Nice job Mucci and George. Those are worthy of a Final Jeopardy answer.
Phil Young emailed me with some info:
"How do we know that the 5th hole at Bethpage was a Tillinghast “Reef” hole? Because the May 1935 issue of the Farmingdale Post, in describing the course that was to open the following day, referred to the 5th hole as “the famous ‘REEF’ hole…” What makes this hole extremely exciting is that it is ONE of the smoking gun proofs that Tilly designed the new Bethpage courses including the Black and that it was also a “300-yard two-shotter.”
So, what are the unique features that make a hole a “Reef?”
Tilly described, “The outstanding feature of the type, is provided by a ridge, graded naturally in diagonal meandering across the fairway, dividing it into two distinct areas…”
Note that this “ridge” meanders across “the fairway.” I bring this up because some believe that a “Reef” hole has a diagonal spine ON THE GREEN. That simply is not the case. There COULD be one on the green, but that has nothing at all to do with the “Reef” features.
The second set of features that must be there is explained by Tilly in defining what the “Reef” itself actually allows as far as specific shot choices. “Four tee shots are indicated by the dotted lines. Two are quite obvious, I think—the raking shot home and the careful two-to-the-green…
He goes on to add...
"Two holes have been mentioned as possible “Reef” holes. The 13th at Quaker Ridge doesn’t have all of the features that Tilly describes. There are clearly diagonal fairway bunkers, but these don’t bisect the entire fairway from one side to the other. Neither is there the pronounced downslope or backside mounding on the LOWER side from which a purposefully played shot may carom off this forward and onto the green. But that is merely my opinion.
Rock Hill was designed by Tilly. Unfortunately the EXISTING Rock Hill CC course is an 18-hole design and has no relationship to the 9-holer that Tilly created."
You can see the diagonal feature on the drawing of 18 Paramount, but I find it interesting that the concept could be adapted to a par-4 or even a par-5 for that matter.