I went for an annual review with our hosting company last Friday and Monica informed me that 7,200 different computers logged into GolfClubAtlas.com in 2010 on a daily basis. In 2011, that number grew to 9,400, a spiffy 30% increase. However, only ~1,400 people are registered to post, which means the preponderance of people tune in strictly to read.
And one of the best reads you can have is Chris Buie’s freshly posted paper on the early days of Pinehurst now found under In My Opinion. Laced with postcards and photographs from back in the day, his writing takes us on a meandering journey. In pleasurably unhurried prose, Chris talks about James Tufts’s early vision and how it changed out of necessity. You meet Doctor Leroy Culver who laid out the first holes as well as the first Scot golf professional of Pinehurst, John Dunn Tucker (Ross came second!). You’ll even brush past F Scott Fitzgerald as you peruse The Early Days of Pinehurst. Importantly, Chris imparts a sense of the times like in this paragraph:
'When deprived of the tempering influence of home and hearth, lively groups of men are sometimes known to pursue what Ross called "sporty" vacations. This was roundly discouraged by the Pinehurst establishment. In fact, one had to be personally approved by the Tufts family to be admitted into their Southern haven. So keen was Tufts upon a wholesome environment that alcohol was not allowed within the resort at any time. The banishment of intoxicating spirits within the gilded edges of this village was about as successful as it soon went in the nationwide Prohibition decree - which is to say that there was the occasional discrepancy between stated community standards and the activities which actually took place.'
What a treat to read (!) as sadly such nuanced humor and sly writing is largely absent in golf circles these days.
Relating to golf, two of the titanic figures in early American golf, namely HC Fownes and Walter Travis, feature prominently. Chris shines the spotlight on an eye-popping passage from Travis in The American Golfer, where Travis claims much of the credit for the evolution of No.2
(and this, mind you, 30 years prior to the greens becoming grass): 'Finally in 1906 I won him {James Tufts} around to my way of thinking and he gave me carte blanche to go ahead.' In regards to Ross, Travis wrote that Ross ‘although credited with laying out some hundreds of courses all over the country, really had no genius for the work. Donald heeded my advice...and golf has been tremendously benefited by his many very fine creations since.’
Just as amusing as these quotes from The Old Man are how Chris treats them by noting afterwards, ‘The main thing one can deduce from this striking passage is that it is unlikely Mr. Travis suffered from a shortage of ego. Indeed, it is the imperious tone ("he was merely an echo of my own views") which draws the credibility of his statements into question. Any discriminating reader would view his words with no small measure of skepticism. It is interesting to note that genius and graciousness are not the most compatable of personal characteristics. Some manage to pull it off - but that is the exception rather than the rule.’
That’s just GREAT writing. My course profiles are just that – course profiles. Chris does something far more interesting – he tells us a story. The fact that he elected to spend so much time, twenty images and over 5,000 words makes us all the richer. This is what GolfClubAtlas.com was built for – richly textured articles of the sort that magazines rarely can publish due to space constraints.
Looping back to the top, why do so many people read GolfClubAtlas.com? Some like to be entertained. Some like to learn. Others appreciate having events put in historical context. All of these ingredients are present in spades in this delightful essay. It is like a Russian doll, with many things of interest found inside. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
Cheers,