Hanover CC (1899) Dartmouth College Course Closing?

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Dartmouth College is considering closing Hanover Country Club and also possibly selling the land as part of a four-year effort to shift millions of dollars in operational expenses to academics.
School officials on Wednesday said they haven’t yet decided the fate of the 123-acre club and course near Occom Pond, but said that financial losses and membership declines in recent years had made closing the facility an option.
]http://www.sentinelsource.com/dartmouth-mulls-closing-golf-course/article_44c74048-8601-5da6-992f-77f05fdefa9a.html
Interesting history:
http://golf.dartmouth.edu/course/history.html

[Anthony Fowler]

Wow. I'm really sad to hear this news, and I hope they ultimately decide to keep the course.


When I was a poor college student, I spent a summer at Dartmouth working in a genetics lab. The men's golf coach and head pro were kind enough to offer me free playing privileges for the summer, even though I played for a competing team. Thanks to the long summer days and the quick pace of play, I played 18 holes almost every evening after work, racking up over 50 rounds.


It's a very fun course--the kind of quirky, enjoyable course with a storied history that we want more of in this country. Architecturally, it's not a masterpiece. The property is such that there are some awkward, claustrophobic shots. The new holes don't fit in perfectly with the old holes. There are a few ho-hum holes that nobody would write about on this site. But man is it fun! There are back-to-back par 3's, back-to-back par 5's where you have to hit a 2 iron of the tee (!), and some really dramatic uphill, downhill, and sidehill lies. I had a whole new arsenal of shots in my bag after playing out there for the summer. And those practice holes on the other side of the road are really fun as well. Now that I live in Chicago where many courses are flat, long, tree-lined, and unimaginative, I often yearn for the opportunity to return to a place like Hanover and play some memorable shots across a quirky New England gem.


Another fun memory is that Hanover is the kind of welcoming, friendly, unpretentious golf club of which we need a lot more. People waved to me from other fairways and ran over to introduce themselves because they recognized that I was new. The locals quickly invited me to join their regular games, and I even found kindred spirits who just wanted to have fun on the golf course, find new challenges, and try crazy shots without necessarily worrying about their score or their handicap.


I hope and suspect there are some wealthy alums who care about the golf course and don't want to see it go. In fact, I wonder if the university is being penny wise and pound foolish by even considering this. The golf course is a wonderful amenity that will attract students, faculty, and staff and improve their experiences there. That has to be worth a lot to the university. For these reasons, I'll hold out hope that the golf course sticks around for many more years.

[Mike Sweeney]

"and also possibly selling the land"

Let's just say that I am VERY skeptical that Dartmouth is considering selling 123 acres just north of their main campus to some outside entity. I am currently in Hamilton, NY where my wife's alma mater Colgate University has bought hundreds of acres and properties around town.

The Ivies are world class fundraisers, so there is just a chance that the "school officials" are looking for members and a donor(s). If an academic opportunity comes along, sure they will throw the golf course under the bus, but that land is not going to be sold.

Trial balloon, fake news.... not going to happen.

[Carl Nichols]

I agree completely with Anthony's take on the course and Mike's on the situation--except that I could imagine the college thinking about closing the course (but not selling the land) if they can't figure something out. Having said that, I'm surprised that the annual loss is a high as the article claims -- seems like something is off.

[Brad Tufts]

Agree with everyone here myself!

My experiences at HCC started with Nike Golf Camp for a week when I was 15...it made me want to go there but I wasn't good enough to play for them at the time.  My wife attended Tuck so I was able to play the course many times during her two years there.  I now have them as a client, and played a few rounds with my contact at the college (now retired).

Something is amiss here.  We all know that golf is in a downturn, etc., but over 500 to 300 members in 3 years?  Was there a dues change?  Did the College decide to subsidize membership less?  Also, this is a rather historic course in terms of NH golf, and underwent a pretty substantial (and pricey I assume) renovation 15 years ago, so I would guess there is value for Dartmouth to be a steward of such a design.

