[George Pazin]

Joe was also suggested by many recently, and he graciously has agreed to join the fun (or fray, depending on your point of view).

His photo tours are always standouts, and his ability to contribute to the infamous Merion threads while remaining above the messiness has always made him a favorite of mine - even if his Nova team did break my Pitt Panthers' hearts last year. Joe's a delight to be around as well, and I speak from experience, having met him at the Pete Dye GC outing a year and a half ago (last time I teed it up, sadly ).

Please welcome him with questions about golf, Philly, photography, and maybe even chemistry...

-----

On deck: Jeff Mingay

Most recent 5:

Gary Slatter

Joel Zuckerman

Patrick Hodgdon

Bryan Izatt

Philippe Binette

Full list:

GTK participants

[George Pazin]

Standard questions:

What brought you to golf?

Golf course architecture?

This site?

Hopefully our friends in Philly will share some stories and even a question or three.

Nova ripped the heart out of another Burgh college, just barely, today.

[Joe Bausch]

What brought you to golf?

One of my older brothers was playing the game as a young teen, and that is where I picked up the game.  I think my brother may have been influenced by an uncle of ours from St. Louis that was a fine player and a long time caddy at a couple of the clubs.  In fact, my Uncle Jim caddied for Frank Beard in that one major in the 60's that Player one.  Beard I think was tied or leading going into the final round.

Golf course architecture?

Well, I think for me my interest in GCA was a natural evolution as I've played the game for so long, competitively for a few years there going way back, to now I play completely for fun.  Once I got that ultra-competitive nature out of me when I stepped onto the first tee, I could 'see' the architecture better.

This site?

I believe I was told about this site from a former colleague of mine here at Villanova that is a member at Rolling Green.  Once Ran let me in (after a couple of requests!), the Philly guys got in touch and were all over me like flies on rib roast (I'll try to refrain from any other cousin Eddie lines from the movie Vacation).

[Mike Sweeney]

Nova ripped the heart out of another Burgh college, just barely, today.

Did you go to mass last Sunday?   Somebody at Nova must have because they got a bunch of calls down the stretch.

Why did Wright bench Corey Fisher and Scottie Reynolds ?

What is the third best course within 30 miles of William Penn's hat?

Please rank your top 5 Philly area public courses.

Is Tom MacWood good or bad for GCA.com?

If you could change one thing at Merion from an architecture perspective, what would it be?

Please rank the Par 3 holes at Merion East and West on the same list.

Who should get design credit at Merion East?

Please repost the link to your website with all the pictures. Thanks

[Anthony Gray]

  Nova over Georgetown....greatest game ever?

  Anthony

[George Pazin]

  Nova over Georgetown....greatest game ever?

  Anthony

But for the result....

[Ron Csigo]

What's the most understated course, public or private, in the Philly area?

[Phil_the_Author]

For the record... the ONLY reason Nova beat Georgetown was because of the brutal beating St. John's put on them in their semi-final and Big East championship losses after beating them in December! By the way, other than that silly championship game that year there were only 2 teams ranked #1 all year... Georgetown and St. John's... Been waiting for payback on those losses for a long time... I know you're laughing... 

In all seriousness, could you give us an idea as to how much golf course history and information can be found in the various Philly public libraries and archives? And how much fun it is to loose oneself in them for an afternoon, a day and/or more? Is it worth a trip to Philadelphia for someone who wants to do serious research?

[Joe Bausch]

Why did Wright bench Corey Fisher and Scottie Reynolds ?

I have not talked to those that might know, but Raftery's explanation sounds reasonable.

What is the third best course within 30 miles of William Penn's hat?

I'm not sure I'm the best guy to ask since I've not played anywhere close to all the courses in the area.  Yeah, I have just about all the public courses covered, and I'm grateful to the opps presented to me on the private courses, but I have way too many holes in my resume to rank the "best" overall.

Please rank your top 5 Philly area public courses.

