Vintage Mackenzie Pics

[Paul_Turner]

A few pics that caught my eye from "unknown" Mackenzie courses in the north of England; no idea what they're like now.


A True Mackenzie Green at Morecambe!


Again, Morcambe


Templenewsham


Possibly Mack himself on the green?!

[Tom MacWood (Guest)]

I particularly like the third photo - that green looks dangerous. After seeing about 100 photos of MacKenzie playing his own designs if that forth picture isn't MacKenzie I'll eat my hat and plus 4's (if I owned a hat and plus 4's). Is there any truth to the rumor that MacKenzie had a photographer document his honeymoons?

[Neil Crafter]

Paul
Wonderful photos and excellent digging to find them. I would concur with Tom's view that the last one does show the Dr putting, a view not disimilar to the well known pic of him playing out of the bunker on the 2nd at Cypress.
Paul would you consider allowing us to use them in the next issue of Golf Architecture. Pictures of early Mackenzie greens will tie in well with an article we have in the works about Mackenzie russell and Morcom at RMGC. Please let me know how you feel about this. Thanks.

Tom, how are you? Please let me know what you thought of the magazine and your article - we were thrilled the way it came up and hope you were too.
cheers
Neil

[TEPaul]

The green with MacKenzie on it couldn't be more than 5-6 steps wide. I don't think I've ever seen a green that narrow. And the third is something. They say he did some wild green contours over there--I would certainly say so.

[Craig_Dex]

Great pics!

With regard to the contouring, alot of his golf courses over here had similar contouring, but have since been softened due to the speed of today's greens.  Everyone talks about how undulating Augusta National's greens are, but they pale in comparison to their originals.  If the original Mackenzie greens were still in place at Augusta, there would only be 2 or 3 places you could cut a hole.

I know it would be a big change to the status quo, but I'd like to see what would happen to the scoring on the PGA Tour if they went with slower (8 or 9 on the stimp), yet more undulating greens.  Would the scores go higher or lower?

- Craig Dex

[Craig_Dex]

Great pics!

With regard to the contouring, alot of his golf courses over here had similar contouring, but have since been softened due to the speed of today's greens.  Everyone talks about how undulating Augusta National's greens are, but they pale in comparison to their originals.  If the original Mackenzie greens were still in place at Augusta, there would only be 2 or 3 places you could cut a hole.

I know it would be a big change to the status quo, but I'd like to see what would happen to the scoring on the PGA Tour if they went with slower (8 or 9 on the stimp), yet more undulating greens.  Would the scores go higher or lower?

- Craig Dex

[Tom MacWood (Guest)]

Neil
I too was thrilled. That is the first time anything I've written has ever been published and to have it appear in such fine magazine (along with so many admired golf architectural writers) is overwelming. You should be commended for creating a wonderful magazine, one that intellegently explores all aspects of golf design, and is also visually stunning. It is a throwback to the olden days when intelligent analysis was common.

I thank you for giving me the opportunity and I thank Ran/John for creating GCA. I seriously doubt I would have written anything had it not been for GCA & My Opinion. The essay was a pain in the ass to research/write - so many Japanese names and places had my head spinning - but I was very happy how it turned out. Thanks again!

[Paul Turner]

Neil

Of course you are welcome to these and any other images I dig up.  I'm very curious about Mackenzie's early work.  

These were taken with a close up digital shot and it's a bit tricky to get everything in focus unless the page is totally flat.

[ChipOat]

Templenewsham bunkers look more "Mac-like".  First course looks interesting but not distinctive.

[Paul Turner]

I disagree, I think the top and bottom pics look the most liek Mackenzie.  The top looks a bit like his early bunkers at Alwoodley and Weston.

I was mostly drawn by the distinctive, severe contours in that first green.  Wilder than anything of Mack's I've seen in England, other than Sitwell Park.

[JohnV]

Great pictures.  Tom, I think that Dr. M may be chipping in the last picture.  The green might start at the top of the crest which would explain the narrowness as it is an approach rather than a green.

[Slag Bandoon]

 I dig that fallen tree in the last picture at Leeds.  Mac was a genius.  Imagine what kind of luck/unluck would prevail from striking that hazard.  

[TEPaul]

Slag:

Hilarious. That's definitely MacKenzie in that photo. He was a stubborn and willful man and if his ball got under that tree it's just a loose impediment--a piece of cake to move.

[John beaumont]

I just caught up with this post.  I used to live in Leeds (was there a couple of days ago) and now live in the countryside not a million miles from Morecambe.  The municipal course at Templenewsam is two 18 hole courses.  I would think they may have been changed over the years.  There is nothing very impressive about either of them and they are not looked after all that well.  As for the course at Roundhay it is a nine hole course and again owned by the local authority.  Nothing to shout home about I'm afraid, but again changes may have been made.  Neither is a patch on Moortown or Alwoodley, the two best courses in the area.  I do recall seeing a book on Mackenzie's designs in the main city reference library in Leeds.  i could try to get a look at that if there is interest and also chase up some local newspapers.  What is the source of the pictures in the post?

[John Beaumont]

I should have mentioned that the library book was on Mackenzie's courses in the North of England