I was lucky enough to see Engineers CC for the first time and I was mightily impressed with the golf course. In its day it must have been an incredible test of golf and it remains so but with the fun factor well up the charts.
I must also write that I think Trip Davis who was brought in to work on the course and restore it was given a real disservice in the way he was treated here on GCA. His work at the course in my opinion was stellar. I obviously did not see it before but there have been lots of trees removed (with quite a few still needed to be taken out). Thus, the vistas over the fescues and remarkably rolling property are beautiful. Most of the tree removal that is still necessary is more for the views then for the playability of the holes.
Now for the great greens. We had a great caddie in our group, Jay a retired NYC cop who is into architecture and could tell us where the greens were expanded, softened and where new pin locations were recovered by both methods. Whatever was done to them, they remain a set of the most bold and interesting and varied greens I have ever seen. Perhaps NGLA and Pine Valley are as wild and maybe Hollywood would be in the ballpark. They are all very playable. They all have 5-6 good pin locations that work. Among them, there are mirror images, front to back tilt, back to front tilt, waves, shelves, and multiple shelves, shelves left to right and back to front. I could not tell they were altered as they fit into the surrounds and tie in with the chipping areas. You start off with one of the craziest greens in all of golf. Our host was kind enough to make a four footer for a FOUR PUTT on the opener. If I had a surprise about the approach shots into the greens it was that many or most required an aerial attack. That must have been the toughest part of engineers in the old days.
The newer par 3 3rd hole (228 yards) that replaced the 2 or 20 hole (we played that too!) fits in nicely with similar bunkering (done by Trip) and a rolling difficult to putt green). The bunkering overall is esthetically pleasing and challenging. Trip did very well in my opinion.
I have learned a lot about restoration lately. I see that there is much more to it then bunkers. Equally or more so is the restoration of width (done at Engineers), vistas (mostly done at Engineers), mowing patterns (I like them at Engineers), reclaiming putting surfaces (done at Engineers) and when necessary altering the green contours as well (sensitively done by Trip at Engineers).
The place is great to play today and yet its bold features constantly remind you of days past.
Finally, I’d like to revisit places like Five Farms, San Francisco GC and Pasatiempo where recent work to the green contours softened them a bit. I was perhaps too quick to condemn work like that in the past but when done with the proper sensitivity and more importantly skill and view of how it played previously the results can be very satisfactory. I saw this first hand recently at #8 on Winged Foot East where Jeff Porteus used his great skills to slightly modify an 8% grade on a ridge to 5% while reclaiming pin locations and playability. Good Job!
Back to topic- Go to see Engineers if possible. It’s another Northeast Gem!