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mark chalfant

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Mackenzie lives at Cal Club S.F.
« on: February 29, 2008, 03:16:49 PM »
Thanks to Ed Getka and Josh Smith  I recently got a good look at Kyle Phillips
brilliant restoration of  California Golf Club. This is a superb course, the routing glides beautifully over very hilly terrain, and the variety of holes and green complexes is stunnning.

The lacy bunkering is exceptional  from both a strategic and an aesthetic perspective. The well conceived par fives, as well as the vistas over this rugged land are truly gorgeous. Several splendid holes on each nine. Many great driving holes, fun to play par threes including the long 12th and the tiny but  challenging 16th. A great course worthy of study.
« Last Edit: February 29, 2008, 03:46:26 PM by mark chalfant »
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Garland Bayley

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Re: Mackenzie lives at Cal club S.F.
« Reply #1 on: February 29, 2008, 03:25:02 PM »
Is that Mackenzie or Macan?
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"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

Kyle Henderson

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Re: Mackenzie lives at Cal club S.F.
« Reply #2 on: February 29, 2008, 03:27:08 PM »
Quote from: Garland Bayley on February 29, 2008, 03:25:02 PM
Is that Mackenzie or Macan?


Macan was responsible for a portion of the course, if I remember Kyle Phillips' presentation correctly.
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Adam_Messix

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Re: Mackenzie lives at Cal Club S.F.
« Reply #3 on: February 29, 2008, 05:15:55 PM »
Since I haven't been back to the Cal Club since the renovation/restoration, perhaps I shouldn't comment, but describing the 12th hole as long doesn't do the hole justice.  It's long AND hard.

I hope some pictures surface to see how the bunkers have been changed but my experience there was very enjoyable despite the lousy weather.
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David Stamm

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Re: Mackenzie lives at Cal club S.F.
« Reply #4 on: February 29, 2008, 08:27:45 PM »
Quote from: Kyle Henderson on February 29, 2008, 03:27:08 PM
Quote from: Garland Bayley on February 29, 2008, 03:25:02 PM
Is that Mackenzie or Macan?


Macan was responsible for a portion of the course, if I remember Kyle Phillips' presentation correctly.


If I'm not misaken, Macan was there first and then AM redid almost all of it.
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"The object of golf architecture is to give an intelligent purpose to the striking of a golf ball."- Max Behr

Garland Bayley

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Re: Mackenzie lives at Cal Club S.F.
« Reply #5 on: February 29, 2008, 08:28:27 PM »
What does Mackenzie have to do with the California Golf Club of San Francisco?

EDIT: David posted at the same time I did. I don't recall anything in The Spirit of St. Andriews that mentioned this course. Did I miss it? Or, did he not consider it significant enough to mention?
« Last Edit: February 29, 2008, 08:31:01 PM by Garland Bayley »
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"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

ed_getka

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Re: Mackenzie lives at Cal Club S.F.
« Reply #6 on: February 29, 2008, 10:59:02 PM »
The Mackenzie influence isn't completely established, but Tully is hard at work unearthing ever more information. At any rate the work by Kyle Phillips, Mark Thawley, and Joshua Smith, et al. is superlative as Mark Chalfant pointed out. We had a great day walking Stanford and seeing the new practice "field" that is being  built for the golf team, and then over to Cal Club and a tour by golf renaissance man Joshua Smith (not to mention his developing painting talent).
   Mark and I had a pretty dream day for architecture junkies. :)

   I really wish I had seen Cal Club before the new work to be able to compare the two, but what is there now is pretty exceptional. It is hard to imagine  that wonderful golf land and how it is presented now and to realize that there used to be almost 5,000 more trees than there are now.
I can understand now why Kyle and Mark were so enthusiastic about their Cal Club project when they talked to us back in November. For anyone with some time I would strongly advise you to make an effort to get over to Cal Club and see the wonderful things that are happening there.

Glad to see you made it home safely Mark.
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"Perimeter-weighted fairways", The best euphemism for containment mounding I've ever heard.

mark chalfant

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Re: Mackenzie lives at Cal Club S.F.
« Reply #7 on: March 01, 2008, 10:34:30 PM »
I believe  Alister Mackenzies  contribution  at  CalClub was an extensive bunkering project which was carried out in 1927. Mark, Kyle ,and Josh have used several vintage archival photos to add grace and authenticity to their fine work here
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Josh Smith

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Re: Mackenzie lives at Cal Club S.F.
« Reply #8 on: March 01, 2008, 11:22:54 PM »
Mark,

Your right.  And I am sure Brad Klein and Sean Tully can add to this.

Alister MacKenzie, Robert Hunter and the American Golf Course Construction company came to work at California Golf Club in 1927, less than two years after the Macan course opened.  They completely rebunkered the course (nearly 150 "effective" traps) and from what we read rebuilt a few greens.  We are pretty certain number 10 and 18 were among those.

According to what Sean Tully and the timeline for MacKenzie lays out, Meadow Club was his first project in North America, followed shortly by redesign at Cal Club and then work at Claremont.

MacKenzie must have been a really impressive figure, even that early in his career.  For Cal Club to go under the knife shortly after opening for a major overhaul is astounding to me.  Especially when his resume was just getting started here in the states.  Maybe Sean can quote a snippet he recently found which tells of MacKenzie and Hunters work being carried out while a substantial California amatuer tournament is being held at the course.



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