[Trey Stiles]

Thanks for the pics.

As I was looking , several of the holes reminded me of the old Richland CC in Nashville. A couple even reminded me of Belle Meade ( pre restoration )

Back in the late 70's , I was lucky enough to play both of these Ross gems on a regular basis , too bad I was did not have a greater appreciation for the architecture at the time.

Just wondering what Richland would have looked like today if it were allowed to survive.

[Tim_Cronin]

Phil, you beat me to the answer. And thanks for the kind words.

Brian, the land that was added is within the current elongated rectangle, all of it along Western Ave. The club bought land on the northeast corner (where the fourth fairway is now), plus a parcel that allowed for the current 18th tees and pre-dogleg portion of the fairway, along with a smaller parcel.

That gave Ross the freedom to realign the holes on the back nine. The original 18th was a par 3 from the hill atop the driving range to a square green about where the tunnel goes under 87th St., and what's now the last two-thirds of the 18th was the 17th fairway. Ross, of course, redid the greens and rebunkered extensively to create a gem of a course.

[Brian Joines]

Thanks for the history lesson guys. It looks like a fabulous place to play!

[Jason Topp]

These pictures remind me very much of Minneapolis Golf Club which recently underwent renovation work.  The bunker styles are different but the terrain, the fairway contours, green sites, the bunker locations and the urban setting look similar.

http://www.minneapolisgolfclub.com/mgc/course.html

[J_ Crisham]

Beverly is a great achievement - the architect got as much out of the site as possible.   One couldn't possibly come up with a better routing.   

Love the Par 5s, but wish there was one I had a shot to get to in two!  Each one is a true three-shotter.   

Probably as good a caddy program as anywhere.   The club has produced more Evans Scholars than any other club.   

Greens are challenging.  Jack, how fast do you think they will roll for the amateur?   And, what speed do the members usually play them at?  I can imagine that these greens would be extremely difficult at very high speeds. 

And, Dan's 80 was legitimate.... Thanx, Jack, for a great time.   

Jon,   The greens on saturday were as good as I've seen them . Course is really in fine shape. Not sure how fast they will have them for teh Senior Am. Given the slope on several of the greens my concern is that some placements could be un pinnable at a stimp beyond 11. You have played at Bev enough to know that they are always fair but rarely easy green speeds. As an aside we had our big Evans Scholar Invitational at OFCC on Monday and as always your place looked great .      See you soon,    Jack

[Paul Richards]

Looks like a course I would like to play everyday. I'm surprised that we haven't seen a post yet from the anti - tree brigade.

Dean:

You are absolutely correct.  This is a golf course you ENJOY playing every day.

Just another reason why this is such a spectacular place.  Please review the list of Champions for more confirmation....

Keep in mind that in this decade, Beverly has removed over 800 trees.  So it is pretty difficult to even mention the 'anti-tree brigade' with a straight face around here.....

 

[Paul Richards]

There are not many courses where you can say the par 5's are the strength of the course but that is surely the case at BCC.   

Dan:

Excellent point.

I will hold up the 4 five pars at Beverly versus those at most any other course in the country.

The five pars are longer than most others that Ross built, but they are 'man-size' holes without a doubt.

[Paul Richards]

Phil,

Thanks for all of the information. That sounds like a an excellent book! That's interesting that nearly half of O'Neil's routing remained in place. How extensive was Ross' renovation? Of the holes he kept from O'Neil's routing, what other types of changes were made? Were all the bunkers redone as well or are some of the holes pretty close to his original design?

Tim Cronin wrote an EXCELLENT history of Beverly's first 100 years.

Answers to your questions lie in the book.

Please call the front office to order your copy -  708-636-8700.


 

[Paul Richards]

Wonderful course and membership.     The work by Ron Prichard really made the features jump back out in my opinion, with the bunker work, green areas restored and all the tree removal/limbing.

Am sure the greens will hold off low scores, but if playing at 6500 yards,  it will be short-ish for the seniors.

Paul Richards and others have done a first rate job with the history displays in the clubhouse.

John:

According to what the USGA sent us, the course will be in the 6500-6600 range.  It may be 'shortish', but, keep in mind, as recently as 2000, the best score in the Chicago Open for 2 years of play was 68. 

Even from 6500 yards, Beverly is still a Championship layout.