[David Lott]

Something is amiss alright, Brad Tufts. Unfortunately the problem lies with Dartmouth's administration and board of directors. Those who assume that Dartmouth would never sell over 100 acres of prime land contiguous to its campus do not recognize how screwed up the college has become. President Phil Hanlon is floundering. Their fund raising success is in decline, and an anticipated capital campaign is still on the shelf after four plus years. Since they don't announce the campaigns formally until they line up a big splash or major gifts, this means that major giving is probably more in decline than annual giving. The faculty are unhappy with Hanlon because they are falling further behind peer institutions in compensation. Their budget is out of balance even has there have been stunning increases in numbers of administrators while the faculty remains static. $25 million is a paltry amount in terms of the overall wealth of the school, and an easily compensated gap in expenses if they were willing to get a handle on administrative expenses rather than sell irreplaceable assets. To top it all off, Phil Hanlon, a golfer, never plays at the Hanover course. He has a fancy salary, a fancy second home on Lake Sunnapee and a "better" golf course there that he prefers to play. Yes there has been a decline in usage for many reasons. One of these is Phil's lack of leadership. He could easily, through personal efforts, help to boost usage and memberships. He won't because he doesn't do that kind of stuff.

[Mike Sweeney]

Something is amiss alright, Brad Tufts. Unfortunately the problem lies with Dartmouth's administration and board of directors. Those who assume that Dartmouth would never sell over 100 acres of prime land contiguous to its campus do not recognize how screwed up the college has become. President Phil Hanlon is floundering. Their fund raising success is in decline, and an anticipated capital campaign is still on the shelf after four plus years. Since they don't announce the campaigns formally until they line up a big splash or major gifts, this means that major giving is probably more in decline than annual giving. The faculty are unhappy with Hanlon because they are falling further behind peer institutions in compensation. Their budget is out of balance even has there have been stunning increases in numbers of administrators while the faculty remains static. $25 million is a paltry amount in terms of the overall wealth of the school, and an easily compensated gap in expenses if they were willing to get a handle on administrative expenses rather than sell irreplaceable assets. To top it all off, Phil Hanlon, a golfer, never plays at the Hanover course. He has a fancy salary, a fancy second home on Lake Sunnapee and a "better" golf course there that he prefers to play. Yes there has been a decline in usage for many reasons. One of these is Phil's lack of leadership. He could easily, through personal efforts, help to boost usage and memberships. He won't because he doesn't do that kind of stuff.

David,


I acknowledge my knowledge of Dartmouth is limited. I recently attended a "Dartmouth wedding" and something seems off from your portrayal of fundraising versus this press release:


https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/new-hampshire/articles/2017-08-15/dartmouth-fundraising-tops-285-million-in-last-year


"Officials say fundraising has surged since President Phil Hanlon took office in 2013. Commitments exceeded $1.17 billion during his first four years, compared to $516 million in the four previous years."

Obviously 2009-2013 were lean years for fundraising, but ....

[Carl Nichols]

David:
I don't disagree with anything you said, except that I continue to believe that it's very unlikely that the college sells HCC.  That's not to say that they aren't floundering; I just don't think it happens.
Carl

[Brad Tufts]

Hi David,

Thank you for the comments, as you have more info than I do.  I'm still curious how a club goes from 500 to 300 over just a couple years without some pretty serious policy changes, especially one as well-established as HCC.  I feel like doing nothing more than status quo would only lose you 20-30 a year even in bad times.  I've always been under the impression it was a club supported by its local members even apart from its college ownership.

My other gripe is that some of these schools do not value sports and their facilities as much as pouring more money into academics specifically, when I think having both are very important.  It applies only a little to this discussion, but I feel like the news article is missing an unspoken "....and golf is stupid anyways so who cares if the course goes away."

[David Lott]

David:
I don't disagree with anything you said, except that I continue to believe that it's very unlikely that the college sells HCC.  That's not to say that they aren't floundering; I just don't think it happens.
Carl

Hope you are right Carl, but I would not bet a large sum against it.

