Old Town Club profile is posted ...

[Jon Cavalier]

My god. The place looks incredible - Old Town is moving quickly up my must play list.

Great photos. Thanks for posting.

Jon - you've seen some special places recently. I'd love to see a match between Myopia and Old Town - both big favourites in our circles. We tend to care less about USGA event history and more about quality. Old Town is in very rarified air. I have it in my American top 5 favourites.

Brian:

Top 5 for you, huh? That's high praise - I'm really dying to see this place now. And if it's even remotely comparable to Myopia, which I adored, I can't wait to see it.

You're right in that I've been fortunate to see some really special places lately, and we do seem to share an affinity for the same types of places (which is one reason your high ranking of this course carries a lot of weight with me). I just put up a post about Somerset Hills, which I played last week and which fits nicely into the class of courses you've described - almost no significant USGA event history, but a unique and magnificent place for a round of golf.

Thanks,
Jon

[Dunlop_White]

Inspired by the ongoing photo threads of Myopia and Somerset Hills, I've finally learned how to post photos (of the appropriate size!!) after 14+ years on this website. Makes a big difference. I hope you guys enjoy a look at Old Town after a full year of maturity. Here are some pics of the C & C restoration.

[Sean_A]

iii

Cheers.  I never tire of Old Town pix. 

Jon, if it means anything to you, I would put Old Town among my top 5 favourites full stop.  I think it will get better as well.  I hope to someday see the fairways pushed even further out with the reduction of rough and that horrible tree back right of #12 removed. 

Ciao

[Matt MacIver]

I was fortunate enough to play Old Town earlier this summer and agree with you all, it is an amazing course which has everything going for it. The "thing" that puts the course in rarified air, above and beyond its width, elevation change, angles of play and rolling greens, are the canted fairways and hanging lies. I've never played a US course where, in the middle of the fairway, the ball was a foot above or below my feet so frequently. So finding the middle of the fairway isn't good enough for the best players, there's lots of local knowledge available and you need to shape your shot to find the best approach. Top of the tops in my book.

[Carl Nichols]

Dunlop--
What's your favorite month for golf in Winston-Salem?

[Jon Cavalier]

Dunlop: incredible photos. Just gorgeous.

Sean:  wow. High praise indeed.  I can't wait to play it.

[Marc Haring]

Stunning.

So nice to see a course where a man can breath.

[Dunlop_White]

Overhead with Wake Forest and Wait Chapel in the background. The bunkers punctuate Hole 17 beautifully (on left) with the double green in the distance.

[BCrosby]

Gorgeous.

Is it photo-shopping or are some bunkers filled with a clay/sand mix and others just sand?  Some bring to mind the C&C bunkers at Cuscowilla. 

Bob

[George Freeman]

Phenomenal photos Dunlop - I just can't get enough of Old Town!

[Dunlop_White]

Gorgeous.

Is it photo-shopping or are some bunkers filled with a clay/sand mix and others just sand?  Some bring to mind the C&C bunkers at Cuscowilla. 

Bob

Bob,

There's no photoshopping of the sand color. Our sand has a natural tannish/brown color as it comes from the nearest creak-bed resource -- which was the Yadkin River for us -- located about 8 miles away.  In order to recapture Maxwell/MacKenzie artistic type bunkers on this inland site, exposed dirt/clay faces were a necessary ingredient. In the winter, these exposed dirt/clay walls "heave" -- expand and contract with the change in temperatures and thereby "bleed" a orange color into the sand randomly at places. This type of color contamination looks natural with the type of sand we chose. Had we selected a bright white, manufactured sand, it wouldn't look so hot. Over the first year, these exposed dirt/clay walls have been covered with variations of grasses heights further stabilizing the edges with a "rumpled lips" look. And sure enough, just as Dave Axland suggested, they have turned dark brown and green in places with moss on them, which will further minimize the bleeding effect as they evolve and mature.

[Dunlop_White]

Dunlop--
What's your favorite month for golf in Winston-Salem?

Mid-October through Thanksgiving -- is the best 6-week stretch in my opinion! Broomsedge in natives is bright and seeding out; leaves are popping with color, fairways are a faint modeled green color and everything plays firm and fast.

