Andy,
CBM ended up using much more than 110 acres for NGLA over time, probably close to 160-170 acres of the 205 he purchased. I have never claimed that NGLA ended up being 110 acres...that's just how my position has been misrepresented, but it's clear from all of the evidence that he went into the securing of that property with that general estimate in mind.
This shouldn't be surprising or shocking. We've seen in 1915 where Max Behr writes that the average ideal course takes up about 100-110 acres. We've seen where in 1910 CBM told Merion that he thought they "could" put an ideal course down on roughly 120 acres, and we've seen where CBM made an offer to the real estate company for 120 acres for his golf course prior.
We've also seen Mr. Behr tell us that the most efficient routing in terms of land usage was an out and back routing, so it had nothing at all to do with the site, the routing strategy, or anything else but consistency with his overall plan goals that led CBM to once again purchase his magic number of 205 acres at Sebonac Neck.
My assumption is that CBM would have located his building lots around the perimeter of the course, in specific places as his routing progressed, but that's just supposition on my part. Whether the course he built was as "wide" as we see in today's aerials is unclear, but we know that even in early development he wanted what he termed to be "ideal" 50-55 yard wide fairways, on average.
However, we know he built bigger. The course he built has gigantic fairways, averaging over 70 yards at their widest points, with some over 100 yards wide.
Once again, I'm guessing, but I think that reality overcame theory once CBM started building his course, and he realized that to create avenues of play for the weaker golfer "around" his intimidating hazards meant that he had to really significantly widen his holes.
In the preceding years he had railed against the idea that fairways needed to be wider than 50-55 yards, but when it came down to it, CBM was the worst offender, not that it was a bad thing.
I also think that more of the land down near Bullshead Bay than CBM anticipated was indeed worthless for any purpose. He wrote that his course would skirt Bullshead Bay for a mile, but besides the litle bit down by the Eden and the Cape, the course really turns inland from there and the Bay is not even in view on the next two holes. 1908 articles on the construction talk about the unexpected number of areas that were swampy, or that had to be filled, and I think the combination of increasing hole widths, evolutions in his routing plan, and land discovered to be unfit for golf or housing eventually chipped away at his ideas for building lots.
Not that I think CBM minded a whole bunch...he had what he needed...money in hand from the Founders, and his focus was clearly on golf.
This 1912 map shows the areas shaded that were not golf course but still fell within the property boundaries. I'm not sure if it is meant to represent all 205 acres;
If CBM had indeed already routed his course in December 1906, it is unlikely he'd still be talking much about building lots, but it's clear that as the project progressed, and the routing using the best land forms got fleshed out, that idea for building lots got pushed to the wayside.
Patrick mentions a personal anecdote with George Bahto in what is an obviously transpoarent to make it appear that our friend George agrees with his theories that NGLA was routed in a day or two on horseback.
However, I wonder how that could be as here is what George wrote about the routing of NGLA;
From "The Evangelist of Golf", pages 62-64;
"Undaunted, Macdonald uncovered a 450-acre tract adjacent to the Shinnecock Hills course. The property had been looked upon as wholly ill-suited for any development - a worthless mess of brambles, swampy areas, and murky bogs. In fact, so little of the land could be explored on foot it was necessary to use ponies."
"It was here that Macdonald, who had no background in surveying or construction, first hired a local surveyor/engineer named Seth Raynor to produce a detailed map of the property. To say the least, the land was by no means perfect, but it was almost entirely sand based. Macdonald envisioned that once the swamps were drained and the underbrush cleared, they would find a site with natural undulations perfect for building his ideal course..."
"...From the survey, Macdonald made a rough sketch of the holes he planned to build, and with Raynor, located potential sites and elevations for greens, tees, and turning points in the fairway. Macdonald tinkered endlessly with the routing plan. Finally, after months of planning, he was ready to move to the next step..."
"...C.B. next asked Henry Whigham and Walter Travis, each golf champions and course architects in their own right, to assist him in implementing his plan. Though Travis soon bowed out of the project, C.B. and Whigham continued on with the assistance of Joseph P. Knapp. Also closely involved were banker James Stillman, Devereux Emmett....and a few others"
"Using Raynor's survey maps and Macdonald's personal drawings as a guide, they forged ahead."
"Once cleared, the site was visually stirking. Knolls, hills, and basins furnished the topography. They also found natural ponds and uncovered a portion of Sebonac Creek which could be used for water hazards."
"Macdonald and company located fairly natural sites for a Redan and Eden, as well as a site for an Alps, requiring only a slight modification. The location for a Sahara hole was selected, as well as spots for a few original Macdonald creations suggested by the terrain. The routing of the course was beginning to take form, and although Macdonald later claimed the majority of the holes were on natural sites, in reality he manipulated a huge amount of soil."
"A number of strategic and aesthetic innovations took place at National, yet often overlooked is the seminal influence Macdonald and Raynor had on early course construction. Macdonald was not afraid to move massive amounts of earth in order to achieve a desired artistic effect, and Raynor had the engineering skills to blend it all together."
"Macdonald eventually admitted to importing 10,000 truckloads of soil to recontour and sculpt areas to fit his diagrams. A meticulous planner, Macdonald knew precisely what he was trying to achieve, and if he could not find an appropriate site, one would just have to be created! It is true that natural sites were located for his Redan and Eden, but to build other replications to his exacting specifications required extensive movement and importing of soil. Heavily influenced by this philosophy, Seth Raynor - and later Charles Banks - would later take earthmoving to new dimensions."
p.s. I just read Patrick's response to you.
As you can see from the map I just posted, as well as all of the associated documentation earlier this morning, CBM did NOT buy just the land he needed for the golf course.
Patrick also mentions the previous offer for 120 acres that CBM made to the developer. That land was down by the canal connecting Shinnecok and Peconic Bays, an area where subdivisions for housing existed by 1906, and were certainly planned in concept by the time CBM made his offer.
In the following map, you can see the canal on the far left, as well as the general area that had been already surveyed and subdivided.
There would have been NO NEED for CBM to buy additional land for housing there.
The land he ended up with, land that everyone thought was "worthless", and which was NEVER subdivided, is in the upper right.