The Story of Overhills

[Chris Buie]

The National Park Service (U.S. Department of the Interior) did a survey of Overhills in 2000 and here is the key quote from their report:

"The Overhills Historic District at Fort Bragg is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places under criterion A) Historic Events and C) Architecture.
The Overhills Historic District and its subdivided areas are identified in the Historic Architectural Resources Survey Report, Overhills Tract, Fort Bragg, May 2000."

You can read that report here:
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/nc/nc0500/nc0532/data/nc0532data.pdf

They spent a great amount of time and went into extraordinary detail during their survey. Consider these renderings they did:





Here is what they said specifically about the house:
Significance: The Harriman Cottage on the Hill portion of the Overhills area at Fort Bragg is a contributing part of an eligible Fort Bragg
historic district for the National Register of Historic Places. The Harriman Cottage was constructed ca. 1918 for William Averell Harriman. The Harriman Cottage was an integral element of the original Overhills Country Club. The Hill area is at the southwest portion of the Overhills historic district as identified in the Historic Architectural Resources Survey Report, Overhills Tract, Fort Bragg, May 2000.

You can read that report here:
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/nc0559/

And here is a little visual reminder of who Averell Harriman was:



That's Molotov in the Churchill photo - and Queen Elizabeth in the limo. The fellow sitting next to Truman is Gen. Marshall. He was the supreme godfather of the Allied forces during that war. Eisenhower was his junior partner and the protégé he cultivated and put in charge of the European campaign. About Marshall, Truman said "he won the war". Equally important, he won the peace too. It was his name on the Marshall Plan - an incredibly visionary project which prevented the U.S. from being burdened with yet another catastrophic European war.

Marshall lived 20 miles from Overhills, by the way.
Harriman was probably the only one remotely close to being his peer. If you are interested in a full picture of Harriman the book to read would be this be the one:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Wise-Men-Friends-introduction/dp/1451683227/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1334796855&sr=1-1

It is a well done, credible work by Walter Issacson about the extraordinary coterie (Ivy League WASP scions) who prevented WWIII. Isaacson was the man who Steve Jobs picked to write his recent bio, by the way. A fitting writer for both subjects.

And this is how Harriman's house is being maintained today...



They said the exact same thing about the Croatan house as they did the Harriman cottage. That is, it is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. It is in the same shape as that cottage. Also, here is an interesting quote from the report made when the military took possession of the exquisite Croatan house:

"Generally, Croatan is in good repair. The structure of steel, hollow terra cotta tile, and concrete is still strong and viable."

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/nc/nc0500/nc0562/data/nc0562data.pdf

Having looked closely at those buildings myself it is my unprofessional opinion that those buildings (which are the two I suggest saving) are
moving pretty close to the point of no return. And I would suggest pretty stridently that they do at least minimal maintenance ASAP. That is, cutting down the trees which are engulfing the Harriman Cottage and covering up the areas where the rain gets in the Croatan building.

Moving along, lets have a look at some very nice photographs from the Library of Congress. I believe they were taken by Lee Anne Romberg White and James R. Lockhart. I hope it's ok to post them here. If they object I will certainly take them down.

This photo is what they called "Pine Tree Allée"









I'll leave you with a quote from Churchill:

"You can always count on Americans to do the right thing...after they've tried everything else."

[Chris Buie]

I thought some of you might enjoy John Paul Newport's brand new article about the magic field.
I'm so delighted to have John Paul tell the story. He weaves together a wide variety of facts in a manner which rolls along and reads very well. To be able to do that while including so much information is really quite something.
I think Ran's quote is absolutely perfect, as well.
Well, here it is:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324744104578475230287959180.html

[Ed Oden]

Chris, while this article has been a long time coming, it was well worth the wait.  Well done by John Paul, but even greater kudos to you for making it happen.  I would highly encourage everyone to read the article and post a comment on the WSJ site supporting the idea of restoring Overhills for wounded vets.

Best wishes,

Ed

 

[Colin Macqueen]

Chris,

The WSJ article was a beauty. Well written and the idea of combining recovery of a Ross gem with the recovery of returned, damaged service men is second to none. Your constant and persistent attention to this project and the steadfast nature that you have shown in getting the idea this sort of profile is exemplary.

