On his 1910 map of Alwoodley, MacKenzie has several trench-like cross-bunkers marked, a number of which were created out of former ditches. The only one that survives is one across the par-5 8th hole, and golfers of my inability usually have to lay up short of it leaving a longish third shot at an awkward angle to find the green. In fact, as built this was a much more extensive bunker and served also to catch topped shots on the par-3 9th. There was also one on the 6th (a diagonal affair) and smaller ones on the 3rd, 4th and 5th, making use of a ditch-line crossing all three fairways. However, surviving photos of MacKenzie's era show these bunkers to be elaboratly finished with pie-crust outlines, wispy grass on top and irregularly flashed-up sand. They were works of art. They weren't created overnight, however, and that map of (we think) 1910 actually has crosses on certain bunkers indicating that they were complete at this stage and that the rest were still to be finished. The Committee had forbidden the construction of more bunkers in 1908 until 'Mr Fowler of Walton Heath' had inspected the course. Fowler wrote a detailed account of the course in a Sheffield newspaper some time later and mentioned what bunkers he would like to see created on the embryonic course. MacKenzie clearly took no notice of what Fowler suggested! Coincidentally, there was another map of Alwoodley made in 1910 by one HA Chapman (who was not a member of the club) and although it is a more polished map than MacKenzie's free-hand sketch, the bunkering, in particular, differs in detail from MacKenzie's.
If it took MacKenzie at least three years, probably more, to complete the bunkering at Alwoodley (OK, it was his first attempt) in the manner he wished for, clearly he will have had little influence at Sutton Coldfield, to which he did not return.
Anybody know anything about another MacKenzie course in the area, Walsall?