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Dale_McCallon

Your most obscure course
« on: June 30, 2006, 11:27:16 PM »
The thread "Have we Played them All?"  is a question I had been pondering for some time, but was afraid to ask.  I just thought it was too crazy, but then again it seemed like every course ever mentioned got several responses about a person's experience on said course.

So then I wondered--what course do I have a monopoly on?  Where have I played that no one else has?  What is your most obscure course?  What about a course with a "name" designer?

For sheer obscurity, I'll pick the Futures Golf Club in Puryear TN.  Surely noone else has played there.

For a course with a name designer, I'll say Paducah (KY) CC which is a RTJ design.  

Bill_McBride

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #1 on: June 30, 2006, 11:57:06 PM »
1961, the nine holer in Walla Walla Washington.  Nine greens mowed out of a field with pins.  Nine tees sort of the same.  It wasn't much but hey, I had my clubs and not much else going on.  I have no idea if this little nine had a name, it had no honor box, no starter, no nothing.  But it was fun.

There's probably a CCFAD there today with $125 green fees and no push carts allowed........

peter_p

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #2 on: July 01, 2006, 12:47:34 AM »
I'm fairly confident of these two -in the 1950s I played Lloyds and West Hills. Both NLE, the former near the Lloyd Center (I-84) and the latter near the Portland Zoo.
Of more recent vintage I'd nominate Buffalo Peak in Union OR, Weiser GC (ID), Tasmania GC or Nefyn & District. Oh, Settler's Bay in Wasilla Alaska and Centennial near Medford OR, which is about 6 weeks old.

Tim Gavrich

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #3 on: July 01, 2006, 12:51:55 AM »
I have doubts as to whether I may be able to make such a claim (given the number of GCAers who have played A LOT of golf in the Northeast), but has anyone else played...

- Sharon CC; Sharon, CT
- Lake Waramaug CC; New Preston, CT
- Suffield CC; Suffield, CT
- Airways GC; West Suffield, CT
- Simsbury Farms; Simsbury, CT
- Tower Ridge CC; Simsbury, CT
- Topstone GC; East Windsor, CT
- Fairview Farm GC; Harwinton, CT
- The Tradition at Windsor; Windsor, CT
- Oak Ridge GC; Feeding Hills, MA
- Winyah Bay GC (NLE); Georgetown, SC

None of these are especially hidden, but I'd be curious to hear others' thoughts on some of the above courses.
Senior Writer, GolfPass

Jim Nugent

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #4 on: July 01, 2006, 01:58:19 AM »
Around 1965, as a kid on my family's summer vacation, I played a nine hole course in Ely, Minnesota.  Just looked it up online, and got the following info on it:

"The 9-hole "Ely" course at the Ely Golf Course facility in Ely, Minnesota features 6,364 yards of golf from the longest tees for a par of 36.  The course rating is 70.4 and it has a slope rating of 118 on Blue grass."

They got a few stats wrong there, but that is the course.  

Ted Kramer

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #5 on: July 01, 2006, 06:20:05 AM »
Griffins Greens, Oswego NY
Battle Island, Oswego NY

-Ted

wsmorrison

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #6 on: July 01, 2006, 07:56:23 AM »
Hard to believe that courses I played as a kid, Walnut Lane and Jeffersonville would became well known because of this site.  Well, how about Wood's Golf Center near Greatersford Prison?  I bet even Mike Cirba left this little 18-hole par 3 course off his list of courses to play  ;)
« Last Edit: July 01, 2006, 07:56:35 AM by Wayne Morrison »

Kyle Harris

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #7 on: July 01, 2006, 08:02:48 AM »
Hard to believe that courses I played as a kid, Walnut Lane and Jeffersonville would became well known because of this site.  Well, how about Wood's Golf Center near Greatersford Prison?  I bet even Mike Cirba left this little 18-hole par 3 course off his list of courses to play  ;)

Hahaha, it's on both Cirba's and my list  ;D

My own is Standing Stone Golf Club in Huntingdon, PA (about 40 minutes southwest of State College/Penn State). I actually wrote about the experience in an old blog of mine, here's the copy:

This is from a blog I kept a few years ago. Detailing an experience I had in 2003 regarding my finding a "hidden" but neglected gem in Central PA.

To me, experiences like this are the greatest joy in golf.

