[Adam_F_Collins]

On a recent trip to Northumberland Links here in Nova Scotia, I commented to a playing partner that I liked how they used the local red sand in the bunkers. The sand is the same color as the beaches and the rocks, and therefore looks right as a part of the landscape.

When we got to the 7th, I noticed that the sand in the greenside bunkers was brilliant white, silica sand.

At the turn, we met the super and I asked him about it. He told me that they were in the process of switching the whole course over to the silica because it was "much nicer to hit out of".

I know that many people just LOVE the white stuff, but I think that matching the bunker sand to the color of the earth in a given area is a key aspect of making a course appear more natural. To me, the brilliant white silica sand is one of the biggest causes of the unearthly appearance of so many golf courses.

I understand that silica dries faster, but what's the deal with sand?

Are sands with similar properties available in varying colors which might fit a given landscape? Or are the properties of the sand tied to that brilliant white?

[A.G._Crockett]

One of the really striking things about Cuscowilla is the use of red sand, in keeping with the Georgia red clay soil.  I have no idea if the sand is dyed or where one finds red sand, but it is a great look.

It is a bit disconcerting at first to expect the sand to be much more resistant than it is, because it looks like it ought to have clay in it.  It is, however, relatively fine-grained; your first bunker shot may leave the green complex at a high rate of speed!

[Jeff_Mingay]

Adam,

This is another terrible trend in golf, in my opinion. So many courses are switching to the blinding "white stuff". And, you're right, it only enhances an artificial look.

Witnessing the beauty of a course like Shinnecock this week, it continues to amaze me that a majority of golfers prefer the cleaned up look of, say, Augusta National. I guess that's the way people like everything on this dirty planet: cleaned up. So they want their golf courses no different.

A majority of golfers complain most about the "condition" of the bunkers at their home course, too. Probably because they're not very good, even decent, from playing out of bunkers. The easiest thing to do, it seems, is blame the sand. So, bring the the silica! It's a terrible trend.

When it was time to bring the bunker sand in at Blackhawk, we used a local quarry. The sand in the bunkers there is indigenous to the area. We'll see how long it lasts before they bring in the "white stuff"?

Geez...

[Dan Herrmann]

The most intersting sand I've every played out of was at Le Portage in Cheticamp, Nova Scotia.   Cheticamp is on the Gulf of St. Lawerence in a spot that receives occasional high wind speeds off the ocean.  

To prevent the sand from blowing away, they use a dry slurry of very small pebbles, sand, and other stuff.  It actually works fairly well.

It's a shame that folks want that "beautiful" sand.  After all, it is a hazard, isn't it?

[Bob_Huntley]

I think the most bizarre sand colorization was at Indian Wells C.C. for the Hope, in something like 1971. I played a practice round there with Bob Charles and the bunker sand (or silica) was red, white and blue on alternative holes. Charles' comments were not for publication.

[Dan Herrmann]

Yep - I have the 1969 Golf Digest Annual at home.  One of their upcoming trends is the introduction of pastel-colored sand at courses by the mid-70's.

Thank goodness they got that one wrong.

[Adam_F_Collins]

The most intersting sand I've every played out of was at Le Portage in Cheticamp, Nova Scotia.

How IS Le Portage, Dan?

I haven't made the trip to that coast of Cape Breton to play it. I've gotten mixed reviews, but what did you think of it?

[Mike_Young]

AG,
Cuscowilla is white sand that has become mixed with Georgia clay.  Just can't be helped.  But it is a nice look.

[Doug Braunsdorf]

A question I wanted to present has to do with the sand used in bunkers.  I noticed at Shinnecock (Sunday) that the bunker sand had many small pebbles in it, and some slightly larger pebbles in it.  Is this common practice at many courses?  The better courses I play on a regular basis don't have this composition in their bunkers.  Some of the munis do, and I just wondered.  I also read several players comments about them, and how this could potentially affect their bunker shots.  

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