Changes at Maketewah Country Club

[Matt Frey, PGA]

I played Maketewah Country Club in Cincinnati for the first time in seven years while I was in the area for the PGA Championship. Since I worked as a PGA Golf Management intern there in 2007, Maketewah has made several changes to their facility.

Most notably, the club built an amazing new practice facility and upgraded their golf range. The new facility includes a very large indoor putting green, hitting bays, a Cobra Puma Golf fitting center, locker rooms for the Xavier men's and women's golf teams, several greens complexes to work on pitching, chipping approach and bunker play, and food & beverage areas. The facility was recognized as a GRAA Top 50 Private Facility in 2013.

Furthermore, the course has undergone a few changes. I noticed that some very distinctive trees were removed since 2007. I didn't get a chance to ask the PGA head professional, Dave Bahr, about it while I was there, so I'm not sure if they were removed for strategic/design reasons (increase airflow and sunlight to greens) or if they were lost to disease (I know many Cincinnati clubs recently struggled with ash borer). In any event, the holes that I did notice were missing trees looked and played much better, in my opinion. Hole No. 8, for example, appeared to be missing a large tree just to the left of the green. Not only did the hole look much better and more stunning (and arguably more intimidating because the severe drop-off behind the green is now more apparent), but it allows more shot options, especially if the hole is cut on the lefthand side of the green. I also noticed that some trees along the righthand side on No. 18 were gone; again, this hole looked much cleaner, in my opinion. Does anyone have any insight to why the trees were removed? I think it's a great improvement, whether it was planned or not.

Also, the course redesigned a couple of holes substantially. No. 10's green was moved back and to the left, a bit up the hill. This design seemed a bit out of character from the rest of the course; the green is now a fairly flat, tabletop design and doesn't really match the severe back-to-front Ross-style greens the rest of the course has. Although, I will say, that i found the approach shot much more though provoking than before, of course, this was the first time I was seeing the hole too.

No. 4 also changed. It used to be a short par-5 with trees lining the left side of the fairway. Only the longer, high-ball hitters could really go for the green in two. It's now a long-ish par-4 and many trees along the left side of the fairway have been removed. Also, the cluster of bunkers which used to be at the left inside corner of the dogleg have been changed...one deep bunker near the dogleg and one slightly shallower bunker in the middle of the fairway. The (from what I can remember) deep greenside bunker that guarded the front of the green has been removed, allowing golfers to run the ball up onto the green. Three bunkers have been added to the left side of the green. The green and right side chipping area looked largely untouched and much better matched the rest of the course. I found No. 4 much more of a treat to play as a more open par-4 as opposed to a one-dimensional par-5. Futhermore, I looked back online for aerials and it appears that today's No. 4 more closely resembles the original design (see below screen grabs).

I would love to hear what others think about the changes at Maketewah, especially those to No. 4.

No. 4, 2014: https://s3.amazonaws.com/GRAA/mak-14.jpg
No. 4, 2004: https://s3.amazonaws.com/GRAA/mak-04.jpg
No. 4, 1956: https://s3.amazonaws.com/GRAA/mak-56.jpg

[Jason Thurman]

I'm standing at work about 200 yards from the north edge of the property right now, and yet I've never played there. I've been meaning to rectify that in the next week or two.

A lot of clubs in Cincinnati have lost trees to the borer, as you mention, but also to Hurricane Ike. Some pretty powerful remnants of that storm took down a lot of trees at my club just up the road from Maketewah, and I wouldn't be surprised if they suffered/benefitted from some of the same damage.

[Josh Bills]

Matt,

I played Maketewah last year and thought overall the course was enjoyable, though not necessarily all that memorable.  It seemed very lush, and in some places a little over watered, but generally in good condition.  There are still plenty of trees that appear to prohibit good turf conditions around holes 3, 6, 7 and 8.  I agree that hole 10 seemed very out of character with the rest of the course and while could have been an interesting green placement in the hillside, really was bland at best. 

As to hole 4 I found it less than likeable, though I had never played its previous set up.  It is a fairly blind tee shot and not much fairway to hit if one challenges the corner.  I don't mind blind shots, but I felt like the one on 4 was particularly difficult to judge.  Maybe the play is short of the bunker, but that seems to be asking a lot of the second shot. 

