Maidstone

[John Mayhugh]

If you look hard enough in the last photo, you can make out Mike Sweeney's "July" hamptons house where he keeps Mayhugh locked up in the basement.

I don't know about being locked in the basement, but I would gladly cut the grass just to have the opportunity to slip out and play a few holes late every day.

[Jon Spaulding]

Mike will let you please let John out for a quick loop?

[Jordan Wall]

Mike, do you allow visitors for your cell mates?

I'll visit John, take a guest room, then make sure he only plays a few holes (I'll play along!).

IM me for my number
 

[TEPaul]

Sean:

I guess I see what you mean. Interesting pick up. All these years I've never even thought about whether the tee for #4 and #16 is man-made with fill but I'm sure it probably was, and I guess by Park. If it wasn't there before him or naturally no golfer would be able to play to where the 4th green is. I'll look in Goddard's book to see if there's anything in it concerning what the land formations around those ponds looked like before Park completed the course that's there now because I believe a hole like #3 (or the land its on) preceded Park by years. I think the original clubhouse of Maidstone might have been around where the tennis club is now. Jon Spaudling is right that there's vestiges of an old broken down footbridge to the right of the 4th hole but it's been there like that for about the thirty years I've been familiar with the place. I think I've seen actress Dina Merrill come across that footbridge we use either walking or riding her bike about a dozen or two times over the years but I guess that's not unusual as I think she lives somewhere off #15 or something. I know Jackie Kennedy's sister, Lee Radziwill, lived on the ocean in a big house just to the east of the 15th tee.

[Mike Sweeney]

Mike, do you allow visitors for your cell mates?

I'll visit John, take a guest room, then make sure he only plays a few holes (I'll play along!).

Jordan,

We are a Martha's Vineyard family now (hopefully still  ), home of The Doak 5 ! My buddy John "Doak 8+"  Mayhugh is not getting on a bike let alone a ferry for a Doak 5 !

[Sean_A]

Wow!  That is not what I imagined from looking at the plan of the course.  I thought it would be a land bridge rather than a bridge.  I don't know why, maybe because it looks like a land bridge could be built which leads to the 5th fairway. 
 

In any case, it was a brilliant move and I am a bit surprised it was down to Park Jr. to think of it and to essentially link two tees to it - it is a very clever idea.  I wonder how the routing would have changed if a land bridge was created (it seems the natural place to do so) out by the 5th or if this was considered?

The bridge/peninsula is also interesting because it was used for tees rather than a green.  Could this be indicative of the era in which Maidstone was built?  Did the idea of an island green ever get floated?

Ciao

[John Mayhugh]

Jordan,

We are a Martha's Vineyard family now (hopefully still  ), home of The Doak 5 ! My buddy John "Doak 8+"  Mayhugh is not getting on a bike let alone a ferry for a Doak 5 !

Try me!  I might even throw in some yardwork.

[TEPaul]

Sean:

All the land that holes #4-#15 are on are Willie Park Jr. There were no golf holes in that area of Maidstone before he did his work in the early 1920s. I believe there were holes in the land area of #1, #3, #16, #17, #18  but the rest of the old course was in the area now containing the third nine and some holes around the dunes to the east of the clubhouse and the big mansions to the left of the driveway. I would not want to see a land bridge between #4 tee and #4 green. I really like that long wooden foot bridge. It's memorable.

[ChipOat]

Matt Ward:

Yes, Shinnecock, Bethpage and Winged Foot/West (and Pine Valley and Merion and......) are "better" golf courses than Maidstone IMO for a couple of reasons - extreme difficulty being one of them.

But I wouldn't want to be stuck on any one of them for the rest of my life with no other options(assuming I'm going to live past the age of 65) - even from the very front of the front tee boxes. They're too damned hard and, further, they are maintained in "championship" condition which compounds the problem even further for the oldsters.

Maidstone is everything that Pat Mucci articulated and more.

There's a difference between "my favorite course (I have about 10 of those of which Cypress and Maidstone are just two; others include National, Merion, PV, Dornoch and 3-4 others)", "the greatest/best course I've ever played (I still give the nod to Pine Valley although Shinnecock is a very close runner up)" and "the one course I would play for the rest of my life if I was forced to choose (CPC followed by SFGC due to their excellence/greatness + 12 month playability).

Does that answer your question with candor and, hopefully, at least modest intelligence?

 

[Matt_Ward]

Chipoat:

I hear loud and clear what your preferences are. That's fine -- your personal enjoyment is primary.

I wasn't disagreeing with you -- I simply wanted to point out that often times people will cite a particular preference because it suits their game -- not necessarily because of design elements that may fly in the face of what their game permits or doesn't permit or that you choose to avoid.

You answered with much more than modest intelligence.









Maidstone is everything that Pat Mucci articulated and more.

There's a difference between "my favorite course (I have about 10 of those of which Cypress and Maidstone are just two; others include National, Merion, PV, Dornoch and 3-4 others)", "the greatest/best course I've ever played (I still give the nod to Pine Valley although Shinnecock is a very close runner up)" and "the one course I would play for the rest of my life if I was forced to choose (CPC followed by SFGC due to their excellence/greatness + 12 month playability).

Does that answer your question with candor and, hopefully, at least modest intelligence?

 

[Tom Naccarato]

Matt,
How about character?

I have found that Maidstone's character is addictive. Very addictive; about as true a links as one could find.