more NGLA photos

[George_Bahto]

A few days ago Scratch posted some photos he took at NGLA that attracted some interest so I thought, because there are a lot of our GCA readers and posters who have never seen the National, I would post some more pictures so they, along with others, can see what we are always raving about.

one of the great clubhouses in golf


an excellent aerial of the course - Shinnecock in the background


another aerial photo:


tee shot on 9


looking back toward the fairway from behind the punchbowl - hole 16


the dramatic approach to 8-green


the wild 6-green taken from taken from the side of the doughnut with green expansion


here is an old picture from the first Walker Cup of the 16th - Punchbowl - you'll like this one
[img]http://home.earthlink.net/~sandybarrensjr/NGLA/16%20f-way%20-%20walker%20cup.jpg[img]

Bill and his crew really have this place perking!!

[Tuco Ramirez]

Salinetti and Burrows are freaking studs.  This course is in amazing condition.

Ya know George, you resemble Eli Wallach..

[Scott_Burroughs]

That first aerial is awesome, it's now my desktop (sorry Sand Hills!)

[Joel_Stewart]

Is the Baypoint property located to the right of #1 or behind the tee and pro shop? Thanks.

[Robert Kimball]

I think it's time to change my desktop wallpaper. . .  

Great pics, that aerial is spectacular.  Thanks

[Brad Swanson]

George,
   Thanks for posting the pics, they are great!  I hav never been to NGLA, so I am wondering, what is the green patch to the right of the 18th fairway(?) down by the beach, easily seen in the lower of the 2 overheads posted?  

Cheers,
Brad Swanson

[GeoffreyC]

Thanks George-

NGLA rules!

One thing noticible from the aerial is the intimacy of the routing yet on the ground everything is on such a large scale.

Also note the differences in fairway width and scale between NGLA and Shinnecock Hills.

[THuckaby2]

Thanks, George - fantastic!

And NGLA sure does rule - it's the 2nd or 3rd best course on the planet.  

Brad - that area you ask about, by the beach, is used as a practice area, as I recall.  

TH

[George_Bahto]

that was and is still the practice area and it had 3 great greens to play to: an Eden green, a Short and a Redan green - hopefully someday they will be put back in

here is an old picture from the first Walker Cup of the 16th - Punchbowl - you'll like this one

Bill and his crew really have this place perking!!


 

[George_Bahto]

nice bunker on the right!!

[Chris_Clouser]

George,

What's the latest on the next book?

[Tony_Chapman]

Is it ok to openly weep in front of your computer!!  

Fellas, forgive the new guy. I am trying to get the layout here. Would 18 be the hole at the bottom of the pic with the ocean on the golfer's right? How great is that tee, right next to the previous green.

Great stuff. Thanks for the pictures.

[THuckaby2]

TK - you have 18 correct.
#1 is right on top of it in the first aerial,
moving from right to left, then
#2 goes UP from there, then the rest of the course
pretty much follows in a continuous loop, with
the trees on the right.  #4 and #6 are par 3's that
go to the left... breaking up this loop a bit..
but hopefully you can follow it.

And yes, it is worth weeping over.

TH

[Tommy_Naccarato]

When George told me he wanted to do this, I said to him, "Are you sure?" The reason being is that some of this stuff is probably going to be included in his next book.

Thanks Uncle George for such a great visual treat!

(When sizing the pictures, I did it bigger then the usual GCA 600 pixels wide--the pictures deserve it! and tkchap, I too wanted to cry on my computer screen)

More then anything, is stuff like this reason to believe that NGLA NOT being #1 on all of the magazine lists is sort of ludicrous? (corrected from a horrible grammatical error)

[GeoffreyC]

tkchap- hope this helps

[THuckaby2]

GC - how do you do that?  Very cool.  
Yeah, that's what I was trying to describe.  

Tommy - not sure what you mean by that
last statement - please explain.  For me, NGLA
is only NOT #1 because a course in Nebraska,
and maybe one in Carmel, only very barely
exceed it.  But what
the hell do magazine raters know anyway....  

TH

[George Pazin]

Thanks, Geoff. And thanks George for the photos.

Is Shinnecock as narrow as it looks back there, or is it the angle of the photo?

[Tommy_Naccarato]

Tom,
As a Golf Digest man, you just answered your own question.

[THuckaby2]

1. Sand Hills
2 tie NGLA/Cypress

You Golf Week cognoscenti have it different?

Careful, or I shall rephrase my question....

 

TH

[Tommy_Naccarato]

TK, a couple of others that Dr. Childs left out--ahem!--The very back hole is the rendition of the Long Hole; The 17th called Peconic is a rendition of the Leven Hole; The hole behind it, #16, that's Punch Bowl the most beautiful, if not most perfect punch bowl green that has ever existed. #15 is the Narrows, #11 is Plateau, which is for all intensive purposes, like free-basing a study of putting contours. #5 is Hog's Back. #12 is Sebonac. #10 is called Shinnecock because it is quite obviously closest to Shinnecock. #1 is Valley, and while #18 is called "Home" it should actually be called, "I have died and gone to Heaven because a golf course just doesn't get any better then this and none of the ranking panels understand it." (Which is just fine as far as I'm concerned.)

[GeoffreyC]

Thanks Tommy-

Take a look at that center window on the second floor of the clubhouse with the view of 18 and Peconic Bay.  That was my room from which I called you     Actually it was directly across the hall as that view is from the other side looking on #'s 1 and 2

[Tommy_Naccarato]

Tom, Go ahead and repharse it anyway you want to. If you went to Bill Coore himself and asked him point blank Sand Hills or NGLA, he would politely excuse himself from your presence and walk away.

But the thing about NGLA and Cypress and Sand Hills and Frias Head and Shinnecock and Pine Valley, etc. etc. etc is that they don't need any of these panels.They don't need anyone!

Its about the same as saying, "St. Andrews Old Course, sorry, I don't get it!" And that should be about the same answer for NGLA. These are golf courses that are far above you, me, or any panelist that thinks they are qualified to address their pecking order, other then golf doesn't get better then this. This is why your Golf Digest card has about as much merit at the door of one of these places as my Golfweek card--Thankfully!

[Tommy_Naccarato]

And for all of you out there that are reading this--this is what I have to live with in my life--certain "friends" calling me every weekend telling me they're on the way to play Piping Rock or Shinnecock, or even calling me from the clubhouse at 12:00am my time here on the west coast to tell me they just saw the Ghost of C.B. MacDonald in the hallway, coming up from the kitchen from having a mid-night snack.

FU!

 

[Tony_Chapman]

Guys thanks for all of your help in letting me figure this out. I can only assume the road on the left of the picture is the entrance. Gosh, if you don't get goosebumps driving that thing you apparently have no heartbeat. It looks better than Magnolia Lane to me (maybe that's because its not across from a strip mall!!).

Being from Nebraska, I can only dream of this place. I have played Sand Hills and Pebble. Neither look to compare in my opinion, but I have been wrong before. To me, its looks to be more than just a golf course. It's history, beauty, great architecture.

Thanks a million for these pics and the help with the routing. Awesome, awesome stuff.

[Tommy_Naccarato]

tkchap,
What you need to do is go out and buy Uncle George's book ASAP. This will further put a few ghosts in your closet as well as a few bats in your belfry. The information in the book is haunting. I just can't think of a better word right now of it.