Overall there is great elevation change on that course that is nicely routed, with a few quirky holes like 11 that seemed very crowded to me.  18 was also a bit of a let down as a pretty bland par 3 even with the large slope in front. 

I did not use any of the practice facilities but they did look very nice.  I enjoyed my round there, and the head pro was as nice a guy as you could meet, as were other golfers that I met there.  The conditions and a few of the holes made me think this was a nice course, though seemingly lacking a little something to elevate its stature to me.   

[Criss Titschinger]

I know they moved the tee up a bit on 10 from its original location, but I'm not sure if trees were removed tot do that. I'll have to ask Dave about that next time I'm there.

It was interesting hearing from Dave about the original vision of the practice facility and how it expanded. The practice facility really is simply stunning. I hear rumors Kenwood might be building a practice facility to compete with Maketewah's. As of now, there's nothing like it in Cincinnati.

[JLahrman]

Most notably, the club built an amazing new practice facility and upgraded their golf range. The new facility includes a very large indoor putting green, hitting bays, a Cobra Puma Golf fitting center, locker rooms for the Xavier men's and women's golf teams, several greens complexes to work on pitching, chipping approach and bunker play, and food & beverage areas. The facility was recognized as a GRAA Top 50 Private Facility in 2013.

Well despite having grown up in Cincinnati I have never played Maketewah, unfortunately, though I have been to the club a couple of times. I know it's fairly short, 6600ish from the back tees. Does Xavier use it for a home course, or just for a practice facility? And if so how does it hold up to the college players?

[Criss Titschinger]

It's both home course and practice facility for Xavier. Their locker rooms are in the new facility.

There are tees to stretch it out to just over 6900 yards, also reducing par to 70. They'll make #4 and #15 par 4s.

For the U.S. Open Qualifier, they played it at 6761 yards, par 71 (#4 converted to a par 4). You can check out how the U.S Open Qualifers did against it here: https://www.ghintpp.com/gcga/TPPOnlineScoring/ResultsStroke.aspx?id=94. Out of 154 finishers, only 5 broke par.

Course averages here: https://www.ghintpp.com/gcga/TPPOnlineScoring/CourseStats.aspx?id=94

And if you check out the entries, yes, that is THAT Chris Sabo; former Reds Rec-Spec'd third baseman.

[Richard Hetzel]

I have played Maketewah on several occasions. I last played it about 3 years ago with Bill Steele and John Mayhugh, it is a decent enough golf course. Nothing that will knock your socks off. Maketewah has some really good holes and some very bland holes as well. IMO the best holes are where Ross made ample use of the 2 ridges and several gullies that run through the property. It could use a nice bunker renovation as well. Here are a few pictures...

Here is the tee shot on number 3:



I was remiss and did not take a picture of the middle portion of the hole. Here is a view of the approach shot to the uphill green.


They may have also lost trees from drought. Avon Field which is nearby lost several older, large trres to the storm damage and the drought as well a few years back.

Let me know if you would like me to post more pictures.

[Josh Bills]

Richard, I think that is hole 3, not 4 , in your photos.

[noonan]

The greens on this course have a lot of slope. Keep your approach shots under the hole.

[Richard Hetzel]

Richard, I think that is hole 3, not 4 , in your photos.

You are correct! Here is the REAL number 4.

[JLahrman]

Thanks Rich, if you have more pics I'd love to see them. As mentioned I grew up in Cincinnati but never played Maketewah.

[Josh Bills]

Richard that is it, thank you for providing those.  Maybe it was the blind aspect of the corner with trees and the bunker that didn't sit well with my eye, but I just don't like the driving portion of this hole.  On a hole that on the card says it plays 455 from the tips and 438 from the blue, seems like the tee shot is guaranteeing a long second shot unless you risk the trees and trap and hitting it through the fairway into the trees.  Maybe that's the goal and if so, then it does it's job.  Maybe upon repeated plays I could simply bomb it over the corner and the corner and blindness would be no issue.  As to how I played it, I remember I ended up through the fairway with my rescue club and punched a shot to the greenside bunker with my second shot.  The greenside bunker was deeper than I thought it would be and the green had quite a bit of slope.  Two putted for bogey.  The only part of the hole I didn't care for was the drive.  Overall though a nice course on a hilly piece of land, just not sure this hole does anything for me. 

