Fazio Speaking on Restoration of Merion

[Press ReLease]

Fazio Featured At Pro-Pres., Golf & Green Chairman Event

Contact Martin Emeno
610-687-2340, ext. 27

(May 13, 2002) - Renowned golf course designer Tom Fazio, a native of Norristown who oversaw the recent changes to Augusta National Golf Club, will head a group of panelists discussing Restoration and Golf Course Architecture on Wednesday at North Hills Country Club as part of the Golf Association of Philadelphia's Pro-Pres., Golf & Green Chairman event.

Augusta National GC hosts the Masters every spring.

In addition to Fazio, panelists include Bradley Klein, renowned golf author and architectural consultant, and Wilson Greenwood, Jr., a member of Merion Golf Club's Greens Committee that is overseeing the recent bunker changes at the famed Ardmore course.

Ed Abrams, the producer/host of the television show GolfShots, will serve as the moderator.

No living designer has more credits on Golf Digest's list of America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses and Golfweek's collection of America's Best than Fazio.

Known for emphasizing the premise that golf courses should reflect the natural beauty of their environments, Fazio is the foremost designer of our time. Among his works are Steve Wynn's exclusive hideaway, Shadow Creek in Las Vegas, Nev., World Woods Golf Club (Pine Barrens Course) in Fla., and the Wade Hampton Golf Club in Cashiers, N.C. Locally, Fazio's lent his touch to Hartefeld National Golf Club in Avondale as well as the Centennial Nine at Philadelphia Country Club in Gladwyne.

Klein, a native of Queens, N.Y., is the author of Discovering Donald Ross, winner of the 2001 USGA International Book Award, and Rough Meditations. He's also the founding editor of Superintendent News and architecture editor of Golfweek.

Greenwood has been a board member at Merion Golf Club since 1995. In addition to the ongoing bunker and 1930 reconfiguration that is underway, his committee has overseen the regrassing of the green's on Merion's East Course in 1995, the irrigation system installations on the East Course in 1995-96 and the upgrading of the greens in 2000-01 on Merion's West Course.

The seminar begins at 9:30 a.m. and runs for approximately an hour and a half.

All media are welcome. Anyone interested in attending the event must contact Martin Emeno at the aforementioned number.

[RJ_Daley]

OK, I'll start the cynicism this morning...

How much real discussion can they engage in during an hour and a half, after the obligatory reading of the press releases as above for introductions, backslapping and self congradulations and adulations?  

What they really need is a good old fashion hotbox forum where the Faz is in the witness chair and a knowledgeble panel of 3 or so experts take turns interviewing him.  Sort of a "Meet the Press" format.  Maybe that format could produce some suitably indepth probing of his methods and motives regarding the infamous remodelling work.

[Huge "Puffy Wilson"]

What?  I wasn't invited to participate on the dais?  I could sing the praises of those bunkers all the live long day.

Minimally, I figured they'd at least let me rap a few tunes to warm up the crowd.

I feel like Ralph Nader.   :-/

[Tim Weiman]

Dick Daley:

Most golf course projects include things that are a matter of public record while other issues remain under consideration and are still private.

As for Merion, the big controversy is already a matter of public record, specifically, the aesthetics of the new bunkers.

Most likely people will make up their mind using their eyes not their ears.  That is to say, if you don't like the appearance of Merion's new bunkers, it is unlikely anything said at this seminar will change your mind.

Were I in the area, I'd be interested in attending, but not with the expectation of seeing something like the O'Reilly factor.

[Mark_Fine]

I will be there and try to let everyone know my take on the discussion.

[RJ_Daley]

Tim,

Indeed with all the discussion that has gone forth on this DG about the aethetics and propriety of the bunker work, I think we all know 'what' is at issue.  But, only an independent and knowledgeable panel of questioners would perhaps have a chance to ferret out the "why" of it all.  

[TEPaul]

The subject of the meeting will be "restoration" and with Bill Greenwood on the panel obviously the subject will touch on the Merion restoration program and maybe the subject of Merion's bunkers but I hardly expect the entire meeting to dwell on that--there are plenty of other things to talk about as well on the subject of restoration.

Brad Klein is in the area right now and is staying with me tonight and I just got faxed the questions Abrams will ask him.

