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JC Jones

  • Karma: +0/-0
Augusta Country Club
« on: August 26, 2010, 06:51:18 PM »
I am an idiot and left my camera at home before playing this gem.  It is, quite simply, the best course in the area (ANGC not included) and among the better courses I have played.

The routing is tremendous and takes you up down and along the rolling terrain that appears to be much more friendly than the very severe terrain of its neighbor.  Looking over the fence to #13 at ANGC, the steepness of that terrain is very much contrasted by the rolling and friendly nature of Augusta CC.  The course features blind tee shots, down-hill par 3's, up hill par 3's, down-hill par 5's and up-hill par 5's.  In short, it displays a variety in shots not often scene.  In typical Ross fashion, the strategy is given off the tee and up to the golfer to execute.  The longer approach shots are treated to open greens, often times with side contours to funnel a well played ball on to the putting surface.  The severe greens are left for the shorter approach shots when precision should be the key.  he variety of approach shots is to be admired and the course features one of the best par 5's (and it is down hill) that I have played (ironically, Rae's creek cuts in front of the green).

In addition to a superb routing, the greens are a real treat.  One is given the chance to play into table top, punch bowl, potato chip, saddle-back and many more.  T

I am not sure how this course continues to fly under the radar, but it shouldn't.  Like Kingsley Club, it may suffer from being in the "shadows" of a "MacKenzie course.  For anyone who has played it, what are your thoughts?  And, if you have any pictures, please share!
« Last Edit: August 26, 2010, 06:57:46 PM by JC Jones »
I get it, you are mad at the world because you are an adult caddie and few people take you seriously.

Excellent spellers usually lack any vision or common sense.

I know plenty of courses that are in the red, and they are killing it.

Eric Smith

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #1 on: August 26, 2010, 08:19:04 PM »
Jason,

Glad you liked ACC.  Did you beat the britches off of Pritchett? ;D  I want to get down there to play later this fall, but it will need to be closer to winter I guess cause Mark is gonna be mad at me for a while after October 9.

Find any awesome BBQ on the way back home?



JC Jones

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #2 on: August 26, 2010, 08:23:07 PM »
Jason,

Glad you liked ACC.  Did you beat the britches off of Pritchett? ;D  I want to get down there to play later this fall, but it will need to be closer to winter I guess cause Mark is gonna be mad at me for a while after October 9.

Find any awesome BBQ on the way back home?




We did not keep score.  Had we kept score, however, he would have handled me easily.  The good news is I think I suckered him into our low country trip.  I guess he really likes playing Secession with a hangover!

I was tempted to stop at Duke's in Aiken on the way home but I thought it wiser to get back to my bride.
I get it, you are mad at the world because you are an adult caddie and few people take you seriously.

Excellent spellers usually lack any vision or common sense.

I know plenty of courses that are in the red, and they are killing it.

Eric Smith

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #3 on: August 26, 2010, 08:26:54 PM »
Duke's.  Man, I just loaded up on green chili curry and the memory of that feast at Duke's makes me want to hurl.

Kenny Baer

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #4 on: August 26, 2010, 08:48:18 PM »
Jason,

Glad you liked ACC.  Did you beat the britches off of Pritchett? ;D  I want to get down there to play later this fall, but it will need to be closer to winter I guess cause Mark is gonna be mad at me for a while after October 9.

Find any awesome BBQ on the way back home?




Eric,  I love your jokes; a 4 win season might be considered a success in Knox-vegas this season; but I do thank the Volunteer nation for training our next coach after Richt retires.

JC I love Augusta Country Club although I don't understand your statement "the steepness of that terrain is very much contrasted by the rolling and friendly nature of Augusta CC" I think the terrain is almost identical and it gives you an idea of what it would be like to play at ANGC; my feeling was they are on basically identical ground.  When playing #9 at Augusta CC it gave me the sense of what it would be like playing #10 at ANGC.
« Last Edit: August 26, 2010, 08:54:20 PM by Kenny Baer »

Mac Plumart

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #5 on: August 26, 2010, 08:51:10 PM »
For what it is worth, here is my favorite picture of Augusta CC.




I agree with you that the course deserves more recognition. 


Sportsman/Adventure loving golfer.

Jon Heise

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #6 on: August 26, 2010, 08:52:39 PM »

I am not sure how this course continues to fly under the radar, but it shouldn't.  Like Kingsley Club, it may suffer from being in the "shadows" of a "MacKenzie course.  For anyone who has played it, what are your thoughts?  And, if you have any pictures, please share!


Loved ACC, it's in my Top 10, no doubt.  That whole place is exactly what I'd want in a club.  Great course, clubhouse, members, history... all of it.

HOWEVER, out of 10 visits, I may have go Duke's 7, ACC 3... :)  It's only 13.5 hours and 820 miles.  Might need a road trip.
I still like Greywalls better.

JC Jones

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #7 on: August 26, 2010, 08:54:07 PM »
Jason,

Glad you liked ACC.  Did you beat the britches off of Pritchett? ;D  I want to get down there to play later this fall, but it will need to be closer to winter I guess cause Mark is gonna be mad at me for a while after October 9.

