Random thoughts from East End of Long Island

[Alex_Wyatt]

Played East Hampton and National:

EH is one of the best conditioned courses I have played in a long time. The first nine has some great green complexes but is just too tight to be considered a success. However, the back nine is really world class and has the odd occurrence of a japanese style double green. Wish I had taken a picture. (Apparently, the original green was too close to somebody's house, so they built a second and left the first, which is still maintained). Anyway, what a great, great variety of strategic golf holes on that back nine. If the front were as good we would be waxing poetic about this club on a regular basis.

National. A bunch of new tees. I thought the tee on 12 was overkill, as the green is one of the tougher on the course and the hole plays 459 from there. 14 made a bit more sense to me, though it also reduces strategic options on the cape hole. Has anybody else played this new tee on 12?

[blasbe1]

Anyone have an East Hampton photos to post?  I'm curious to see how tight is tight on the front.

Anyone know of any old threads here with same?

[Jimmy Muratt]

There hasn't been too much discussion on East Hampton but here is a link to the aerial of the day thread on it.  It's a good color aerial that shows the contrasting nines.  There are also a few smaller pics later on in the thread.

http://tinyurl.com/c8zgm

[Scott_Burroughs]

Yes, I was looking at that aerial a few minutes ago and wondered what house Alex could have been talking about...I don't really see many next to the course.  Must be the one right of #12, I guess.  Too bad they couldn't keep in play that green purposefully hard against the OB, like the one at Talking Stick (N).

[Guy Corcoran, Jr]

I played East Hampton 2 years ago and the group I played with, one of our foursome sliced one into the house on 12's backyard. The pro at the time acknowledged that the green on 12 was going to be a problem. I walked it from the apron to the wall and it was less that 10 yards. Very unique course the pro stated and I'm quoting "Pine Valley like on the front and Garden City like on the back"

[Alex_Wyatt]

Even on the more expansive property of the back, tees and greens are still very close to each other.  And, yes, 12 is the double green. The drive-able 11th is sheer genius. Amazing green and so tempting to try to hit off the tee.

[Scott_Burroughs]

Alex,

That 11th green, with the pot-like bunker front/center jutting into a tough green was also used by C&C at Chechessee Creek (#12) and The Warren Course (#5).  All 3 courses opened in 2000.

This concept was also done by Hanse et al. at Rustic Canyon (#13).

[TEPaul]

Alex:

That's a most interesting solution of the problem that seemed to have existed with the landowner to the right of #12 since the beginning of the course.

I'll never forget the first time I layed eyes on #12. I think my reacton was; "WHAT THE HELL IS.....?

The basic strategic theme of that hole is the long running fence line along the right and that enormous fairway area with the bunker scheme inside it more to the right half of the large fairway. The idea is classic C&C in that they give the golfer all that room "through the green" while the golfer understands he has to get the ball over very close to that fence and boundary at some point. The idea is "do I do it off the tee or on the approach only?" It's a very interesting use of approach angle options basically. Obviously the solution although perhaps the most reasonable they could do does still keep that greenspace over there next to the fence which was much of the point of the entire hole in the first place.