Rock Manor: a photo tour (Wilmington, DE)

[Joe Bausch]

A week or so ago I played Lester George's restovation of Rock Manor in Wilmington, Delaware.  The twilight rate on a Sunday was 37 bucks (somehow I guess I looked like I was a Delawarean, instead of 42 bucks for non-residents).  Two other GCAers joined me and I'm guessing they might chime in if they feel like it.

Here is the routing, where I believe holes 11-14 are located on 'new land' not part of the previous layout:



Here I believe is the previous layout still available in Google maps:



The opening hole is a downhill dogleg-right par 4 (359 yards):







The 2nd hole is a straight-away par 5 (509 yards) that is partially visible from I-95:









My favorite par 3 on the course is the 3rd hole (180 yards), which appears to perhaps be an original green location:
 




The par 5 4th (562 yards) has a view from the tees that suggest not much of a landing area, but there is more out there than it appears:







A par 3 awaits at the 5th (173 yards):





The sixth is a par 4 (383 yards) where I don't have a pic from the tee, instead one looking back to the tee is first:





The seventh is a slight dogleg-right par 4 (315 yards) with a second shot over some junk:







A slight dogleg-right par 4 is No 8 (384 yards) is next, where it was beginning to get dark (we started on No 10):







The 9th is a 178 yard par 3 that brings you back near the clubhouse:







The back nine begins with a slight dogleg-right par 5 (563 yards):







The eleventh is a par 4 with water to be carried off the tee (and OB left):







A short par 3 (139 yards) is the 12th hole:



The 13th is a par 4 (405 yards) with water in play to the right and OB on the left:





A neat little par 4 awaits at the 14th (333 yards):







The No. 1 handicap hole at RM is the dogleg-left par 4 15th (410 yards) with a fairly wicked green:









The 16th is a 200 yard par 3:







A 388 yard par 4 is the 17th:







And the final hole at RM is a slight dogleg-left 500 yard par 5 that your better players will expect to make 4 at worst:









Edit:  a more recent photo album of Rock Manor (Sept 2019) is here:

http://www80.homepage.villanova.edu/joseph.bausch/images/albums/RockManor/index.html

[Mike_Trenham]

Joe, thanks for doing the heavy lifting of taking and posting the pictures.  I had hoped to get something posted on here but never made the time.  I have played the course twice but not since last winter.

I was dubious when they announced this project.  The Rock had always been the inexpensive and good place for a beginner.  I did not think you could build enough of a course to justify the project.  I stand corrected.  This was a serious upgrade and they hit the right mix of fun, difficulty, clubhouse investment and value for a muni.

The routing is a bit forced on this small site.  The par three holes are not so much "connector" holes as they are jammed into the available land with some awkward walks from green to tee.  This would be my greatest criticism.

The greens are all pretty bold with lots of movement.  The course is not long and may not challenge the bigger hitter low handicap player but if you blast away and get wild it will cost you. 

Very little of the routing remains from the original, a few fairways and greens but fewer than I expected and it is not real obvious what was there before.  #1 is a great improvement over the old #10 and it closely follows to original routing.  I can't put my finger on why I think it is so much of an improvement other than it may have been stretched out a bit and the green is quite improved.

Among the better holes are #3,4,6,8,10,13,15,17.  Also for me #12 is an interesting short par 3 on flattish land without lots of earth moving, standing on the tee it looks like maybe you have finally come to a hole that is a bore but it is a fun hole with a wide shallow green with a nice bit of tilt.  #15 and #17 are excellent.

While different than Dupont which Lester George also redid a few years ago, The Rock benefits from more elevation changes.  This is a fun course to play that is not a pushover.

Biggest drawback here is this corner of the golf world probably has 54 more holes than the population can support so most of the courses are having a hard time making ends meet. 

[Rick Sides]

Joe,
How did you like Rock Manor? Worth the trip from South Jersey?

[Jeff_Brauer]

Lester,

Looks like you did the usual good job!

Dammit, though, I saw a catch basin in a few photos, so prepare to be crucified on golfclubatlas.com......

Or, is that just me?

[Steve_ Shaffer]

I played RM last fall on the day of the Phillies parade after winning the World Series. It was a beautiful fall day. In my group was a former Wilmingtonian who played RM for many years while in high school and college before he moved away. This was his first visit to RM in many years. He was astounded at the improvement in the course and the conditions. Pace of play was not a problem. I liked the the par3 3rd hole and the par5 10th hole. I thought the 4th hole was a little intimidating off the tee for mid and high handicappers. The greens were challenging and had some speed to them, unlike many public courses. The new clubhouse was well done. All in all, I thought RM was a good value course and worth the trip.

[astavrides]

I guess I'm in the minority in not liking the 3rd hole after my one play of the course.  180 or so yards, uphill, and nowhere to miss it.

[mike_malone]

 As someone who characterized Lester's work at DuPont as "the best restoration" I ever saw, I was left cold by the Rock Manor work. The quality of work is indisputable but the character of the course has been lost. I find it to be "homogenized "now. It could be a course located almost anywhere. I won't go back.

[Joe Bausch]

The routing is a bit forced on this small site.  The par three holes are not so much "connector" holes as they are jammed into the available land with some awkward walks from green to tee.  This would be my greatest criticism.

Mike, you have written exactly my biggest criticism of the layout.

Rick:  I think Rock Manor is definitely worth a visit if in the area.  But if your trip is long, I would give a nod to nearby Deerfield (although D'field is more expensive).  But I might give the nod to RM over another nearby layout White Clay Creek, b/c I think WCC is too expensive for what is offered.

