Great News from Pensacola, Florida!

[Bill_McBride]

As many of you know, Pensacola CC's fine old 1902/1925 course on Pensacola Bay was pretty much demolished by Hurricane Ivan.  Combined with an aging irrigation system and poor drainage caused by years of muck covering the grounds and a generally flat terrain, the hurricane damage was the final straw.  We are now in the process of rebuilding the course.

Jerry Pate Golf Design is the architect with Steve Dana as lead.  I have been first on the board during the planning and now on the committee supervising construction which is in the rough grading and drainage phase.  The contractor is turning all the dirt in the fairways to get the sand on top and we will have 18 new greens, sets of tees and a few more lakes designed to lower the water table and enhance the drainage.

This is all exciting stuff and I am very happy with the design which Steve Dana and Jerry Pate have produced.  For the record, Jerry has been a member here since he was a kid and made us a great offer for his design fee to pay back the club for years of enjoyment.  Their commitment is to maintain the old PCC flavor (smallish greens, generally minimalistic design) while making a fast and firm environment possible.

This is a lot of introductory BS to preface the "great news:"

Steve and Jerry know about my love of the Redan and other famous holes, and told me today that #7 will be a 220 yard Biarritz with green in front of and behind the swale, and #18 will be a bayfront reverse Redan between the bay and the new clubhouse!

I am now tingling with anticipation!  I'll post some photos during the construction phase, and looking for older photos of PCC for perhaps a "My Home Course under construction."

[Lou_Duran]

Bill,

When will the course re-open?

What grasses are they using?

Did you mean to say that they are putting a sand cap on the course?  If so, how deep and how much does this cost?  Where is the sand coming from?

I should know better than to ask, but will you allow them to stretch it to 7,000 yards?

Didn't Pate do some work with Tom Fazio a bit east from you?

I saw Pate shoot a score in the 60s at Scarlet in the NCAAs without making a single putt of any length.  I loved his swing and composure on the course.  A real shame that he had so many physical problems.

[Mike_Golden]

I saw the headline and figured it was about my consecutive birdies today on #'s 4,5, and 6 at Scenic Hills CC  

I spoke with Panhandle Bill earlier today and he has really, really excited about the new layout so congratulations, Bill, and I'm looking forward to my first round there as a member after the club reopens next fall.

[Bill_McBride]

Bill,

When will the course re-open?

       October or November 2006.  The back nine is still open,              front nine will be pretty much for grassing in February so the back nine closes January 1st.

What grasses are they using?

       Tifdwarf greens.  The fairways and rough will be whatever the modern day equivalent of common Bermuda is.

Did you mean to say that they are putting a sand cap on the course?  If so, how deep and how much does this cost?  Where is the sand coming from?

           No fill or sand coming in.  The fairways are being turned so the muck will be under the sand.  This technique was used recently at TPC of Sawgrass to accomplish the same objective: get the sand on top so the course will drain better.   Jerry and Steve have added fairly substantial acreage of ponds and the spoil is being used to generally build up the fairways an average of 2'.  There will be a lot more movement within the fairways than in the past, this will aid surface flow drainage into those lakes.  No cost was split out; the entire project is budgeted at $3.3 million.

I should know better than to ask, but will you allow them to stretch it to 7,000 yards?

        No, it will still be PCC, but the tips will be closer to 6800 than the current 6600.  Given the firmer conditions we anticipate, the course should play about the same length as in the past.  The Tour School was here five years in a row and nobody shot better than -16 even at that length.  Small bumped up greens = demands on the chipping game many modern pros don't have the game to handle.

Didn't Pate do some work with Tom Fazio a bit east from you?

          I don't know about east of here, but he is listed as co-designer with Tom Fazio at the Dancing Rabbit courses in Mississippi.  Jerry's most famous course is probably Old Waverly; Kiva Dunes is usually rated #2 or #3 in Alabama with his Steelwood (just north of I-10 between Pensacola and Mobile) at #3 or #2.  I'm excited about the ideas for Pensacola CC.

I saw Pate shoot a score in the 60s at Scarlet in the NCAAs without making a single putt of any length.  I loved his swing and composure on the course.  A real shame that he had so many physical problems.  

          Jerry came out on the Champions Tour and did pretty well, 22nd  I think with maybe $900,000.  What a racket!

We'll get you over here next fall for the grand opening.