I can't really explain it (to myself never mind anybody else) but to pull (pool) together the idea of golf with helping lads who have sacrificed so much  is extraordinarily worthwhile. Credit to you and you're not even Bragging about it!!

It would be a wonderful full turn of the circle in regards to Overhills if philanthropy by the wealthy, historically so evident in the USA, were to come to the aid of this very, very worthwhile project.

Well done and cheers,

Colin

[BCrosby]

Chris -

A great cause. Let us know how we can help. I am delighted John Paul Newport did an article on the place. He is a terrific guy, an asset to the game.

Bob

[ChipOat]

Chris:

Excellent story; GCA at its best; even a quote from Ran.

JPN should probably have given you direct attribution for his story instead of just making you one of the key authorities on the subject.

I am going to request that this be designated a Sticky Topic - it's that good.

Chip Oat

[Brian Finn]

I recently read through this entire thread and most of the linked materials, and thought I would bump it up top.  I will be following this story with great interest as it continues to develop.

From the perspective of a gca enthusiast, it would be wonderful to see the course uncovered and rebuilt.  To be able to do so while using Overhills as a recovery facility for brave folks that served our country puts it over the top in terms of worthy concepts.  
 
Really awesome stuff, Chris.  Well done.  

[Chris Buie]

I did a couple of simulated tours of the Overhills course. It's amateur quality but some of you might find it interesting.

Outward Nine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zniPwBS46iw&feature=youtu.be

Inward Nine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htmX_gg4LSQ

(If you want to see it full screen there is a square bracket on the bottom right of the film you can click on.)

[Kris Shreiner]

Chris,
Thanks for putting that up. As a bit of a techno-dummy, the pace of the flyover made it difficult to assess what was on the visuals.
Any way to slow down the flyover feature?
Second, could the course be resurected? Is that plausable?
Cheers,
Kris 

[Will Lozier]

I did a couple of simulated tours of the Overhills course. It's amateur quality but some of you might find it interesting.

Outward Nine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zniPwBS46iw&feature=youtu.be

Inward Nine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htmX_gg4LSQ

(If you want to see it full screen there is a square bracket on the bottom right of the film you can click on.)

Chris,


VERY cool! Thanks!


Cheers

[Chris Buie]

Thanks Chip, Brian and Will!
Hi Kris! When I have time I'll try to do a better version. For now, if you hover over the film you'll see three icons bottom right of the frame. The one that looks like a wheel is 'settings'. Click on that and you can change the film to 1/2 or 1/4 speed. Plus you can pause it at any point that interests you.
.......................................................................

***Update 6-27***

I had another go at it. Maybe these work a little better.

Outward:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hL2OSf2ht0Y&feature=youtu.be

Inward:
https://youtu.be/0uyiZkDr3os

[Peter Flory]

I traced the first hole over the Lidar tonight.  Didn't move any earth, just painted the sand, fairway, and green.  I used the original fairway lines from Ross and used the actual indentations for the bunkers.  I haven't made any effort to make the trees look like the actual site- that will be a bit tedious and will come later. 

To-dos still- add in the roads.  Possibly beef up the first bunker to match the early photos before it was neutered. 

Here is one of Chris's old posts- so I'll start with that in insert a couple pics from similar angles.

The tee of the 451 yard par-5 1st hole was placed directly in front clubhouse.  Since the 9th green was right beside the 1st tee you would have a great view of the players coming in and going out while sitting on the veranda.  From the book about Overhills you can tell the tempo of the whole place was languid.  There was never any hurry - that was a major part of the ambiance. 
The tee shot goes up a gently rising hill.  Originally there was a rather fearsome, high banked bunker to catch the short right tee shot. Another bunker farther down on the left gave most players something to think about on their second shot.  The gentle hill crests some 200 yards off the tee and then the terrain descends gently - except on the left where it falls somewhat sharply into the 8th fairway.
So, as usual, Ross gave you a not terribly difficult hole to start out.  Remember, back in those days there was no practice tee.  You had to warm up on the course. 

Here is the view off the tee today.


(pic deleted)

The approach from approximately 220.  You can see the semi-famous hill of the 5th green/6th tee in the background.