[Criss Titschinger]

Finally had a chance to get out there and thought I would share a few pics of the changes.



The new bunker complex on the left is smaller, but there is now a bunker in the middle of the fairway to consider if you cut the corner. The turf area is all fairway now.



The green is now fully accessible to a run up shot. Previously, the green really narrowed. There are three smaller bunkers along the entire side of the left green, instead of one complex short and left. I should have gotten a picture closer to the green, and I'll grab one next time I'm out with my camera.

On 5, I think the only thing that was done was a new back tee added across the access road, which took out a tree or two. Adding about 40 yards to the whole.



10 saw the biggest changes. The old back tee by the driving range was removed. The hole now moves more to the left, with a green complex that is much different than its predecessor. The new green is about 50 yards further up than the previous one, and is now much narrower than the old one.



It is cut into the hillside with a big bunker short right. Another bunker was added to the left, but shouldn't be in play the back tees. It's a bit less than 300 from the Whites; so if you bomb one down the hill, I suppose it might be in play from that box.

The changes are 4 and 10 do stand out as having different characteristics than the other 16 holes. And yes, I suppose a bunker renovation might be warranted. However, I think the changes to these two holes make them better than they were before. Add the renovated driving range (which I didn't shoot) and the practice facility (see below), there are some exciting things happening at the club. For me, I loved to see their tennis courts go bye-bye. The focus of the club now is clearly golf.



The new indoor facility hosts Xavier's Men's and Women's Golf Team locker rooms. Also, there 4 (heated) hitting bays; the one on the far right (in the pic) is the teaching/fitting bay. On the left side of the picture is the indoor putting and chipping green.

[Matt Frey, PGA]

Thanks for the photos, Criss!

[Matt Frey, PGA]

I haven't visited Maketewah since 2014. I was unaware of this development, but judging by some of the pictures on the Greater Cincinnati Golf Association's (GCGA) Twitter page, it looks like the course has undergone some bunker work.

Does anyone have any more insight on this?

Below are some select photos that the GCGA posted from today's U.S. Open qualifier. For reference, here's a Bausch Collection album of the course in 2015: http://www.myphillygolf.com/uploads/bausch/Maketewah/index.html

[Criss Titschinger]

Matt, I know they renovated bunkers on 9 and 18 this off-season. Possibly other holes as well (looks like 14 in one of those pictures). They also built a more permanent, covered outdoor seating area, to replace a temporary structure that was there. If I get back there, I'll try to find out more.

[Jason Thurman]

I played there a few weeks ago and the entire back nine now has updated bunkering. The changes are mostly aesthetic, as the old rounded traps have been replaced by "jagged edge" bunkers throughout. There is a new centerline bunker some 50 yards short of 16 green as well, and I unwittingly found myself in it after a poor drive forced a punchout from short of the crest of the hill. I can't recall whether the front nine is fully updated just yet or not. I believe they may have regrassed several of the greens on the back side, but I'm not certain on that.


They also thinned some trees in the valley down around 12 green and 13 tee, and around the left side of 13's green. So, you know, only another 800 or so that need to go.

[JLahrman]

So...good changes?

[Criss Titschinger]

Well, here's 18 as of Nov 2014. Compare that to the above.

[Jason Thurman]

Joel, the changes are mostly aesthetic in my judgment. A few bunkers have moved, a few have been added, and a few have been eliminated. But all told, it's a very minor change in terms of how the course plays.


It's an improvement if you like jagged edges as opposed to circular blobs, and the rebuilt bunkers play wonderfully. The bunkers that were redone had started to show signs of soil contamination and the rebuilding obviously mitigated that issue. I don't find that the changes materially impact how the course plays beyond that.


