Not too long ago I as afforded the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Rand Jerris of the USGA and along with the highlight of the trip, actually holding the real Calamity Jane putter, we had an interesting conversation about depression era golf and how the CCC/WPA golf course projects really jump started "public golf" in the USA.
Which leads me to Devou Park GC in Covington, KY (directly across the Ohio River from Cincinnati). Although not revered my many golfers in the Cincinnati area, I like the course for what it is. Hilly, and very tight with lots of trouble sans length. For the record, it is not an "original" WPA design, but was altered with money provided by the WPA. The front 9 is mostly original, the back 9 was added by Gene Bates in the mid 1990's. In contrast to each other, the front 9 really sticks to the topography of the land and you can tell not much earth was moved. The back nine easily shows it is newer. I will only post pics of the front nine, unless someone asks to see the back as well. There are some VERY tight holes here and they offer a really wide variety of shot selection off the tee. This course measures around 6100 total from the tips, but even straight, long drives can run through the fairways into the woods or wooded ravines which are commonplace here. Hole number 4 green has the Cincinnati skyline as a backdrop to the green, quite nice! The City of Covington had this to say about Devou Park:
Devou Park has an 18-hole golf course, which also affords spectacular views of the Cincinnati/Covington basin. Opened in 1928, the course underwent a major renovation in 1995 (Gene Bates) in which nine new holes were added and one other was altered.
City officials began discussing the creation of a municipal golf course in the park in 1922. The proposal was highly endorsed by the Kentucky Post. Several newspaper articles touted the benefits of the park, including: healthy recreation for the city’s residents, paid caddy positions for the boys of the west-end, and tee revenues that could be used to defray the operational costs of the park.
The city commission hired John Brophy, golf professional at Ft. Mitchell Country Club, to design a course for the park. In the fall of 1922, a committee was appointed by the city commission to raise the necessary funds to construct a nine-hole golf course and to set guidelines for its use.
Works Progress Administration grants were also used to improve the Devou Park Golf Course. In about 1936, the original course was redesigned and graded for better play. The total cost of the projected amounted to $21,000. At this time, fees to play on the Devou park course ranged from seventy cents to one dollar.
