Milwaukee Area - one round, what do you choose?

[Zack Molnar]

So, this weekend came and went, and wanted to follow-up with everyone who offered their thoughts.

First, thanks to everyone for their insights. I learned a lot about the courses in the area and hope to get back and see them all at some point.

I had wanted to play Erin Hills, but there was a collegiate tournament being held there this past weekend by Marquette, so no outside play was happening, so I ended up playing Lawsonia.

And let me tell you, I was not at all disappointed. WHAT A FUN COURSE. And I know fun can be used tritely as a course descriptor, but I can not think of a higher way to praise this place. The greens were absolutely fabulous (Mike Treitler informed me that they had been punched about a month ago, but they had recovered completely and were firm and rolling wonderfully). The interior contours were so interesting, and it had me thinking on every approach shot where I wanted to be on the green, with the little information I could see 150 yards away. There were numerous times I would get up to the green and be thankful I had not hit it in certain places(missing anywhere on 7, left on 1, long on 6) and others where I would curse where my poor shot had put me(left on 14, left on 3, short on 4 to just name a few of the bad places I found).

Furthermore, sprinkled throughout the course were these incredible cross bunkers that made you think exactly how you wanted to hit every tee shot and layups. It made you pick your spots about where you wanted to hit it, and then force you to execute. But, I also noticed that the less skilled played could get by avoiding these hazards quite easily if he chose to do so. Aside from a bit of a forced carry on 2 and 11, there was always a path around the cross hazards. I noticed in groups around me that there were lots of people choosing that path with great success.

There are very few courses where I have been forced to think on every shot, debating where I wanted to place every shot from tee to green. I only wish that there had not been a flight to catch that evening necessitating a somewhat rushed review of the course. I can not wait to get back there again. I just can't believe it has taken me this long to get there.

One question I had was this: throughout the round, I was constantly reminded of Camargo Club in Cincinnati. Did Langford and Moreau have any connection to MacRayBanks? If there is a thread about this, I would love to read it.

Thank you again for your insights. If anyone is going to Lawsonia, let me know. I will do everything I can to get back.

Zack

[Ryan Taylor]

But its routing is pretty dis-jointed; its opening hole and finishing hole(s) are a bit bland compared to what comes in between, and there is a certain up-down-up approach to many of the holes (tee shot from an elevated tee, to a fairway below, with an uphill approach shot into a green) that is a bit incongruous with a course wanting to be an inland links-like course.

Phil,

I agree with your opinion of hole one. I actually started on ten so it is more difficult for me to critique the routing. I wonder if my opinion of the course would be different if I started on one??

[Phil McDade]

But its routing is pretty dis-jointed; its opening hole and finishing hole(s) are a bit bland compared to what comes in between, and there is a certain up-down-up approach to many of the holes (tee shot from an elevated tee, to a fairway below, with an uphill approach shot into a green) that is a bit incongruous with a course wanting to be an inland links-like course.

Phil,

I agree with your opinion of hole one. I actually started on ten so it is more difficult for me to critique the routing. I wonder if my opinion of the course would be different if I started on one??

Ryan:

#1 at Erin Hills has been changed more than almost any other hole at EHills; it used to have a large fairway tree confronting the player on the tee that most played around, but some could take on with a huge drive. Then a blind second over a ridge and a fairly distinct hogs-back fairway to boot. Now the tree is gone, the ridge softened, the hogs-back feature flattened -- it's a very different hole than originally conceived. It was maybe the most divisive hole on the course when it opened --lots of folks just thought it difficult and disorienting for a first hole. Now it plays more conventionally, but I'm not sure it's one of EH's better holes.

Glad you enjoyed Lawsonia -- I think you  hit upon its great appeal, as it remains a challenge for the solid golfer while giving the lesser golfer a way to tack around the course and not feel overwhelmed.

[Nigel Islam]

So, this weekend came and went, and wanted to follow-up with everyone who offered their thoughts.

First, thanks to everyone for their insights. I learned a lot about the courses in the area and hope to get back and see them all at some point.

I had wanted to play Erin Hills, but there was a collegiate tournament being held there this past weekend by Marquette, so no outside play was happening, so I ended up playing Lawsonia.

And let me tell you, I was not at all disappointed. WHAT A FUN COURSE. And I know fun can be used tritely as a course descriptor, but I can not think of a higher way to praise this place. The greens were absolutely fabulous (Mike Treitler informed me that they had been punched about a month ago, but they had recovered completely and were firm and rolling wonderfully). The interior contours were so interesting, and it had me thinking on every approach shot where I wanted to be on the green, with the little information I could see 150 yards away. There were numerous times I would get up to the green and be thankful I had not hit it in certain places(missing anywhere on 7, left on 1, long on 6) and others where I would curse where my poor shot had put me(left on 14, left on 3, short on 4 to just name a few of the bad places I found).

Furthermore, sprinkled throughout the course were these incredible cross bunkers that made you think exactly how you wanted to hit every tee shot and layups. It made you pick your spots about where you wanted to hit it, and then force you to execute. But, I also noticed that the less skilled played could get by avoiding these hazards quite easily if he chose to do so. Aside from a bit of a forced carry on 2 and 11, there was always a path around the cross hazards. I noticed in groups around me that there were lots of people choosing that path with great success.

There are very few courses where I have been forced to think on every shot, debating where I wanted to place every shot from tee to green. I only wish that there had not been a flight to catch that evening necessitating a somewhat rushed review of the course. I can not wait to get back there again. I just can't believe it has taken me this long to get there.

One question I had was this: throughout the round, I was constantly reminded of Camargo Club in Cincinnati. Did Langford and Moreau have any connection to MacRayBanks? If there is a thread about this, I would love to read it.

Thank you again for your insights. If anyone is going to Lawsonia, let me know. I will do everything I can to get back.

Zack

Zack,

    I think the connection with L&M and the Raynor courses was that Langford played on the golf team at Yale and was based out of Chicago so no doubt he had the opportunity to see some of CBM/Raynor's best work first hand.

[Sven Nilsen]

Nigel:

Not sure its quite that easy.  Langford was at Yale prior to the almost all of CBM and Raynor's work being done.  He may have seen NGLA, but by the time he had started working as an architect there were very few of their courses out there.

He and Raynor were pretty much contemporaries.  Perhaps he was greatly influenced by what he saw Raynor (and CBM doing) as his career went along, but I don't think they had enough of a body of work to have made much of an impact on Langford in his early years.

Sven