The Morcoms

[Ian Andrew]

I enjoyed a wonderful trip to Australia that included trips to see eight of the Sandbelt courses. One of the interesting aspects of the courses is how many of the courses have striking similarities between the bunkers and the green sites.

Mackenzie’s influence on Australia is undeniable, but as Neil Crafter pointed out to us, almost all the work attributed to “Mackenzie” happened after he had departed. We know that Mackenzie spent a great deal of time with both Alex Russell and Mick Morcom. We know that Mackenzie was very complimentary of both Russell (whom he went into partnership with) and Morcom whom he considered an outstanding constructor as well as an excellent Greenkeeper.

We know that Mick Morcom was Head Greenkeeper at RM from 1905-1935. That prior to Mackenzie's visit, he was already held in high regard and had done much of the construction work on the original "Sandringham" course. Mick had also done a significant amount of consulting work before Mackenzie’s arrival, which included course design, modifications and construction work at other clubs. He was also the main source of agronomy advice for golf courses throughout the state.

Vern Morcon was working under his father at RM when Mackenzie arrived. He may or may not have joined Mackenzie, Russell and his own father as they did the routing. On Mackenzie's recommendation, KH appointed Mick to construct their bunkering, but it was Vern who did most of the work. Mick visited periodically to give guidance while Vern worked full-time on-site managing the work. Vern was eventually appointed Head Greenkeeper at KH, and served in that role from 1928-1967.

Mick and Vern ran a consultancy business together until Mick's death in 1937 after which Vern continued the business on his own until passing away in 1972. Between the two of them, they are known to have work on more than 80 courses and gave greenkeeping advice to many more. On the Sandbelt alone, they did construction or design work at each of the following courses:

Royal Melbourne
Kingston Heath
Commonwealth
Victoria
Metropolitan
Yarra Yarra
Kingswood
Sandringham Municipal Golf Course
Spring Valley

Are the similarities that I enjoyed related mostly to the work and influence of the Morcoms?
Did Mackenzie’s influence with Russell and Morcom have a trickle down effect to all clubs?
 Is Mick Morcom to Mackenzie as was Billy Bell to Thomas?

Please share anything you know about Morcoms because I would be fascinated to learn more.

* a special thanks to Warwick Loton for much of this information

[Brian Walshe]

Ian,

There is a book about the Morcoms, John Scarth's "A round forever".  It's pretty comprehensive.

[Brian Phillips]

Brian,

Guess what....I have a copy...he he.  I wonder if any of the boys from Sydney have it...

[Danny Goss]

Sacarths book is a pretty good study. It lists all the courses the two Morcoms were involved with. Mike Clayton wrote the Foreward.

Mackenzie gave plenty of credit to Morcom.

He says on his return to England that

 "....The Royal Melbourne Golf Club have the goood fortune to have the best greenkeeper I have come across in Britain, America or Australia - a man named Morcom - and I managed to persuade most of the golf clubs in Australia to secure his services for the purpose of helping them in their construction work.
Morcom has not only read, but has studied every book he could possibly get hold of on the subject of golf course construction and greenkeeping , and has been in constant touch with the Greens Section of the United States Golf Association, who have done so much good in greenkeeping in America and other countries."

[Brian Walshe]

Brian,

I have a copy as well and mine is signed by none other than the great man Matthew Mollica.  It's a pretty long list of courses they worked on.

[Brian Phillips]

Bollocks, if I had know Matty had been involved I would have brought it with me.  Mine is a signed copy by John Scarth, number 25 of 200.  I think I remember that Clayton doesn't agree with everything in the book.

[Brian Walshe]

Brian,

Mine is number 174 and I think that Clayts is more from the Mackenzie school of beatification than the Morcom school.   Obviously didn't state his preferences when the application for writing the Forward was submitted.

[Ian Andrew]

Would either of you gents care to share a few revelations from the book?

Can I find this book anywhere?

Can I find Crockford's book anywhere?

