Point O' Woods (pictures)

[Brian Cenci]

Recently played Point O' Wood CC in Benton Harbor, MI.  What a terrific course.  I was really impressed with the conditioning and layout of the course.  The routing was a little tricky at times and that detracted some.  You really had to play a lot of different shots off the tee and on those huge greens.  I understand it recently underwent some changes...does anybody have any more detail of what those were?

[Anthony_Nysse]

My favorite course in my home state....Rulewich came in the the bunkers were renovated, several tees were added and certain fairways lines adjusted.

Tony Nysse
Pine Tree GC
Boynton Beach, FL

[PCCraig]

I saw Point O' Woods for the first time in a few years earlier this spring. It's a pretty neat place with some really good (and a few great) golf holes. It's one of the best RTJ's I've seen and probably the best preserved.

[Jeff Tang]

Thanks for the photos.

I recently played Point O'Woods and I really liked it.  I agree that some of the holes are difficult from the tee in that they require you to hit a shaped shot to avoid either trees or bunkers.  This was from the back tees (not the back back Western Am tees) so I don't know if that's also the case from a little further up.  It was a very challenging course and required thought to place the ball on the right side of the fairway for the correct angle into the green.

I would agree it was also in excellent shape.  The course had a very clean look to it. 

The par five 2nd may have been my favorite, I liked the dramatic green site, plus it was a hole that you needed to position it correctly in order to be able to attack it.  As a whole I thought the par fives there were really good.

[J_ Crisham]

Brian, I played here 6 weeks ago and was quite impressed at the conditioning. I thought #2 was a great risk reward par 5. #8 was  a sporty short par4. #9 is probably the best par 3 on the course and one of the best in Michigan. Great track that i would join if it were closer. They are really trying to get new members-I wish them well,   Jack

[Andy Troeger]

I've commented on the Point quite a few times. I love the place. I do think #9 used to be much better than the current treeless version. I've attached the oldest photo I could find probably from the late 90's. The tee shot from that back tee was much more intimidating and it just had a cool and unique feel to it. Its still a great hole, but it seems like any other good angled par three with water in play instead of one of the better par threes I had ever seen in its previous version.

[Matt Harrison]

Andy,

Most of the lower handicap members agree with your comments on #9!

[Tim_Cronin]

Brian, what's tricky about the routing? All the holes seem to be in the right order to me?

Love No. 9 as much without trees as with. You still have to hit a shot from the back tee -- and it's a Point tradition that even if you're playing from the whites, you don't pass hitting from the blues on that hole.

Hope te Western Am shows up there again someday -- or the club starts an invitational.

[Andy Troeger]

Admittedly my issue with the 9th is mainly cosmetic--the tee and the green are basically still in the same place although I think the back tee was raised to the level of the green instead of being a bit lower in the old days. There used to be a cool bridge across the water and now its all connected by land. Until I had a chance to play other places the 9th was my all-time favorite hole and was always the highlight of any round at the Point, so having it altered so dramatically was a major bummer to me. Its not even my favorite hole on the course anymore--that shifted to #2.

It might be a better hole for the average golfer in its current form. The back tee was cool in the old version but the regular tee was on the other side of the water playing at about 130 yards. We always played the back marker on that hole--as Tim says that's a Point tradition. Now the other tee is about 15 yards away though so it doesn't make much difference.

[Sean_A]

Brian

Thanks for the pix. 

PO'W was the first course which made me really pay attention to bunkering many, many moons ago.  The site is nice and many of the holes have an easy flow to them, but I have never cared for the course because the bunkering is dire.  IMO, PO'W would be a much better course with proper bunkering in terms of shaping, depth and placement. 

Ciao

[Mike_Young]

I think Michigan has two of the best RTJ courses out there....Point and Heather.....

[Andy Troeger]

Dave,
I have to agree with your sentiments a bit--this course was my #1 even five years ago before I had opportunities to travel. Some of that is actual changes to the golf course and some of it is the photos themselves (they are fine photos but photos never really "capture" a course). The 14th for example is defined by the big tree on the right, otherwise its rather plain. The photos stop after that and #15-18 are some of the better holes on the course IMO, especially #16. The 12th used to be more unique when there was a big willow tree to the right that I think was lost to a storm--I normally hate willows but that one worked. The 9th has been altered. The 8th is very cool as a potentially drivable hole but its hard to capture in a photo (and there isn't one posted).

There's a good variety of par four and five lengths--a few shorties and a couple brutes. I still always look forward to a round at the Point and think its better than #96 on the Classic list. It really doesn't fit into either era, which maybe doesn't help.

[PCCraig]

I think #9 is still the best hole on the course.

Thanks for the great before and after picture of the 9th as well. I think I like the "after" better as it really opens up the ravine which is a far more interesting feature than trees. And now you can play a hook into the green, which really is the shot called for.

[Andy Troeger]

Pat,
I wasn't thrilled when they took down the trees shown in the photo, but I could understand the reasoning there. What I don't understand is re-doing the tee (which isn't shown in the photo) and essentially filling in part of the ravine to create a "land bridge" which is now the site of the white tee marker.

And truthfully you could always play a draw into the green--perhaps not a huge swinging hook but the required shot was very possible.

[Matt_Cohn]

My favorite course in my home state....Rulewich came in the the bunkers were renovated, several tees were added and certain fairways lines adjusted.

Tony Nysse
Pine Tree GC
Boynton Beach, FL

When?

[Ken Fry]

I tend to agree with Andy and Shivas here.  I tried to search out RTJ courses early in my career because I enjoyed them so much.  They tended to be very long, challenging and what the PGA at the time viewed as appealing for their players.  I fell in love with Point when I came to South Bend in 1994.  I also have played Atlanta Athletic Club Highland Course, Metropolitan in Atlanta (which NLE), Stone Mountain Georgia original 18, Otter Creek in Columbus Indiana, Mariner's Landing on Smith Mountain Lake Virginia, Radisson Greens outside Syracuse New York and Green Lakes GC outside Syracuse New York.  His designs were my first entrance into noticing gca.  (Ironically I grew up in a town with a Tillinghast design, Ross design and 2 Styles and Van Kleeks but wasn't smart enough to know!)

Like Shivas, now I yearn for more than long tree lined holes with massive greens.  I still enjoy Point and it's still a very good course, but my tastes have evolved beyond it.

One ironic sidebar is a true demonstration of how technology has changed the game.  Last time I played Point, I hadn't played the course for 5-6 years prior.  From the back tees, Point 'O Woods is long.  I remembered it being VERY long.  Driver long iron into most par 4's, no par 5's reachable for me.  This time around was completely different.  I reached each of the par 5's.  Par 4's that were driver 3-5 iron were now driver 8-sw.  I'm not getting stronger as I become older!  It was interesting to see how technology affected how the course plays.  It also demonstrates why the kids in the Western Am were tearing the course up with their scores over the last 10 years.

Ken

[Philippe Binette]

Those pictures make me understand more why I hate white sand...

the sand gets flashy, there are hardly any color variations so you lose the perception of the depth of the bunkers... they all look flat.

shadows and shades are important, white sand kills it