Ian,
I am excited to see this thread. It's something I'm continually working on in my head. Emphasis on the
working, since it's probably going to be one of those things that never gets finished. The reason for this is two-fold.
First, there is just such a lack of documentation, we may never know for sure exactly what Thompson did on each course, or what courses he worked on for that matter.
Second, there is such a high level of subjectivity concerning exactly what constitutes a "Thompson course."
For that reason, I've always thought it was best to break such a list down into categories such as,
original design,
additional 9,
renovation,
redesign,
construction, and even
high- and
low-Thompson (did you coin those terms Ian?)
When I set up the list of Thompson courses on my
website (please check it out and let me know what you think!) I included every course that had even been rumoured to have some Thompson connection.
I did this for the same reasons I set the website up -- to cultivate interest in Stanley Thompson; to foster appreciation for his legacy; and lastly, and I think most importantly, to facilitate research on all aspects of his life and works.
The more research that is conducted on Thompson, the more information will be uncovered. To that end, I think it's important to take a look at the courses that are on the fringe. Even if they turn out to
not be Thompson courses, they may lead to exciting new information.
Having said that, I wanted try to address your suspicions about
I quickly went over my copy of the 1987 edition of Summit's club history, written by Lorne Rubenstein, and found the following information:
*George Cumming and George S. Lyon did the routing of the course in 1912.
*Construction commenced shortly afterwards, but was halted in 1914 due to the onset of the Great War.
*The incomplete course lay dormant until the end of the war, in 1919.
*The "makeshift" course, with temporary tees and greens, officially opened on 19 July, 1919, with an exhibition match featuring George S. Lyon.
*In late 1919 or early 1920, Summit hired Stanley Thompson to develop the permanent course.
*Thompson suggested the following when he was hired:
#1: New tee, the widening of the course, and a new green.
#2: The cutting away of part of the hill in front of the green an a new green.
#3: New tee, improvements on the approach to the green, and a new green.
#4: New tee, the formation of a lake in front of the tee, the widening of the course, improving the approaches, and a new green.
#5: New tee and new green.
#6: New green.
#7: Improving the approaches to the green and a new green.
#8: An alternative tee, improving the whole fairway and approaches to the green and a new green.
#9: Improving and levelling the whole fairway and a new green.
#s 10, 11, 12: New greens.
#13: New tee and new green.
#14: New green.
#15: A new tee and cutting away a portion of the hill at the side of the green and a new green.
#16: An entirely new hole which has necessitated the cutting of a course of about eighty yards wide through the bush for a distance of about a hundred and sixty yards; the cutting away and removing of all stumps; the cutting away of a hill which was in the middle of the fairway, and the filling up of the boggy land on the fairway. Improving the approaches to the green and a new green.
#17: A new tee, improving the approaches to the green and a new green; another entirely new hole.
#18: A new tee, improving the approaches to the green and a new green.
Rubenstein concludes that Thompson was given a mandate to take what Cumming had done and make substantial alterations and improvements. Lorne also adds that it's clear,
"Cumming had only had the time to provide a routing before the war intervened, and that much work was yet to be done. Thompson was charged with the responsibility of designing the entire eighteen greens and most of the tees. He also contoured fairways where needed, and improved sight lines to the holes by reworking hills and mounds."
The Summit club history also has four-page reprint of an article by Ralph Reville from the May 1920 issue of
Canadian Golfer. Reville toured the entire course while Thompson's plans were being implemented. I can scan the pages and send them to you if you'd like Ian.
I'm also pretty sure I've read somewhere that the Cumming/Lyon layout (tees and greens) was in play while the Thompson renovations were being completed.
Hope this helps.