Do either of you think that Mick or Vern is responsible for the style of bunkering found on the Sandbelt?

Are there any particular holes that are directly attributed to them?

[Brian Walshe]

Ian,

At the end of the chapter on Mackenzie's visit Scarf finishes with the paragraph;

This gives rise to who designed the famous West Course - did Mackenzie only remodel it? - and one must question who designed the 27 hole layout as detailed in the printed plan reproduced on the inside back cover.  It is likely Alex Russell was the designer.

I have a sneaking suspicion that only 200 were printed and I know where at least 4 are  

I only know of 2 people with copies of Crockford's book and my guess is there are only about 200 of those as well.  Matty???

On the bunkering - did the Morcom's build a lot of them?  Yes. How much input did the Doc have?  Excellent question and the answer will depend on who you ask.

The list of courses the Morcoms built or worked on is about 2 pages long.  A lot of the country stuff (and there was a lot of it) is probably pretty much original. Some of the other suburban courses, say Kingswood, has been played with by just about everyone and I doubt much orginal stuff is left.  Vern evidently liked the old ninety degree dogleg whcih given the difference in distance the ball travels now means those holes haven't aged well.  I seem to remember Mr Clayton muttering about that fact re Spring Valley.

[Tom_Doak]

I've got a copy of Crockford's book ... it was indeed a limited edition, though I think there were 500 of them.  You can borrow it sometime if you want, Ian.

I would definitely agree with your general premise that the Morcom's influence on Sand Belt golf was huge, and goes a long way to explain the difference between the Sand Belt courses vs. MacKenzie's other forays in Australia and New Zealand.  But, do not underestimate the fact that Morcom spent the better part of three weeks in daily interaction with Dr. MacKenzie.

[Brian Phillips]

Tom,

Let me put you on the spot here.  So if one of your interns, lets presume THE most talented one you have ever had, spent 3 weeks with you, that would be enough for them understand exactly what you want on a project?

I have a theory about the 5th at Royal Melbourne as well.    Ian doesn't agree with it though.

I think MacKenzie was sat in the office or the bar with the G&T drinkers while Morcom and Russell worked on the shaping of the green and bunkers.  When they were finished, Russell went to get MacKenzie from the bar and told him they were done.  He was impressed but made a few arm waving gestures to make sure he felt the boss in front of the board.

Maybe, just maybe, Morcom and Russell already knew what they wanted to do but they did not a get a free go at it until MacKenzie turned up and told everyone just how good they really were.  Sometimes boards and committees need a well known, respected person to put them right.

Tom,

How many courses did MacKenzie do totally on his own that would be classed as superb?  The only one I can think of Pasatiempo.  Can you name any others?

[Mike_Clayton]

The 'Foreward' in the book was actiually an article I worte for a local magazine.
John Lovell - the authors real name - read it an asked if he could use it as a foreward in the book he was doing.

We work at a number of Vern's courses - Rosanna,Spring Valley,Grange East, Trafalgar- and I have played many others.
One of the most notable features is just how poorly his dogleg holes have aged - if indeed they were even good holes when they were built.
Leongatha is a good example with a number of holes that turn so close to tee that you are hitting irons to the corners or firing up and over big trees.
It is a common thread through all his courses - and we have dealt with many holes where the tees have gone back and the trees have come off the corners in order to create better holes.
As a generalisation if he was doing a par three or a straight hole he did a really good one. Anything turning and history has not judged them kindly. The ball and the clubs are some defense - but his father,Russell and MacKenzie managed to get them right a generation earlier.

[Brian Phillips]

Clayt,

The courses that you mention, were they designed before or after MacKenzies visit? 

Would it be fair to say that MacKenzie was superb at routing (basically we know this) and Morcom was awesome at bunkering?

Are there any other Russell/Morcom courses that are good?