Find any awesome BBQ on the way back home?




Eric,  That is pretty funny; a 4 win season might be considered a success in Knoxville this season.

And here I thought you were going to play Mark in some match on Oct 9.  Little did I know you were talking about JV, I mean, SEC football...
I get it, you are mad at the world because you are an adult caddie and few people take you seriously.

Excellent spellers usually lack any vision or common sense.

I know plenty of courses that are in the red, and they are killing it.

Kenny Baer

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #8 on: August 26, 2010, 08:57:11 PM »
Eric,  I love your jokes; a 4 win season might be considered a success in Knox-vegas this season; but I do thank the Volunteer nation for training our next coach after Richt retires.

JC I love Augusta Country Club although I don't understand your statement "the steepness of that terrain is very much contrasted by the rolling and friendly nature of Augusta CC" I think the terrain is almost identical and it gives you an idea of what it would be like to play at ANGC; my feeling was they are on basically identical ground.  When playing #8 at Augusta CC it gave me the sense of what it would be like playing #10 at ANGC.

JC I almost "reported you to the moderator" for this statement "Little did I know you were talking about JV, I mean, SEC football" if statements like that are allowed the I guess GCA really has Jumped the Shark. ;)
« Last Edit: August 26, 2010, 09:10:29 PM by Kenny Baer »

RSLivingston_III

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #9 on: August 26, 2010, 08:58:10 PM »
What hole is the short par 4 with the punchbowl green? I seem to remember it being on the back.
"You need to start with the hickories as I truly believe it is hard to get inside the mind of the great architects from days gone by if one doesn't have any sense of how the equipment played way back when!"  
       Our Fearless Leader

Kenny Baer

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #10 on: August 26, 2010, 09:00:42 PM »
RS, I am pretty sure it is #16.

jeffwarne

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #11 on: August 26, 2010, 09:01:23 PM »
Jason,

Glad you liked ACC.  Did you beat the britches off of Pritchett? ;D  I want to get down there to play later this fall, but it will need to be closer to winter I guess cause Mark is gonna be mad at me for a while after October 9.

Find any awesome BBQ on the way back home?




Eric,  I love your jokes; a 4 win season might be considered a success in Knox-vegas this season; but I do thank the Volunteer nation for training our next coach after Richt retires.

JC I love Augusta Country Club although I don't understand your statement "the steepness of that terrain is very much contrasted by the rolling and friendly nature of Augusta CC" I think the terrain is almost identical and it gives you an idea of what it would be like to play at ANGC; my feeling was they are on basically identical ground.  When playing #9 at Augusta CC it gave me the sense of what it would be like playing #10 at ANGC.

except #9 at ACC is uphill and #10 at ANGC is severely downhill?

edit
having seen your post on the soil thread, I realize you have #9 confused with #8, a par 5 that was lengthened in the early 80's to play accross Raes Creek
« Last Edit: August 26, 2010, 09:06:10 PM by jeffwarne »
"Let's slow the damned greens down a bit, not take the character out of them." Tom Doak
"Take their focus off the grass and put it squarely on interesting golf." Don Mahaffey

JC Jones

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #12 on: August 26, 2010, 09:04:02 PM »
RS, I am pretty sure it is #16.

Correct
I get it, you are mad at the world because you are an adult caddie and few people take you seriously.

Excellent spellers usually lack any vision or common sense.

I know plenty of courses that are in the red, and they are killing it.

JC Jones

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #13 on: August 26, 2010, 09:08:04 PM »

JC I love Augusta Country Club although I don't understand your statement "the steepness of that terrain is very much contrasted by the rolling and friendly nature of Augusta CC" I think the terrain is almost identical and it gives you an idea of what it would be like to play at ANGC; my feeling was they are on basically identical ground.  When playing #9 at Augusta CC it gave me the sense of what it would be like playing #10 at ANGC.

JC I almost "reported you to the moderator" for this statement "Little did I know you were talking about JV, I mean, SEC football" if statements like that are allowed the I guess GCA really has Jumped the Shark. ;)

Looking at ANGC #13 from ACC, there is nothing on ACC as steep as that climb.  Moreover, the contrasting terrain and "rolling" ideas were pointed out to be my Mr. Helen Keller himself.  And, if he don't know, nobody do.

You can report me to the moderator all you want but he knows that your "dawgs" ain't been relevant in years.  In fact, Clemson has won more recently than y'all!
I get it, you are mad at the world because you are an adult caddie and few people take you seriously.

Excellent spellers usually lack any vision or common sense.

I know plenty of courses that are in the red, and they are killing it.

Kenny Baer

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #14 on: August 26, 2010, 09:13:09 PM »
Won what more recently than UGA?  Their 1981 National Title; if I recall correctly, which I am pretty sure I do considering I was witness to the stomping we put on Clemson in 2002 in Athens (Not a stomping at all but that win really propelled UGA' 13-1 SEC Title Season!!) and then a true stomping in 03 in what I guess y'all call "Death Valley".

