Philly Cricket Militia Hill: a photo tour (all 18 holes now up)

[Joe Bausch]

Hurdzan's and Fry's Militia Hill course opened in 2002.  I played it the year it opened, but had not been back since, until recently.  On a beautiful fall afternoon I very much enjoyed my round with Powell Arms and Rory Connaughton.  What is the biggest change since when I played it the first year?  At least this late season the crew there has really been able to get the course firm.  In 2002 the course was super-green, super-lush, and super-soft.  It is not uncommon to get maybe a 50 yard roll in the fairways on drives.

Here is the routing at MH, where a railroad freight line cuts across the course (a functioning one, unlike the remains of the one bisecting the Wissahickon course):



Or go here for an easier to see, larger image:

http://xchem.villanova.edu/~bausch/images/militiahill/MH_routing.jpg

We played from the member tees at 6636 yards (tee boxes #3 in the hole diagrams).  The tips stretch out to a whoppin' 7380.

#1.  Par 4.  This sort of eases you into the course.



Tee view:



A better drive ends up out farther left than this view:



Rory showed the ideal angle to the green is from the middle of the 2nd fw... well, if you can judge the fact that he nearly dunked his approach shot and made the putt!



From a bit long and left of the green:



From right of the green:



#2.  Par 4 with an elevated, bunkerless green.  I would not say the first hole was easy, but this par 4 is much harder b/c of the elevated approach to a tough green.



Tee view:



View from 200 yards out:



From just short and right of the green:



From just over the green:



After the 2nd you cross under the railroad line to play holes 3-9.

#3.  Par 5.  I might even call this a par 4.5, but as tempting as it is to try and play it like a par 4, there is plenty of trouble to be found.



Tee view:



A good drive tempts you to carry the water to the opening on the front of the green:



If you are going to lay-up, do so with plenty of club hitting it right of the green (not unlike #4 at BPB):



My lay-up left me this view in from 75 yards:



View from behind the green:



From the hill left of the green (that is the Wissahickon course hole #12 above the wall):



Another view of the green from the next tee:



More on Thursday.

[Ronald Montesano]

How close to the crossing hazard can you get on #2? As in, how long an approach does it leave you? What length does it take to get the ball up to the brink of the crossing hazard?

[Steve_ Shaffer]

This course is frequently mentioned as a potential PGA Tour venue for a Philly event if a sponsor( hint: Comcast) and date can be found. From the tips, it would be quite a test.

[Powell Arms]

How close to the crossing hazard can you get on #2? As in, how long an approach does it leave you? What length does it take to get the ball up to the brink of the crossing hazard?

Ron - the typical member tee position is "2" in the diagram above.  On a fast and firm day, a good drive (280) gets you wet.  There is just a bit of rough, no more than 3-5 yards in width, between the end of the fairway and the crossing wetlands/stream bed.  The whole hazard is maybe 5 yards across.  The slope across the hazard is pretty severe, so it is very unlikely that it could be carried off the tee - and given the topography it is a poor strategic choice even if carried. 

The hole is best played with a 240 tee shot which leaves a 140 yd approach plus about 2 clubs uphill.

[Rory Connaughton]

To follow up on Powell's comment regarding no. 2, the wind on the day we played was into us (i suspect that a west wind is prevailing).  Without the headwind even a drive that carries only 240 is likely to end up in the water.  The fairways are that firm and fast.  Militia Hill was by far the best conditioned inland course I have played this year.  I agree with Joe that the course was formerly a bit soft but no longer. The maintenance meld is ideal tee to green.  The result is that the adventure is just beginning when the ball hits the ground as it will roll to bunkers and other hazards.  My tee shot on 3 was drawing and got the benefit of the right to let wind.  When the ball landed it continue to roll out to just short of the lake. Fortunately that left me in position to go for he green in two but I could just as easily have been dropping out of the hazard.

Militia Hill's great strength in my view is terrific variety in the par 5's from 4.5's to big three shotters, a good range of 3 pars from approximately 140 to 240 (11 is a good reverse redan) and some great short 4's notably 4, 7, 10, 12 and the diabolical 16 (almost driveable but perhaps more difficult inside 30 yards than from 130 if you are on the wrong side of the fairway).  The course is a terrific complement to the Wissahickon course.

As a whole Cricket is an incredible club and that it doesn't get more press is a testament to the quality in the area. It certainly holds its own with the other highly ranked venues and would be a fantastic site for the US Amateur. 

Hopefully Powell 9who is an excellent host by the way) will give us some information on the bunkers lined with porous asphalt.  Seems like a great idea and if MH's are any guide something that should be considered for clubs about to embark on bunker projects.