I was just in the most hell forsaken place on the planet I think.
After work today, I decided I wanted to play golf. Since the PSUGC is closed for a three day tournament I had to go to a different course.
For some reason, I wasn't feeling Toftrees so I did some searching. I decided on a course about 30 miles southwest of here called Standing Stone. I knew the architect of the club and I like his work so I figured I would give it a try.
The drive down was beautiful, over and through mountains and valleys and what not. The course is off the beaten path some, and unless you are paying attention you would probably miss it. The entrance was narrow and was only one lane. The road gave a good view of the course and I was moderately optimistic at my choice.
The gentleman in the pro shop let me out after I showed him my PGA card. One notable thing about him was his business card, which he gave me. He apparently teaches and does trick shot shows. The golf shop itself was a small hut that was no bigger than a back yard shed and was completely seperate from a larger building used as the club house and restaurant.
The course looks like it was once a really good course. Walking down the first fairway I noticed signs of painstaking and futile effort to put the course back together. It saddened me that I saw half completeled projects with the shovels and other tools still lying around. The fairways were long, and very wet considering the rain we've been getting.
The thing is, the design is there. The holes are routed logically, the greens located on good spots and the bunkering, while overgrown somewhat, follows a path that could be challenging.
I only survived four holes before I couldn't take any more. I made a mental note of the ground, and the basic routing from the score card and left. It is very hard for me to see a remnant of what once was. This was obviously a course conceived by a genius at design (Geoffrey Cornish, for those keeping notes) and it wasn't meant to be this neglected.
To most people, it may be just another course. To me... it's a waste of very good effort.

TEPaul

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #8 on: July 01, 2006, 10:03:17 AM »
Speaking of hard to find---how about Walnut Lane? Some years ago I went down there to play with Dave Staebler and I could actually see parts of the course but I couldn't figure out how the hell to get in there.

By the way, Wayne, your sense of direction about triply sucks as I knew it always did. I forgot to tell you but Bob and I beat you to Merion from PV by about twenty minutes and at one point I saw you right behind me.

The best way is not to go through Philadelphia but to go past the airport you rockhead!  ;)
« Last Edit: July 01, 2006, 10:04:03 AM by TEPaul »

Jay Flemma

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #9 on: July 01, 2006, 11:32:36 AM »
NIce to see Oswego in the treehouse.

How about Crestwood Golf Club, Marcy, NY?  I know one person ahere has.

I played Battle Island.
« Last Edit: July 01, 2006, 11:33:17 AM by Jay Flemma »

cary lichtenstein

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #10 on: July 01, 2006, 11:46:02 AM »
Billy Caldwell
Live Jupiter, Fl, was  4 handicap, played top 100 US, top 75 World. Great memories, no longer play, 4 back surgeries. I don't miss a lot of things about golf, life is simpler with out it. I miss my 60 degree wedge shots, don't miss nasty weather, icing, back spasms. Last course I played was Augusta

Sean Walsh

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #11 on: July 01, 2006, 11:53:48 AM »
The only person that might trumpme with this one is Tony Titheridge.

Cohuna Golf Club.  Home course of Stuart Appleby.  Not a bad course either.  Not long but tight without much you could call rough.  A pleasant das golf if you're on the Murray.  

Mike_Cirba

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #12 on: July 01, 2006, 01:10:45 PM »
Hard to believe that courses I played as a kid, Walnut Lane and Jeffersonville would became well known because of this site.  Well, how about Wood's Golf Center near Greatersford Prison?  I bet even Mike Cirba left this little 18-hole par 3 course off his list of courses to play  ;)

Wayne,

I've played Woods's many a time.  I like the fact that you need the whole bag with holes ranging from 90 yards to 240 or so.

Woods's was designed by John Wood and Vic Pignoli, with the first nine built in 1958 and the second nine in 1968.

I love this topic.

Even though Brad Klein busts my chops as "Mr. Top 100"  because he sees me wearing a Fisher's Island shirt one day followed by Friar's Head the next (with the requisite Merion cap), what Brad is probably not aware of is the fact that I pride myself on having played more really bad, obscure courses than anyone in the world.

I may just go ahead and post that list on Monday, when I'm on my own laptop.  

The pure level of intense medicocrity contained therein is somehow a thing of beauty.   ;D

Dave Bourgeois

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #13 on: July 01, 2006, 01:24:51 PM »
I haven't played it but I bet TE Paul and Wayne Morrison have both played the Flynn course at the Rockefeller Estate. That one is kind of obscure IMO.

