Golfweek/Bandon article

[RSLivingston_III]

Has anyone seen this new article by Brad about the visit for routing of the new course?

[RSLivingston_III]

I can't find a link to it on the web. Anybody else good at looking that stuff up?
Great descriptions of them tromping around laying out perspective holes.

[Clyde Johnston]

Good article. It's always an exciting time to walk a site but to do so with an enthusiastic client and others knowledgeable about CBM's work has to be a once in a lifetime experience. Design charrettes can be a lot of fun but I've never done one in the field - that has to be a first.

The article probably won't be posted on the web until the next issue of Golfweek comes out.

[paul cowley]

I also felt the article was a good one about a project I find quite interesting.

The article has a photo of the group clustered around a site vehicle and I enjoyed guessing who was who.

Seems to me Brad was leaning over the tail gate...maybe?

[Brad Klein]

Klein took the photo. Left to right:

(friend of Keiser's whose name I never got), Kemper's Josh Lesnik, George Bahto, Bandon land planning genius Howard McKee, PGA Tour pro Brian Henninger, Jim Urbina, Mike Keiser, Tom Doak.

[Tim Bert]

I got a couple sneak peek photos of Old MacDonald (from PD 14 tee) with the flags staked out last month.

Tom Doak - With your permission, I'd like to post them and hear your commentary on what hole # / template hole they will become.  

If you'd prefer they remain offline just let me know and I won't post.  

[RSLivingston_III]

Brad, could you post a link to the article as soon as it is up on the Golfweek site?

[Tom_Doak]

Tim:

Our group agreed early on that the design process would proceed better if it proceeded fairly quietly.  Interestingly, Brad was the one who suggested so ... I guess he wanted a scoop.  Anyway, I don't want to answer a million questions about it, as it's still early and things will evolve.

In general, however, I think it's fair to say that the group feels we've found excellent natural locations for the Eden and Redan and Sahara; for a hog's back fairway and for a hole like the fourth at Scotscraig, which Macdonald used as the 13th at Piping Rock; and for a "Bottle" fairway and an Alps hole; and for a version of the hole at Littlestone which inspired the fourth at Lido.

Some of the other holes will require a little more construction work, but I am thrilled that we have enough in the way of natural settings that it will encourage us to try and work with the other natural features, instead of having to create the fairway contours of every hole from scratch and sticking too closely to the templates.

We'll post a routing of the course sometime this winter before we start construction.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Tom Doak,

I found Brad's article more than interesting.
It sounds like an exciting project.

When do you anticipate the course opening for play ?

[Tom_Doak]

Patrick:

The target date for opening day is in May or June of 2010, which Mr. Keiser suggested because it would be the 100th anniversary of the opening of the National Golf Links of America.

We expect to do some construction work this winter but most of it in the winter of 2008-09, and seed the final hole in April or May of '09, which will give the course plenty of time to mature before its scheduled opening.  If we do follow that schedule, it will probably be hard to keep people off the place until its official opening.

[Kalen Braley]

Patrick:

The target date for opening day is in May or June of 2010, which Mr. Keiser suggested because it would be the 100th anniversary of the opening of the National Golf Links of America.

We expect to do some construction work this winter but most of it in the winter of 2008-09, and seed the final hole in April or May of '09, which will give the course plenty of time to mature before its scheduled opening.  If we do follow that schedule, it will probably be hard to keep people off the place until its official opening.

Sounds awesome Tom,

Has your group run into many roadbloacks in terms of permitting and other similar such things?

Thanks,

[Mark Arata]

What should we set the over/under at for people that will have played the course before the official opening?  

Seems like everyone on this site played Bandon Trails before the opening....we should make a contest out of it.....

[Jim Nugent]

Tom Doak, I remember a thread maybe six months ago where you were asking what the real essential elements of the Road Hole are.  I'll be real interested to see how you answer that at Old Mac.

Does anyone know how much Macdonald terraformed NGLA?  Will Old Mac require more, or less, earth moving?

This project excites me more than any other I've heard about since I became a member here at GCA.com.  

[RSLivingston_III]

I heard from Brad and he thinks he can get a link to the article up here very soon.

[Brad Klein]

http://www.golfweek.com/commentaries/klein_071607

[CHrisB]

What are the chances that the course will still be named "Old Macdonald" on opening day?

[Daryl David]

I would say zero.  If you have read Dream Golf, you know that there will likely be many possible names generated and discarded before 2010.

[JMorgan]

I think it's especially terrific that George is participating in the whole process.  What a magical experience it must be for him.

[George_Bahto]

thanks you JM: it is very exciting for me to be involved - an honor

I'm betting the name will stay Old Macdonald

....  just a little aside that will not "give away" any information:

As part of a "dinner/meeting" the first night the question about the course name of Old Macdonald came up - "should or should we not use it, your comments......"

The single very minor negative came from the aforementioned "charrette"-writer, Mr Klein ("watta" word!!).

However, during a conversation the following day Brad mentioned he was now on the "Old Macdonald" name bandwagon.

By the way, as we were leaving the sight of the Short hole "discussion" Brad gave us the 1st two paragraphs of that article (assuming he could get permission to publish it) as well the part about the interesting time we had discussing the Short (it was a special moment).

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