The Little Club & Big Club on Fishers Island: two photo albums (links fixed)

« **on:** October 25, 2015, 04:48:53 PM »

Better known as Hay Harbor Club, this is a nifty 9-holer that I had the pleasure of playing on a beautiful fall morning recently. It is the off-season there now and we had the course to ourselves. HH is a par 34 course with 7 par 4's and 2 one-shotters. The views are tremendous.

A handful of pics (all pics are clickable to a larger size) with some brief commentary:

1. Approach to this par 4 green:

2. Some believe this uphill par 4 is the hardest hole on the island (I'll disagree since after one play I made a par; grin):

3. A drop-shot par 3 of 92 yards (view from behind the green):

4. Sort of an alps hole, a view from behind the green:

5. Very photogenic uphill par 4 with a skyline green:

6. Followed by another fun downhill par 3 (150 yards):

7. View from behind the par 4 7th green:

8. Approach view on this par 4:

9. View from behind the green on the finishing par 4:

All photos (and scorecard, hole diagrams, and two panoramic shots) are available here:

http://www80.homepage.villanova.edu/joseph.bausch/images/albums/HayHarbor/index.html

Please, enjoy![/url]

« **Reply #1 on:** October 25, 2015, 05:09:43 PM »

Hay Harbor is a wonderful nine-hole course. The views certainly don't hurt, but it was be a fun course even without the ocean! I found there was a lot of strategy to the ideal places to hit your tee shots. The greens were pretty special too.

According to the club's history book, Charles Brooks, the club's greenskeeper and golf professional in the 1910s, was trained in remodeling golf courses and is likely responsible for the design of the course as it is played today. The course was 1891 by Scotland's George Strath.

« **Reply #2 on:** October 25, 2015, 05:29:22 PM »

What a cracking looking golf course. Different continent but aspects of it remind me of downland golf here in Britain.

« **Reply #3 on:** October 25, 2015, 07:00:56 PM »

Joe

This is a nice looking course! I am especially taken by the 6th. Drop-shotters normally do little for me, but as the bunkers are well short I suspect this is a drop and run shot! You don't often post your pix directly onto GCA.com and I appreciate your taking the time to do so on this occasion.

Ciao

« **Reply #4 on:** October 25, 2015, 07:38:56 PM »

Dear Joe - thanks again. You already know what i think of your photos/archives, so I'll focus on this course instead:

Man, as others have said: what I wonderful courses this seems. Like it does for Paul, it reminds me of some of the courses Sean profiles, for many reasons but mainly for this one:

It is enough of a golf course for any reasonable man to enjoy playing it alone for the rest of his days, and not feel cheated by his fate.

Also, while I have never met either of them, this seems the perfect course for a Jim Kennedy-Jeff Warne matchplay!

After many years enjoying course profiles and not bemoaning how little golf I play and in so few places, I am now growing increasingly desirous of getting some of this great golf and great settings for myself!

Thanks again --

« **Reply #5 on:** October 25, 2015, 07:49:16 PM »

Also:

it's fascinating to think of all the rankings and ratings and magazine articles that have appeared in the many decades since this course first opened and that have shaped/driven the conventional wisdom and the consensus 'wants' of several generations, and of all the millions and billions of dollars that have been spent on courses and on private memberships during that time, and of how many hundreds and thousands of golfers over the past century have waited anxiously on years-long waiting lists for the chance to join some ultra-exclusive and (for the moment) fashionable club, and of all the hustle and bustle and self promotion and renovations and restorations and ego and pride....and to think that for all those years this 9 holer has been there, humbly serving those wise enough to keep golf and golf courses in perspective, and healthy of spirit enough to gratefully accept what is there right before them instead of endlessly searching for the 'great' place that everyone is talking about.

Peter

« **Reply #6 on:** October 25, 2015, 08:01:30 PM »

Quote from: PPallotta on October 25, 2015, 07:49:16 PM

Also:

it's fascinating to think of all the rankings and ratings and magazine articles that have appeared in the many decades since this courses first opened, and that have shaped/driven the conventional wisdom and the consensus 'wants' of several generations, and of all the millions and billions of dollars that have been spent on courses and on private memberships during that time, and of how many hundreds and thousands of golfers over the past century have waited anxiously on year-long waiting lists for the chance to join some ultra-exclusive and (for the moment) fashionable club, and of all the hustle and bustle and self promotion and renovations and restorations and ego and pride....and that for all those years, this 9 holer has been here, humbly serving those wise enough to keep golf and golf courses in perspective, and healthy of spirit enough to gratefully accept what is there right before them instead of endlessly searching for the 'great' thing that everyone is talking about.