Ben Sims

  • Karma: +1/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #15 on: August 26, 2010, 09:51:52 PM »


You can report me to the moderator all you want but he knows that your "dawgs" ain't been relevant in years.  In fact, Clemson has won more recently than y'all!

I find this mildly--check--VERY funny coming from a Big 11 guy.  And a meaningless Big 11 school to boot!  Just before I became a member of this site, 19 short months ago, I remember a game in Orlando that pitted the mighty double barky sparty against irrelevant Georgia. 

Either way, AugCC looks very, very cool from pics and aerials.  I love the bunker placements, the out and back routing, everything.  Sucks that it gets overshadowed.  But I get the feeling that they like it that way down there.

Mike Hendren

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #16 on: August 26, 2010, 10:23:17 PM »
Well done restoration with greens reclaimed to feature sharper edges.  Also, nice bunker work with steep grass faces that are maintained to gather balls, rather than having them hang up on the slopes.  Standout holes for me are the equally short 16th, a cool uphill punchbowl and the short 17th back downhill that begs to be approached from the right side of a fairway canting sharply to the left.  

Having played Ross' Cherokee CC and Holston Hills CC in Knoxville this week I was thinking of the Ross courses I've played and how few are included in the 20+/- Ross courses that populate Golfweek's Top 100 classic.  Of the courses I've played only Beverly, Holston Hills and Pine Needles crack that list, with Augusta CC making a brief appearance before dropping off this year.  I cannot fathom how good Seminole, Pinehurst #2 and Plainfield are if they are that much better than Idle Hour, Memphis CC, French Lick Hill Course, Mid Pines and LuLu just to name a few of his second stringers I've been fortunate to play.  

Jason, speaking of Idle Hour it is every bit as good as Augusta CC in my book.  Stays below the radar, however.  

Nice chatting with you yesterday. ;)


Mike
Two Corinthians walk into a bar ....

Eric Smith

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #17 on: August 27, 2010, 09:04:06 AM »

a 4 win season might be considered a success in Knox-vegas this season;

but I do thank the Volunteer nation for training our next coach after Richt retires..

KB:

The first part you threw at me before last season, so I'm used to it.  

45-19

The second part....you got me good there, now.  THAT hurt!!!  I love Coach Dooley!!!
« Last Edit: August 27, 2010, 09:06:53 AM by Eric Smith »

Tiger_Bernhardt

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #18 on: August 27, 2010, 12:34:02 PM »
JC You must have played a different course than me. I enjoyed the club and facilities but thought the course had been modified to being almost unmemorable.

Stephen Britton

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #19 on: August 27, 2010, 02:09:30 PM »
Anyone have more pics?
"The chief object of every golf architect or greenkeeper worth his salt is to imitate the beauties of nature so closely as to make his work indistinguishable from nature itself" Alister MacKenzie...

JC Jones

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #20 on: August 27, 2010, 02:34:42 PM »
JC You must have played a different course than me. I enjoyed the club and facilities but thought the course had been modified to being almost unmemorable.

Can you explain the above?  What don't you like?  What so you not like compared to other Ross courses?  What other Ross courses have you played?

I look forward to your thoughts.
I get it, you are mad at the world because you are an adult caddie and few people take you seriously.

Excellent spellers usually lack any vision or common sense.

I know plenty of courses that are in the red, and they are killing it.

Bruce Wellmon

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #21 on: August 27, 2010, 03:10:10 PM »
I very much enjoyed my round there with one exception.
I hit it on THE one flat spot on the punchbowl green (lower left if I recall ) and my ball did not feed towards the pin..............

JC Jones

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #22 on: August 27, 2010, 03:43:29 PM »
I very much enjoyed my round there with one exception.
I hit it on THE one flat spot on the punchbowl green (lower left if I recall ) and my ball did not feed towards the pin..............

 ;D  That was my one birdie of the day.  The pin was middle right and anything on that half of the green fed to about 5-6 feet!  That is an awesome green.
I get it, you are mad at the world because you are an adult caddie and few people take you seriously.

Excellent spellers usually lack any vision or common sense.

I know plenty of courses that are in the red, and they are killing it.

jeffwarne

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #23 on: August 28, 2010, 09:11:09 AM »
I very much enjoyed my round there with one exception.
I hit it on THE one flat spot on the punchbowl green (lower left if I recall ) and my ball did not feed towards the pin..............

 ;D  That was my one birdie of the day.  The pin was middle right and anything on that half of the green fed to about 5-6 feet!  That is an awesome green.

that's one of the least favorite holes of the members.
The former green (more of a plateau)fit the length of the hole much better.
not all members are enamored with the "restoration", but it is and was one of my favorite courses but I'm a bit prejudiced having grown up there
"Let's slow the damned greens down a bit, not take the character out of them." Tom Doak
"Take their focus off the grass and put it squarely on interesting golf." Don Mahaffey

Mark Pritchett

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Augusta Country Club
« Reply #24 on: August 28, 2010, 09:26:08 AM »
Jeff,

I was curious to get you thoughts regarding:

Which hole do you think is better post renovation?

Which hole do you think was better pre-renovation?

Hope all is well.

Thanks,

Mark