Southern Pines has been a favorite of mine since I first played it about 10 years ago, especially since moving to Charlotte in 2015. I try to get over to play it at least 2 to 3 times each year, and it has always been a pleasant and fun round. The routing is great, hole to hole rhythm has always been a strong suit, and the core design (the "bones") have always been there.
Yesterday was my first visit since all of the work has been done, and overall I came away very impressed, but also with a few questions.
First and foremost, I was struck by just how much the course was opened up through the substantial tree removal (it also seemed like many of the pines were limbed up, adding to the effect, but I could be wrong on that). The transformation, in that regard was stunning. The old hole corridors were fairly wide, but the added width is great. Far more striking are the many internal views across the course that you now have throughout the round. Starting as you crest the second fairway, and really kicking in on the fourth, views to the interior of the course, across 15, 10, 11, to the lake, it's just awesome. The fact that the turf will likely benefit tremendously from the added sunlight and airflow are probably an even bigger deal. It could just be that we were there after a good run of weather, but my friend and I both thought the turf seemed firmer throughout, from tee to green, and sometimes soggy conditions used to be one of the main issues we experienced.
Second, the reimagined bunkering, both fairways and around greens, added both aesthetically and strategically. There is no denying that the course now looks more dramatic, with added texture of the larger, more jagged bunkers, as well as the several sandy scrub "waste" areas that were added. Strategically, new or expanded sand/scrub impacted decisions on many holes, most notably 1, 2, 5, 6, 12, and 15. Another big net positive.
Third, I appreciated that many already strong holes were left "intact enough" to still shine, as they did before. The aforementioned tree clearing and bunkering added to these holes, allowing them to play as they should, in some cases a bit tougher, but in others offering even more choices than previously. The 8th hole is a great example of this. It's always been one of my favorites, and the fundamental strategy of the hole hasn't changed, but the much wider area of play tempts you in ways that previously did not exist. I used to always just play safely down the left center (to the best of my ability), leaving an approach from a good angle, only 120-140 into the hole. Yesterday, I took 4 wood over the right side bunker, even executing the shot I intended, but ended up with the lone remaining tree on the right hanging just over where I would have liked to fly my sand wedge. I tried the shot anyway, and hit it right into the overhanging limb. Frustration with that led me to try an aggressive pitch at a difficult flag, and my ball rolled off the back of the green. A chip and 2 putts later, I had my double, and realized I should have stuck to the strategy I had always employed previously. Temptation never fails to get me, though. I wonder if I will have the discipline to play a bit shorter and to the left next time. Beyond the 8th, so many holes still have the same fundamental strategy, but are even better now, with more options or more thought required - the 11th and 15th are two other really good examples.
So, having said all of that, I loved the end product. I did notice a few things that I was curious about, on a few greens and a few fairways. Simply stated, I thought some of the new (old?) features added to a few greens seemed excessive. The best example I can provide is the front right of the 2nd green, where there are 2 pretty big "ripples" that were unlike anything I can recall seeing before. They were sort of abrupt, sharper features that I didn't understand. I haven't seen anything like that before, on a Ross course, or elsewhere. Perhaps it was an old Ross design feature restored, or just a creative touch added by Kyle Franz, and like a few other "sharp" features I noticed on other greens, maybe they are intended to soften over time, after a few hundred passes by mowers and rollers. FWIW, I always love playing greens that have good, even big, internal contours. I generally like greens that push to the more extreme end of design. A few of these just seemed a bit out of character with the rest of the greens and most other Ross greens I have seen (admittedly, only 50-60 courses, and who knows exactly which were original Ross, if any).
The second thing I found was that a couple of the expanded or new sand and scrub areas along fairways may have gone a bit overboard. The most notable example of this was on the 12th. The expansion of the fairway bunker on the left made perfect sense and looked good too. The addition of a diagonal sandy scrub area starting outside right and cutting in toward the green, pinching in the landing area for big hitters also seemed a good add. However, these two areas are now connected in sort of a crescent now, meeting about 50(?) or so yards short of the green. First, I thought this really only came into play for lesser players, who might end up hitting a 3rd (or 4th) shot in from this approximate area. For better players, it should not come into play, and for shorter or less skilled players, it just makes a tough hole tougher. That is fine, but I also thought it looked odd.
Anyway, I was really happy to get back and see all of the great work already done to make a good course even better. As much as I love SP, I still don't think it quite beats MP or PN, but not unlike the Bandon courses (and Streamsong too), there's always lots to be discussed in each of our personal rankings. I can't wait to see the course again when the remaining (finishing, mostly, I think) work is completed. I love SP now more than ever, even if I have a few questions about the changes.
NB - the new par 3 hole was not open for play, but it looked very good. Also, the greens rolled really nicely, which was impressive after such recent work.