[Neil_Crafter]

Brian
Nice imagining going on there in Norwegia - little daylight I suppose........
While it is entirely possible that Mackenzie stayed in the bar while Russell and Morcom were hard at work out on the 5th, I have to think he may have wandered out there more than once! And in those days the clubhouse was still the old one a long way to the west of the course and it would have been quite a walk. I think he would have spent a good deal of time out there with them both. John Lovell tells me the Morcom family still have the sketch for that green - but I have never seen it despite asking John many times to see it. Perhaps that is a fantasy but it would be a wonderful find. Presumably in Mac's hand too.

Are there any other Russell/Morcom courses that are good you ask? Well Royal Melbourne East might just be one. Morcom did not build Russell's Yarra Yarra course that was done in 1927 and Russell's first project after Mac's departure. And the bunkering there looks somewhat different to RM as a result. I don't believe Russell and Morcom worked together anywhere apart from RM. I'd love to know if they did. Russell rebunkered and redesigned Riversdale GC and perhaps Morcom was involved there but have never found anything to support it.
Russell had relatively few new 18 hole courses in his resume - as follows:

RM West (with Mackenzie)
RM East (solo)
Yarra Yarra (solo)
Lake Karrinyup (solo)
Paraparaumu Beach NZ (solo)


Tom D
Just wanted to discuss your thought that Morcom spent three weeks with the Dr.
Mackenzie was in Melbourne for only 5 weeks before leaving for Sydney. In that time he went back to Adelaide for 4 days plus travel, and spent a week down at Flinders on the Mornington peninsula. In between times he went to Metropolitan, Kingston Heath, Victoria, and Barwon Heads. If you allow a few days per course visiting them and sketching/reporting you are not left with many where he could have had his attention on Royal Melbourne. I think that he could not have spent 3 weeks with Morcom over his time in Melbourne and that it would be lucky to be two weeks, perhaps only 10 days. As you know, Mackenzie suggested that Russell worked with him (and drew some of the plans) on some of the other Melbourne projects, so I'm sure Russell had a longer exposure to Mackenzie's thought processes.
Regardless though whether it was 10 days or three weeks Mac and Morcom obviously got on well and understood each other.

Ian
Vern Morcom was a prolific architect and worked a lot in South Australia too - he redesigned Glenelg when the club lost the land to the new airport immediately post WW2. He designed the Grange east course in the 1960s and also the Blackwood GC course in the 1950s. As Clayts said, his dogleg holes were definitely his weakness and the angles are too sharp and usually bend too close to the tee.  He was in the good but not great category. But the bunkers he built at Kingston Heath - he was the man on the ground for his father who had the responsibility for implementing Mac's bunker plan (and varying from it where he thought fit) - are perhaps his finest legacy.

[Bill_McBride]

I have not yet been to Australia    (something I hope will be able to do eventually), so have only been able to see the great courses of the Sandbelt on television.  Over the years I've seen Metropolitan, Royal Melbourne composite, and now Kingston Heath just recently.

If Mackenzie had a hand in the design of the bunkering of all three+ courses, and Morcom built all the bunkers, why are the bunkers at Metropolitan cut so deeply into the greens while the others are not as much?

Not that I'm complaining, mind you, I think that is a wonderful look at Metropolitan.  I'm just wondering, why the difference?  Is it something that just evolved?

Thanks.

[Warwick Loton]

The precurser to this thread was an email exchange between Ian and myself, in which we were pondering the evolution of "the sandbelt style" of bunkering. Ian wondered whether it should be called "the Morcom style".

Tom Doak's comment in this thread, that we shouldn't underestimate the influence that Mackenzie had on Mick Morcom, prompts the question of whether this bunkering style had any precedent on the courses where Mick did construction work prior to Mackenzie's visit.

To Mike and Neil in particular (other replies welcome),
1. Where & when exactly did this style emerge?
2. Did it develop over time?
3. How did Mick Morcom's bunkering influence the bunkers created by other course designers/constructors?  

And more specifically, did Vern Morcom merely implement his father's instructions/formula, or did he contribute creatively to the development of the style?
When Mick & Vern worked together, do we know the nature of their working relationship? (I'm know Vern tended to be the on-sight supervisor but I'm wondering if, in the broader sense, they related to each other as equals; as master and pupil; or somewhere in between?)

