Milwaukee Country Club profile is now posted ...

[Ran Morrissett]

... under Architecture Timeline and Courses by Country.

A reputation is an especially precious commodity for a golf course architect. A good one enables good projects and a great one enables great projects. Yet, what exactly constitutes a "great project"?

To me, it means a properly funded undertaking with a spacious setting, good soil and a natural diversity of hazards. Alison’s reputation commanded that time and time again wherever in the world he worked. Royal Hague, for instance, with its tumbling dunes is the stuff of dreams. In North America, Alison’s best projects are marked by superior water hazards of the sort that modern architects see only infrequently. Think about Pine Valley’s three holes beside and over the lake where Alison helped after Crump’s death, Kirtland and its awesome river valley that dominates the back nine and the great natural hazards of Sea Island and Timber Point.

If you accept my definition of a great project, then Milwaukee Country Club represented yet another great prospect for Alison. Yet ... he still had to make it happen. Walter Travis had a mostly similar opportunity there – and he blew it. Whether he mailed it in or not I don’t know but I do know this: Alison never mailed it in. Not unlike William Flynn, Alison didn’t overextended himself and he gave every project the personal attention it required. Throw in his work in Japan that changed how that country viewed golf and I place him at my table of Master Architects. Seated along with him would be Park, Fowler, MacKenzie, Colt, Ross, Maxwell, Tillinghast, Macdonald, Raynor, Flynn, Thompson, Thomas, Dye, Coore and Doak. Morris would call the dinner to order!

Speaking of Tom D., the work done by Don Placek and Brian Schneider of Tom’s Renaissance Design has re-established Milwaukee near the forefront of existing Alison courses. Trees are once again back from play and the scale of this second to none exquisite parkland setting is on full display. In its infancy, the members there turned to the golf mecca of Chicago to establish their first golfing iterations. If you ask me, the student can now teach the master: If there is a better course in Illinois than Milwaukee CC, I haven’t seen it. Doak claims that Chicago GC is playing just about pitch perfect now but if I think about the two raw properties I know where I would rather have a game.

The sight and sound of the Milwaukee River help make the stretch from 8 to the clubhouse one of my all-time favorite strings of holes. That’s courtesy of Alison’s routing skill. Throw in his varied bunkering schemes and something very special emerges. Of course, Alison was famous for his bunkers (they are referred to as “Alisons” in Japan), both for their depth and placement. Of the 79 bunkers around Milwaukee, many have famously steep, vertical faces. If more people saw Milwaukee, I dare say it would have a near cult following as the point of restitution of these sand particles is pushed to the max here. That takes talent, time (and therefore money) but that’s fine with the board. Green Keeper Pat Sisk gets what he needs and does an outstanding job. As you scroll through the 30+ plus photographs, you will gain a sense (correctly!) that this is a big time operation.


No detail work is too small at Milwaukee: Placek loves how this fairway bunker at the fourteenth visually lines up with the greenside bunker in the distance.

I first played here in October, 1986 and was dumbstruck how such a great course could fly under the radar. I played that day with a USGA committeeman Tom Egan who passed away earlier this year. After the round, I asked Tom (who was a Baltusrol member at the time), “Apart from the history that comes from hosting US Opens, can you think of any reason why Milwaukee isn’t as famous as your home club”? He responded, “Absolutely not.” And what’s happened at Milwaukee since then? It has been improved! I am trying to round up some before photos now but have a look at the photos from the 1st and 10th in the profile and imagine being unable to see those respective greens. That was the course I greatly admired back then. Now thanks to a series of smart decision by its boards and handiwork by Sisk, Placek, Schneider and others, this Golden Age design is finely tuned and re-assumes a dominant presence upon the Midwest landscape.

Allow Tom MacWood, who passed away suddenly this year, to have a say. Tom said of Alison in his In My Opinion Piece on this web site entitled Gliding past Fuji – C.H. Alison in Japan: The sense of rhythm and harmony, simplicity of vision, the importance of design, that Nature should be the source of inspiration, these are the element found in the arts of Japan. Alison recognized these principals and merged his naturalistic tendencies of golf design born on the heathlands with that Japanese aesthetic. It was Alison’s ability embrace and incorporate what he saw in Japan that made his lasting influence possible.

Many of those same qualities apply to Midwest sensibility and Alison adopted them during his time in North America. Milwaukee is now Exhibit A for this talented man’s immense design skills. If anyone has played it in the last year or two and doesn’t agree, I will be shocked.

Cheers,

[Jim Eder]

Ran,

Thank you for another terrific piece on an absolutely amazing golf course. There is no doubt that it is special and you highlighted that wonderfully. Just a fantastic piece. Thank you.