Peter

You really should drop down into my area Peter.

You might not want to leave. Grin.

« **Reply #7 on:** October 25, 2015, 11:18:26 PM »

Joe:

Great tour of a what looks like a very fun course to experience.

Matt:

1891 sounds a bit early, not only for the course but also for Strath's involvement. He didn't come over here until 1895. My guess is the course was built around 1901.

Sven

« **Reply #8 on:** October 25, 2015, 11:26:13 PM »

The more I stare at No. 2, the more it looks to me to be the perfect golf hole.
Peter

« **Reply #9 on:** October 26, 2015, 05:13:15 AM »

We had a great time on this little gem of a course as a kind of icing on the FI cake.

I was really wondering if Raynor might of had something to do with that 6th green or perhaps he was at least an inspiration for it. The other greens don't seem quite as engineered with the shapes to me. Most are oval and then all of a sudden this one is squared off and has these very unnatural squared angles.

Thoughts?

« **Reply #10 on:** October 26, 2015, 07:06:59 AM »

It is a cool course for sure and the 2nd is quite a hole. For those that get the chance when they are out there Hay Harbor should not be missed.

« **Reply #11 on:** October 26, 2015, 11:20:04 AM »

Joe, Nice pics- thanks for posting. Fishers Island would be a nice place to grow old and write your memoirs.

« **Reply #12 on:** October 26, 2015, 03:38:51 PM »

Thanks Joe for a wonderful tour of a great looking 9 holer.

« **Reply #13 on:** October 26, 2015, 03:56:07 PM »

Looks incredible and a lot of fun...thanks for posting.

« **Reply #14 on:** October 26, 2015, 03:57:36 PM »

Good stuff - great stuff, actually. #5 looks most cool to this guy.

Wonder how they feel about squatters on FI?

« **Reply #15 on:** October 27, 2015, 06:23:17 PM »

After the Little Club, we visited the Big Club.

Some very nice photos:

http://www80.homepage.villanova.edu/joseph.bausch/images/albums/FishersIsland/index.html

« **Reply #16 on:** October 27, 2015, 06:36:55 PM »

Stunning.
The scenerey is so good I had forgotten how good the shots were

critics of blind and/or uphill shots , and up and over tee shots should be forced to play a round at Fshers with blinders on

« **Reply #17 on:** October 28, 2015, 10:13:45 AM »

Joe,

Thanks for the tour, great photos! What a perfect setting for golf. The 18th green at FI reminds me of the 1st green at Yale. Do you see any similarities?

Bret

« **Reply #18 on:** October 28, 2015, 10:23:33 AM »

Quote from: Bret Lawrence on October 28, 2015, 10:13:45 AM

The 18th green at FI reminds me of the 1st green at Yale. Do you see any similarities?

I do see some resemblance.

I think both greens are sizable, but I believe Yale's green is much larger.

« **Reply #19 on:** October 28, 2015, 11:09:53 PM »

Enjoyed the Hay Harbor tour very much, Joe. Nice work, and thanks for the effort.

« **Reply #20 on:** March 03, 2021, 03:56:29 PM »

I took the time to fix the broken links on this older thread, and I've learned to "enhance" my photos even better. This tour of Hay Harbor is pretty good IIMSSM!

« **Reply #21 on:** March 03, 2021, 04:06:09 PM »

Thanks for bringing this back up, Joe. Remarkable.

« **Reply #22 on:** March 03, 2021, 06:39:33 PM »

Quote from: Peter Pallotta on October 25, 2015, 11:26:13 PM

The more I stare at No. 2, the more it looks to me to be the perfect golf hole.
Peter

(Forgot to reply years ago!)

Yes!

« **Reply #23 on:** March 03, 2021, 07:23:43 PM »

This looks like the perfect course for a vacation club. I think I will have to try to book a game here if I ever get a chance to see the big club.

« **Reply #24 on:** March 03, 2021, 07:31:10 PM »

Looking at those photos I have to assume that Tony Pioppi has not had the great fortune to be invited to the island (nor have I). Based on photos I can’t imagine how Hay Harbor is not on anyone’s list of top 10 nine-holers.

News:

Joe Bausch

Matt Frey, PGA

Paul Gray

Sean_A

Peter Pallotta

Peter Pallotta

Joe Bausch

Sven Nilsen

Peter Pallotta

David Davis

Tim Martin

J_ Crisham

Jon Wiggett

PCCraig

George Pazin

Joe Bausch

jeffwarne

Bret Lawrence

Joe Bausch

Jon Cavalier

Joe Bausch

Jeff_Lewis

Joe Bausch

Ben Malach

Phil Burr

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