On my way out to the East Coast my son and I stopped and played Wanango CC near Oil City, PA. The original 9 was designed by Donald Ross, the next nine was designed by Bendelow and it was reworked (not sure how much though) by Tillinghast. The course was private until last year when another course owner purchased it. It is public, with membership options. At one time, this place must have been something special. Don't get me wrong, the place is still quite special, but for where it is located (in the middle of nowhere) and the era in which it was built, it is a neat golf course. Not long, the score card lists it as 6088 from the tips, but their website has it over 6100. Very short by today's standards, but it still has some teeth. If they made it fast and firm, it's teeth could be a LOT sharper. Anyway, for both my 7 year old son and I to play 18 with cart it was $40 total. And everyone there was happy to see my son on the course. The round took us 2 hours and 15 minutes. A real steal. It was a VERY foggy morning, so the pictures could be nicer, but I am sure from an architectural view, you'll enjoy them just the same. The course sits upon a nice variety of topography and really has some excellent golf holes. In my opinion the weakest holes were #4 and #5. The best holes were #3, #8, #10, #11, #13, and #15. Overall a VERY SOLID golf course that if in the area, you SHOULD play.
Here is an aerial of the course:
Hole #1 is a narrow, short Par 4 of 310 yards. A nice start to your round as well.
This bunker serves both the 1st and 9th holes at the same time, but you wouldn't know it looking at it like this. I liked it.
Note close proximity of greens and tee areas. Liking it. The course also DOES NOT have continuous cart path; liking that too!
# 2 Fairway, uphill par 4, 397 yards. Notice the fairway disease. Victim of the humidity here.
May have been a sand trap at one time, but no longer.
#3 FUN hole. Short par 4 295 yards, a straight drive leads to a short uphill second shot.
The dip is more pronounced in person.
On such a short par 4, I don't know if I would have allowed the player to be able to run the ball up to the hole. I would run that bunker across the front of the green and force you to make a good wedge shot.
We skipped #4 due to very, very slow play with a group of women. Taking over 35 minutes for each hole. It was the number one handicap hole (good one to skip, right?). Basically a tight par 4, 388 yards with a bend going right to left. Kind of boring actually and too foggy to even see the hole anyway.
#5, IMO, was the weakest hole on the course. Par 3, 121 yards, yawn. No picture, too foggy.
#6 is another right to left par 4, fairly tight with a slope running down from the left side to the right. Neat hole. 410 yards. No pic from the tee, too foggy.
#6 green.
View back from the green on #6.
#7, Par 5, 534 yards. Fun driving hole. Pair of bunkers on left to collect errant right tee shots.
View back to the #7 tee box.
Two bunkers to right side of fairway, The second one up also has sand.
An oil pump, still pumping out oil, along the 7th fairway. These were visible just off the course in several areas.
#7 fairway ripples.
100 yard marker.
7th green, somewhat boring compared to many others here.
A gentle slope from back to front on #7 with some benign bunkering.
#8, par 3, 152 yards. Maybe the BEST hole on the golf course. Awesome.
My birdie made the hole even better.
View of rear of #8 from forward tee box on #2.
#9, short par 5 to a small not so receptive green. 475 yards.
That bunker on the right is the back side of the same bunker on hole #1.
I will post the back nine in a little while...