[Tim_Weiman]

Ran,

Thanks for such a great review. Milwaukee never made it on my must see list, but your review has changed that.

[RJ_Daley]

Not many can write one up like Ran! 

I've only attended the Mid Am to spectate at MCC.  But, I was also dumbstruck at the beautiful design.  We had some great discussion on MCC after that event, with Phil McDade leading some great comments and provided some great photos. 

As I was getting around the course watching the Ams., and came to the 8th, I had already been excited by what I was seeing.  But, to arrive at 8th, and see the dramatic routing and use of the terrain there through the 11th, was really special.  The fall away to the rear of the par 3 8th, with the left wrapped steep flashed bunker around the green, seems to me that it works in reverse that something like the surprise fall away is only a surprise once.  In this case, it seems to me that the perils of the relation to the rear and the greenside severity of the bunkers would only grow with repeated play and knowledge or witness to what can happen. 

Another thing on the next 9th hole that I find sort of counter to conventional wisdom of remodelling that I think Jones was a bit bold with was to actually shorten the hole some.  As Ran points out, the shortening and moving to the left, directly at the clubhouse - and so close to the building may have defied conventional wisdom of making a hole longer to make it tougher.  But clearly, the 9th was toughened and made more of a test of deft touch on the approach.  The old green would still have only been a short to mid iron, but the tee ball on a sort of crest of hill, with bunkering right, and now needing to wedge high and land soft or suffer the extreme false front, and the nerviness of the greenside bunkers and uneasy feel of the proximity of the clubhouse looming, was in my mind a great remodel architects decision by Jones. 

I also am struck by the trees still there, and what the actual early photos would depict about the amount of trees on the land as Allison found it.  As Ran's photos demonstrate in a fall foliage, those maples an many of the trees left after thinning may only be <50-60 years old, taking them only to mid to late 1050s.   I never got down to an invitation to see Pat Sisk several years ago, but one question I'd have is if the tree management program was one of placing many specimen maples and such too heavily around the course in late 30s-50s, and then a constant trimming since they grew in.  And, is the long range idea still one of more thinning as time makes their footprint of what remains even more encroaching as they grow, still.  Having not played there, I really can't say if there are now the right balance of trees, or even more could be gone.  Clearly, the specimen deciduous leafy trees are part of a gorgeous - particularly fall, setting.  How many trees previously removed were conifers?

I sure hope someone does post some early photos of MCC from the 20s-30s for comparison.

Nice depiction of some of the flashed bunkers, Ran.  When I was there, that Jones flat area bunker nest on 14 did strike me as square peg in round hole, not original. Though, as it is so flat, I'm not sure if Allison would have decided to put the sand hazards there, how they would have looked.

I sure hope they host another top player quality event there so that I can go again and enjoy seeing a great course played by excellent players.  MCC don't need 7400 yards to provide great golf for great players, that is for sure. 

[Jason Topp]

"The transformation of the tenth from one of the weaker holes on the course to one its the best helps cement Milwaukee’s status as one of the two or three best courses in the Midwest."

Strong praise!

[RJ_Daley]

Maybe he meant, 'top two or three percent'! 

[Phil McDade]

"The transformation of the tenth from one of the weaker holes on the course to one its the best helps cement Milwaukee’s status as one of the two or three best courses in the Midwest."

Strong praise!

Jason:

It's the best course in Wisconsin -- and don't let any of the Kohler fanatics around here persuade you otherwise.

RJ:

Re. your question here: "And, is the long range idea still one of more thinning as time makes their footprint of what remains even more encroaching as they grow, still."

My sense is clearly yes. Take a look at the 1st hole in Ran's write-up here:
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/courses-by-country/usa/milwaukee-country-club/

compared to this photo from the thread of the club here, taken during the late summer/early September period when the club hosted the U.S. Mid-Am in 2008:


Bunkers have been added to the 1st fairway, but the fairway appears to be wider, and importantly trees have been cleared back away from the fairway, When I walked MCC extensively four years ago, there was considerable evidence of tree-clearance (as was also evidenced by the timber piled high in one of the club's auxilary parking lots as well!). But to me, there were still places where additional thinning was needed: the 1st, perhaps the 2nd, certainly the left side of the 6th (the deceptively difficult par 4 that Ran highlights in his write-up) and some of the 7th as well. There may have been more. On some previous threads, Tom Doak has mentioned that work at MCC proceeds......how shall we say.........cautiously. It's no Erin Hills! But -- it appears to be continuing to move in the right direction.

[Patrick_Sisk,_CGCS]

Mr. Doak and I had an interesting conversation regarding golf courses, irrigation and trees.  In the end, they’re all related and NOT specific to MCC alone. I’ll try to explain our hypothesis, how it relates to Milwaukee CC, where we were and where we’re headed.

