Groundbreaking/Epic/Infamous Greens

[Melvyn Morrow]

IF the R&A do not get their act together, I have been advised that The Game of Golf is Going to Be Nationalised. All courses within the UK will be under the control of The Walking Dead, supervised by the All Seeing Eye, so I would not worry about Moortown, nor will Gibraltar be given back to the Spanish.

Yorkshire, now is that not the place grown men rub three balls together to generate red on their trousers – something to do with a male bonding order of the Cricket.

Come to think of it Young Bonny Prince Charlie pass Leeds in 1745 where I believe he claimed it for Scotland, but allowed some form of self- government until the next gathering of the Clans


Melvyn

[Bill_McBride]

Andrew, as an Englishman I'm offended.  As a Yorkshireman you must be spitting......

Nonsense, the two of you are honoured that it got mistaken for a scottish green.

Sean,

You could almost say the 16th NB is two greens with a bit of mown grass in between. However it is the bit in between that makes the green interesting, the actual putting surfaces are fairly flat. Same could be said about quite a few of the greens at TOC and indeed Foxy that JNC seems to like so much, its the fall offs at the side that make them.

Niall

Niall, when I was last at NB (2007), the swale between plateaus was the same putting green sward as the rest; it's just one big, if odd, green.

[Wade Schueneman]

JC,

What is interesting about the 14th green at Lane Creek is that Mike Young says it is so severe because he tried to break some ground and then hit a bunch of rock and could not go any further.

[Jaeger Kovich]

Shinnecock Hills #7
WF and Augusta have a few
St. Andrew's 7/11 because its the most gangster double-g out there (picture got cut off)

I'd throw #2 @ Pinehurst #2 in the mix

Also how about Tobacco Rd #6

[RSLivingston_III]

A punchbowl green should be represented. The Morris at Cruden Bay?

[C. Squier]

#2 at Pine Valley
#17 Prairie Dunes
#10 Chicago Golf Club
#6 Riviera

[Mac Plumart]

My, oh my!!!

Dave M...you mention that Tethrow's green might be called over the top.  Hmmm...  I think I like over the top greens.  Holy Moses!!  They look awesome!!! 

Some others that have popped into my head...

#2 and #9 at Rivermont.  And like Ralph suggested, #9 is a punchbowl.

Here is a shot of #2 at Sebonack...



And, again, on the Infamous side...

Tobacco Road?




Thanks for sharing guys.  I learned a ton!

[Ryan Admussen]

I have a soft spot for the 9th at Sagebrush

[Sean_A]

I have a soft spot for the 9th at Sagebrush

Gosh, as time goes by I appreciate more the look of greens like this.  So many of the pix have the greens looking like separate entities of the course where this green just continues the flow of the fairway - marvelous.  Thanks for posting Ryan.

Ciao

[Colin Macqueen]

Good grief!!  I used to think that most of my troubles were over when I got to the green. Obviously I have been spared! The pictures of these greens are awesome.

I wonder if these extreme examples have to be mowed at a different height form their seventeen "siblings" to maintain any degree of "puttability". Would it be considered sacrilegious to have some greens a different speed from others on the course to allow holing out to be achievable?

Cheers Colin.

 

[Niall C]

Andrew, as an Englishman I'm offended.  As a Yorkshireman you must be spitting......

Nonsense, the two of you are honoured that it got mistaken for a scottish green.

Sean,

You could almost say the 16th NB is two greens with a bit of mown grass in between. However it is the bit in between that makes the green interesting, the actual putting surfaces are fairly flat. Same could be said about quite a few of the greens at TOC and indeed Foxy that JNC seems to like so much, its the fall offs at the side that make them.

Niall

Niall, when I was last at NB (2007), the swale between plateaus was the same putting green sward as the rest; it's just one big, if odd, green.

Bill

There's no doubt about that. In my own clumsy way I was trying to suggest that it effectively played as two seperate greens given the that the two landforms are so distinct from each other.

One green that hasn't been mentioned is the original 9th at Kingsbarns. It had a huge hump back left. I remeber playing with a golfer who 4 putted that green when the pin position was on top of the hump. I'm sure we've all had 4 putts at some point but what made this one special was that the 4th putt that went in was from 25 feet.

Niall

[Wade Schueneman]

Mac,

I think that you will like #16 at North Berwick and #11 and #12 at TOC when you play then in July, BUT I was really amazed by the 2nd green (+ surrounds) at TOC.  If the pin is in the left portion of the green and you miss the green then you are in for a treat.  The contours are beautiful!

Your thread got me to thinking. If I could take a wedge and a putter and goof around on 18 greens (that I have not already played) which ones would I choose.  Since I have been waiting on the phone for 30 minutes trying to speak to an IRS agent, here is my first shot:

Pine Valley - #2
National - #1 and #6
Ballyneal - #7 and #12
Crystal Downs - #6 and #7
Augusta National - #14
Deal - #3 and #16
kingsley - #9 and #13
Friars Head - #7
Pasatiempo - #16
Barnbougle Dunes - #13
Old Mac - #5
Some green at Oakmont - probably 2, 9, or 18
Some green at Prarie Dunes - probably 6 or 17

Care to share your wish list?

