It was certainly Peninsula CC - but you do not get a clear view of it when approaching from the south over the S.F. Bay.
Ron Forse took a horrible mess and made it into something I'm confident Donald Ross would approve of in every way.
I was fortunate to visit with him many times during construction and was impressed at how learned and detail oriented his approach. Ron's goal was not to leave the tiniest clue that anybody but Ross had been there and I believe he was successful.
Here is something I wrote a few years back (the miracle of computer document search programs) on the subject:
PLEASE FORWARD TO ANG SPORTS. THIS IS A GOLF COLUMN FOR THE TUESDAY SAN MATEO TIMES.
By Gib Papazian
Longtime readers are aware that we have taken a keen interest in the remodeling progress of Peninsula C.C.. For those unfamiliar with this unique ongoing project, let me briefly bring you up to date.
Originally called Beresford CC, Peninsula CC was organized by several prominent members of the local Jewish community who had been barred from joining the more established clubs in the area.
Despite being America’s most prolific and respected golf architect at the time, Donald Ross had never designed a golf course west of the Rockies. Knowing his name on their course would give the fledgling club instant credibility - and serve as a metaphorical thumbing of the nose at rival clubs - the founders lured Ross out from his home in Pinehurst to build them a golf course.
Ross spent several weeks meticulously mapping out the layout before turning the final plans over to the club and heading home. He never returned to California and Peninsula CC remains the lone Ross creation in our part of the nation.
Like many clubs organized between the great wars, a series of financial setbacks forced the sale of some land resulting in redesigns of the golf course, particularly the front nine.
As many clubs rediscovered their pedigree over the last decade, it has become fashionable to undertake restorations of their courses - often done concurrently while solving drainage or agronomic issues.
When the time came, the notoriously muddy Peninsula club brought in Donald Ross restoration specialist Ron Forse, from western Pennsylvania to do the work. The back nine is completed and your faithful scribe spent the day last week with Forse examining the work. He has just begun the front side, scheduled to reopen next year.
“This was a unique project in many ways,” says Forse, as he busily snapped photos for his archives. “A few of the holes had been built long after Ross was gone, so we studied what he did in similar situations at other courses and blended those ideas with his original work out here.”
Players at Peninsula will find their hodgepodge back nine replaced with fairways that drain beautifully and artistic, old-world bunkering. To my taste, the expansive putting surfaces are varied, tasteful and elegant - a perfect reflection of the architecture of Donald Ross.
The 10th hole features bold plateaus divided by a diagonal swale running towards the back of the green. Both the 11th and 12th are much as they were with a few wrinkles, and re-expanded to original size.
“Wherever possible,” says Forse, “I try not to lay a new imprint on what was there, just bring it back as close to original as possible. After all, Ross was a genius at building greens.”
The 13th and 16th greens - which sit next to each other - had been redesigned many years ago and always appeared a bit bland. Now, golfers will find two holes with similar topography but vastly different putting surfaces. Both invite numerous approach options with distinct personalities.
“I had to do something to distinguish them from each other and chose a couple of ideas from two of my favorite Ross courses,” said Forse, who declined to reveal which ones.
The most impressive green I saw was the uphill 14th, framed by two irregular mounds on the outer perimeter of the green. The putting surface is a collage of interconnecting humps, drop-offs and swales that certainly ranks as one of the most complex creations I have ever seen.
“We worked hard on that one,” he said, “because it is tough to get something with all that movement to tie together correctly.”
It has been said that the key to success in any endeavor is getting the last 10 percent right and the deeply religious Forse is a relentless perfectionist.
There are still nine holes to go, but Forse continues to agonize over minute details. Standing on the 18th tee with the construction supervisor, we are discussing changes to the hole when Forse suddenly scowls.
“That’s wrong,” he says, pointing at a fairway bunker in the distance.
“It looks fine to me,” said the supervisor.
“See the nose on the top of the bunker?” asked Forse. “Donald Ross never built symmetrical features like that.”
“Well, it will slowly change over time,” said the supervisor hopefully.
“I don’t care,” said Forse. “What the heck is the point of doing a Ross restoration and then leaving a mistake? Make sure it is fixed tomorrow morning.”
The final phase on the front nine includes moving the first green back onto the hillside and expanding the second and ninth back to original size. The sixth and seventh did not exist on the original golf course and Forse will have to search his vast archives for some inspiration.
When completed, will it be a pure and original Ross course like Pinehurst? Not exactly, but the membership can be assured that it will be as authentic as humanly possible - and something the great man himself would be proud to attach his name to.
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On the subject, the United States Golf Association has given its top literary award for the year to GolfWeek editor Brad Klein and his book “Discovering Donald Ross.” The book can be bought at Barnes and Noble or on the web at
www.sleepingbearpress.com