[David Lott]

Mike Sweeney:
 
Joe Asch, a 1979 grad of Dartmouth, publishes a daily commentary on Dartmouth that is well informed and often contains sound analysis that reveal some shenanigans, often in the publicity area, that are (or should be) embarrassing to the powers that be at Dartmouth. My understanding is that Joe has already written his commentary on this PR blurb and will publish it shortly. I will put a summary and link here once he pushes the publish button. http://www.dartblog.com

[Carl Nichols]

David:
I don't disagree with anything you said, except that I continue to believe that it's very unlikely that the college sells HCC.  That's not to say that they aren't floundering; I just don't think it happens.
Carl

Hope you are right Carl, but I would not bet a large sum against it.

That would be a sad day -- first my fraternity, then the golf course. 

[David Lott]

Joe Asch has published his commentary on the Dartmouth press release regarding fund raising. Here is the link: http://www.dartblog.com/data/2017/08/013402.php


Briefly put, he notes that (1) the amount raised is considerably less than the goal the school set for itself, (2) a single gift of $80 million for a dubious (to some) special purpose considerably inflated the number, (3) the use of averaging in the press release masks the fact that fundraising totals have declined every year since 2014, (4) Dartmouth did not publish overall participation statistics but private "sources" indicate a continuing decline in alumni participation in giving, measured by percent of living alumni, (5) the public announcement of a already delayed new capital campaign has not occurred, indicating a difficulty in securing the major gifts that typically accompany such launch announcements.


Beware ye the publicity artists, for they do not tell ye all ye need to know.

[Rick Shefchik]

For those who don't know the history and character of the course, here's a piece I wrote for the Dartmouth Alumni magazine in 2014. There's a discussion of the course's future options at the end of the piece:


http://dartmouthalumnimagazine.com/articles/par-course

[Brad Tufts]

Wow great article Rick!


During that Nike Camp in 1995, I got a glimpse of what competitive golf was like for the first time, despite being a 22ish capper at the time (i was 14).  Not that it couldn't have happened elsewhere, but I credit that as the real first catalyst that resulted in a zero cap 5 years later!


I was fortunate to meet Bill and Izzy Johnson, Sue Bower, and Rich Parker that week, and we played the 5900y version about 10 times.


I had heard about the cadavers and a few of the jump stories but its always fun to hear more!  I have always loved the practice holes too, and a few of the shots are a leap of faith blind over a notch in the trees.  Too bad the other Barton holes no longer exist, as that may be the best nine!

[Dave Herrick]

Played Hanover CC today. After my round I asked the fellow in the golf shop about the article. He said that the club membership has always been in the neighborhood of 300 and that the half million dollar loss number is without foundation.
It would be especially sad for me if the course closed. I had my first golf lesson from Bill Johnson in the spring of 1968 when he was early in his career as golf coach at the college. My first round of golf was there, probably on the NLE nine hole course designed by alum Ralph Barton.
Still it seems that nothing is sacred at the college. The iconic ski jump, whose outrun is the 14th hole, is gone, and I hear rumors that they've starting admitting women! If the course closes the only saving grace will be that I won't have to play the gawd-awful 17th hole any more.

[Carl Nichols]

Played Hanover CC today. After my round I asked the fellow in the golf shop about the article. He said that the club membership has always been in the neighborhood of 300 and that the half million dollar loss number is without foundation.
It would be especially sad for me if the course closed. I had my first golf lesson from Bill Johnson in the spring of 1968 when he was early in his career as golf coach at the college. My first round of golf was there, probably on the NLE nine hole course designed by alum Ralph Barton.
Still it seems that nothing is sacred at the college. The iconic ski jump, whose outrun is the 14th hole, is gone, and I hear rumors that they've starting admitting women! If the course closes the only saving grace will be that I won't have to play the gawd-awful 17th hole any more.

