Taking out bunkers

[Jerry Kluger]

I was reading a thread which I believe concerned Royal Melbourne and mention was made of the removal of a bunker.  I have been advocating at my club for the removal of a bunker.  The hole in question is a long uphill par 4 which plays into the prevailing wind and there is a big and fairly deep bunker just short and right of the green.  My experience has been that the better players rarely are in it while the higher handicappers hit it quite often and have a terrible time getting out. 

What has your experience been with removing a bunker - when has it worked and been positively accepted and when has it not worked and why? 

thanks

[Jerry Kluger]

No feedback or ideas from anyone?

[Tom_Doak]

No feedback or ideas from anyone?

Jerry:

It might be because it almost never happens!  There is always inherent resistance among greens committees to do anything which might make the course "easier".  I think they're afraid of being accused of being pansies.

I "take bunkers out" mentally all the time when building new courses, just deciding that one is not really necessary.  But in all the consulting work we've done, I can only think of a handful of times when we've taken one out at an existing course, and we have nearly ALWAYS had to have the precedent that the bunker was not there in the first place, as at Royal Melbourne which you used for your example.  I will try to think of some other examples.

[Jeff_Mingay]

Jerry,

Keeping in mind that the most important elements of golf course design are the routing and the design of the greens and surrounds, opinions on removing a bunker (or leaving it) are very subjective. In my experience recommending the removal of bunkers, one committee member will 'get it' while another is adamantly against filling them in. Who's right, who's wrong?

As a golf course designer, and consultant to a number of clubs, I like to think the reasons I give for filling in a bunker make sense; but, still, some people just don't buy into it. In any case, I've come to think of bunkers - no matter where they're located - as hazards (that's what they are, after all); they're holes in the ground, filled with sand throughout a golf course that should be avoided by golfers. It's a simple concept. And, no matter where bunkers are someone's going to hit into them, at some time. In fact, some of the most boring courses are those bunkered to 'trap' the best players.  

I visit too many courses that have way too many bunkers. I have a renovation project starting this spring where we're removing almost half of the existing bunkers from the course (this took a lot of convincing, over several years). I think the course will be better for it, in terms of playability, aesthetics, construction and future maintenance costs. These are all good things, and yet there's a group at this club who are strongly opposed to my recommendations.

Frankly, bunkers are over-rated. One of my biggest pet peeves is seeing a club spend a million dollars on a bunker renovation project without any architectural advice. (I've seen this recently.) In many cases it could have been a $500k project once all of those bunkers that don't make any sense were filled in.

Not sure this answered your question, but... take it for whatever it's worth  

[JC Urbina]

Jerry,

I will let the Good Doctor answer your question.

" Most golfers have an entirely erroneous view of the real object of hazards.  The majority of them simply look upon hazards as a means of punishing a bad shot, when their real object is to make the game more interesting"
                                                                                        Alister Mackenzie
                                                                                        Golf Architecture

Now let's see what the rest have to say

[JC Urbina]

Jerry,

They beat me to the punch

[Jerry Kluger]

Jim: Thanks for the quote - I stole it and used it in a reply to our next green committee meeting.

[Mike Nuzzo]

Jerry
Can the high handicapper hit the green if they lay up?
Seems like that is what they should be doing.
Couldn't say this is a worthy bunker or not without knowing the rest of the holes.
Cheers

[Mike_Trenham]

Long par fours for mid to higher handicappers are really three shot holes.  A bunker like the one you mention add interest on the layup for theses golfers.  The worst par fives are ones with boring second shots.

[PCCraig]

I was reading a thread which I believe concerned Royal Melbourne and mention was made of the removal of a bunker.  I have been advocating at my club for the removal of a bunker.  The hole in question is a long uphill par 4 which plays into the prevailing wind and there is a big and fairly deep bunker just short and right of the green.  My experience has been that the better players rarely are in it while the higher handicappers hit it quite often and have a terrible time getting out. 

What has your experience been with removing a bunker - when has it worked and been positively accepted and when has it not worked and why? 

thanks

My club has taken a few bunkers out over the past three years, prior to my joining.

They grassed over one pretty neat bunker which was about 100 yards short of the green on the right side of the fairway on about a 330 yard par-4. They also took out a back right "wrap around" narrow bunker next to the green (my guess is that the bunker shot would of been impossible for most players as the green slopes hard back to front with balls rolling 100yards back down the fairway).

Here are a few photos of the hole (courtesy of John Mayhugh):

*The hole plays downhill off the tee shot. Players can either lay up short to about 150 yards and be able to see the green, or hit a driver and leave a blind, uphill 2nd shot. Shots left short of the green can come all the way back down to your feet. Shots hit over the green go down a steep hill behind towards another hole leaving a hard pitch back.

Tee shot:


The 2nd shot from the bottom of the hill:


Looking back from the green (the fairway bunker was on the left in the picture):


Here's a picture of the fairway bunker, just after being taken out of play and grassed over:

[Niall C]

Jerry

I can't help thinking that you would miss this bunker if it was gone. I mean the fact that you are aware of it suggests that your startegy for the hole probably evolves around it, or at least it should if you are wont to keep going in it, and if that weren't the case then what use would it be ?

Jim's Dr Mac quote is a good one. A golf course is basically an obstacle course and thats what makes it fun. Of course if the obstacles are too difficult or repetitive then the course tends to be pretty dull.

Niall