[Greg Tallman]

I will offer up a couple of unknown modern greens...

#3 and #4 at Club Campestre San José del Cabo - The handy work of Señor Kurt Bowman. I can honestly say I have not played on a green anywhere on earth similar to these. Good or bad? Who knows.

[jonathan_becker]

With all the fog, my photos didn't come out so great, but I would put OM #5 in the "Epic" category.

[Mike Benham]

All the way until the second page until someone noted Pasatiempo's 16th (photo linked from the Pasatiempo website)

Pasatiempo - #16

[Michael Dugger]

There are a lot of rolly poly greens in the world to be cited, that's for sure, but I took this thread to be more about iconic greens.

Such as the 6th at Riv or the Sitwell Park green.

To that effect I would add #9 at Yale seems to be "the ends all bes all" Biarritz.

#12 Augusta seems to be the penultimate shallow but wide green.

#17 Sawgrass. the original Island Green.

[Matt OBrien]

#4 at lost dunes

[Mac Plumart]

Michael...

I hear you on that and I would love to get a list of the "iconic" greens.  Maybe "iconic" isn't the right word.  But your list captures what I am trying to get a list of with the likes of 17 at TPC Sawgrass, 6th at Riveira, and ones like that.  World famous, must see, revolutionary, what ever the right word or phrase is, type of greens.

BUT...also I would like to get a taste and a sample of some other greens.  These "hidden gems" type of greens that are popping up are spectacular.  I would love to know about them as well. 

Maybe if this thing gets some momemtum, I'll compile two lists.  1--World famous and well known greens and 2--the Hidden Gems.  Or what everelse type of list applies...as I am finding that I prefer a course with interesting greens, maybe others do, and this list could help people find places worthy of checking out and playing.

[Tim Martin]

There are a lot of rolly poly greens in the world to be cited, that's for sure, but I took this thread to be more about iconic greens.

Such as the 6th at Riv or the Sitwell Park green.

To that effect I would add #9 at Yale seems to be "the ends all bes all" Biarritz.

#12 Augusta seems to be the penultimate shallow but wide green.

#17 Sawgrass. the original Island Green.

Mike- I think # 10 at Yale as an epic/infamous green would also be included.

[George Pazin]

It's interesting how many famous greens have not often been replicated. Oakmont's fallaway greens haven't really caught on as any sort of trend (certainly not like the island greens!).

Many may be accepted on their own courses, but are seen as too severe elsewhere.

[Mac Plumart]

Wade...

I like the idea you've got there.  But I really struggle visualizing things that I haven't seen first hand.  So, I find it hard to come up with a list of specific greens that I haven't played that I most want to.  Does that make any sense?

Given this and my relatively low amount of experience in terms of years of golf exposure, I study, read, and play a lot to try to figure out where I might like to play golf.  In the same vein as your question, the following courses have caught my attention as courses I need to experience due to the buzz I hear about their greens and green complexes...

Kingsley Club
Barnbougle Dunes
Yeaman's Hall
Yale
Pasatiempo
Askernish
St. Andrews (old)
Peachtree
Tethrow (due to this thread) 
Old MacDonald
Augusta National
North Berwick


But really, I don't know.  Hence this thread, try to learn more about greens that might appeal to me.

I mentioned this before, but the greens at NGLA, Ballyneal, Sebonack, Rivermont, Lookout Mountain, Aiken, and Augusta CC have probably been my favorite so far.  With stunning moments of awe occuring on the first four mentioned.

[Dave McCollum]

Mac,
Happy to point out Tetherow.  I didn’t say those greens weren’t awesome or, in my case, mind blowing.  I meant over-the-top in terms of playability to the average hack.  There wasn’t just contour—they looked fast as well.  I didn’t putt them, but I really couldn’t believe a first time player could manage the place in less than 40 putts.  For example, the pin on #6 probably couldn’t be 2-putted from anywhere on that green other than below it on the little shelf.  Anywhere else, I doubt you could even keep a putt on the green.  In fairness, the biz model called for a private club and the economy has dictated otherwise.   Ironically, I made time to see the course because I had been so impressed with photos of the bunkering that so beautifully transitioned into the native.  Almost on a par with TD’s Rock Creek CC.

Also in fairness, I played DMK’s latest opening, Huntsman Springs, this summer and the greens were challenging but eminently playable.  That course, BTW, was hydro-engineering marvel in that it was built on a dead flat mountain meadow (Tetons in the background) that was really nothing more than a marsh.  I’d call it a 6-7 course built on 0-1 ground.  Remarkable and worth a play.  Very clever visual deception going on virtually on every hole.  I guess it didn’t hurt that Huntsman had an unlimited budget and owned some sand dunes 100 miles away.  They hauled and stockpiled a mountain of sand continuously for nine months during construction.  But I digress. 

[K. Krahenbuhl]

How about the practice green at Friars Head?  I could easily spend all afternoon putting on that beauty.

[Michael Dugger]

I would cite the #6 short hole at NGLA before the 5th at Old Macdonald. 

Postage Stamp at Troon

#17 hourglass at Pebble

Cypress Point #9

Spyglass #4

[Sean Leary]

12 at Chambers Bay
8 at Prairie Dunes
18 at Tumble Creek