Parallelism vs Triangulation

[Dan Herrmann]

In the post about Gulph Mills, several of us noted an interesting sentence regarding "the elimination of parallelism".

How has the elimination of parallelism affected GCA?  Is triangulation the current method used? 

Thinking about my home course, we don't have any holes that even come close to paralleling each other. It really adds nicely to the "journey" aspect of a round.

[TEPaul]

Dan:

Obviously real parallelism was something of a routing product of a lot of really old architecture, mostly of the 19th century. Many linksland sites for obvious reasons had to have it as their land was inherently long and narrow generally bounded on one side by dunes and the sea and on the other side by farmland or roads or train tracks, often not provding much more room than corridors for two side by side holes going in opposite directions.

When architecture first emigrated out of Scotland to inland sites no one must have thought much about separating holes from close proximity to one another and occassionally even had holes that crossed over one another.

As golf courses got more crowded obviously that kind of thing created problems and danger and that parallel construct became generally upopular in golf and architecture.

Triangulation was a fairly easy way to solve that, although obviously triangulating holes will require more property for a golf course.

Flynn was an excellent "triangulator", and Shinnecock is one of his best examples of it.

Other similar methods are such things as doglegging holes next to one another away from each other and things like that.

Obviously, when cart courses became common architects were released to really separate the holes of their routings from one another.

[Mike Erdmann]

You'll also find that William F Bell (the junior Bell) often used triangles in his routings very effectively.

[Tom_Doak]

I am curious how many practicing architects really practice "triangulation" in their routings, especially on a golf-only project.  In this era of valuable real estate, I find it hard to justify to clients.

[TEPaul]

"I am curious how many practicing architects really practice "triangulation" in their routings, especially on a golf-only project.  In this era of valuable real estate, I find it hard to justify to clients."

TomD:

Are you serious? Have you actually had any of your clients try to chintz you out of land you'd really like to use for a routing or architecture just on real estate value considerations?

I find that sort of hard to believe with the project sites and clients you've had.

[Matthew Hunt]

Could someone explain 'Triangulation' to me please.

[Adrian_Stiff]

I have never thought about triangulation at all. Just use the best land and I would say that normally ends up with holes being parallel or roughly parallel.
Matthew - Triangulation routing would be where three holes form a loop as against parallel routing where perhaps two holes make a loop (not always consective holes though). The principle is too take advantage of the clockwork wind ie, holes play in multiple wind directions, some early architecture thought highly of variety in the direction of how holes would be played v the wind. Some early club handbooks and historys actually show a windclock and 18 different arrows.

[Tom_Doak]

Tom P:

Certainly, I was serious.  You are right that I'm fortunate to have a bunch of golf-only projects, where the only question is whether or not you can fit 18 holes on the site you're given.  But, the majority of projects include development, and the developer doesn't want to give up an extra 10 or 20 acres to golf so that the architect can make a bunch of triangles.  They want the holes to be as tight as reasonably possible, so they have as much land on the outside for development as possible.

[TEPaul]

TomD:

I know it would be hard to do but I'd prefer to see a residence or so in some really good routing triangulation fully understanding the road complexity with the golf course of trying to do that.

[Jeff_Brauer]

"I am curious how many practicing architects really practice "triangulation" in their routings, especially on a golf-only project.  In this era of valuable real estate, I find it hard to justify to clients."

TomD:

Are you serious? Have you actually had any of your clients try to chintz you out of land you'd really like to use for a routing or architecture just on real estate value considerations?

I find that sort of hard to believe with the project sites and clients you've had.

TEPaul,

And since you  believe in fairy tales, what did the Easter Bunny bring you last week?

Even in Tom Doaks charmed existence, most clients will be real estate driven.  Curiously, the better he does on the great sites, and more value his name has, the more he will have to deal with real estate.

More seriously OT, when I do use triangles, in normal land use situations where space is at a premium, the tendency is to combine three doglegs in the same direction (either right or left) to keep the triangle tight.  Unless one or more of those can be non consecutive holes three dogleg holes in a row the same direction is not terribly desireable.  Sometimes, if the maintenance area or irrigation lake is in the middle of the triangle you can get by with 3 straight holes since there is a valuble use for the land in the middle.

I have occaisionally been asked by developers to half pair two doglegs with the tee-landing area on one and landing area-green on the other to create a valuble little development pocket that has views of two holes, and can be sold as an estate lot with a double premium view. 

[Tom_Doak]

Tom P:

I did what you suggested recently, putting a couple of estate lots inside some wasted space of what is otherwise a "core" golf course.  I was shocked at how much resistance there was to it, by the owner and by his future director of golf.  They had heard from several sources that "core" golf was much more saleable as a great course so they kept insisting that I should keep it a core golf course, but they also wanted me to tighten it up for real estate purposes, as I suggested above. 

Finally the client said he just wanted the best course possible and I said these two holes were better if they stayed outside a bit of the housing ... and still the director of golf worried about having somebody's driveway cross in front of a back tee.  I pointed out places like Mid Ocean and Pine Valley and he finally relented, reluctantly ... but there still may be some zoning board guy who refuses to accept that as properly safe.

It's a development course so God knows when they will feel confident enough to build it, anyway!

[TEPaul]

"TEPaul,
And since you  believe in fairy tales, what did the Easter Bunny bring you last week?"

JeffB:

When I made that statement it was about Tom Doak, not you. 

[TEPaul]

"I pointed out places like Mid Ocean and Pine Valley and he finally relented, reluctantly ... "

TomD:

Good for you. Isn't it amazing how you can use history to help particularly architectural causes.

"Core Golf"---if that term isn't more obnoxious than "signature hole", it's close!

Seriously, Tom, if you have the chance to get a house or so into a some real estate formed by triangulation the deal is to do what I call the "Long Island" thing and not the "Florida" thing. In Long Island around some of those wonderful old courses they had the good sense to put the houses at the other end of the lot from the course and create a "long-view/lawn vista" to the course from the house instead of putting the house smack dab up against the golf course.

The story is, some people have taste and common sense and some don't. 

[TEPaul]

Joe:

It's also interesting to note that in that article about Gulph Mills and lack of parallelism, they criticized the old standard links routing of straight out and straight back so a golfer was not able to have the challenges of turning constantly with the wind.

One shouldn't miss that one of Crump's requirements in his 1913 routing at Pine Valley was that the golfer was constantly turning on the compass. By the way, I'm going down there for a day and a half tomorrow for the annual Pa Golf Assoc. spring meeting. Anyone want me to check out anything in particular for them? I might just hang around the clubhouse. I hit about 300 balls the other day and I'm so stiff I can hardly walk.

[Dan Herrmann]

Tom - why would the PA Golf Association meeting take place in NJ? 

Back on topic, I think Gil's routing over tough ground at French Creek is a case study in triangulation.  Due to wetlands, there are 3 "islands" of ground, each seperated by wetlands.  The primary compass direction of the holes is:
"Island" 1
1 - W
2 - SSE
3 (par 3) - S
9 - N
10 - WSE
16 - NNW
17 - S
18 - S

"Island" 2
4 - N
5 - W
6 - ENE
7 - WSW
8 - W

"Island" 3
11 - E
12 - ENE
13 - SW
14 - W to SSW
15 - NW to W

Playing the wind out there  is quite challenging, to say the least.   And none of the holes is parallel to another.