1.  Cobb's Creek (post-renovation; and I have no idea whether that will ever happen, but I have tromped around that property so much and have researched the course even more to know that when it opened it was first rate.)
2.  Inniscrone (this place has so many good holes it is unbelievable; if you could eliminate the smell of manure as you open your car door, it would be rated much higher).
3- etc.  How far can I can consider Philly to extend?  I know some would say Pennsy is lacking in terms of public layouts, but I'm quite satisfied and it keeps getting better.  For instance, KBM has two fine layouts in Morgan Hill and Lederach, and I'm really interested to see how the final ~12 holes at Heritage Creek materialize.  I can carp about a couple of holes at Glen Mills, but overall that is one fine place.  And there are so many other places that are wonderful and great value:  like Jim Blaukovitch's Honey Brook, Island Green, and Old Homestead.  And I can't ignore Ron Prichard's fine restoration at Jeffersonville (and his less appreciated nine holes he added at Hickory Valley Presidential, with one of the nicest par 3's in the area at #5).

Is Tom MacWood good or bad for GCA.com?

No question good.  His research is outstanding.

I question my own ability to stay "above the fray" at times.  I hope Tom does as well.

If you could change one thing at Merion from an architecture perspective, what would it be?

Bring back the original par 3 13th.  Yes, it would require some walking, but Tilly loved that hole and I think it was likely outstanding.  And they have the land there to back it out from the original 145 yards or so and make it a rather daunting +190. And how neat would it be for the 2013 US Open if they covered the players walking through the clubhouse to get to the 14th tee!

Please rank the Par 3 holes at Merion East and West on the same list.

Oh my.  That's a good question!  Here goes:

1. 17 East
2.  3 East
3.  9 East
4.  4 West
5.  6 West
6.  13 East
7.  17 West
8.  15 West

(man I bet many will disagree with that ordering!)

Who should get design credit at Merion East?

Wilson and his committee.  I have more of Tillie's writing in my possession than just about anyone.... and if he says Wilson deserves most of the credit for Merion, well, then I believe him.

Most of these Merion fellows were quite successful businessmen.  I would think they knew how to get a project done and done right.  And I think Wilson and the committee sought ought the opinions of the very best people to help them in their decision making.  And boy did they make some good decisions!

Please repost the link to your website with all the pictures.

I would suggest people visit Frank Pont's GolfArchitecturePictures.com web page instead, where I post all my photo albums.

[Mike Cirba]

Joe,

Fabulous answers so far.   Keep it up.

I thought of a few fictitiious questions you can choose to answer or dismiss.   Most of them are just meant to get a laugh from you, my friend.

1) My golf course is within a mile of where William Flynn once slept.   Can we apply for entry in the Flynn Cup? 

2) Any truth to the rumor that Tom Paul is going to sell his barn and surrounding farmland to personally fund the Cobb's Creek restoration?

3) Would you remain celibate for a year in exchange for finding Hugh Wilson's 1911 topo in a broom closet of the Merion Cricket Club?

4) You previously provided me with the most succinct, honest answer I've heard to explain why Tiger did what he did.   Care to repeat it for public consumption? 

5) Why is Alex Findlay's work so overlooked?

6) What's your favorite joke overheard at Frannies? 

[Joe Bausch]

  Nova over Georgetown....greatest game ever?

  Anthony

Ant, that game was unbelievable, eh?  I just don't like to say "greatest game ever", out of respect for what has been so many wonderful games in a great team sport, but that night in Lexington was special and may never be duplicated.

[Mike Cirba]

I'd also let people know that Joe and his lovely wife are restaurant critics in the western burbs of Philly for a local paper, so questions about the best sushi and wine bar are definitely worth asking here!

[Joe Bausch]

For the record... the ONLY reason Nova beat Georgetown was because of the brutal beating St. John's put on them in their semi-final and Big East championship losses after beating them in December! By the way, other than that silly championship game that year there were only 2 teams ranked #1 all year... Georgetown and St. John's... Been waiting for payback on those losses for a long time... I know you're laughing... 