(pic deleted)

Here are a couple of other angles:


From behind the green looking back down the hole
(pic deleted)


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Very gentle par 5 that would now be a stout par 4.  The angle in is very fair to accept a long shot, however the green site is very small and it wouldn't work very well hitting in from 200 yards.  If this course was restored and there isn't room to back up to 500 or so, then it should probably be shortened to give mid irons in. 

[Peter Flory]

I explored the back nine in detail to try to overlay the holes with the features in the ground.  This is going to be a little more difficult than I originally thought.  I didn't realize that that back nine was ever revived and that the holes were reconfigured somewhat. 

The 10th hole is going to be a real beauty, but I couldn't quite track it all the way to the original green.  I ultimately decided to start with 18 and then I'll see if I can make my way backwards.  The location of the roads helps me pinpoint where everything was on this hole.  For the water hazard, I used the original 1910 condition as swamp/ wetlands. 

View looking over the clubhouse.  I added the roads, a lot of the trees, and you can see the 18th hole coming home on the right.  The 9th green is missing and I haven't built out the 10th hole yet.  The huge fw bunker on 10 is hitting in that grove of trees- it wasn't originally a right angle dogleg like the trees would make you believe. 



Here is the best that I could do for the Estate house.  It's a stock building, but the closest match.  It's just nice to have something there to give the feel of the view from different holes. 


For instance, here is the approach to 18 with the clubhouse in the background through the trees.  Note that the road runs across, even in 1910.  There is something sort of likable about that. 


Here is the view of the 18th from the tee.  I just need to tighten the chute more.  It was originally pretty narrow off the tee, but only 330 yards, so very fair.  The swamp area on the diagonal, even though it was easily carryable for us, still probably put bad thoughts in the mind of a 1910 golfer- or gave them a nice sense of accomplishment when they did carry it:


Down sun view to show what the lighting would look like when you're finishing a twilight round mid summer. 


Walking around the hazard, then back up to the fairway (morning sun in the fall)


These holes go pretty quickly once I identify exactly where the green sat.  But on some of the holes, it is either very subtle.  I hope that it will be like a puzzle where it gets easier and easier once the easy pieces are in place. 

[Ed Oden]

Peter, this is really terrific!  I only have one suggestion:  I'd try and incorporate a rougher around the edges maintenance meld more consistent with its time and circumstance.  I doubt Overhills ever was that green, had first cuts or generally looked so well maintained.  Fantastic work!


Ed 

[Peter Flory]

Peter, this is really terrific!  I only have one suggestion:  I'd try and incorporate a rougher around the edges maintenance meld more consistent with its time and circumstance.  I doubt Overhills ever was that green, had first cuts or generally looked so well maintained.  Fantastic work!


Ed

I ultimately want to have 2 versions of these courses when I restore them.  One would be what the course would look like today if it remained in it's original routing and the other would be what it looked like then.  It is much easier to do the whole thing with today's maintenance and then rough it up when I'm done for the 2nd version.  i.e. that is easier than un-roughing it because of the tricks that I have to pull in the program.  The software maker didn't anticipate that anyone would want to make courses that have poor conditioning.  I have to go with hacks like planting trees underground to kill the grass above them for example. 

To really give the look, I would probably have to make the fairways rough and the greens fairways.  That wouldn't play well in the game or on a simulator, but it would be good for a photo shoot. 

Here are a couple of quick examples on the 18th hole with browner coloring and more burnt out rough.




And black and whiting them really gives the impression

[Peter Flory]

Here are some updates on holes where I was able to trace out the original lines.  For now, they will show what a restoration would look like with no earth moving, but with modern playing surfaces. 

#4 from the general teeing area.  Today, this would be a pretty lengthy par 4.  Speed slot over the right fw bunker so that the shorter hitter can get a boost.  With modern equipment, a strong player would knock it down short of the water hazard and would have about 160-170 left.  With hickories, this would be a fun risk/reward par 5.  The closest comparable to this hole that I can think of would be #10 at Olympia Fields South. 


Long approach shot, or layup.  To the left is some swampy area.  The creek is dammed into little pools that step down and create a really attractive hazard to cross. 


Bird's eye view (the uphill 5th would be just out of view to the bottom of this image). 