[Chris Roselle]

Joe, thanks for posting these pics.  I played there a few weeks ago in a Stag Day and the course was in fantatstic shape.  The wind was really blowing hard that day and the course played quite difficult.  #15 was playing dead into the fan and from the tees we played at I hit a 4 iron from 155 yards...When Militia Hill plays firm and fast it's all about the angles you take off the tee.  The course, eventhough the length seems long on the scorecard, can play much shorter if you pick the right lines off the tee.  Militia Hill, along with Applebrook, are my two favorite modern courses in the Philadelphia area.  And I would love to see it host a Tour event in the near future.

[Rory Connaughton]

Chris

  I agree regarding the angles.  There are many hole locations that are simply inaccessible from the wrong side of the fairway. I had an approach from the left side of 13 that landed within 8 feet of the hole and ended up about 30 feet or more.

[Joe Bausch]

#4.  Dogleg right par 4 (398 yards).



That creek just seems like a magnet, the safe play out to the left.

Tee shot view:



Better approach shot position is left of this view (par 3 5th green in view to the right):



From just across the creek:



From just short of the green:



#5.  Slightly uphill par 3 (157 yards).



Tee shot view:



From just right of the green:



#6.  Dogleg right par 5 (508 yards) that climbs significantly uphill on the second shot.



Tee shot view:



Second shot view:



Approach shot view:



From short and right of the green:



From left of the green:



I'll finish the front nine on Friday.

[Rory Connaughton]

4-6 is an excellent stretch. 4 Green is very dicey if you try to cut the corner and land right of the green. The entire surface runs away, dramatically, right to left so even a flop is almost impossible to keep close.  6 is an excellent par 5 and with a good tee shot could be reachable with a blistering 3 wood but that fronting bunker does a great job of protecting the running second shot and also creates a real depth perception problem if the golfer lays up.

[Powell Arms]

Below are some links to information, photos and videos that show the bunker reconstruction.  All of the bunkers on Militia Hill were rebuilt in 2010.  The original liners from 2002 were removed and new drainage pipes were installed and covered with porous asphalt.  That was then covered with new sand. 

The result has been spectacular.  Minimal maintenance - even with the steep faces and with the deluge Philadelphia received throughout Aug-Sept of 2011.

Photos showing old bunkers compared to a porous asphalt test bunker:

http://philacricketgm.blogspot.com/2009/12/militia-hill-bunker-work.html

Video during storm of same:

http://philacricketgm.blogspot.com/2009/12/photo-above-shows-how-greenside-bunker.html

Photos of new bunker construction:

http://philacricketgm.blogspot.com/2010/04/militia-hill-bunker-project.html



Full credit for this goes to Cricket's Director of Grounds, Dan Meersman.  Dan devised the solution and implemented it with his own grounds team.  The result is a great solution that saved money on the front end and operations!

[Jim_Coleman]

Notice anything distinctive about the back nine from the aerial?  Does Firestone come to mind?

[Joe Bausch]

#7.  Par 4, the No 1 stroke hole (410 yards).



There is a little downslope that bigger hitters can get to and make this hole not so long.



Approach shot view showing the big slope that can be used to get shots to the left on the green:



From over the green:



#8.  Par 4 (379 yards).



Tee shot view:



Approach shot view:



From over the green:



#9.  Par 3 (205 yards).



Tee shot view:



From short of the green:



From right of the green:



Back nine starts perhaps over the weekend.

[Rory Connaughton]

7 may be my favorite hole. To have any real chance at the green, you need to be middle to left which brings the left fairway bunker into play. A well place drives catches a down slope and gets significantly more yardage.  The green has a number of Redan elements including a great kick plate on the right which helps to funnel the ball to a back hole location.

9 is a demanding par 3 into the wind. Last week it played into a three club wind. I was lucky to get within 30 feet with 4 wood.

Jim, I've never been to Firestone so I don't know what the topography is like but the back 9 at Militia Hill has some terrific elevation changes and enough variety to overcome any limitation associated with the parallel routing. 

[Jim_Coleman]

     All the holes (but the short 11th) run in the same direction.

[Ian Dalzell]

Jim
Not so.  Look on the other side of the train tracks and you will see holes 3-9 which are some of the best holes on the course.  Militia Hill this year was perhaps the best conditioned course in all of Philadelphia, and probably the NE but I didn't travel enough to substantiate that 

I do believe that the Wissahickon has much more character than Militia, but they are both very, very solid golf courses.

Ian

[Joe Bausch]

After the 9th hole you go back under the train tracks and the entire back nine is on the same side as 1 and 2.

