I had the good fortune to experience Tavistock CC the other day with fellow GCAer Jason Walker. I had played the back nine in late 2010, and on this sunny and pretty steamy afternoon was able to take in the entire course. If you are an architecture junkie needing a fix, TCC will do the job, and then some.
The early history of the course is quite fascinating, with what Jim Finegan wrote available at Gapgolf.org being quite concise:
The formation of the Tavistock Country Club was atypical.
By 1920, Haddon Country Club, which had been founded at about the turn of the century, was struggling. Despite the fact that most people worked six days a week then, the New Jersey "Blue Laws" forbade playing sports on Sunday unless it was approved by local option. In Quaker oriented Haddonfield the state law was strictly enforced. Two other circumstances further compounded the problem for the club. First of all, the lease on the club ground— for which the club paid only $700 a year—had just two more years to run, and the owner now put a sale price of $75,000 on the property. At that time Haddon Country Club had 140 members, each of whom was paying annual dues of $25. Additionally complicating the situation was the Volstead Act—Prohibition meant no bar revenue.
Frank B. Middleton, president of the club and a senior executive of the Camden-based Victor Talking Machine Company (it would become RCA Victor), came to the rescue. He quietly purchased 180 acres of farmland in Centre Township, bordering on Haddonfield, then sold the tract to 28 of his Haddon Country Club friends for $22,000, accepting promissory notes for the entire amount.
The next step was to find a way to circumvent the Sunday "Blue Laws." Senator Joseph Wallworth, a delegate to the state legislature from Camden County, was easily enlisted in the cause: he was already a member of the new club, which was incorporated on December 14, 1920. Wallworth introduced a bill that would create the autonomous borough of Tavistock on the 180-acre parcel of land. The wording did not disclose the bill’s purpose. Catching the House unaware, the bill passed unanimously despite the fact that two of the legislators were clergymen. What should be noted is that the Speaker of the House at the time, T. Harry Rowland, had, like Wallworth, already signed up as a member of the new Tavistock Country Club.
Predictably, a furor arose, with preachers vehemently denouncing the scheme from their pulpits, but the new Tavistock Borough prevailed, seceding from Centre Township and electing Frank Middleton its first mayor on March 21, 1921. Six councilmen, a tax collector, and an assessor, all running unopposed, were also elected. There were 19 votes counted, 10 from occupants of the farm houses in the new borough, the other nine courtesy of club members who, stretching the truth, gave Tavistock as their residence. The new borough contracted with Haddonfield to provide police and fire protection, sewer and water services.
So confident were Frank Middleton and his founding friends—the other four names appearing on the country club’s certificate of incorporation are David Baird, Jr., William M. Nash, George H. Hall, and J. Edward Fagen— in their ability to create a true golfing haven that even before they got the law on their side they had hired Alexander Findlay to lay out 18 holes.In the late 1950's Tavistock lost some land due to I-295 and part of the course was changed by Robert Trent Jones. But there is still more Findlay left than what Jones did.
Here is the current routing of the course from a 2011 Google Earth aerial:
(all figures and pictures are 'clickable' to give a much larger size)
You can see I-295 in the bottom right corner. Changes to the course were in this area. Using old aerials, I modified my figure above to indicate the approximate original routing:
Tavistock tips out at 6823 (73.4/139), so it is no slouch if you wish to play the black tees. We played the combo black/gold tees, at 6589 (72.3/133). It was nice and firm this day so even an old guy like me could handle the distance.
#1. Par 4 (355 yards).
Tee view:
Pretty generous fairway width at TCC, this being typical:
A good drive leaves this approach shot view:
From just short of the green:
From just over the green (some greens are fairly subtle and photos really flatten them, like this one):
There aren't many homes along the course, but this one is spectacular!
#2. Par 5 (552 yards).
You can see the tip of the flag in the distance (and the 3rd green as well):
Good drives will leave a blind second shot in, although real big hitters can carry this rise (about 285 from the tips):
If you carry this rise, you'll have a go in two with this view:
Approach shot view (where you can see the 3rd green in the distance, not possible until some recent tree removal):
From just over the green:
#3. Par 4 (404 yards).
Tee view:
Approach shot view:
From just short of the green:
From just over the green:
After that nice start, I'll post three more holes tomorrow.
