Essex G&CC Photo Tour (Donald Ross - Windsor, Canada)

[Mark Saltzman]

This past week I had the opportunity to play Essex G&CC, located in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.  The club was founded in 1902, but moved to its current Matchette Road location in 1927 and hired Mr. Donald Ross as the course architect.  

From the people I have spoken to, the Club has remained committed to maintaining the orignal Ross design and have made few changes to the original golf course.  I believe around 2000 the Club hired Renaissance Golf Design to restore the greens and bunkering.  I in no way profess to be an expert, but in my opinion based on looking at before and after pictures, the bunker work that was completed has added substantial interest to the golf course.  Mr. Jeff Mingay authored the Club’s history in honor of its centennial in 2002 and I apologize in advance if any of my facts are incorrect (and feel free to contact me so I can change them).

I hope you enjoy the photos and if ever given the chance to play Essex, I recommend you take it.

All yardages are from the Black tees.

Hole 1: Par 4, 381 yards.

A gentle opener, with a fairly scary bunker down the right side of the fairway.  The player has the option of laying up short of the bunker off the tee, leaving 160ish yards, or playing to the more narrow part of the fairway and taking on the fairway bunker.



Approach to a green with a small false front.  Bunkers left and right are a good 15 yards short of the green making the approach appear more difficult than it plays (this feature felt very common at Essex).



Hole 2: Par 4, 326 yards

2 continues to allow the player to ease into the round.  A short slight dogleg right par 4 with the player is tempted to take on the group of bunkers on the right to leave a shorter approach.



Approach from lay-up tee shot short of fairway bunkers



Approach from more aggressive tee shot left of fairway bunkers



Also of note is the green which has a severe back to front slope.  Even in early season condition, the greens were quick enough for yours truly to putt from the back of the green off the front.

More to come.

[Jeff_Mingay]

I was kinda shocked to see the title of your thread, Mark! But, of course, I really look forward to your Photo Tour 

I grew up playing Essex and am still a member. In fact, I was suppose to play there this afternoon. Windsor had a major rain storm last night though. The course is very wet today, so we cancelled. The course looks to be in very good condition coming out of winter though, which is great.

A lot of credit for recent restoration and improvement work goes to golf course superintendent, Chris Andejicka. Chris has been at Essex since 1995. Besides the bunker work and green surface restoration stuff, Chris has done a fine job with conditioning and trees. When I was a kid, the course was littered with evergreens and flowering trees. They're almost all gone now. And the effect is exceptional by comparison with 15 years ago. 

Essex G&CC is one of the most beautifully treed properties in barren (a lot of farming) Essex County.

[Mark Saltzman]

Hole 3: Par 5, 523 yards.

Hole 3 is a medium length, subtle dogleg right par 5.  OB threatens the whole down the right side, though most shots likely will be caught in the trees rather than end up OB.  Fairway bunkers flank the fairway on the tee shot.  Any player hoping to get home in two must challenge the right hand bunker.



The lay up leaves the player with options.  A fairway bunker on the right juts out into the fairway at approximately 150 yards from the green and a second fairway bunker narrows the fairway from the left at 100 yards out.  One must choose both their line and their lay up yardage carefully.



Intimidating approach over a deep bunker, to a slightly elevated green where shots long or right will kick further away from the green.



Behind Green



The green is very interesting and is bisected by a ridge through the middle of the green (that cannot be seen from the fairway).  The ridge is flattened by the photo, but if you are on the wrong side you are in trouble. 

[Mark Saltzman]

Hole 4: Par 4, 461 yards.

Hole 4 is the beginning of a difficult three hole stretch.  Another dogleg right, although this is one is slightly more severe.  Once again, one must challenge the bunkers on the inside of the dogleg for a shorter approach to the green.  A pulled tee shot into the left rough will have a problem with overhanging limbs.



The green allows a player to run a long approach shot on to the green, but one must beware of the false front.



Run offs to the right and back right of the green. 




Hole 5: Par 3, 194 yards

A long, difficult par 3 with a massive green and bunkers short left and green-high and long right. 



Hole 6: Par 4, 454 yards.

Hole 6 is long, straight and difficult.  One of the few holes where fairway bunkers are not in play on the tee shot.



Although it is not clear in the picture, the hole has, I believe, three swales running across the fairway making for more interesting lies.



Fairway bunkers flank the fairway 50 yards out, making for an interesting lay-up for those players that are unable to reach this long par 4 in two.

[Ian Andrew]

It's a course you have to see in person to appreciate.
The 4th and 6th are stunningly great flat holes but there is no way to show it with a camera.
The greens are devilish on both holes with the 4th being my favourite.

The swale system is very clever and very educational for anyone who is into that sort of stuff.

I saw the course before Bruce Hepner's work and I really like what I see from the photos.
It's nice not to see verticle turf when it wasn't there in the first place.

I've been meaning to head there for quirte some time.
I always liked Essex and appreciated that I could never score well there.

[Mark Saltzman]

Hole 7: Par 3, 157 yards.

