GCA In the Heartland - From the Road

[Doug Bolls]

Dornick Hills - It still follows the old routing for the most part.  Fairways are kind of narrow now, as the trees really have grown up and encroached into the hitting areas - particularly noticeable on 9, 18, 15 and 16 - sixteen is the par 5 that plays into a cliff - a super hole that would be much better if it were a little more approachable off the tee.  Small, FAST greens with a good bit of undulation.  
Easy to walk - I had the course to myself at about 3 in the afternoon and finished at 5:45.  You would like it if you were having a good, straight day off the tee box.  Walked up to Perry Maxwell's grave in the family cemetery - could look down and see a group of juniors teeing off on #7 - I'm sure he was smiling.
 
The Greens (OK City) is no longer the "Old Man's Club" - the generation with children have taken over.  I bet there were 60-70 kids in the pool area.  Nice members course - and I played with a couple of members who were playing "Work Golf" - that means they play a couple of days a week and answer the phone as if they were in the office.  The place was in good shape and the greens are fairly large and receptive.  #7 plays over a lake with an island in the middle - prob the best hole out there along with # 8 - par 3 over a stream and uphill.  I could play it once a week and be happy.
 
Cottonwood Hills - Hutchison, KS - It's a long, tough Nick Faldo design with forced carry's on 17 holes - off of every tee you are looking at the gunch and trying to figure out the right line real target golf except you don't always know where the target is.  Many bunkers in very penal places - and not a lot of room to maneuver around the course.  On a few holes I hit it right down the middle, and it ended up in rough well above my ankles.  The routing follows the land quite well - although the course is spread out way too much for walking - 1st tee is about 1/2 mile from clubhouse - long distances between holes.  Marriott is talking about making it into a resort - if they do, the course will have to be made wider and much more visual - there are many blind shots - I think Faldo is saying "Trust your shot - pick out a blind line - and hit it".  Hard to do for most of us.  Slope from the middle tees (6400 yards) is 142.  I had absolutely no idea where to hit the ball on #15 - a par 5 with two doglegs and gunch in front of me all the way.  Hit a wonderful drive right down the middle on #16 and it ended in 18 inch rough - as our friend in Scotland said - "Lassie couldn't find that if it had bacon wrapped around it".  It was a grind every inch of the way.
 
Got my tee time for Whistling Straits and The Irish Course - can't wait.
 
Donald Ross Has Naver Failed Me Department:  As much as I enjoyed the up / down through the canyons environment of Colbert Hills, it was a real pleasure to walk a Donald Ross parkland course today.  I played the entire 18 holes with one golf ball.  
The thoughtful routing and course design of this Great Old Dead Guy just grows on me the more of his courses I play.
I played with GCA'er Ken Moum (Editor of weekly newsletter for the Golf Course Superindents Assn of America)- he was kind enought to lead me around and help me understand the course far better than if I had played it alone.
 
Some interesting thoughts on routing - the 3rd hole comes back by the clubhouse - that way if you are running late for your match, it's easy to join them on the 3rd green.  The 16th also comes back close to the clubhouse - that's because many match-play matches end before the 18th hole.
The down-wind holes were long, and the up-wind holes were, for the most part shorter.
Not many straight holes - mostly right or left movement - I liked the dog-left left best with my fade.
You could clearly see at least part of every green either from the tee or from your approach.
The greens were interesting with some interior contouring that took a little care in reading - I just about totally mis-read #17 until I got a little help from Ken.
Typical of the Ross courses I have played, the land was hilly quite a few holes played from plateau to plateau with a canyon between shots.  
Such a nice walk.

Next it's Schreiner's Prairie Highlands, Nicklaus Lionsgate and Art Schaupeter's Old Hawthorne.  Then on to St. Louis.

Just trying to keep it in play with a 210 yard drive and a 14 stroke index.

Doug

[RJ_Daley]

Doug, you didn't say which Donald Ross course you played.  Or, can't you say - sworn to secrecy?

[Doug Bolls]

Dick - My Bad - It was Shawnee CC in Topeka, KS.  A well kept secret it is not - quite a few amateur tournaments played there I am told.

[RJ_Daley]

Well done, sounds like a highway to heaven tour...

[Brian Cenci]

Good call on the Straits Irish course.  You won't be dissapointed.

-Brian

[Andy Troeger]

Doug,
Will be interested to hear what you have to say after you play the Irish. Brian evidently liked it  For me it was the one course at the resort I wasn't so high on.

[Doug Bolls]

Just finished playing 4 courses in the Prairie of Eastern Kansas / Central Missouri / Western Illinois - Prairie Highlands (Olathe, KS), Nicklaus Club at Lionsgate, Gateway National and the brand new Art Schaupeter course at Old Hawthorne in Columbia, MO.  Since I played the latter with Art, I have a better understanding of it than the other three.
On one level, these courses all look and feel the same - generous, straightforward fairways with well defined landing areas - a border of short, playable rough in case the ball drifts a little off line - all surrounded by 18-24 inch tall prairie grass.  
Of the four, it looks like the most earth was moved at Gateway National - I was told it used to be an industrial area that was reclaimed.  One thing I enjoyed there is the mounding between each fairway creating a secluded environment for each hole - the only golfers I saw were those in the group ahead and our group.
The experience of waking Old Hawthorne with Art was something special for a GCA neophyte like me - just to look at the design features and hear what he was thinking as the project developed was amazing.  The course sets in an old ranch that was very wooded - much of the woods still surround the course, and once in while, a tree or two will come into play - like the giant oak about 100 yards out from the #10 green.  #10 is a par five sloping down the hill to the right and over a creek to the green.  Can hit the 2nd shot two places - down the right to the end of the fairway and chip over the creek to the green or a longer 2nd shot to the front of the green, providing you can hit right of the big tree. There is, as you can imagine, some controversy about that tree - but, if it doesn't work, it can always be cut down. Wonderful choices!
I'm not going to give you the entire course here - every hole is thoughtfully unique, and lays into the land (at least to my untrained eye) very naturally.   A very good walk - unspoiled.
So, I am off to STLCC today - McDonald / Raynor old classic.  I have the the hole by hole descriptions in my hip pocket from GCA.
Later,
DB
 

[ed_getka]

Doug,
   Sounds like a great trip so far. Keep the reports coming.