The book by John Scarth (John Lovell) refers to Mick Morcom learning much about both course construction and greenkeeping from Victor East, during East's brief tenure as Club Professional at Royal Melbourne. East's astonishing later career would suggest that he was highly intelligent and imaginative, but I guess we know little about his thoughts on bunkering.

[Tim Liddy]

Another important aspect is that bunkers change over time.  As sand is blasted over the top they increase in height.  Maintenance workers and golfers climbing in and out can make the sides lower or smaller. Even very simple round bunkers can become beautiful flowing bunkers over time. Bunkers will also tend to point at the target over time as sand is throw in that direction. This pointing also directs the golfer's eyes to the green, as he looks from the tee or fairway. RM #5 bunkers have that look to me.

As you all know, maintenance practices can also change them.

I am sure they were beautiful when first built but overall shapes tend to get more complicated and natural looking over time if they do not receive heavy maintenance.

[Mike Nuzzo]

As Clayts said, his dogleg holes were definitely his weakness and the angles are too sharp and usually bend too close to the tee.  He was in the good but not great category.

Did he not know where to put a turning point due to his average playing abilities?
Or did he misplace the turning points in the field due to inadequate engineering?

[Stephen Britton]

In that time he went back to Adelaide for 4 days plus travel, and spent a week down at Flinders on the Mornington peninsula.

Geez I didn't know he spent a whole week down at Flinders? I read that Flinders GC paid him 100 pounds to put together a master plan for the course and he recommended changing several holes. Although, he was really happy with the Flinders lay out?

If he was down on the Mornington Peninsula for a week what other courses did he visit/design?

Did he have anything to do with the nine hole private club at Frankston Golf Club?

[Brian Walshe]

Stephen,

MacKenzie had a family link to Flinders and had spent some time there when he visited Australia in 1902.  He had worked on at least 2 holes in his 1902 visit.

[Warwick Loton]

Tim,

You make a salient point, that the bunkers we see today are not the ones that Morcom & others initially constructed.

The bunkers at RM have certainly changed shape over time. As you suggest, the lips of some have been raised by the frequent blasts of sand. However, rather than becoming more complex in shape, many have tended to see their form lose detail: islands have disappeared, smaller bunkers have been amalgamated... Also, whole bunkers and even entire clusters of bunkers have been filled in.

The bunkering of the 5th hole of the West has changed significantly from its' original form, but more for reasons different to those you suggest. I know of aerial photos from 1931, 1936 and 1945. In 1931 bunkers extensively covered the right and rear of this green; there was a small front left bunker; and an open area to the left of the green (though it's hard to tell what this area was like, it doesn't look like a bunker). By 1936, the left and right bunkers had broadly taken the forms we have today, but there was still a large rear bunker. By 1945 hardly anything was left of the rear bunker, leaving the basic structure we are all familiar with: strong bunkering on both flanks. Clearly this is a big change from the constructed form that Mackenzie supervised.

[Warwick Loton]

MacKenzie had a family link to Flinders and had spent some time there when he visited Australia in 1902.  He had worked on at least 2 holes in his 1902 visit.

Brian,

John Lovell (Scarth) set me straight on this one. Alister MacKenzie made just the one visit to Australia. The chap who did the work at Flinders in 1902 was a J. B. MacKenzie (no relation).

[Ian Andrew]

I'm enjoying the discussion from everyone. Thank you.

Here is the 1936 aerial - cropped for only the West in the main paddock.
Please note the original 7th is on here.




Tom,

Thanks for the kind offer.
I will follow up when the timing is good for both of us.

[Tim Liddy]

Ian,

That is the coolest thing I have seen in a long time. The bunkers look phenomenal. Thanks.

[Warwick Loton]

Ian,

That is indeed a beautiful thing, but I think it's actually the 1936 aerial.