Memphis Country Club Pictorial Circa 1940 (Updated Thru #12)

[Mike Hendren]

I'll try to resume next week.

Kris,  I enjoyed your work at Mimosa Hills last weekend. 

Mike

[Mark Saltzman]

I'll try to resume next week.

Kris,  I enjoyed your work at Mimosa Hills last weekend. 

Mike

...

[Mike Hendren]

First, a refresher:  The Routing



Now on to the 8th hole which doglegs right around an interior corner of the property playing 400 yards:



This green is not cited as one of the few that has been changed, but today it features two distinct tiers and is oriented with the center line of the fairway - in other words more depth back right.  I like the elevated flashed bunkers right of the green, again dispelling the belief in a common bunker style by Ross.

The 9th plays significantly uphill, tipping out at 313 yards to this stunning green:



The low profile trench bunkering gives the green the appearance of floating on a sea of sand.  This is my favorite photograph in the collection as it shows the built-up right side of the nearby (I'll say) 18th green contrasting with the low profile of the 9th.  Again, Ross sites the green at the top of a long incline, creating a treacherous slope by pushing up the back of the green slightly.   This also gives the player a full view of the challenge, a rarity for an uphill approach.  Ground game be damned - Ross espects the player to be able to negotiate the short pitch on the approach.

Much like Holston Hills 6.5 hours to the east, the one thing you don't want to be at MCC is long on the approach.  

More later.  

Bogey

[Wayne Wiggins, Jr.]

The 9th plays significantly uphill, tipping out at 313 yards to this stunning green:



The low profile trench bunkering gives the green the appearance of floating on a sea of sand.  This is my favorite photograph in the collection as it shows the built-up right side of the nearby (I'll say) 18th green contrasting with the low profile of the 9th.  

More later.  

Bogey
[/quote]

MCC is a course I'd like to see one of these days and am intrigued by these photos.  I just looked at the Google maps, and it looks like it was post reno work... the one thing that stood out is the shared green complex of #9 and 18.  In the B&W photo, the putting srfaces looked much closer, but in the overhead it looks like 18 wasn't brought back to its original size?

Accordign to Kris Spence's post from last year there was going to be a " reclamation of select lost fill pad areas.  The greens will be expanded to the edges of the fill pads at a later date therefore some of the greenside bunker work will appear a further distance from the putting surface than it should be."   I'm assuming this didn't make the "cut".  Or is it not yet?

Is that so?  Why?  There's a course in the Phila. area i grew up playing - The Springhaven Club - that has a similar sited green complex (i.e. two green near one another) that seem  would look and play similar to this set-up at MCC if they ever did a thoughtful redo of the course.

Thanks.

[Mike Hendren]

Wayne, you are correct based upon my review of Google Earth.  The bunkers around 9 and 18 have been faithfully restored but the 18th green remains offset to the left, perhaps for safety reasons.  I really like the restoration of the three cross-bunkers short of the 17th green.  Hopefully Kris can weigh in on green expansions.  

The course was an early adapter to Champion Bermuda but unfortunately these photographs were discovered after the conversion had been completed.  

I hope to revisit next year.

Mike

[Sean McCue]

The fourth hole is the only switchback in the counter-clockwise routing of the first nine.  The 154 yards one shotter plays downhill to a volcano green complex constructed by hollowing out its surrounds as shown below.  Again, Ross makes excellent use of a modest elevation change.  The fall-off in the back of the green approximates 15 feet.  This photograph could be Exhibit A in explaining my bias for golden age architecture:

When i first saw this picture it imeadiatley reminded me of the 5th hole at Aronimink.

[Sean McCue]

Lets try this again.

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[Kris Spence]

Having trouble with photo upload will try later

[Wayne Wiggins, Jr.]

The fourth hole is the only switchback in the counter-clockwise routing of the first nine.  The 154 yards one shotter plays downhill to a volcano green complex constructed by hollowing out its surrounds as shown below.  Again, Ross makes excellent use of a modest elevation change.  The fall-off in the back of the green approximates 15 feet.  This photograph could be Exhibit A in explaining my bias for golden age architecture:

When i first saw this picture it imeadiatley reminded me of the 5th hole at Aronimink.



Good call. Wonder how the greens compare... As you know, the 5th @ AGC has 3 or 4 distinct areas of the green that make it a compelling short iron shot. No gimme birdie, and 3 putts are a real probability. 

[Sean McCue]

The fourth hole is the only switchback in the counter-clockwise routing of the first nine.  The 154 yards one shotter plays downhill to a volcano green complex constructed by hollowing out its surrounds as shown below.  Again, Ross makes excellent use of a modest elevation change.  The fall-off in the back of the green approximates 15 feet.  This photograph could be Exhibit A in explaining my bias for golden age architecture:

When i first saw this picture it imeadiatley reminded me of the 5th hole at Aronimink.