And thanks for the kind words.  The history of Beverly has been a real 'labor of love' for this ex-caddie and bag-room- boy who is fortunate enough to have become a member.

 

[Phil McDade]

Paul Richards and others have done a first rate job with the history displays in the clubhouse.

John:

One of the highlights of my recent visit there was walking around the lower level of the clubhouse, locker-room level, and looking at and reading details of the wonderful pictures of all those who have played the course -- Palmer, Nicklaus, Chick Evans of the Evans Scholarships, one Michael Jordan. Paul and Co. have done a terrific job with maintaining and highlighting the history of this club. A real treat is a personal letter that Byron Nelson sent to the club, (Paul, I believe, prompted the letter), detailing his first visit to Beverly some 60 years after it had occured. Did the game ever know a finer gentleman?

[Paul Richards]

Did the game ever know a finer gentleman?
[/quote]

Absolutely not.

One of the highlights of my tenure as Historian was getting a note on my locker, "Paul, Call Byron Nelson" followed by his phone number.  I called him, and he was amazingly lucid and remembered all of the moments I asked him about, but then added that playing in the 1931 National Amateur, it was the first time he ever putted on bent-grass greens.  He three-putted 13 times and missed the cut by 1!

I asked him to memorialize all of these memories on a letter to display for the membership and he did.  Amazingly it arrived the afternoon of our 90th Anniversary and I was able to read it off to the membership at the black-tie gala!

 

[PThomas]

the fairways seem to be in perfect shape!

and those greens at 11?   a challenge to say the least!

[Tim_Cronin]

Did the game ever know a finer gentleman?

Absolutely not.

One of the highlights of my tenure as Historian was getting a note on my locker, "Paul, Call Byron Nelson" followed by his phone number.  I called him, and he was amazingly lucid and remembered all of the moments I asked him about, but then added that playing in the 1931 National Amateur, it was the first time he ever putted on bent-grass greens.  He three-putted 13 times and missed the cut by 1!

I asked him to memorialize all of these memories on a letter to display for the membership and he did.  Amazingly it arrived the afternoon of our 90th Anniversary and I was able to read it off to the membership at the black-tie gala!

 
[/quote]

Paul is absolutely right. Arnie is the King, but Lord Byron was a prince of a guy, generous with his time and blessed with an amazing memory in the times I spoke with him on pre-Beverly occasions. (He was gone before I started working on the book.) I treasure those memories.

And Paul, thanks for the compliments. Gang, it was Paul who did the heavy lifting with his research before I got involved, then put the whip to me to get everything into shape!

[Buck Wolter]

I played a round last weekend with a qualifier for the Senior Am and was looking for this thread to point him to, unfortunately it looks like Photo Bucket must shut off access after too many views as I can't see Phil's pictures.

Any advice from the members for someone who'll be playing in the event I can pass on? He wasn't a bomber but had a good short game and made every putt he looked at.

Buck

[Tim_Cronin]

I played a round last weekend with a qualifier for the Senior Am and was looking for this thread to point him to, unfortunately it looks like Photo Bucket must shut off access after too many views as I can't see Phil's pictures.

Any advice from the members for someone who'll be playing in the event I can pass on? He wasn't a bomber but had a good short game and made every putt he looked at.

Buck

The old saw about keeping the ball below the hole really, really, really comes into play here. Especially on 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18!

[Paul Richards]

Buck

As Tim mentions, the two keys to Beverly are: 1 - if you hit it in the trees, take your punishment and pitch it out
2 - keep it below the hole

Good luck! 

[Phil McDade]

I played a round last weekend with a qualifier for the Senior Am and was looking for this thread to point him to, unfortunately it looks like Photo Bucket must shut off access after too many views as I can't see Phil's pictures.

Any advice from the members for someone who'll be playing in the event I can pass on? He wasn't a bomber but had a good short game and made every putt he looked at.

Buck

Buck:

I'm working to restore Photobucket shots; may take me a day or two, but I'm working on it.