I am a little surprised at how many holes saw their greenside bunker schemes changed. The cluster of bunkers fronting 17 green has been reduced to just two or three larger traps that don't really occupy the same footprint as the old traps. 18 has a new bunker added right, which probably makes a miss to that side easier since your ball is less likely to roll down the ravine into a blind spot. The bunkers around the par 3 12th green were moved around just a bit, although there really doesn't seem to be more or less total sand than there was before and the tee shot really hasn't changed at all. I like the more consistent look that the course is progressing toward. It felt a little schizophrenic last year to play holes like 4 and 10, which had already been renovated, and then come to 17 and 18 with their decidedly un-renovated bunkers later in the round. I can't imagine anyone really thinking the old bunkers were better than the new ones. But I would be curious to learn more about the analysis that went into the bunkers that have been moved/added/removed. It's a big change that doesn't feel like much of a change, at least in my eyes.


I'd love to know more about Maketewah's evolution over the last 15 years or so, and even before that. Looking at Rich's photos of 4 from a few years ago, I don't even recognize the hole. Was the mounding around the green original? If not, do we know when it was added? Did other holes on the course have similar features? I play the course fairly often, but my member connection isn't much on knowing the reasoning behind architectural changes out there.

[Criss Titschinger]

Played here yesterday. I last played it 2.5 years ago, when 4 and 10 had been significantly changed, but everything else was the same.

At this point, all bunkers have been modified. Jason highlighted some stuff already, but I'll add some more thoughts.

I think they may have removed the bunker that was behind hole 5. At least, I don't remember seeing it this time.

12 is still an all-carry par 3. As Jason noted, the bunkers have moved around a bit, but there is a now a fairway cut bailout area long and left.

14 and 15 are both more open in front of the green. On 14, there are expanding the green a bit on the back left. On 15, that little pot bunker that used to guard the green is gone. The hole is now open for run-up shots, which Thurman and I both utilized well, but did not quite reach. Before you criticize Thurman, he did nuke a 230 yard 7-iron on 7 to reach in two, but he doesn't like to talk about it.

16 is really the only hole where I question the changes. If I'm remembering this right, there are now only three bunkers greenside instead of 4. The fourth bunker they've basically moved back about 50 yards from the green in right part of the fairway. As the tee-shot is blind and very uphill, first-timers will have no idea this bunker is here. I guess it's a way to protect the hole from bombers, but it struck me as a bit over the top.

I really like what they did with 17's greenside bunker complex. It appears to me they did some modifications to the green to make it more square. Thurman and I disagreed a bit on the bunkers, but I thought it was a great change and much better than before. That hole looks awesome coming over the crest of that hill now.

While most of the playing characteristics haven't changed, I really like what they've done at 15 and 17. 18 is also more visually appealing, though is essentially the same all-carry par 3.

[Matt Frey, PGA]

Thanks for the reports! Who did the work?

[Criss Titschinger]

Thanks for the reports! Who did the work?

Brian Silva did the practice area and updates to 4 and 10. My assumption is he was involved somehow in the whole bunker reno. Dave Bahr (head pro) was a bit busy with an outing, so I didn't have a chance to inquire further.

[Brad Engel]

I had the opportunity this weekend to check out my old stomping grounds at Maketewah with fellow GCAer Kevin Jackson. Despite some brutal pin positions, the course was already in wonderful mid-season condition. Superintendent Ted White has done a great job getting the course to play firmer and faster than when I was last there.


As others have said, the bunker work done over the last couple seasons doesn't dramatically alter the strategy playing into the greens with the exception of #14 and #15 as Criss mentioned. However, I do believe the changes are more than just aesthetic when it comes to recoveries around the greens. Many folks around the Cincinnati area have said (myself included) that the strength of Maketewah is its green complexes. I felt like the character and challenge of the new bunkers as well as some of the new chipping areas (behind #1, to the right of #5 and #16) allowed for a bit more creativity when you missed the green and really brought to life some of the slope and contours of the putting surfaces. I was also informed by our host that the club re-grassed all of the greenside rough with strain of fescue that definitely plays a lot differently (i.e. "juicy") than the rough I remembered.


Below are some pictures of the changes I captured. Cheers!


Chipping area beyond #1 that transitions into #4 tee box:



Chipping area to the right of #5 green:



New 10th hole:



Opened-up vista resulting from tree removal left of #13 green:



Cross-bunker well short of #16 green:



New bunker complex around #17 green from top of hill:

[ward peyronnin]

I am scheduled to play Maketewah this Tuesday at 11:00. If a member ot yhose in the Cincinnati area are available to play I would welcome some company

Cheers
Ward