Harborne-Colt Hidden Gem

[Paul_Turner]

Another course in the centre of Britain's second largest city, Birmingham.  I'd never heard of it until recently and it looks to have some fine holes over rolling parkland terrain.   A real oasis since it's only about 2 miles from the city centre.  

The course has some interesting historical info in its club history; Colt nearly walked away from the project when he found out that Fowler and Simpson were also bidding on the project.  Very different practices from today!  I'll post this at a later date.

Thanks to David Morgan from the Warwickshire Golf Union for sending me the pics.


View from forward tee on the second, it would be blind from the back tee-see the marker post.  Looks almost a rural scene!


Closer up-good looking greensite


2nd green


Mound and bunkers at tiny par 3, 3rd


Fairway bunkers at the long 4th.


4th green-apparently has a wicked slope.


Exciting 5th tee shot, can just make out the tiered green.



Closer Up


The 6th, apparently a celebrated par 3 in the Midlands


7th tee shot-aim at the central fairway bunker and let the ball kick left to open up the green.


7th green, difficult approach from the right hand side.

[Paul_Turner]

Short Par 4 10th-chop down those saplings!





A classic par 4/5 11th, with central bunkers and OOB eating in from the left.  Green slopes quickly back to front.


12th Horizon green with several cross bunkers about 50 yards short.





Great green site for medium par 4 13th.




Fine par 3 14th


15th green, sloping away.


15th green from behind.


16th green, closely guarded short par 4.


Tee shot at the long 17th.


View from 17th green.

V.long a tough par 3 to finish. 9th green on left.

[Lynn Shackelford]

And thank you Paul for posting those pictures.  It really has a rural feel for only two miles from the center of town.  From the pictures it looks like Colt "toned it down" a bit.  Not overly difficult.  And yes, get rid of those two trees.  A perfect picture for how not to plant trees.

[Paul_Turner]

Lynn

Yes and those trees on the 18th too.  I think the course clearly needs plenty of trees to screen out the urban landscape, but it just looks like in few places they're starting to encroach too much on the holes.

I think Colt simply let the terrain do most of the work and kept the bunkering fairly restrained.  It's likely he didn't have as large a budget when compared with the London area clubs.

I think the course is well preserved, there may be a few minor changes but I haven't seen many old pics to be sure.  There was once a huge bunker down that drop on the par 3 14th.

I've seen an aerial and it's quite a clever routing on a fairly tight piece of land, at around 6300 yds.  David Morgan who sent me the pics certainly thinks the course is challenging even if it is a little short by todays mark.

Gil Hanse did some research on the course for Fred Hawtree and dug up the interesting letters from Colt when he threatened to leave the job before ot even started.  Apparently competing bids weren't the "form" in those days!  Gil doesn't post here very often, but I'm hoping he might comment.

[Tom Doak]

Now THAT is a hidden gem!

I'm glad to know that there are still exciting golf courses out there which I've never heard of.

[TomL]

Well I have actually played Harborne and know it quite well which makes a grand total of 3 golf course discussion I have been able to join in with on here with you people   (Poppy Hills and TOC being the others).  Although I have to admit that posting in the same thread as Mr Doak is a little bit intimidating.

What can I say?  Well firstly the photos flatten a number of the changes in elevation which occur around the course most notably the 15th which is a super little short par4.  The green is actually very wide but not deep and is elevated somewhat from the fairway.  In that respect it is not dissimilar to the 12th at the Old Course without the fairway bunker problems.  

One of my other favourite holes is the 11th which is pictured here.  Off the tee the golfer naturally wants to come in from the right hand side well away from the OOB but when you get down to your ball you realise that you actually wanted to be well left off the tee for the best angle in.  What you may be able to make out is the greenside bunker on the right which dictates play from the right side of the fairway particularly when you take into account the fact that the green slopes as it says not only front to back but also right to left.  

The next hole unfortunately not pictured is also a favourite.  It is a straight par 4 which basically says to the golfer "all you have to do is hit two good shots - can you?".  I personally find this type of hole intimidating as it plays on your mind "I should be able to do this - drive and a five iron that's all!!!

So impressed was I by the course that I did write a little review some time ago which you can find at the following address (be aware my email has changed).

http://www.golfeurope.com/clubs/harborne/c1reviews.htm

Paul - can we expect a book at some stage?

[Paul_Turner]

Tom D

Thanks for the encouragement!

Tom L

Thanks for the feedback, it's cool that someone on GCA has played it.  I'll try and get there next year when I'm in the area.

Have you played nearby Edgbaston? It looks good too.

I've added a pic of a hole you like: the 12th.  

I think from the photos I have a good idea how the course plays.  Is the 16th a good hole?  The 9th looks a bit like the 18th i.e. across the valley to a green in front on the clubhouse.  Good looking bunker on that hole, by the green.

As for the book, I'm not much of a writer but I really enjoy the research.  I'm hoping that the authors of the upcoming Colt book would be interested in the info I have; it's theirs if they want it, but no interest so far.   Maybe I could pull it all together on a website.  

I also need to play some of these lesser known Colt courses, I really only know the famous ones in the UK and a few lesser names like Beaconsfield (which is very nice indeed).

[TomL]

Paul

I haven't played Edgbaston but would love to - I know exactly where it is - very close to where I used to work.

Sixteen as you say is a short par 4 - it plays uphill and as I remember the fairway bunkers are not really in play anymore.  I suspect this is a recurring problem around the course actually namely that modern equipment has taken out of play some of the bunkering.  The hole I would say is really a drive wedge "good chance for a birdie" par 4 nothing really special but not a bad hole either.  

The best holes on the course I think are 3, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 15 and 17.

If the course has a weakness it is in a couple of the drive / wedge par 4s which are a little too easy nowadays namely 10th and 16th, allied to a number of very birdie-able par 5s namely the 4th and 8th where on both occasions you can get home in two.

I am no expert but I don't look at the course and see much classic "HS Colt bunkering" which you get at say Copt Heath - but I might be wrong !!

Whereabouts are you located in the UK?

[Paul_Turner]

Brian Philips worked some magic, and removed the trees on the 10th, much better methinks!



Some of those trees on the left too.  I like the poplars though, particularly behind the 5th-looks like Tuscany  

TomL

My home is in New Jersey now, but I grew up in Beds.  

[Paul Turner]

Good news from Harborne, those trees on the 10th are no more and the club is thinning out more, I hope they're trying to break up the lines of trees (like on the 11th) into more natural copses or spinneys.