Agreed--it's terrible.  Nothing like hitting 5 iron-3 wood into a par 5. 

[Brad Tufts]

Good sleuthing Dave...goes back to what I originally thought...maybe they just changed how they keep track of them so 500 was members plus students/alums buying passes...and now they don't count the students as members so its 300 like it's always been.


As for the course, I do think it's a good one, with a good bit of quirk that can border unfair at times.  Ron Prichard's renovations/restorations are the most challenging among the Ross restoration group of architects, and it shows at HCC.


Here are my thoughts on each hole (can you tell I have nothing to do at work today?):


Hole 1, 420y:  A good, tough starting hole.  No roll on the tee shot makes for a long second, to a difficult green complex.  I would say this is too tough for a starting hole, but it's a pretty iconic 1st tee!


Hole 2, 420y:  Another good hole with great landforms, but technology has brought the low spot left of the fairway more into play.  They have always struggled with that area (fill it? make a pond?)...it was a free lift last time I was there.


Hole 3, 310y:  Good short par four, must keep the tee ball on the plateau.


Hole 4, 120y:  Always thought this green could be smaller...it's fine but not memorable.  Good views of the 1-2-3-4-5-18 section of the course.


Hole 5, 200y:  Never liked this hole, but more because it's just very difficult.  The green never seems to hold shots from this length.


Hole 6, 360y:  The first crossing hole is probably an improvement over the original configuration, second shot plays long.


Hole 7, 415y:  The first of three side by side par fours through the pines.  Prichard definitely improved the greensite.


Hole 8, 440y:  This hole used to be an extremely short par five, it's better as a long par four.  I like the combined fairway with #9.


Hole 9, 420y:  One of the toughest holes for me, with overhanging branches and the treeline left begging for a left to right tee shot toward the road.  Also a difficult push-up green!


Hole 10, 315y:  One of the relics of the old HCC course, I'm glad Prichard left it alone!


Hole 11, 385y:  The first entirely new hole as of the renovation, it plays over tough land straight uphill to a shelf green.  With the traditional styling of the rest of the course, I'm not a fan, but this was the available land.


Hole 12, 180y:  A downhill, uneventful new par three with a good-sized green.  Look off the back of the tee through the trees for a great river view, and in the woods right of the tee for the cadaver markers.


Hole 13, 360y:  A really fun old hole.  This one lost a bit when the tree overhanging the green finally fell down, but it made for a better hole.


Hole 14, 145y:  The 13th green and 14th tee are another iconic spot for HCC.  The semi-blind par three is better than the original totally blind one, but it's not a great hole.


Hole 15, 590y:  Playing from next to the old ski jump location (see plaque right of the fairway), this hole is a slog for me.  The added length and twist left around the 7th tee at the end of the hole made it even more sloggy.


Hole 16, 410y:  After walking past the old 16th fairway and green, we come to another new hole, this one very good.  Apparently a couple of Barton's holes played through this area.


Hole 17, 520y:  The tee shot clearly sucks here, but after that, I find the second shot risk-reward thrilling!  Because I like the "3w or layup" choice, and the green complex, I can get past the tee shot.  And if you want to be in the best spot off the tee, you can definitely hit much more than 5-iron...I seem to remember it being a 225-240 shot to be in the go zone.


Hole 18, 470y:  The 18th is another iconic hole across the Vale, and the distance makes good players freak on the tee about cutting corners and getting close to the green.  To me, I've always thought this tee shot had very little room...the fairway cants away to the stand of trees on the outside of the dogleg, and the whole setup seems to favor a shorter tee shot than today's launchers allow...maybe modern technology has made it a better hole??  The second shot always seems to play longer, and there is enough trouble around the green (OB 10y left of the green, bunker 40y short, bunkers and slopes right) to punish those hoping for an easy birdie.


HCC is quirky for sure, but in a good way.  Today's course is a mashup of new and old, and the new stuff that doesn't really fit the old is really a product of the additional land available, and helped the club get away from routing issues that created problems for modern players.