There are some good questions on the whole process of restoration for Brad as well as the specific subject of "Firm and fast" and the subject of agronomy in it's ideal "maintenance ......" (not sure if the actual term will be used but I hope so).

Don't worry, I've seen Brad speak before--he's very good and doesn't beat around the bush and sugarcoat things---he makes his points so there's little room for misunderstanding.

He'll be ready and I'll let you know how it went on Thursday!

[Patrick_Mucci]

Press Release et. al.,

What a wonderful opportunity to learn about Merion and other projects from the horse's mouth.

What a great opportunity to listen and ask questions of the parties directly involved, the parties with all the facts.

Make the most of this opportunity.

[Huge "Puffy" Wilson]

Since I'll be on the west coast visiting "Puffy" Thomas to ride skateboards on the new 8th hole ramp, it might be interesting for someone to ask Tom Fazio his motivation for so charitably offering his architectural services "pro bono" to any Top 20 course.  

Mr. Patrick Mucci;

What questions about Fazio's restoration work do you think are so unclear that can be clarified with information "from the horse's mouth"?  What would you like to ask if you were in attendance?

[TEPaul]

"Puffy":

Pat wants Merion's "Mission Statement"!

Even if Merion never had a "Mission Statement" I think Pat's going to get one out of them somehow one of these days!

[TEPaul]

Pat:

I've got a great idea! How about if a club did a restoration and then wrote a "Mission Statement"?

That way the restoration could almost be guaranteed to conform to the "Mission Statement" in every single detail.

[Huge "Puffy" Wilson]

Isn't that what happened?

[twentyone]

Hey, Puffy, if that guy doing all the pro-bono "restoration" work will only do it on top 20 ranked courses, might ones club better stand the test of time if it is ranked number 21-30

[TEPaul]

I don't know but I did hear that's the way they did it at Backward Indian Country and Golf Club in Vegas Las!

The process worked beautifully and in the end everyone was very happy and not a single mistake was made!

[Patrick_Mucci]

Puffy,

A zillion of them, especially in the context of the recreation work at PV and the restoration work at Merion.

I will go into great detail as soon as you forego anonymity and post under your real name.

TEPaul,

That would sure guarantee perfect results, wouldn't it.

[Huge "Puffy" Wilson]

Mr. Patrick Mucci,

This veil of anonymity not only gives me street credibility, it protects me from architectural no-good-deed-doers.

Think Spider-Man, bro.  How effective would he be if all the gangs knew he was really only little puny Peter Parker?

If I also promise to fight for return of the stymie, would you at least share with the group your most pressing question regarding Tom Fazio's vaunted restoration efforts?

Guess not...

so, in the spirit of good humor and no hard feelings, let me share a joke.

Did you hear the one about the club that was so lazy they thought about converting their bunkers to living room furniture?

They eventually decided not to, but had them upholstered anyway!  

[Patrick_Mucci]

Puffy,

Your allegiance to the STYMIE has prevailed

As a general questioning theme,
I would ask what the respective club's goals were with each project, and how he went about fulfilling those goals, from a design and construction perspective, and what would he do differently if he was to undertake those projects today.

I'm sure I'd have innumerable follow up questions.

[Maxfli]

Huge?  Puffy?  Tommy N., I thought you retired.

[Huge "Puffy" Wilson]

Maxfli,

I know Tommy N., and in the inspirational words of Senator Lloyd Benson, I can honestly and emphatically tell you...."I'm NO Tommy N!"  

Mr. Patrick Mucci,

With the good Lord's grace, we will play together again soon, and at that time, on the first tee, I will turn to you and say, "Stymies, anyone?"

If nothing else, the bewildered onlookers among our playing partners and others on the course will be ultimately inspired by our example.  Every great movement, including old-school rap, starts at the grass-roots level.  

[Huge "Puffy" Wilson]

er..uh..."Senator Lloyd Bentsen"

My apologies.

Our poor, public, west Philly schools could only afford guest visits by fellows like that Quail guy from Indiana to instruct us in spelling.  

[Maxfli]

Ah, my bad.  It is just that you brought back fond memories of The Emperor.