[Peter Flory]

Here is #6 (#5 green in the foreground and the focal length adjusted- so 6 appears truncated).  There will be many more trees here on both sides of the fairway, but it's easier to show the bones of the hole with them removed.  So far, there are many spectacular downhill tee shots on the course and it seems like it would be a lot of fun with the driver. 



Angled side view to show the nice climb to the green on the approach.  the green site is carved out of that hill and remains fully in tact. 



Drone shot.  This green appears to be the most difficult on the course so far, unless the ground was disturbed since the course shut down.  The front half is steeply pitched and then it crests and the back slides slightly away from the player and feeds into a collection area that circles around the back of the green (probably to provide drainage since the green was cut into the hillside). 



Roller coast ride on this hole. 

[Peter Flory]

And the last of the holes that I've completed so far- the 8th. 


Beauty off the tee.  The fairway slants hard left to right and climbs. 





The approach is semi blind- I raised up the camera view so that you can see where you're hitting.  You can drop the approach short and left to allow it to bounce onto the green.  The further you drive it to the right side of the fairway, the blinder your approach is due to the lip on the 2nd fairway bunker and the wire grass planted on the face and ridge of it:



Looking back on the hole w/ #1 off to the right. 



That's it for now.  This is actually going pretty quickly.  1, 4, 5, 6, 8, and 18 are basically complete.  Once all the holes are at this stage, I'll work on the overall feel of the place (the look of the woods and the turf and the buildings). 

[Stephen Britton]

I can't believe this place is just sitting rotting away. Next time in the area I'm going to walk it, the place looks so cool.

[Peter Flory]

All 18 holes have been placed by using Ross's sketches and matching them to the remnants in the ground and the photos/ aerials.  Just need to rough up all the edges to get it to look sandy and for the forests to look like the area. 

Chris Buie and Brian Ross have been incredibly helpful and have been giving me info and guidance.  The course went through a lot of changes over the years, so it wasn't always clear what I was seeing in the dirt.  The first version of this course represents exactly what is still left contour-wise.  After I complete this, I'll go back and try to replicate the more exaggerated Ross features based on his detailed specs.  Because it is sand based and was altered a lot, almost all the mounding and bunker lips are currently a fraction of their original heights/ depths.  I'll be taking a break for real work for a bit, but here is the current status-

#2



#1



And just to show how powerful the LIDAR is, here is a screenshot of what I found buried in the forest.  It is the original green for #14 (the hole that was abandoned even when the rest of the back nine was still in play).  All I did for this pic is paint the grasses over the terrain so that you could see the contours.  This hole had a stream that cut across it diagonally from short right to long left. 

[Mike Bodo]

Wow. This hole and rendering looks amazing. Great job, Peter! I can't wait to see the finished 18.

[Peter Flory]

I saw that my previous images died due to tinypic's paywall. 

I'll repost and add new images to give a complete tour of the front nine.  The back nine still needs some cosmetic work.

NOTE- for all of these renderings, I just used the lidar data and painted on the surfaces and trees.  i.e. I didn't sculpt anything, except for some of the sandy lumps on #7.  Some of the features were more dramatic than what I have.  I'm assuming that there was erosion after the course went fallow.  For a true restoration, you'd want to build the bunkers to Ross's specs and it would be even better than these images. 

#1:  Not a gentle handshake!  More of a slap in the face. (if it plays as a modern day par 4.  They considered it a par 5 though at the time). 

View from 2nd story of clubhouse.




Elevated


From left rough looking over cross bunker


From behind the green looking back





Will post the rest of the holes later today. 

[MCirba]

Peter,   your work is astounding.  Thanks!

[JC Jones]

I wish resurrecting this course was as appealing as putting some templates in Thailand.

[Peter Flory]

OK, back to it. 

#2- strategic little par 4.  Very picturesque.  Feels Mid Pines like to me.  You can lay up off the tee, but it is visually difficult and will leave you a very tricky wedge shot in. 

If you hit driver, you risk leaving it in bunker #2 and having the dreaded 70 yard bunker shot in for the approach. 

From the tee


Elevated from in front of the teeing ground:


The 4th hole is visible in the distance to the left.


One of many postcard holes on the course.