[Mike_Trenham]

Mayday

Explain what was you miss in terms of character from the old Rock Manor.

If you simply said you did not like the course that would be okay but I never thought there was too much of value in the old design except in the price point and its value as a place for someone to learn the game.

Speaking with the person I played it with the first time back in November he said he was there a few weeks ago and the fescue was fierce.  I know you are not a fan of fescue.

Mike

[Lester George]

Thanks Jeff,

Really complicated project in the middle of a 400 million dollar transportaion project.  I had to fight for every square inch.  Holes 10 and 18 play over an underground public drinking water supply.  Major focus of the project was to attenuate flooding of Matson Run downstream which has caused loss of life.

Some 15 local, state and federal agencies involved made it damn hard to work around certain restrictions and utilities.  The fact that we got it done at all was a major accomplishment for the city and for George Golf Design.

Lester

[mike_malone]

 Mike,

     I played the course often 30-40 years ago. I haven't been  there in 25 years. But, I always liked an early hole that had a ridge running across the fairway . This was a feature not seen on most courses. I always loved the hole by the reservoir. It had an interesting feel with a building on the left and the reservoir on the right. Then on the back #13 , I believe, and #14 were a special pair back to back. #13 is somewhat alike now , except for the severe forced carry. However, the play of the creek on #14 is gone now. 

    Rock Manor was never a great course, but I wonder if they will recoup the costs from the change which creates a very different feeling golf course. I thought DuPont shined from the differences but still maintained its character.

[Lester George]

Mayday,

30 or 40 years ago? 

When I got to RM, there were dandelions growing in bunkers that hadn't been mainatined all summer.  No grass on the tees and greens infected with about every disease you could name.  Maintenance staff was down to about five people.  The course had been shortened to 5,700 yards par 67 and the road project was threatening to eliminate the golf course altogether because the course was in such disrepair.

Sorry to disappoint you, but you have no idea how close the golf course got to extinction and what it took to get it back to 6,400 yards and make it viable enough to avoid the axe. 

As it was just voted best public golf course in the area, I think it fufills a great many expectations for the the city and it's  patrons.

Lester

[Jay Flemma]

Lester definitely made a silk purse out of a sow's ear there.  The parcel of land was just horrible, and he built a nice course that everyone enjoys, that's cheap, and interesting to play, and easy to get on.

Purely as an aside, the food is outstanding too.  Great burgers.  Big juicy "Hindenburgers" I think they are called.

I made a nice day once of Scotland Run in the morning and Rock Manor in the afternoon.  Mayday, give it another crack, you might like it.

Fave holes:  2, 3, 4 is a great stretch.  just pretend the power lines and shack aren't there.  Great bunkering, Lester.

One bad hole:  11.  Unless you hit a perfect drive, you're wet or in the road.  Also, some of the walks tee to green are long, like 12 to 13.

[TEPaul]

"I was dubious when they announced this project.  The Rock had always been the inexpensive and good place for a beginner.  I did not think you could build enough of a course to justify the project.  I stand corrected.  This was a serious upgrade and they hit the right mix of fun, difficulty, clubhouse investment and value for a muni."


MikeT:


Apparently everyone was dubious but somehow someone had the good sense or the luck to hire Lester! The more complicated something is the better Lester does. That's just the way he is; that's the way his mind works. I would not recommend that a client hire Lester for something ultra simple as he might fall asleep on the job. Lester needs to be motivated and the bigger the problem the better he does.

[TEPaul]

Lester:

Is that "THING" in the lake on #11 (in the photo above) what's left of the Loch Ness Monster when you got done hunting him down?

[Lester George]

Tom,

That rock outcropping in the lake was unavoidable and too expensive to blast.  We affectionately called it Stonehenge because the shaper asked if he could have a go at it with some extra stone in the lake. 

Also, if I blast it, I may open a crack in the lake bottom which would have cost about 150k to fit with an impervious liner.  RM is one of the LARGEST problems we have solved to date, and we are gratified that so many people appreciate it.  Thanks for youe comments.

Lester

[mike_malone]

 Lester,

    The work is obviously first rate. You will just have to forgive my nostalgia for my lost youth!

        I understand choices need to be made; I just feel that the course lost its signature and now reminds me of a resort course.


   Jay,

      I think it has tough competition . If I want "cheap" there are many courses as fun that are quite a bit cheaper. If I want challenge and architectural merit at a higher price I can find many courses to fit that bill.

[Lester George]

Jay,

Look at the aerial photo...number 11 has the widest landing area on the course!  One bad shot by you, not a bad hole at all.   Mayber you should try a different line or a different club.

Lester

[Jay Flemma]

Lester, it wasn't me:  I hit the fwy with a 3-wood.  The three other guys all hit balls into the road by hooking their drives.  The road is too close, they almost killed two different cars passing by.  These guys were all single digit handicappers who just over-cooked one, and they are locals who play the course all the time.

Les, I like a lot of things about the golf course, and I understand you had to play the cards you were dealt.  You did a phenomenal job to even give them 18 holes, let alone a nice cohesive whole.  I just don't like 11, it's a goofy drive that demands too much...all carry over water and dead straight.  It may be wide in the aerial, but you don't see the aerial standing on the tee box.  All you see is water and OB, and if you hit a mis-hit of any kind, you're screwed.  I understand, it's not your fault.  You can't get a site like Kinloch or ballyhack every time, and they are damn lucky to have a course at all.

There is plenty good about the course.  Mayday, go play it at twilight, and if you don't like it, OK, but at least give it a chance.

[mike_malone]

 Jay,

   I played it ; I go by feel. And I don't feel like going back. There are too many other better choices.