#10.  Par 4 (380 yards).



Tee shot view (late 2010 photo):



Long drive leaves approach shot view like this:



From over the green:



#11.  Slightly downhill par 3 (138 yards).



Tee shot view:



View of the green from the nearby 15th green:



From over the green:



#12.  Par 4 (365 yards).

This is one of my favorite 2-shotters on the course.



Tee shot view (where big hitters can get very close to the green with a speed slot present near the right fw bunker):



Approach shot view to a green that slopes to the back after that small front terrace (a very fun pin):



From just short of the green:



More on Sunday.

[Tim Gavrich]

If I kind of wished we had ended up playing the Militia Hill course in our tournament back in April instead of the Wissahickon course, does that make me a bad person? 

Wissahickon was really nice, but I felt that the course had a very muted visual feel.  Militia Hill just looks a little more interesting.

[Joe Bausch]

If I kind of wished we had ended up playing the Militia Hill course in our tournament back in April instead of the Wissahickon course, does that make me a bad person? 

Nope, it does not make you a bad person.  What it does make you is young and a player.  Very good young players all prefer MH over the Wissahickon, IMO.   

[Joe Bausch]

#13.  Par 4 (429 yards).

The green really makes this hole.  Check out the contours on the hole diagram, a wonderful back area on a very deep green.



Slightly elevated tee show view:



Approach shot view:



From short of the green:



From long and right of the green:



#14.  Par 5 (508 yards).



Tee shot view:



Approach shot view where some will just bunt one done short of the creek, or play over it to the left.



From across the creek:



From the hill over the green:



#15.  Slightly uphill par 3 (172 yards).



Tee show view:



From short and left of the green:



From just over the green:



Monday we'll finish the tour.

[Joe Bausch]

Time to finish MH this morn.

#16.  Slightly downhill par 4 (369 yards).

Another nifty short 4, where the big hitters might be tempted to swing away.



Tee shot view:



From short of the green:



From right of the green looking back up the fw:



#17.  Elevated tee shot on the par 5 (537 yards).



Tee shot view:



2nd shot view:



From short of the green:



From just right of the green:



#18.  Par 4 (411 yards).



Tee shot view:



From just short of the junk:



From short of the green:



From the hill over the green:



I hope you enjoyed the tour.  I certainly enjoyed my round there and look forward to the continued evolution of MH, together with the upcoming changes at the Wissahickon course.

[Rory Connaughton]

16 is a fantastic short 4. It plays downwind and with the benefit of the firm and fast conditions cultivated at MH it is possible to drive the green with a well placed shot that pitches forward from the approach.  Depending on the quality of your wedge play, there is some danger in driving the ball too far. If the flag is right and you driver just short of the green the pitch is pretty nasty to a green where the rear is partially obscured by a slope running away. The better play for me would have been to hit 6 iron and PW rather than 4 wood bladed lob wedge :-)

Depending on the wind and roll you get, 17 can be reachable in 2 (again thanks to incredible turf conditions).  When we played the flag was in the front and coming back to it from the left was one of the toughest putts of the day.

[Doug Braunsdorf]

This looks really good-I have no experience with MH other than from the car window or looking at it from adjacent holes on Wissahickon.  I really like the way the bunkers are positioned at the front of the green on some of the par fives-makes one think before just blasting at the green.
I also like the way many of the greens are positioned to accept the run-up shot, and the long par 3 9th, which is a great alternative to the standard mid-iron par three.  What if this was longer, e.g. 220-250 from the middle?


 Some of the greens look to fall-away, is this true? 

It looks also to provide a good contrast to the Wissahickon Course-not a less desirable alternative, but an equally good course, with a good feel.  At first, I admit to thinking the course looked a little barren, but then I regained my good sense.  Thanks for the photo tour and commentary.

[ward peyronnin]

Nice pics Joe but the course does not impress me. Runway looking fairways and flash faced artistic lobed bunkers?
Very TPCish

[D_Malley]

joe B., or anyone else who knows both courses,
if you have ten rounds to play the two 18 hole courses at PCC, how would you split them up?

i will allow you to play the 11th at st. martins😃

[Joe Bausch]

joe B., or anyone else who knows both courses,
if you have ten rounds to play the two 18 hole courses at PCC, how would you split them up?

i will allow you to play the 11th at st. martins😃

Gut answer is 7:3 ratio favoring Wissahickon. I'm a big fan of old courses, but I do like MH plenty.  Especially after my most recent trip where the TEPaul maintenance meld at MH was really good.  Now after the renostoration is done at the old course, the ratio could change,   

Dan, I'm guessing you've played both many times.  Your split?  And why?