Did Colt ever plant a tree?

[Mark Pearce]

My home club (The Northumberland GC in Newcastle) has a course originally designed in 1914 by Colt.  Braid consulted in 1919 when construction was completed but it is not clear what changes (if any) Braid made.  There have been a few changes since, though records aren't clear but certainly involving moving the 16th tee (to avoid a carry over Newcastle racecourse) which neccesitated moving the 11th green (I never played the old 11th but opinon is unanimous that it was a far better hole).  The club is proud of its tradition and has recently suggested that they are making a few further changes to reflect and respect its history and tradition.

Slightly unusually we have 22 holes, 4 "winter holes" form a loop inside the usual summer course.  In the winter these holes are played instead of numbers 12-15.  Yesterday was the first day this year we have played the summer course. 13 is a 470 yard par 4 with a large, flattish green with a steep bank fronting the green and making getting up in twi almost impossible for anyone who isn't long.  It is, comfortably, the toughest hole on the course and most single figure golfers would take a 5 if offerred it on the tee.  For its entire length the hole is flanked by the racecourse, which is in play but is some of the toughest, thickest rough on the course.

The change being made to 13 is immediately apparent standing on the tee.  A row of small trees has been planted along the length of the hole on the left hand side, from about 220 yards from the tee to 100 yards from the green.  It's a complete mystery to me (and my playing partners yesterday) what possible reasoning could lie behind this planting.  The racecourse is a bad place to be and hitting the green from any area where those trees will come into play is already a long shot.  The trees will appear bizzarre when mature.  A long straight line of single trees 60 yards from a wood on the right and 100 yards from a wood on the left.

It's probably clear that I hate this change.  We have an open meeting in a weeks time to discuss these changes with the Greens Committee.  They claim the changes respect the style and ethos of Colt.  One question I have is this:  did Colt ever plant a tree on any of his courses?

This picture shows the hole before the changes running from top left to bottom right.  You can make out a small copse of planted trees on the left side, the new plantings run from there to just short of the three cross bunkers.

[Tony_Muldoon]

Sunningdale, he planted thousands to turn it from open heath to park.   However they (a far as I know) were mostly set well back.

Swinley, St Georges Hill and Belfairs he carved the course out of the forest.

Not sure this answers your question.

[Mark_Rowlinson]

Mark, Cornish and Whitten suggest that Colt was the 'first to prepare tree-planting plans for his layouts.' I'm not qualified to comment on their statement. Paul Turner is the man to whom we should look for guidance.

[Jeff_Mingay]

Mark,

Mr. Rowlinson beat me to it, but history has suggested that Mr. Colt was indeed one of, if not the first golf course designer to devise tree planting plans. However, this general statement certainly doesn't justifiy arbitrary plantings at Colt-designed courses.

Does your club have a consultant familiar with Colt's golf architecture advising on such plantings?

[Mark Pearce]

Jeff,

I'm not sure who (if anyone) they are consulting.  I guess that is one question that will be asked at the meeting but I suspect these alterations are the brainchild of a member of the greens committee.

[Andy Levett]

"Trees are a fluky and obnoxious form of hazard," P.31, Some Essays on Golf Course Architecture by Colt and Alison, 1920.
"Swinley Forest, St George's Hill and Stoke Poges may be cited as cases in which tree-cutting has greatly improved the views, and in the case of the two first mentioned clubs a great deal more felling has been done than would have been necessary from a purely golfing point of view." P.50

[Mark Pearce]

"Trees are a fluky and obnoxious form of hazard," P.31, Some Essays on Golf Course Architecture by Colt and Alison, 1920.
"Swinley Forest, St George's Hill and Stoke Poges may be cited as cases in which tree-cutting has greatly improved the views, and in the case of the two first mentioned clubs a great deal more felling has been done than would have been necessary from a purely golfing point of view." P.50

Andy,

Thanks, that first quote will be very useful.  I've been talking to one of my partners today who is also a member of the Park (and Bamburgh and Tyneside) and for the life of us we can't understand the point of these planted trees.  They'll look stupid and anyone in a position where they might come into play is already in severe trouble.

[Paul_Turner]

Mark

I don't believe Colt planted thousands of trees at Sunningdale (he's often credited as doing so but I can't find anything to back it up)... from photos, the course was pretty open even in the 1950s.  The trees there have simply just grown through lack of heath management.

Andy's Colt quote sums it up for me.

[Mark Pearce]

Mark

I don't believe Colt planted thousands of trees at Sunningdale (he's often credited as doing so but I can't find anything to back it up)... from photos, the course was pretty open even in the 1950s.  The trees there have simply just grown through lack of heath management.

Andy's Colt quote sums it up for me.

Thanks.  I think it's too late for the 13th at the Park, unless I get out there one night with a decent saw, which is tempting.

[Dunlop_White]

Here are some more Harry Colt quotations to help your cause:

"There is of necessity a feeling of restriction when playing the game with 6-foot oaks paling on every side…The sense of freedom is usually one of the great charms of the game, and it is almost impossible to lay out a big, bold course in a park unless it be of large dimensions, and one needs some three or four hundred acres within the ring of fence to prevent the cramped feeling…It is essential to make the clearing bold and wide, as it is not very enjoyable to play down long alleys with trees on either side."

‘In cases where the ground is covered densely with trees, it is often possible to open up beautiful views by cutting down additional timber. In such cases, it would be unwise merely to clear certain narrow lanes, which are required for play. The landscape effect should also be studied, and although great care must be taken not to expose any unpleasant view in the process, every endeavor should be made to obtain a free and open effect.’ (Circa 1920)

‘On the other hand, where very few trees exist, every effort should be made to retain them, and in every case the architect will note the quality of the timber with a view of retaining the finest specimens.’ (Circa 1920)

[Mark Pearce]

Thanks, Dunlop.  Sadly these trees survive and we not only have to suffer them, but also the fences put in to protect them and an area of GUR around them for a few years to come, I guess.

[BCrosby]

More so at Swinley Forest than at Sunny New, but the hole corridors on both courses remain very wide, tree managment or not.

The tree encroachment at Sunny New over the years is in the process of being removed. Some are already gone; more to follow apparently. The New is also on the way to restoring a vast number of bunkers to the older Colt look. Very good stuff.

Were there any prominent Golden Age architects, US or UK, for whom trees were an important item in their toolkit?

My guess is that if Colt provided tree plans, they were done for the purpose of keeping trees well off the lines of play. Not the opposite.

Bob