The following are photographs from a course that no longer exists but the club is still around producing excellent golfers...one of whom posts regularly on this site.  These photos are from 1909 and the course remained in existence until 1927 when they moved nearby to the present location.  The club started in 1897 with 9 holes and expanded within 2 years to 18 holes as the popularity of the sport exploded.  In 1899 the course measured 6326 yards, truly one of, if not the longest courses in America at the time.  Oh, par was 77.  The second nine was all of 3464 yards with a par of 40 with holes being assigned half-pars.  The club bred champions from the outset and remains one of the finest players' clubs anywhere.

A not-so-natural looking bunker within the dimensions of the 14th green.  Maybe this feature, though clearly not as well executed, inspired Thomas to create his 6th at Riviera.  




A somewhat familiar look and style that was retained in American golf for years beyond this course's demise.

Wayne, my only other thought looking at those old rudimentary features is that they must have been really good at making custards back then.  

And I hereby propose that the architecture of that era be more accurately and appropriately named not "Victorian" golf architecture or "Geometric" golf architecture or "Dark Age" golf architecture but "Custard" golf architecture, even though it probably wasn't as tasty as it looks.

"Tom P
I am not sure if your second post was meant to be flippant or not.  Either way, this type of bunkering is more or less the same thing that I see photos of (from very well respected clubs) all the time on this site.  The big difference is more the placement than the style of bunker.
Ciao"

Sean:

Whoa, whoa, hold on a minute here.

Flippant???

What are you talking about?

This is the very thing we need to talk about and particularly get realistic and honest about on this website.

I know exactly why Wayne posted those photos. He thinks that kind of architecture IS really rudimentary looking.

We can't help it that some of these old clubs that have architecture that looks like that are well respected or really well respected, the fact is the look of that architecture REALLY IS incredibly rudimentary looking and I think it's incumbent on any and all of us to admit it and discuss it. In other words to discuss why it was that way back then.

This does not mean at all that we have to hate it or even not like it. We merely have to be honest about what it really is and what it really does look like. It can certainly play great but what I'm talking about and I think Wayne is too is only what it looks like in the context of the evolution of golf course architecture in America, particularly some of the "schools" of architecture that immediately followed it and may've even been a reaction to it.

That some on here tend to call architecture that looks like that "natrual" looking is frankly just beyond some of us and that includes Wayne and me. We believe some on here say things like that or rationalize it simply to try not to sound critical of something that's well respected from years ago.

We're not trying to be critical in some negative sense, we're only trying to be honest in our analyses of the evolution of golf course architecture.

And the larger and even more interesting question and subject is some of this type of architecture and the look of it (Macdonald/Raynor, Banks et al) seems to be enjoying a real comeback and remarkable return to interest among some architects today.

In my opinion, it can even play great---it certainly can play quite different from the far more natural looking golf architecture but if anyone on here persists in calling the "look" of that architecture even remotely natural looking compared to much of what followed it all I can say is they are either really blind or just not wiling to be honestly critical for some reason that is probably not a real good reason---not in an analytical sense anyway.

Sean:

Maybe I am flippant and sarcastic on here sometimes but not about this.

Sean,

I have to run, but I must say I agree with you.  By natural I wasn't intending to limit the naturalism bunker appearance but also the use of natural land forms or natural looking man-made features that created interest without the use of bunkers, such as ridges, contours, slopes, turboboost areas near hazards, etc.  

Bunkers would be made in a more natural style several years after the photos I posted were taken, but they could not be completely natural in Pennsylvania farmland.  But they could resemble nature far more closely and the effect of that was a more pleasing one and advocated by Wilson, Flynn, MacKenzie, Thomas, Tillinghast, Colt, etc.  Raynor, Banks and Langford stayed clear from this movement.  That is an interesting component of architecture in that time.

Wayne,

I found your first photo to be rather interesting as I found a similar looking photo recently.  My photo is of a green and as you can see it is rather small, yet it shares a similar look to the feature in your photo. I am not privy to your info, so I have to ask, are they defining the feature as a bunker or you?
 
It is hard to see in your photo if the sand is level or recessed. I can see that if it was a green that it would be rather small, but as you can see in my photo that green is not too much bigger.

