Could you have done it? Would you even try? (Twisted Dune part XVII)

[George Pazin]

Just got back from a little vacation time with the missus and the little man, and I had the good fortune to play Twisted Dune, along with the most affable self described recluse I've ever met, one Archie Struthers.

I am frankly amazed that this is Archie's first effort, so much that I hoping it won't be his last! I'd guess it's the dream of many of the posters on here to have a go at designing his own course, but I wonder how many would actually have the courage to do so, and the ability to pull it off.

I liked almost everything about the course. I thought the look was very appealing, I thought the width was quite functional for the lesser player (read: me), while the greens seemed interesting enough to challenge the better player to go for the preferred angles of approach (though ultimately this is only the sort of thing I could pick up on with repeat play).

The dunes certainly weren't just framing, as my playing partners can attest. And the topography seemed pretty natural to me, in spite of the fact that it is pretty much 100% artificial. There were plenty of stances that were a bit awkward.

The only real sources of frustration for me were 1) the heat (poor personal physical conditioning + not enough nutrition + oppressive heat and humidity = running out of gas as we sauntered up to the 18th tee) and 2) the fact that the designer took the driver out of my hand - almost literally! - just as I was starting to hit it somewhat straight. I think that was on 15.

I really liked the subtle seduction of the wide open 18th green. My experience is that 99% of all golfers struggle with such openness, and the 1% that don't are too good to allow any extraneous feature added bother them.

I'd say the holes I liked most were basically the par 4s on the back 9. Just a little more ground movement and interesting shots. But even a relatively benign hole like the opener had it's appeal to me, with the angled green and a very deep greenside bunker.

I've always felt one of the hallmarks of an entrepreneur was the ability to get things done. Archie didn't settle for such a low standard, but rather upped the bar on that quite a bit - he got it done in style.

[Jason Mandel]

George,

Twisted Dune is a fantastic place to play.  I wish you would have told me that you were going to be in the area, as I am down there most weekends during the summer.  The course is fun and challenging for all levels of players.  Great width off the tee, but it gets tougher on the approach.  I enjoy the back nine a little more than the front, but not by much.  

Furthermore, the prices are very reasonable.  I've played most of the publics in the AC area, and Twisted Dune is easily my favorite(I haven't played ACC, but that is in a different price point all together).

Kudos to Archie. And Archie, if your reading this I owe you a call

Jason

[mike_malone]

 George,

     I'm glad you got to play TD. It is one of my favorites. THERE IS NO WAY I WOULD PLAY IT THIS TIME OF YEAR.There is no place to hide from the heat.


   I agree with much of what you say. But, #2 is a hole that I like. It puts a different demand on you than #1, more of a distance stress.  

     I like the par threes more as I play it more. And I liked them at first as well.


      The whole recycling of that sand that was dredged to build a casino ending up as dunes on a nearly dead flat piece of land is great.


       I have been to Ballybunion a few times and there are a couple of greens that sit down among the dunes in a very similar fashion as at TD.


        I imagine the firmness was better than some more recent summers. This course shines as it firms up.



   BTW you practically had to drive by Rolling Green to get there. I must have been out when you called!

[mike_malone]

 George,

    My guess is that Archie was very observant in his time at Pine Valley. The width he uses off the tee which works into multipinnable greens seems influenced by PVGC.

    Obviously, they are different courses, but the playabilty of TD is enhanced by its width.

[George Pazin]

Mike, I almost didn't post because I knew you'd hassle me about not calling! Alas, as my life is these days, I only found time to play 1 round on my week off, making it a grand total of 2 for the year. I think the only person on the site that might envy me is Jim Nugent.

I have a bit of trouble remembering #2, as I hooked my drive almost into the woods, and then smother hooked my next shot well into the woods. So I didn't see much of the hole. It was all part of my plan to hustle my playing partners. Next time I head out that way there will be big dollars at stake....

I liked the par 3s very much, I thought there was interesting variety. I'd like to see just a wee bit more playing room short of #13 (I think it was 13), but other than that, I thought they were terrific.

Jason, I played Thursday morning, and spent the weekend in north Jersey getting together with college friends, so I couldn't have teed it up over the weekend. Driving up the GS Parkway reminded me why I moved back to Pittsburgh.

[Matt_Ward]

George:

The stretch of holes from #2 thru #4 (love the name of the hole -- The Bishop's Purse) is really well done.

Archie knows my feelings on #18 -- still believe it's a filler to get back to the clubhouse -- but all in all, Twisted Dune is a testament to his vision and desire to get the most out of this unique site.

Certainly one of Jersey's top five public courses -- sorry George -- I know you love ratings   and I had to throw that in for all-time's sake.

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Archie

It appears there is room for another 9 holes at TD. Are there plans to develop this land?

What's the status of Greate Bay?

[George Pazin]

Matt -

Actually, in this instance, I don't mind the rankings, as without them, I might have been less likely to seek out the course.

#4 was a very cool hole, at least it looked that way as I played backwards up the 5th. Fortunately, Archie had the good sense to make certain I looked back down the 4th as we stood on the green. A terrific hole, for sure.

[mike_malone]

 I think we are lucky in the Philly area to have the rolling land west and north of town that is ideal for parkland courses. And to have such interesting public access courses as Lederach and Glen Mills. Then to be able to go over the bridge into New Jersey and have the sandbased options like TD and Scotland Run, just to name two public access courses.

[Craig_Rokke]

When you  pull into the facility, the first thought is "what the heck is going on here?" The surrounding community is pancake flat, so the "dunes" really stand out. But when you get into your round, the dunes are not a distraction, but instead kind of a neat contrast to typical golf in the Mid Atlantic region. It's hard to believe that this is Archie's first course. It's much more sophisticated than the "first-course" projects I've seen before.

[archie_struthers]

 

Had fun playing with George, who moved fast despite some errant tee shots early in the round. He and I hoofed it, which made it more interesting, depite the heat. As prolific a scribe as Pazin is, I didn't anticipate him being younger than I.

As to Steve's questions, we never anticpated building more than 18 holes at Twisted Dune.  The land on the west side of #14 lake was always dedicated to housing or some other use.

Greate Bay is doing fine, there's a pretty good game there every night around 4pm, and the golf course is in excellent shape. I am continually amazed how resistant to scoring the course is, particularly for the expert player. Willie Park proved here that small greens and false fronts work to great advantage.

We are planning some nice changes to the golf course going forward, pending local approvals, but only time will tell if that will occur. Thanks for asking and stay cool!!!!  

[Patrick_Mucci]

Archie,

I too enjoyed TD, and marveled at what you produced on that site.

While I haven't been to South Jersey yet this year, I"m hoping to get there in the next few months.

Greate Bay sounds interesting and, I've heard several people speak well of it.