My only advice is the one offered -- absolutely keep the ball below the pin, regardless of where the pin is (which may mean shorting yourself in the fringe in front of a green -- seriously!). Nearly all the greens tilt from back to front. It seemed to me the most sloped greens were 5, 10, 12 (esp. 12, watch the ridge that runs across the green which makes for one of the few run-offs toward the back of the green), 14 (!!), 16, 17 (!!!), and 18 (!!). Most of the fairways are receptive to well-struck tee shots, the only exception being 15, which has a pretty contoured fairway that can result in an odd bounce. Not anything really tricky out there -- just a solid layout, very good bunkering, and Ross greens that put demands on putting.

[Paul Richards]

BTW, a piece of 'inside information' here - the 15th green moves from front right to back left.

#4 and 6 don't have much 'tilt'.  and 14 is not nearly as much back-to-front as it appears, except at the very front of the green.

So not every green is back-to-front.

If you need more inside info, hire me as your caddie!!

 

[J_ Crisham]

As Paul , Terry, and I would attest to regarding #17. Many a par has been made on this hole from being short and left of the green in the fairway. Not sure if I've ever seen one from over the green. As severe a tilt on a smallish green as I've seen anywhere. Nicklaus 4 putted away the Western in 1963 on this green. It always seems to me that the green on 7 is a touch faster than the others on the front 9-the lack of trees around it probably allows for this. The stretch of 15-18 is as difficult a set of finishing holes in Chicago. Also , collectively the set of par 5's at Beverly are arguably the best in Chicago.        Jack

[Tim_Cronin]

The only way to par the 17th, I think, is to do as Jack suggests, be short and left of the green off the tee, in "Cavvy's Corner." It's named after a longtime member who made a habit of parring from that spot. It worked for me! (Once.)

[Buck Wolter]

Thanks for all the input -- Sounds like it will be quite a test.

Paul - send me your number and what you charge for a loop and I'll pass it on

[Dan Moore]

The only way to par the 17th, I think, is to do as Jack suggests, be short and left of the green off the tee, in "Cavvy's Corner." It's named after a longtime member who made a habit of parring from that spot. It worked for me! (Once.)

I parred it and come to think of it I was short and left.   

What a strong quartet of holes to finish a match on, whew!   

[Dan Moore]

Now that Phil's photos have reappeared and the Senior Am had its sucessful run at Beverly I thought I'd resurrect this thread by adding how the course played for the Seniors in the two stroke play qualifying rounds.  Cut of 64 players came at 9 over 151 and only 7 players were at par or better with the medalist honor shared at -2. 

Hole   Yards   Par   Average   Rank
            
1   346   4   4.144   15
2   572   5   5.208   11
3   219   3   3.446   6
4   384   4   4.41   7
5   400   4   4.484   3
6   185   3   3.494   2
7   519   5   5.131   17
8   418   4   4.269   9
9   375   4   4.231   10
OUT   3418   36   38.817
   
10   171   3   3.176   14
11   594   5   5.458   5
12   144   3   3.115   18
13   371   4   4.208   12
14   329   4   4.138   16
15   454   4   4.478   4
16   408   4   4.199   13
17   197   3   3.497   1
18   567   5   5.288   8
IN   3235   35   37.558
   
TOTAL   6653   71   76.375   

[Phil McDade]

Dan:

Some really interesting statistics there; I think they demonstrate that Beverly has some great diversity in how its holes play.

For instance, the course's four par 5s (maybe the real strength of the course architecturally) played from 5th-hardest (#11) to 2nd-easiest (#7). Similar results with the par 3s -- two of them (#s 17 and 6) played as the two toughest holes on the course, while two others (#s 10 and 12) played relatively easy, with #12 as the easiest hole on the course. #15 as expected played as a tough par 4, but not the toughest -- which was #5 -- and the somewhat benign-looking #4 (a shortish dogleg left) played as the third-toughest par 4, and the 7th hardest hole overall.

Also, Beverly's reputation derives in part from what is considered one of the finest closing four-hole stretches in the area -- yet the front nine played slightly harder relative to par.

Are there other big tournaments in Beverly's future? One hopes so -- the course seemed to stand up to nation's best senior amateurs, and the players (based on club historian/caddie Paul Richards' comments ) seemed to think it was a demanding yet fair test.

[Tim_Cronin]

14   329   4   4.138   16

Dan, thanks for posting the stroke-play numbers. Interestingly, in the final match, both Vinny Giles and John Grace bogeyed the deceptively difficult 14th hole.

[Tags:]

Tags:

[Tags:]

Tags:

Call to undefined function theme_linktree()