Thanks for posting your photos, the more I see of the early architecture the more I find myself pulled in to try and see more of it.  







Tully

Sean,

It is definitely referred to as a bunker in a green--at Huntingdon Valley's Noble course before they moved to the present one.  It appears that the caddy is holding the flag on the green on the other side of the raised bunker.

Kyle Harris told me that the Noble course was kept in play by another organization for several decades more.  I didn't know that.  I doubt they retained this feature though.  

That is one strange looking green.  I think we should post more photos of what some of the courses looked like before the classic era.

The caption under the photo reads,

"New mound on 14th green at Huntingdon Valley"  

If that was new architecture, I would hate to see the old.  I'll post some more early photos shortly.  

I hope we can lead this discussion towards the branching off between architectural styles; the Creme Brulee and the Natural.  Forget Custard, Tom.  You're usually great at creating buzz words and phrases...you swung and missed on this one.

This reminds me of Shackamaxon's 9th hole with its use of a mound on a green. It was a Tillinghast course circa. 1916, so it would be some of his earlier work. He would have seen alot of the early architecture so it is interesting to see him use these two features on one of his courses. Could we consider a hole/course from this time period to show some of the transition from the "dark ages," to the "golden age?"


Here is the link to my thread on the 9th at Shackamaxon.

Shackamaxon

Tully

As I mentioned to Wayne, HVCC's Noble Course was bought and made public as Baederwood Country Club until the 1950s. Dan Wexler's "Lost Links" has a feature on the course and the various routing configurations.

The original routing crossed roads several times (for those familiar with the area: Valley Road and the golf course was in the valley off York Road (PA 611) along the Fairway (the golf course is the reason for the name) in Abington. Right where the Barnes and Noble bookstore is. The Noble train station overlooked the original site of the first green.

I’ve  came across an interesting item re: early architecture and Philadelphia.

Newspaper article announced that the Old York CC was opening on September 4, 1910.   This was a  9 hole course and article listed many 'prominent' local members.  

Interestingly,  the golf course design was selected from those who entered the ‘contest’ for the layout.  

“.... a prize of $100 was offered for the best laid-out course, and experts from all the prominent clubs competed, the prize being ultimately awarded to James Laing, the Huntingdon Valley Country Club expert; and, while some slight changes have been made, the main features of Mr. Laing’s plan have been carried out in detail. ”       There was also the typical  1910 (or 2007 ?) "best" pronouncement that the “course will be numbered among the best in the eastern part of the country.”   The article clearly stated that the “only natural hazards will be used this year, but a comprehensive plan has been outlined for the next five years, which includes installation of bunkers, traps, ..”

The year 1910 was interesting in Philly as I found the March newspaper article from Philly and NY newspaper in which CBM pronounces he has the answer to GCA in America,   spotted account of  George Crump going overseas in September, this Old York CC golf course design was selected from those submitted by experts from all the prominent clubs,  and a new Merion will get started a few months later in 1911..

Tillinghast & Thomas had also designed a course by 1910 and were obviously well known locals in Philadelphia.  It seems the Philadelphia school was really coming into being about this time.

Sounds like steeplechase architecture was 'out' based on the wording of using 'natural hazards' and then placing bunkers over a period of time.



ps >    This 9 hole Old York CC was on 70 acres bounded by Old York Road,  Meetinghouse Road,  and Washington Lane.

John Stiles:

Thanks again for that good research work on the early Philadelphia newspapers!

It seems like Philly was really rife with the so-called "amateur" architect at that time and dedicated amateur architects at that.

In my opinion, it is beginning to seem like perhaps the most important contribution Macdonald was really offering American architecture at that time was not necessarily to copy the look of what he was doing at NGLA but simply that a golf club could go about doing it the way he had----with strictly "amateurs" or what they may've referred to back then as "sportsmen"----not architects which may've connoted professionalism at that time. Perhaps this is also precisely why the USGA became so hard-nosed through the teens about those involved in architecture taking any money for it. This created a lot of problems with some and eventually ended around 1921 with the institution in the Rules of Amateur Status of what is still referred to as the "architect rule".