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Kevin_Reilly

  • Karma: +0/-0
Changes to Industry Hills (Babe Z course)
« on: March 21, 2007, 01:54:23 PM »
Quote
Dear Members,

Things are starting to come together here at The Industry Hills Golf Club.  We are nearing the completion of the NEW Golf Proshop.  While the IKE has been a hit with our members and guests, we are looking forward to opening the Babe Zaharias Golf Course this coming June 2007.  Here are some of the featured highlights that are currently happening to the the Babe Zaharias Golf Course...

Babe Zaharias Renovation Update:

    * Holes 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, & 11 have been sodded.  (Hole 3 is next to be sodded)
    * Five green complexes (4, 7, 8, 9, & 14) have been rebuilt.
    * NEW 300 YARD TEE BOX ON HOLE #7 PAR 3. (WORLD'S FIRST 300 YD PAR 3).
    * ALL bunkers newly remodeled.
    * NEW SHORT GAME AREA (LOCATED NEAR  WEDDING  GAZEBO) & PUTTING GREEN (BEHIND 18 IKE) TO BE OPENED SUNDAY, APRIL 1, 2007...MAYBE EVEN SOONER!

 

Sincerely,
Dave Youpa, PGA, Director of Golf
Industry Hills Golf Club

The first par 3 I'll hit a driver lay-up on!
"GOLF COURSES SHOULD BE ENJOYED RATHER THAN RATED" - Tom Watson

Matt_Ward

Re:Changes to Industry Hills (Babe Z course)
« Reply #1 on: March 21, 2007, 02:31:36 PM »
I'd be very much interested in what they did in changing the weird 9th hole, among just one thing I noticed when playing The Babe.

Tom Huckaby

Re:Changes to Industry Hills (Babe Z course)
« Reply #2 on: March 21, 2007, 02:33:05 PM »
DAMMIT!

I felt certain this would be the one place I've played that Matt Ward had not.  Hell even if I haven't played either course there in over a decade - which I haven't - I was still going to take some satisfaction.

I should have known better.

 ;D

Matt_Ward

Re:Changes to Industry Hills (Babe Z course)
« Reply #3 on: March 21, 2007, 02:38:05 PM »
Huck:

I had the fortune in being introduced to the complex at Industry Hills about 20 years ago. Credit the folks there for taking a previous garbage area and reclaiming it but the demands of The Ike (it's been some time since my last visit) is quite demanding -- heck, there were a few holes - I believe the 13th to name just one, didn't even use the back tees for safety reasons because as you leave one par-3 the back tee area would be in your line of fire.

I don't know if anything was changed in that regard but I do know the course made it a point to list back tee length for all 18 holes when in fact they didn't set up the course to play from that distance. Raters should have judged the course based on what they did -- rather than what they claimed.

The Babe has some interesting holes but then again you get something as concocted as the 9th and I began to scratch my head in puzzlement.

I salute the Town of Industry for bringing to life 36 holes. I have to question the design results because there were a few holes there that definitely have little merit to them.

rjsimper

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:Changes to Industry Hills (Babe Z course)
« Reply #4 on: March 21, 2007, 02:42:53 PM »
9 is a joke - I don't know how they could improve that hole other than making it a par 3, and even then you'd still have to walk back up the hill to 10.

Making 7 LONGER is also a joke - that hole's already one of the biggest bottlenecks on the course.  At something like 250 yards to a difficult green, there are few holes in the world I consider a more difficult par than 7 at the Babe...and now I think it may take that title outright.


peter_mcknight

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:Changes to Industry Hills (Babe Z course)
« Reply #5 on: March 21, 2007, 05:47:21 PM »
From my understanding, and from what I saw in December of 2006, only the green site was changed on Babe No. 9.

Modifying the green site isn't going to accomplish anything to improve what hole 9 is whatsoever.  It is absolutely the most horrible hole of the 36 holes at Industry Hills.

For those of you who haven't been there, it is a 318 yard par 4, dogleg slightly to the right with a nice size pine tree at the near corner of the front right of the green site with a sizeable slope from back to front.  If you are above the hole and the greens are running 10 or so, you stand a pretty good chance to three jack.  There is a maintenance road of sorts about 30 yards short of the green.

The real problem is the kind of tee shot--must place about a 4 or 5 iron to the extreme left of the fairway to have a clear shot to the green.  However, where the fairway ends on the left, at places, it is no more than 5 paces to OB and the fence that protects the homes below.  The essential landing area to ensure about a 105-120 yard approach is 12-14 yards in order to avoid the tree and, to add some fun, your feet will be slightly below the ball.

No. 7 at 300 yards is just ludicrous.

Mr Ward:  The hole you refer to is on the Ike--no. 14's black tee, which is about 5-7 paces from the 13th green.  The kirby marker is there, but the teeing ground has been eliminated.  Even if it were still there, you would have to play quite the cut tee ball around some rather tall pines through a 12-15 yard window.

As to the landfill situation, it will always be difficult for Industry Hills because (a) the landfill wasn't lined (b) the landfill wasn't designed to Subtitle D standards (c) GPS, an important tool in landfill management, didn't exist at the time, meaning there are plenty of air pockets remaining on the course (like what used to be in front of Ike no. 11) and (d) the landfill accepted liquid waste.

Mr Simper (and others):  If you want to get in a killer workout, start at Babe no. 9 tee ground, either run or walk up to Ike no. 10 and do that at least 5-10 times.  You'll burn a significant amount of calories doing that!

Lastly, Industry is an interesting city--the mayor, a large property owner in the city, also is the president of the city's franchised solid waste provider and the attendant VERY large material recovery facility located less than 0.5 miles from the Pacific Palms entrance off of Azusa.

Matt_Ward

Re:Changes to Industry Hills (Babe Z course)
« Reply #6 on: March 21, 2007, 07:59:46 PM »
Peter:

Thanks for the correction.

I can see how pace of play can be anything but a S-L-O-G when playing The Ike or even The Babe for that matter. The course would benefit from having the kind of modern makeover that can provide a bit more practicality to the overall design.

Like I said before, salute the vision in shaping the old landfill / garbage site -- but the overall design from its original nature is still baffling at best and silly at worst (e.g. 9 on The Babe, to name just one example).

peter_mcknight

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re:Changes to Industry Hills (Babe Z course)
« Reply #7 on: March 22, 2007, 11:51:19 AM »
Mr Ward:

Actually, in 2003, they did introduce an increased playability factor for both courses, although it impacted the Ike far more than the Babe.  In 2002 and past, they insisted on maintaining 4 to 5 inch rough all over the place.  In 2003, in an effort to speed up play, they reduced it to a maximum of 2 inches, which sped up play to the tune of 20 minutes per round.

In 2001, I played the Ike for my 30th birthday.  Was on the tippy top back tee on 17 (355 yards), hit a 5 wood 240 that kicked off a bit of a mound in the right side of the fairway hard right into the 5+ inch stuff.  Because of where we were teeing from, I knew where to look, but it still took me the full 5 minutes to find my ball because it went all the way to the bottom.  I could only hack out a wedge 80 yards from that gunch.  Needless to say, having some knowledge of the course paid off on the 3d shot from 30 yards short--pitched it just onto the green to a front pin, then gravity took over and it went in the hole for a birdie.

You are right that some of the holes are baffling to say the least and need to be reworked.