I beg to differ.  The primary reason Nova won that game was b/c of the inexplicable decision of JT III to slow down the game in the 2nd half (this was the last year before the shot clock was instituted).  He had more talented players.  It made no sense; well, to me it appeared to be a coach that panicked.

[Joe Bausch]

What's the most understated course, public or private, in the Philly area?

Wow, that one I just don't know how to answer quickly....

What the heck, I'll jump anyways and say the first place to come to mind is Frankford-Torresdale. 

Give me a chain-saw and some expertise in softening a few greens and this place really shines.

[J_ Crisham]

Joe,  I didn't realize you are a Chem Prof at Villanova- I have a degree in Chem from a Big East school who just happened to take you guys out of the tourney this year- We Are Marquette!        Wish you good luck in round 2- we've got our hands full with Washington!
                                                        Be good,     Jack

[Mike Sweeney]

I beg to differ.  The primary reason Nova won that game was b/c of the inexplicable decision of JT III to slow down the game in the 2nd half (this was the last year before the shot clock was instituted).  He had more talented players.  It made no sense; well, to me it appeared to be a coach that panicked.

Not sure if it matters, and just as a point of reference, the first two Nova Gtown games that season were played with a 45 second shot clock as the Big East put it in for conference games in 1982.

Thompson had one of the two or three greatest college defensive players under the basket, so he slowed it down to reduce the number of shot attempts and dared them to shoot over his defense. Guess what, Nova shot 78% from the field compared to less than 40% in the two regular season meetings and the rest is history.

[Joe Bausch]

In all seriousness, could you give us an idea as to how much golf course history and information can be found in the various Philly public libraries and archives? And how much fun it is to loose oneself in them for an afternoon, a day and/or more? Is it worth a trip to Philadelphia for someone who wants to do serious research?

The Central branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia has a simply unbelievable collection of early Philly newspapers on microfilm.  Slowly but surely these are being digitized, but my prediction is that it may be at least another 5 years before they are mostly searchable online.

I've shown more than a few people on this site the joys of searching through old papers on microfilm.  It is hard to put into words how neat it is to be reliving US and world history as you stop every 20th page to read the sports page!

I'm quite confident the surface has barely been scratched concerning long forgotten info on golf architecture and club history in this country. 

[Ed Oden]

Joe, I'd like to echo George's thoughts regarding your participation in some of the more contentious historical threads.  Your ability to produce material which advances the discussion without engaging in any of the foolishness that derails the train is highly admirable.  Thanks for walking that tightrope.

What triggered your interest in historical research?  Are you working on anything in particular?  DG participants tend to make snap judgments and instantaneously evaluate materials presented here.  Do you find that refreshing or infuriating when compared to the more stringent standards in the academic world?

Ed

[Mike Cirba]

Joe,

Following up on my one question, is the rumor also true that Tom Paul will then move into a seedy loft above the Tower Theatre in Upper Darby so he's within easy walking distance of Cobbs?

You have to wonder how these things get started, but I'm just repeating the word on the street.  

[Joe Bausch]

Joe,  I didn't realize you are a Chem Prof at Villanova- I have a degree in Chem from a Big East school who just happened to take you guys out of the tourney this year- We Are Marquette!        Wish you good luck in round 2- we've got our hands full with Washington!
                                                        Be good,     Jack

Gosh, was the Big East awful yesterday or what?  Sorry to see your kids lose yesterday Jack.  I had them winning a couple of rounds.

[Joe Bausch]

What triggered your interest in historical research?  Are you working on anything in particular?  DG participants tend to make snap judgments and instantaneously evaluate materials presented here.  Do you find that refreshing or infuriating when compared to the more stringent standards in the academic world?

