I must say I'm a bit bothered by the general consensus that I will only enjoy Waverley because it's the only course that has been restored. If some of the others have a really interesting set of greens, wouldn't I find those interesting, trees or no trees?
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Absolutely, but you said you would have time to visit 1-2 courses while you were in Portland, presumably a Confidential Guide visit? I guess I assumed you were looking for a little more than just a course with a good set of greens. If that's the criteria, then I have to say that Waverley is still tops on the list (restored or not) and CECC is next.
I would also add Oswego Lake to your list. It certainly doesn't resemble any of the photos in George Thomas' book, but as it is now, it has an interesting routing on a semi-hilly property, and a set of interesting greens. Last time I was there, they were doing some bunker work, but not sure if their was any restoration aspect to it.
not to threadjack, bit did Waverly chop down a lot of trees during the redo? And do you think their success will prompt the other local clubs (i.e. CECC, Portland GC) to look at a renovation/restoration? Is there a "keeping up with the Joneses" situation among clubs?
I don't think it's as much of how many trees they took down (the number is actually far less than some club's removals discussed on here,) but the fact that they focused on clearing out some of the sequoia-bowling-alley-corridors and a lot of the other junk trees and uncovered some of the cool groves that exist there, allowing to add back the fairway width/random assortment of fairway bunkering, all while enjoying some great views out to the river now.
It's good stuff there, Tom. If this project was completed back East, we'd be talking about it A LOT more on here...