[Tommy_Naccarato]

Well, like a rusty old politician with the tenacity of a Strom Thurmond, I'm still here...Barely.

I have known about this event for some months, and if I had really wanted to make an ass out of myself, I guess I could have dressed up like a bus boy or waiter and crashed this so called love fest called, "Discussion of Restoration and Golf Course Architecture," which should actually be called, "Destruction Of Golf Course Architecture To The Point There Is No Sense In Trying To Restore It."

(I'm not naming any names or attacking anybody, just expressing my opinion)

Hopefully Joe Logan will do a write-up of the event.

[TEPaul]

It was pretty darn good although there's never enough time to cover the topics fully in only a ninety minute program.

The first question was "What's the differences between restoration and redesign?" and TomF went first and said that it was very hard to define that one and it was a matter of course by course and what various people involved at the courses wanted to do. Tom Fazio did say it's a situation where there is always criticism no matter what you do and he actually did say that his "redesign" of three holes at Inverness back in the 1970s he considered a mistake today.

He also said that after that he decided that restoration was probably not the thing for him or the direction he wanted to go in and that he felt architecture was ultimately a unique expression and that he thought it better to look ahead and not look back. He said he has done practically 200 courses in his career and after a certain number, perhaps 100, an architect should not continue doing holes that had been done before and should always strive to try to do something fresh and unique in the next project.

The quesitons were asked by moderator Ed Abrams and it would have been a logical question I suppose for someone in the audience to ask Tom why then his company is working on so many famous old classic courses doing restorations--but the Q&A period had not arrived so that question was never asked.

Much of what Tom said was very similar to what he wrote in his book and he kindly donated a very good number of his books to the GAP with the proceeds going to our J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship program!

Bill Greenwood referred back to the late 1980s and explained how Merion had lost their greens entirely in the late 1980s  immediately preceding the women's Amateur, the history of the superintendency they've had since then and the gradual movement from that period because of those problems to slowly improve the course and the recent move to return the course architecturally to 1930.

He explaining the Joe Dey USGA era of narrowing down fairways and basically taking the fairway bunkering out of play and now after 30 plus years of fairway narrowness that's one of the features that will be restored.

He talked a lot about the bunkers, the condition they had gotten into and that their sand and drainage had become a disaster, a constant maintenance headache. He did say that he realized and understood that there had been criticism concerning the bunker "surrounds" but that they expect them to improve when the new grass matures and gives them that older more rugged look again.

Brad Klein answered the "restoration/redesign" question by saying that completely pure restoration was probably somewhat unlikely sometimes but at the very least every classic course considering restoration should make every effort to understand the design thinking of the original architect of their course and at least to pay homage to either him or the priniciples upon which he designed the course.

Having said that Brad launched into the extreme importance of the ground game to these older courses and that in so many cases that has been lost. He stressed very strongly that drier turf is healthier turf and far more fun to play for every level of golfer, and how it's actually harder to play for the good player and far more enjoyable for the higher handicapper!

He also stressed strongly that trees have often been an abomination to these courses for many decades as a result of thoughtless tree planting that had tremendously hurt drier turf conditions as well as valid shot angles and such.

He spoke a bit about the problems in governance in clubs in the last five or so decades with revolving committees who have never taken the time to understand their courses and how to maintain them.

Basically Brad had the audience behind him from the gitgo when he mentioned in response to Abrams's original question to him to tell us about his experiences in architecture.

This is what Brad said:

"About the first thing I learned about golf architecture is that rich people are often real idiots!"

Enormous roar of laughter and he definitely had their attention after that! Again, there's never enough time but plenty of people from the audience at lunch said they'd really learned a lot--some valuable information for their classic courses and potential restorations!

[jim_lewis]

I suppose Brad is right that many rich people are idiots. I even know a few. However, in my experience poor people are even more likely to be idiots. In fact, most of the idiots I have met are not rich. Otherwise, I suppose the old saying would go like this: "If you're so smart, why aren't you poor?".

My favorite poem:

See the happy moron.
He doesn't give a damn.
I wish I were a moron.
My God! Perhaps I am.

[Patrick_Mucci]

TEPaul,

How many people were in attendance, and what questions were asked of Fazio and Greenwood ?

What did you ask of the panelists ?