Ed

I became interested in doing historical research not long after coming on board to GCA and reading some of the older threads on Cobb's Creek.  I had played there when I was doing some of my studies at UPenn in the early 90's and found it an interesting layout.  One day I headed over to our library and asked one of the reference librarians  where I might start looking for info on the early origins of the course.  She pointed me to the database America's Historical Newspapers, where the Philly Inquirer is available from the 1800's until 1922.

It was there I found much of the fascinating stuff on the course, like the original routing and many of the famous names that apparently were involved in bringing the course to fruition, which I think really catalyzed some of us on GCA to really explore the area more.  Our librarian also pointed me to our microfilm collection of the Public Ledger.  It was there that I found early articles by Tillinghast and others.  That lead to exploring many other places for early info on Cobb's, like the Free Library of Philadelphia.

While gathering up anything and everything I could on CC, I was reading so many other interesting articles on local courses that I decided to gather most of those up to for my growing collection.  Most microfilm readers these days have a scanner attached to them so getting digital versions of articles is usually fairly easy.

I'll give you a little taste of some of the more organized material I have gathered:  newspaper coverage of the first three US Amateurs hosted by Merion.  I gathered these articles up from the Inquirer, Public Ledger, and Evening Bulletin.  The web page is not fancy, but it is fun to relive those three tourneys, which you can do here:

http://tinyurl.com/Merionweb

It is interesting to see some of the initial reactions to material that is posted here at GCA.  I think it can be hard to stay objective if you are immersed in a topic and data comes available to suggest what has been generally been accepted for decades might not be or is not true.

[Joe Bausch]

Joe,

Following up on my one question, is the rumor also true that Tom Paul will then move into a seedy loft above the Tower Theatre in Upper Darby so he's within easy walking distance of Cobbs?

You have to wonder how these things get started, but I'm just repeating the word on the street.  

I heard that rumor too.  I believe Tom was a roadie for the crew of that famous Peter Frampton/Yes concert in the 70's down at the stadium.  His seedy loft will be convenient as Frampton and Yes will be playing again at the Tower in a few months, I believe.

http://www.last.fm/event/1447464+102.9+MGK+Presents+Yes+and+Peter+Frampton

[Joe Bausch]

1) My golf course is within a mile of where William Flynn once slept.   Can we apply for entry in the Flynn Cup? 

Dear Mike,

     That is not funny.

Sincerely,
A. Karff

 

2) Any truth to the rumor that Tom Paul is going to sell his barn and surrounding farmland to personally fund the Cobb's Creek restoration?

But where will we have our winter GCA barn gatherings in the future??!!

3) Would you remain celibate for a year in exchange for finding Hugh Wilson's 1911 topo in a broom closet of the Merion Cricket Club?

Are the other four plans in there too?!

4) You previously provided me with the most succinct, honest answer I've heard to explain why Tiger did what he did.   Care to repeat it for public consumption?

Uhh, no.

5) Why is Alex Findlay's work so overlooked?

Good question.  I wish I had an answer I was confident in.  But my guess is that Alex might have been more interested in bringing golf to the people and not so fixated on building tournament ready courses.

Makes me wonder if we could use a few more Alex Findlay-minded GCA's these days....

6) What's your favorite joke overheard at Frannies?

I'll tell you it while playing golf at Cobb's Creek on Sunday morning.

To any of our GCA friends that would like to learn more about Cobb's:  Mike and I will be playing there Sunday morning at 9:15 AM with two other members (Mark M and John S).  The weather Sun is to be glorious so if you want to join us, contact me so we can grab another tee time.

[Bill_McBride]

Joe,  I didn't realize you are a Chem Prof at Villanova- I have a degree in Chem from a Big East school who just happened to take you guys out of the tourney this year- We Are Marquette!        Wish you good luck in round 2- we've got our hands full with Washington!
                                                        Be good,     Jack

Sorry, Jack, at least Jordan Wall is happy.   

[George Pazin]

Are you from Philly originally?

Who makes the best cheesesteaks?

[Tags:]

Tags:

[Tags:]

Tags:

Call to undefined function theme_linktree()