Jeff_Stettner

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #14 on: July 01, 2006, 03:06:56 PM »
Four Winds Golf Course, Kimball, Nebraska
Cerbat Cliffs, Kingman, Arizona
Toana Vista, Wendover, Nevada (or is it Utah)

Bill Gayne

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #15 on: July 01, 2006, 06:03:08 PM »
Deer Cove at Cheatham Annex.

John Yerger

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #16 on: July 01, 2006, 08:50:08 PM »
The golf course on the grounds of the famed Angola Prison in Angola, Louisiana. It is maintained by the prisoners. I believe an article was written some time ago about it in ESPN magazine.

Andy Troeger

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #17 on: July 01, 2006, 09:00:23 PM »
I'll go with Limberlost GC, and Robin Hood GC might be a good second

Gene Greco

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #18 on: July 01, 2006, 09:00:51 PM »
Poxabogue

I would be surprized if anyone else has played it or perhaps Belvedere in FL.

Christian was low score in a high school tournament there. With a twelve year old playing against 18 year olds it was to his advantage and a great equalizer to play a short course.

"Poxie" was closed for a while until the towns of Southampton and East Hampton purchased it a couple of years ago.

An even more obscure course in the area is Sag Harbor Golf Club which when I first moved here 20 years ago had sand greens.
"...I don't believe it is impossible to build a modern course as good as Pine Valley.  To me, Sand Hills is just as good as Pine Valley..."    TOM DOAK  November 6th, 2010

Bill Shamleffer

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #19 on: July 01, 2006, 10:24:04 PM »
A.L. Gustin in Columbia, Mo.  It is owned by the University of Missouri.  This is one of my most favorite courses, but some will consider it bad.  It does have some goofy golf holes, but it has some holes with great strategy required.  Back in the 1980's it was the home course of the women's team, although the men's team practiced at Country Club of Missouri, a private club.  Back then it had no irrigation, the fairways were hard and fast, yet the greens were always in good condition, but fast.  Best of all the greens fee for students was about $5.00.
“The race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but that's the way to bet.”  Damon Runyon

Bill Shotzbarger

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #20 on: July 01, 2006, 11:38:08 PM »
Philadelphia Quartette Club  - 9 holes par 3

It's across the street from my house.

Mike_Cirba

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #21 on: July 01, 2006, 11:46:26 PM »
Philadelphia Quartette Club  - 9 holes par 3

It's across the street from my house.

Yep, played there, Bill.

Just for some useless trivia, it was designed by a fellow by the name of Al Florentino in 1963.

Garland Bayley

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #22 on: July 02, 2006, 02:00:35 AM »
Rugby Golf Course, Rugby, ND
Ray Golf Association, Ray, ND
Stanley Golf Club, Stanley, ND
And for some reason Matt Ward thought the Links of ND was out of the way for me. :)
Cut Bank Golf & Country Club, Cut Bank, MT
Glacier View Golf Club, West Glacier, MT
Jawbone Creek Country Club, Harlowton, MT
...

Sorry Peter, you don't have an exclusive on Buffalo Peak. :)
"I enjoy a course where the challenges are contained WITHIN it, and recovery is part of the game  not a course where the challenge is to stay ON it." Jeff Warne

Steve Okula

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #23 on: July 02, 2006, 03:11:26 AM »
In 1990, I visited Maseru, Lesotho. The embassy staffs there had hacked a nine hole course out of the bush. It was dirt, not a blade of grass anywhere, and I don't believe anyone even tried to name it.
The small wheel turns by the fire and rod,
the big wheel turns by the grace of God.

Mike_Sweeney

Re:Your most obscure course
« Reply #24 on: July 02, 2006, 04:00:34 AM »
Poxabogue

I would be surprized if anyone else has played it or perhaps Belvedere in FL.

Christian was low score in a high school tournament there. With a twelve year old playing against 18 year olds it was to his advantage and a great equalizer to play a short course.

"Poxie" was closed for a while until the towns of Southampton and East Hampton purchased it a couple of years ago.

An even more obscure course in the area is Sag Harbor Golf Club which when I first moved here 20 years ago had sand greens.

Come on, this is too easy as both Sag Harbor and Poxy were "home clubs" for Dylan and me at one point. And I did play it once with sand greens

Not even Neil has played Broadacres GC, which is 9 holer located on the grounds of the Rockland County (NY) Psychiatric Center.

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