Ran
Re Your question on Monroe Golf Club and the time frame of it and Oak Hill, also designed by Donald Ross at same time.
Oak Hill was founded in 1901 but was in a different location here in Rochester. Perched right on the Genesee River quite close to downtown. George Eastman,founder of Kodak and the man who made everthing happen in Rochester NY in those days, coveted this site for the University of Rochester, where he was major benefactor.
So he brokered a deal. In 1922,He led a very quick drive to raise the money for a new site for Oak Hill, large enough for two courses instead of one. And large enough for a big Tudor style cluhouse to replace their ratty,unheated farmhouse. He would raise the money if Oak Hill traded the land.
The deal was done and then they started looking for a course architect. Meanwile in 1922, Monroe was at the same time in formation. Donald Ross was already somewhat well know and successful in New York State. Here in Rochester, he had designed the Country Club of Rochester in 1916,and the first nine at Irondequoit in 1916; Bellevue in Syracuse in 1914; remodeled Wykagl in 1920 and did Thendara in Syracuse in 1921. So both Monroe and Oak Hill turned to him at the same time in 1923. Monroe got done first, probably because of the two course challange at Oak Hill and in July 1924, play began on Monroe's single 18 holes.
Monroe is less than 2 miles from Oak Hill; Irondequoit and the Country Club of Rochester both adjoin Oak Hill. That makes four Ross courses in less than a 3 mile stretch--not too bad considering we're not Pinehurst, NC.
Monroe's land and location is largerly a matter of luck. We did not need as much land as Oak Hill required and we wound up with 190 acres sitting on a drumlin, a large escarpment left from the Ice Age. Essentially it is rich top soil astride a huge, deep ridge of sand. That accounts for our good fortune of drainage and extends our playing season significantly.
Oak Hill location was a farm with a creek running through out.It resulted in far different and more difficult draingage issues but the routing was done on the East course to bring the creek into play on half the holes. This created a much "harder" course for the average golfer and eventually brought Oak Hill into the championship rota of the USGA. The Oak Hill members have been enormous supporters of this, sharing their course with the USGA way back when it cost the club money, long before the hospitality tent era.
East Course of Oak Hill has been changed many times to make it longer and more difficult and will have still another change for its next major, the 2003 PGA.They are adding yet another set of championship tees, tucking them back into some incredibly tight chutes. Should be fun to watch.
Hope you come see all this for yourself.
all the best,
John Purcell