Good call. Wonder how the greens compare... As you know, the 5th @ AGC has 3 or 4 distinct areas of the green that make it a compelling short iron shot. No gimme birdie, and 3 putts are a real probability. 

Wayne,
Looking back I think I probably had more three putts than birdies on that green.  I guess that's why I ended up growing grass for a living...
I've got a better picture from the AGC club history book that shows the green contours that I will try and scan.

[Bruce Wellmon]

Bogey,
          I would love to play this course. Looks fantastic.
          But perhaps THE most important question, how far is The Rendezvous from the course? And can you get us there?

[Mike Hendren]

The present 10th is a strong 227 yards one-shotter with an angled green begging for right-to-left approach.  The hole plays directly away from the clubhouse with the tee hard by the large back patio.  The whole area is open, giving the appearance of a broad lawn.  Really cool.

According to Kris Spence the hole was originally a short par four.  That would have extended par to 71 assuming the following 11th  was a shorter par five at that time.  I have been led to believe the following picture is of the original green in its current location but I believe Kris can document that it was subsequently moved forward to shorten the hole.  Beautifully simple bunkers on the right abutting the hard (i.e., not crowned) edges of the green.  

Sean Arble will like the broad fairway leading into the green:



Note in the distance the horseshoe fairway bunker on the left side of the 11th fairway.  The current Google Earth aerial shows Spence's restoration of this bunker.  

Bogey

[Kris Spence]

Michael, that photo is of the original 10th green @ 30 yards behind the current site, I think you can see the right hand shoulder of the original 10th in the background of the #14 photo.  If you stand on that same line today the green has clearly been moved toward the tee.  Also, the current green hooks right to left into the back left corner, the original green turns into a thumb like section back right.

Below is a photo of the restored 2010 bunker shared by the 9th and 18th green complexes.  The photo doesnt show it but the bunker begins in the front right hand corner of the 18th green and crosses over and along the left hand side of the 9th green.  We followed the outline of the original bunker you could see in the ground until it went between the greens.  It is definitely a cool feature and unique among the Ross coursess and plans I have studied.  The 18th green has lost approximately 1/3 of it original width along the right side, I have my fingers crossed the club will support restoration of that green section.  We also restored 1 of 2 narrow bunkers that crossed the entire front of 9 green.  The aerial photo shows two bunkers with a small strip of turf between them, neither bunker would have been visible from the landing area.  I chose to build 1 wider bunker that shows the front profile of the bunker and green better.

[Kris Spence]

#14 Green After Bunker Project


#4 Green After Bunker Project


#7 We didnt have to do much here, cleaned out the bunkers and shaved off sand build up along the green edge to restore a proper tie in.  I also lowered the entrances a bit for a clearer view into the bunkers. 

The master plan calls for the removal of the pine forest behind the green which would expose a great vista up the hill toward the clubhouse.

[Mike Hendren]

The 11th is a straight-away par five playing dowhill from the tee.  Today's hole tips out at 515 yards and as such is a half-par hole for most players.  This photograph highlights one of the course's rare remaining fairway bunkers, approximately 75 yards out:



The routing turns 90 degrees at the 12th, an uphill par four playing slightly longer than its maximum of 386 yards today.  I don't recall today's green being visible from the fairway.  There appears to be more internal movement in the original green than many of the others and Ross' modest shaping is very attractive.



Mike

[Mike Hendren]

In light of the current discussion.  Memphis CC could qualify as untouched Ross but the shrinkage and rounding off of greens suggest otherwise.  Also the 8th green with its two tiers is not original. 


The routing on a tight site is ingenious and the relatively short distance is not a deterrent to championship plat given the lightning fast greens / the quickest I’ve played. 


I’ve misplaced the old pics.  It’s a low 6 in my book. 

[Drew Maliniak]

Thanks. That seems like a reasonable number to me.


But I'm biased as a hometowner.


I've always thought a great set of par 3s and two excellent par 5s.

[Sven Nilsen]

According to The History of Tennessee Golf: 1894 - 2001 Memphis CC's first golf couse opened in 1905 with nine holes designed by James Foulis.  Tom  Bendelow soon thereafter added another nine holes.  According to multiple sources, including Brad Klein's Discovering Donald Ross  Ross re-designed/re-built the course in 1910, some ten years earlier than his next course in Tennessee.  The course hosted the Western Open in 1913. 

The Ross redesign took place in 1914/15, after the Western Open.

[Keith Williams]

Glad this has gotten bumped and is enjoying new conversation.  On both old and new images, Memphis CC gives me some serious Cherokee Country Club vibes, another Volunteer State early Ross on a compact site, good routing, etc.


-Keith