Once upon a time golf courses were built on land that was, for the most part, void of vegetation taller than the average man.  Also, these courses did not irrigate wall to wall as we do today.  Greens and tees were the only receptors for this precious resource until one day, in a land not too far away, some trend setting green keeper/green committee decided that they were water rich and playing on dried out, semi-dormant bentgrass fairways was better left to others.  Enter the single row, manual (or traveler) fairway irrigation system.  The quality of turf on these fairways improved dramatically, especially during dry periods.  However, these “fair-greens” as they were called, that once reached up to 90’ wide had to be moved in to account for the lack of irrigation beyond the center line of each hole.  (The evolution of tighter landing areas)  This was not a big concern because steel shafted drivers and wound golf balls made the flight of each shot more accurate when compared to outdated equipment.

Now all was well, that is except for the dried out, semi-dormant swards of rough that surrounded each and every hole out there.  Eureka, a solution!  Trees should be planted to “mask” this unsightly landscape.  Big, wonderful, shade giving, fruit bearing, leaf dropping trees! 

Milwaukee Country Club actually went about this evolution in a very systematic fashion, not surprisingly.  Jens Jensen, a noted and most respected landscape architect, drew up and implemented a landscape design specific to the MCC property.  Hundreds of American Elms were the basis of his design and the placement of his trees worked very well in conjunction with the golf course.  He gave great thought to their location, future growth and their potential impact on golf, play and turf quality.  Unfortunately, the Elm Bark beetle came to town, armed with Dutch Elm disease and all but wiped out the population of American Elms across the country.

In a bit of a panic lesser varieties of trees were planted where these once dramatic one’s stood.  Norway, Silver and Sugar Maples made up the bulk of the replacements and in an effort to re-vegetate as quickly and securely as possible a 3:1 plan (purely and educated guess on my part) was implemented.  The thought being that if one of the three survived the game would be a draw at the end of the day.  Well, the replacements survived quite well and their rapid growth rate began to impact golf and turf health within two generations. 

This story is not unique to MCC, it’s shared by nearly all park-land courses throughout the country.  Fortunately, many clubs have seen the errors of their ways and are taking steps to correct the problem.

At MCC we started on the periphery of the property, removing dying and damaged trees from obscure areas in an effort to open vistas to other parts of the golf course.  Over time we’ve moved to more interior locations where the game began to become impacted by the growth of some trees.  I don’t have a specific number of trees that have been removed from this property and I probably wouldn’t share it if I did.  I can tell you that our membership has been very supportive of our efforts and our leadership has fully endorsed our plans to continually evaluate possibilities moving forward.

Pat

[Dan Kelly]

Pat Sisk --

The course looks great.

In regard to your conversation with Mr. Doak, I have one question: How do the changes in the course's look and maintenance affect your water and herbicide use? Is your philosophy more or less environmentally "friendly"?

Thanks.
Dan

P.S. to Ran: There are three other reasons Milwaukee CC isn't as famous as Baltusrol:

Location.

Location.

Location.

[Patrick_Sisk,_CGCS]

Dan,

I whole heatedly believe that golf course superintendents, 99.99% of the time, act in an "environmentally friendly" manner and plan all agronomic programs around protecting the environment first.  Think about it, if we acted differently we'd be out on the street right away.  This is a brutal enough business to begin with.  Why would anyone with a right mind jeopardize their livelihood and the reputation of their employer over a bit of dead turf?  As a good friend and superior turf manager once said to me "...it's only grass, it will come back in spite of our best efforts."

As for water use; Today's irrigation systems are incredibly accurate and efficient, even compared to those of 20 years ago. 

Jim Urbina once contacted me with some information he found while working on a McKenzie course where the Good Dr. specified turf types and the annual water requirements needed to sustain the stand.  Based on McKenzie's recommendations I calculated my usage as a comparison.  I was happy to find that my annual usage, on a per acre basis, was below the recommendation.   I fully attribute this to our irrigation system and the fact that I much prefer a drier course for maintenance and playability reasons.

Pat

[RJ_Daley]

Thanks Phil for your 1rst photo and able to see the impressive comparison from that 2008 year to this fall.  2008 was last time I saw it and that is why I was left with the notion a bit more tree thinning was in order, and asked the questions about the ongoing program and ideals that Pat has so well explained.  Pat is obviously a prime mover and shaker in helping his club and with these examples, and others to be able to see their courses for the trees.  It was apparent that even before 2008 trees were thinned.  But, these photos of Ran's are really demonstrative of how positive the thinning has been, and of course how much more the remodel by Renaissance, some additions, some reshaping, and some mowing lines have just added more to an already spectacular golf course. Just fantastic professional performance by Pat!!!