[BCrosby]

Gorgeous.

Is it photo-shopping or are some bunkers filled with a clay/sand mix and others just sand?  Some bring to mind the C&C bunkers at Cuscowilla.  

Bob

Bob,

There's no photoshopping of the sand color. Our sand has a natural tannish/brown color as it comes from the nearest creak-bed resource -- which was the Yadkin River for us -- located about 8 miles away.  In order to recapture Maxwell/MacKenzie artistic type bunkers on this inland site, exposed dirt/clay faces were a necessary ingredient. In the winter, these exposed dirt/clay walls "heave" -- expand and contract with the change in temperatures and thereby "bleed" a orange color into the sand randomly at places. This type of color contamination looks natural with the type of sand we chose. Had we selected a bright white, manufactured sand, it wouldn't look so hot. Over the first year, these exposed dirt/clay walls have been covered with variations of grasses heights further stabilizing the edges with a "rumpled lips" look. And sure enough, just as Dave Axland suggested, they have turned dark brown and green in places with moss on them, which will further minimize the bleeding effect as they evolve and mature.

Dunlop -

I wish more courses followed your lead in using native soil/sand in bunkers. At most locales clean white sand looks (and in fact is) 'unnatural'. Outside of FLA, Long Island and a few other places, to my eye it can look as artificial as cart paths.

I understand that maintaining a soil/sand mix is not easy. Cusco has struggled with it. But goodness gracious it looks good. That you are able to use turf in the bunker brows to help stabilize things is impressive. Do you think what you are doing can serve as a model for other courses in the SE? Or is it of relevance only to your local conditions?

In any event, kudos to you and your team at OTC. I gotta get to North Kackalacky soon.

Bob

[Dunlop_White]

I wish more courses followed your lead in using native soil/sand in bunkers. At most locales clean white sand looks (and in fact is) 'unnatural'. Outside of FLA, Long Island and a few other places, to my eye it can look as artificial as cart paths.

I understand that maintaining a soil/sand mix is not easy. Cusco has struggled with it. But goodness gracious it looks good. That you are able to use turf in the bunker brows to help stabilize things is impressive. Do you think what you are doing can serve as a model for other courses in the SE? Or is it of relevance only to your local conditions?

In any event, kudos to you and your team at OTC. I gotta get to North Kackalacky soon.

[/quote]


Bob, to minimize red clay/soil contamination, we used synthetic bunker liners. It took some meticulous handiwork to conform the liners to the riveting, jagged edges at the base of the subfloor walls. Also, to help prevent washouts on steep flashes, we decided to use the modern "Better Billy Bunker" approach of epoxying a porous gravel blanket to the subfloor. Today, our bunkers look old, weathered and natural, but they are in fact sophisticated. Any color contamination usually bleeds from the exposed clay/dirt walls.

A tight mowing pattern at the inside edge of the clay/dirt walls -- and tall natives at the outside edge of the clay/dirt walls -- together adds some deep shadowing and a character-rich third dimension that makes them standout in the eyes of a golfer.

[Dunlop_White]

Love drone photography. Looks like Old Town is a small oasis in a sea of trees. The trees have grown so, you can hardly see the steeples at Wake Forest from the golf course anymore. The drone puts its intimacy back into perspective. Then there is always Pilot Mountain in the backdrop. Unfortunately, the incredible course contours cannot be captured at this elevation. That's the downside.

[Dan Kettler]

Dunlop - just amazing photos, screensaver worthy.  Debating whether it looks better in person or in your photos on GCA.  Played some great courses this year, but OTC wins for delivering the most beyond what I expected.  And I had high expectations going in.   I have not played all the great tracks in NC, but not sure how OTC doesn't fault to the top.  Well deserved if it does.  The real beauty is I get the sense that the fabric of the club and its membership is equal of the routing.   

[Dunlop_White]

Just noticed that Pilot Mountain stands tall like a sentinel in the backdrop of the drone shots at Old Town and the regular Larry Lambrecht shots at Roaring Gap.

