective examination. There are only a few courses in the state I'd rather play.  IO, IMHO is a better course than Shoreacres.

[M.W._Burrows]

I think it's one of the best courses I've played in Michigan.  I agree with everyone's comments about the layout as well.

Two things troubled me:

I saw pictures of the original bunkering in one of Geoff Shackleford's books.  Compared to the lousy Art Hills bunkering in place now the original bunkers would make that place incredible.  Wild, flashed sand similar to Cypress Point.  He put in a bunch of silly looking pot bunkers on 18 that stand out like a sore thumb.

The other thing that troubled me was the conditioning.  I've been told that the owner wants everything green at all times.  Therefore this inland links course didn't play well.  The fairways were thatchy and the greens were soft.  There were also a bunch of silly flower gardens that didn't fit this course.

[Scott_Burroughs]

Here is the aerial of Indianwood (Old), which was AOTD
#54.  It was one of my favorite aerials at the time.




Also, here is the AOTD #53 and #54 thread (#53 was TPC @ Sawgrass):

http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forums2/index.php?board=1;action=display;threadid=4440

[Ben Cowan-Dewar]

I agree generally with Jeff Mingay and Shooter, imagine that.

The bunkering was not stale throughout, some of the originals, including the cavernous ones on the first hole are still great.

The greens are an interesting set and the reference to Shinnecock, with the sea of fescue is somewhat deserving.

The problem with the bunkering is that so many have been added. The 18th - which is top centre in the aerial - has a massive grouping of bizarre bunkers. Seems they were added by the owner who wanted to bring the total up to the same as St. Andrews.

Regarding Jeff's comments on fairway width - while I am not sure how he ascertained it during our round - it is not just width at parts. Nine should be mowed down the hill, which would end the sidehill lies and arguably be more punishing. That hole has a lot of promise, when more fairway is added.

Holes of note for me were;
Four, which I understand used to have a tree. The bunker is a little more rugged than some of the others. Great driving hole, where the rough encroaches on the most interesting fairway on the course.

Six is the equivalent of 12 at Kingsley, in that to me it provides a very different look than you have seen, but I like it.

Eight is similar to Spyglass' eighth, but I like this one better. Again great landing area, which throws alignment off on the approach.

10 has a great green complex, with some neat bunkering, but the first half of the hole is bizarre.

13 is a brilliant par three, another reference to KC, similar to the fifth. This is probably my favourite hole.

17 is another awesome par three, with a wonderful green and tough greenside bunker, which despite its awful look, poses a stern hazard.

The 18th also has one of the greatest greens I have seen, and without the 30 bunkers would be a great hole.

[Peter_Herreid]

Bumping this old thread, as this course has come up several times (off line) in a couple of different discussions about multiple US Open sites (Women's)....

Did anyone have the opportunity to play Indianwood this year, and were the conditions more of the firm and fast variety?  Some of the folks in this old thread suggested that there had been a recent trend to softer, greener conditions, which seemed to be the opposite of what I remember from TV coverage, and from Scott's aerial, which was one of the more stunning, IIRC...

Peter