I had looked some time earlier for historical old aerials for MCC.  In my own neighborhood in WI, I can go back to 1938.  But at the area of MCC, it goes to 1963.  But still, if you can get these links to work, look at the tree progress from '63 to present from aerials that exist.

from this website:

http://www.historicaerials.com/

<img src='http://www.historicaerials.com/api/img-server.php?op=fetchHistoricPhotograph&bbox=-87.9453123581272,43.1680253759125,-87.9334358835273,43.1561489013126&year=1963&stamp=true' alt='www.historicaerials.com'></img>

http://www.historicaerials.com/api/img-server.php?op=fetchHistoricPhotograph&bbox=-87.9453123581272,43.1680253759125,-87.9334358835273,43.1561489013126&year=1963&stamp=true

You may have to play with the links to get it to work.

[RJ_Daley]

BTW, Ran mentioned the re-sighting of the 9th green in the 70s, but the /63 aerial shows it already in the new place.

But, not the nest of flat bunkers at the dogleg on 13th... 

[Patrick_Sisk,_CGCS]

Thanks RJ.

Trees are a part of the equation for sure but there is a whole lot more to it.  Tom, Don and Brian really see the minute details.  Tiny adjustments to grass lines, a few more inches in a bunker's height, the list goes on and on.  These guys have taken the work of a "Master Architect", as Ran puts it, to a whole new level.  The extradonary thing is that their work is indistinguishable from the Master's.  They checked their egos at the door and continue to answer the question; What would Alison have done with more time?  Now that, to me, is the sign of a true craftsman!

[Phil McDade]

Pat was very generous to spend some time talking with me and a few other GCA fanatics at the Mid-Am a few years back. One other aspect of the course that probably doesn't get much attention -- particularly after two very dry summers here in Wisconsin -- is that parts of the course, particularly that neat stretch along the back nine of holes #11 through 15 -- are quite close to the river, and it's not that unusual to have the old river overflow its  banks and literally put some holes under water. It's a challenging course in that regard, as well, in addition to the inconsistent weather patterns and humidity associated with the Midwest.

I should also note that at the closing ceremonies of the Mid-Am back in 2008, someone wise arranged to have the entire grounds crew gathered near the clubhouse during the closing ceremonies and be formally recognized. It's a big crew, and from what I've seen of the course, really quite excellent at what they do. To a person, the players as well as the caddies -- many of them golfers and some GCA folks here -- said the playing conditions at the US Mid-Am were superior.

[RJ_Daley]

Pat, have you ever had a chance to do reciprocal visits to Scotty's North Shore CC to compare the extent of remodel work and ideas that Renaissance has pursued at each course?  I know it was different associates, but ideas and techniques along with long range suggestions may be similar, it seems to me.  

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

A course I so wish I had seen and played.

[Mike McGuire]

MCC was the first course I ever saw.  I hitchhiked there many times a week to caddy starting at age 11.  Combined with lessons from Manel de La Torre on caddy lesson day I guess I was lucky in golf.

[Mike_Young]

Pat was nice enough to show me around a couple of years ago...really really nice course.  I was playing with a member that day and can also say that the locker room is also a treasure.....

[Jim Eder]

Pat,

Thank you for the additional information on this post and in the piece. You and your team have done and continue to do a terrific job. Congratulations are well deserved.

[Ian Andrew]

I see the same shapes as Park Country Club (Alison 1922) but he clearly grassed it all down at Park as per the old photos.
I'm facinated by the same shapes with high faces. Very interesting impact.
Place looks super cool.

[Kris Shreiner]

Ran,

Great profile of a course I've long wanted to get a look at! My chums from that area all have touted how solid it was/is even prior to the more recent work.

Mike McGuire,

Could you expand on your days there as a caddie and who Manel de La torre was and how he influenced you.

Cheers,
Kris

[RJ_Daley]

While we never learn on the commercials what his name actually is.... The most interesting man in the world 'could' be, Manuel de la Torre.

Feeling a bit older today, Mike?  

[PCCraig]

Wonderful write-up Ran, thanks.

Milwaukee is a really great golf course that I haven't seen in a long time, so it was fun to see the changes through your photos. Kudos to Tom and his team.

[Patrick_Sisk,_CGCS]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuel_de_la_Torre_(golfer)

Manuel still teaches every day, gets out on the course now and then too.  A wonderful gentleman who's forgotten more than most of us have seen!

[Kris Shreiner]

Pat,

Manuel is quite the fixture at MCC to be sure! An old school pro of the highest order from what I gleaned from his bio and your remarks. The game needs more of his type that are in the game for the right reasons with a real passion to share.

Cheers,
Kris