Dan Kettler --Thanks for the compliments. Come see us again soon!

That double fairway feels vast in real life. Looking over your shoulder to the left at 5 is a special moment for GCA enthusiasts

Brian Sheehy

This is the view Sheehy may be referring to……

[Michael Wharton-Palmer]

Beautiful photography of what looks like a wonderful project,
I have to admit to this being a new course to me repuation wise but now very high on the  to play list..marvelous work.

[Brett Wiesley]

I just played Old Town last week.  Firstly, I'd like to thank my host, very gracious and informative.  The photos Dunlop posted definitely loose some of the rolling terrain, but at horizon level you can see the true beauty.  It has to be played to really feel the fantastic property.  Not much property of this caliber left to be honest.  A few that come to mind are Cal Club and Old Warson.  Old Town immediately became one of my favorite courses.  As mentioned previously, the hanging lies were plentiful and kept you on your feet.  The course seems to flow right out of the land, from tee to fairway and especially the green complexes.  The 2 par 5's were some of the best in the land as well.  One risk/reward and the other very strategic. 

[Jeff Spittel]

Dunlop,

Thank you for the mesmerizing photos. What a transformative restoration. Those C&C guys might have a future in this business. 

[Jeff_Lewis]

OK.   So, let's set the record straight.


Dunlop White and Co. pulled off one of the best restorations of the "restoration era" at Old Town.
Dunlop White is a terrific host.
Dunlop White can carry Ran Morrissett all around a golf course, so he must be a very strong man.

[Steve Lapper]

OK.   So, let's set the record straight.


Dunlop White and Co. pulled off one of the best restorations of the "restoration era" at Old Town.
Dunlop White is a terrific host.
Dunlop White can carry Ran Morrissett all around a golf course, so he must be a very strong man.

Completely seconded!!!


Old Town is terrific and then some.


Jeff Lewis is also a strong man, for he carried my sorry butt around quite a few holes as well, but make no mistake about it: Ran Morrissett was firmly attached to Dunlop White's back for all 18 holes!

[Dunlop_White]

OK.   So, let's set the record straight.

Dunlop White and Co. pulled off one of the best restorations of the "restoration era" at Old Town.
Dunlop White is a terrific host.
Dunlop White can carry Ran Morrissett all around a golf course, so he must be a very strong man.

Thanks for the kind remarks. So glad you guys enjoyed seeing Old Town and C & C's restoration work. Playing in that 20 MPH wind with little sleep (because of the election) made for a memorable day. 

I'll never forget some of the shots … good and bad. No, Ran was never too heavy. I always knew he had my back as we witnessed him hole his 'Texas wedge' on No. 11 from off the green. Perfect timing as I was out of the hole. Jeff's 200-yard approach to No. 13 was also sporty as he used the elephant mound to bound his ball toward the hole. Steve found his tee game on No. 17 with the best "drive of the day", almost 300-yards, which was in stark contrast to his opener on No. 1. In fairness, he successfully laid up well short of the creek. 

In the end, Ran and I prevailed. It was a fun day with great company, and we weren't even compelled to talk about too much about the architecture. We just enjoyed it!



As you can tell Morrissett was on fire all day looking just like The King.

[Ran Morrissett]

Thank you, Dunlop, for characterizing my performance as 'clutch.'

Four facts emerged from last Wednesday:

1) Great courses produce great champions.
2) Dunlop and I shook hands in victory on the 14th tee with the defeated Yankees and sent them packing back to NJ/NY.
3) While in a role of captaincy, I was not - and should not have been - expected to contribute on every single hole.
4) I was the only one in the group to par all four of the one shot holes, which Dunlop will tell you, is a Herculean effort. Yes, taking three putts on those four holes didn't hurt but that is NOT to diminish my pristine ball-striking. Indeed, Jeff, the more gracious loser of the two, praised my game by stating 'You aren't nearly as bad as the last time we played.' 

Thank you, Dunlop, for proving to be a most suitable and agreeable partner at one of the few parkland courses worthy of World Top 100 status.

Best,

[Jeff_Lewis]

Is that what I said?  LOL.  I certainly meant to be more gracious!