Prior to this past weekend I had never set foot in the city of Brotherly Love. Philly is widely known as a phenomenal golf city so when an invitation to play Merion came to be, I immediately felt this would be a great opportunity to get an introduction to to Philadelphia area golf. I tried to get an audience with the pope of Philadelphia golf but alas, I could not find my way on to his calendar. Instead, my shepherd for the weekend suggested that we play Manufacturer's Golf and Country Club as it is a Flynn gem and very typical of Philadelphia private country club golf. He also suggested that we play a modern Philadelphia area gem, the Coore & Crenshaw beauty, Hidden Creek. So, with the itinerary set, I made my way to the northeast to get my introduction on golf, Philadelphia style.
Making my way around the city on 476, I was amazed by the staggering topography. When passing a slate/shale wall on the highway I couldn't tell if I was in a major metropolitan area or somewhere between Pittsburgh and Breezewood on the Penna Turnpike. I can't believe how foothills-esque the land is in this area and how abruptly the elevation change is from the Delaware river. So, as I worked through the turns and the hills with the sun shining on the turning leaves, I knew I'd be in for a great time.
First on the list is the Flynn course, Manufacturer's (or, as the locals say, Mannie's):
The clubhouse at Mannie's is perched on top of a ridge over looking a (Cobb's) creek valley. The first tee shot sends you down into the valley where you make your way across, along and around the creek. The course feels anything but contrived and the ability of Flynn to take you seamlessly through the property is magnificent. I am a routing sucker and I have to say that Mannie's has a tremendous routing. The holes take you in all different directions up, down and over ridges providing for great variety in holes. The par 3's range from 180 up hill to 90 yards down hill and the par 4's are of all different lengths and styles. Sometimes when one play's a course they are faced with repeating or similar tee shots and approach shots on several holes. At Mannie's, that is not the case. Below you see the 9th hole as it makes its way back to the clubhouse and the approach on the 17th across the creek.
If Mannie's is "typical" Philadelphia golf then MAN is this city (and its residents) spoiled!!
Next on the docket was the reverential Merion:
One of my good friends and playing partners said to me yesterday that he felt he was "playing golf in a history book." I would take that one step further and say then when the car pulls into 450 Ardmore Ave, you feel as though you are living in a history book. That being said, I will not focus on the experience of Merion as I do not want anyone to think that the history, the clubhouse, the frozen mugs, the showers, the locker room, the archives, the best burger in the world nor anything else has ANY bearing on the quality of the golf course.
Merion is the best golf course I have ever played. At one point in the round I recall saying that the current hole or green site was the best I'd ever seen, only to have it replaced by the next hole. With every course I have played to date, upon reflection, I have found one or two shots or holes that don't or didn't live up to the rest of the course. Or, there are sections of the course that are "great" with other sections being "very good." At Merion, every shot, every approach and every hole is great. There is no let down on the entire course except for the walk off the 18th green.
Merion is not cramped and Merion is not crowded and I remember walking from the 11th green to the 12th tee where one of my playing partners said that he couldn't believe this was only 120 or 170 or whatever small acreage it actually is. Truth be told, I had completely forgotten that and the thought hadn't crossed my mind. I never felt cramped or restricted at Merion (despite pumping two on to Ardmore on the 2nd tee). The course moves so flawlessly through the property and each hole works so well with the previous one and the next one that as I recount my steps I am ever the more impressed. Build in the strategy of the bunker placement as they help signal and guide the golfer around the course and the 18 holes make for a brilliant journey. The greens are, of course, other worldly and worthy of a discussion in their own right. Being below the hole is never more apparent than on the 12th hole when I made a par from 20 feet below the hole (back right pin) and a playing partner barely breathed on his putt from 15 feet above the hole and was faced with a putt of 20+ feet coming back. What is ever more impressive is how the greens work so well with the approach shots and the drives in that they reward the previous shot(s) with opportunities and punish those poorly executed.
Below you'll see the 16th. A wonderful green that protects this relatively short par 4 where a wedge over the quarry is no easy feat when you know that the green is as severe as it is.
What a special day on a special course. I will forever cherish my time at Merion.
Later that night we made our way about 45 minutes south east of Philly to the sandy soils of south Jersey. After a wonderful meal in the grille at Hidden Creek and a relaxing night in the phenomenal lodge, I awoke on Sunday morning refreshed and ready for a nice walk on this acclaimed course.
With my only other experience with Coore & Crenshaw being the very underwhelming Sugarloaf Mountain, I was most excited to see some of their better work. I have to say that I understand now their vision and their work. Hidden Creek provides such great variety and so many strategic options that I need (and want) many more plays to figure it out. Although the fairways are very generous, bunkers are well placed to guide the golfer towards the preferred angle and if you want to have the best angle, usually you must negotiate a well placed bunker to take you out of your comfort zone. The easier driving angles are given the harder approaches to the greens, often times over or around massive bunkers. Of course, getting to the green is only half the battle as the greens are large and undulating. Many greens within greens exist and my favorite is the drivable 8th where the member informed me on the tee that there was a "Volkswagon buried in the center" to separate the right side from the left.
Hidden Creek is also a course that builds through the round. From the relatively benign tee shot on the 1st to the very difficult uphill approach on the 18th, HC works you to a crescendo. I am glad to have seen this course as it cannot be more different from Merion in topography and style and yet it provides for a great challenge and is a wonderful golf course. I love the sandy soils and how the course was designed to play firm and fast with all of the greens being open and accessible in the front, ready for you to putt the ball from many yards away.
Below you see the par 3 7th. A longer par 3 but as you can see there is room to bring the ball in along the ground for a player who can execute a left to right shot.
Is there any question that Philadelphia is in the top 5 for golf cities? If you don't include Monterrey in the discussion of San Francisco, is there anywhere besides Long Island that can compete? From the pine/sand barrens to the rocky hills, Philadelphia golf has much diversity and a whole lot of greatness.
My weekend in Philadelphia has me wanting to see more golf in this great city, more Flynn, more C&C, more cowbell (sorry, had to throw it in there) and of course, more handmade wicker baskets.