Easily one of my favorite holes on the golf course.  A beautiful short par 3, surrounded by 5 bunkers.  The green (sorry, no picture) has a very well-defined coming off the back of the green that splits the back portion of the green into two.  The hole, at first glance, reminded me quite a bit of #5 at Aronimink GC.







Hole 8: Par 4, 359 yards.

A short dogleg left par-4 with the only water on the front nine (though it really should not be in play).  The inside of the dogleg has many tall trees that will block-out a tee shot that is pulled at all in an attempt to be too aggressive.

[Jeff_Mingay]

Ian,

Very good point. Essex doesn't photograph well. You have to play it a few times to really appreciate its subtlety and charm.

#4 and #6 are very challenging par 4s, with really neat greens. The 6th has bugged me - as a player - forever, mainly because it's so straight. Neat hole indeed. The green there was softened in 1960. Before that a pretty abrupt contour featued in the front left section of the putting surface. (It's still a really good green though.)

FYI... the 4th was a par-5, as per Ross' original design. In 1965, it was converted to a par-4. Yep, there were back-to-back par-5s at Essex - #3 and #4.  

[Mark Saltzman]

Hole 9: Par 4, 437 yards.

A very strong par 4 with an intimidating tee shot.  From the tee, one is forced to choose either to attempt to carry the left fairway bunker or attempt to thread the needle.  The view from the tee makes it appear as though there is almost no room between the bunkers, but the fairway is probably 40 yards wide.  A clever visual trick.



A tee shot of ~200 yards would leave this impossible approach (green is around the corner, behind the trees on the left).



Approach after an ideal tee shot.  Once again, bunkers well short of the green give the appearance of a more difficult approach.  I also like the location of the right hand bunkers, penalizing the player that was cautious off the tee and hit a tee shot that did not challenge the left side.



Green and clubhosue

[Sean Leary]

Looks really good. As far as trees go, these trees I like.

Jeff, How far is Windsor from Toronto?

[Mark Saltzman]

Looks really good. As far as trees go, these trees I like.

Jeff, How far is Windsor from Toronto?

Sean,

It's about 3.5 hours from Toronto to Windsor (some very good golf on the way too).  Windsor is right across the border from Detroit, MI.

[Mark Saltzman]

Hole 10: Par 5, 501 yards.

A straight away par 5 with OB well right.  Bunkers on the left are approximately 270 yards off the tee and from looking at old pictures, they appear to be a fairly new addition.  The hole was likely at the mercy of longer hitters and these bunkers pinch the landing area for a long hitter while having minimal impact on the shorter hitters.  A great addition, in my opinion.



Second shot, from short of fairway bunkers.



Second shot from right of fairway bunkers (about a 290 yard tee shot)



Very interesting lay-up shot with four bunkers serving to define the landing area.  Depending on the placement of the tee shot, the player must make a definitive decision on both line and distance on the lay up.



Picture taken from right of green.  Notice the small area at the bottom of the picture.  A phenomenal place for a Sunday pin position, tucked just over the greenside bunker.



Hole 11: Par 4, 424 yards.

From the tee in play on the day I played, the hole is a straightforward straight-away par four with water down the left off the tee.  Another tee box is located some 40 yards to right, which turns the hole into a severe dog leg right where one must flirt with the right side trees to leave a shorter approach to the green.



The green on 11 is very severely sloped back to front.  Also note the bunkers some 50 yards short of the green once again.  Like I said earlier, this felt very common at Essex.

[Mark Saltzman]

Hole 12: Par 3, 190 yards.







Hole 13: Par 5, 471 Yards

A short, straightaway par 5 with water in play down the left starting 230 yards off the tee.  Three bunkers on the right side of the fairway ensure that the player cannot simply bail out right and avoid the water. 





Hole 14: Par 4, 422 yards

Another difficult par 4.  The tee shot is flanked with bunkers on both sides of the fairway to catch an errant tee shot, but there is plenty of fairway width that the bunkers do not give the fairway a cramped feel.



Approach once again features bunkers well short of the green.





I wish cameras could adequately capture the slope in the green.  There are several 'rolls' in the green that make this one of the most interesting (and surprisingly difficult) greens I have ever seen.

[Mark Saltzman]

Hole 15: Par 4, 364 yards.

15 and 16 are two excellent short par 4s that offer a chance for birdie before a very tough finish.  A set of bunkers cut into the fairway on the right around 240 yards from the tee.  One must choose whether or not to challenge them.  The decision is made more difficult by a very deep and intimidating front-right greenside bunker that is much more in play on a laid-up tee shot.



View from 150 yards out; tee shot laid up short of bunkers.



View from left of bunkers.  It is clear that the further left one goes, the better the angle to the green, but some trees (not pictured) left of the fairway will serve to block out a tee shot that is hit too far left.



Hole 16: Par 4, 388 yards.

One of my favorite holes on the course.  Another mid-length par 4 that plays straightaway and forces the player to choose whether to challenge the right side fairway bunkers.



View from a lay up tee shot.



View from a bold tee shot to the narrow landing area left of the fairway bunkers.



A large bunker crosses the fairway 25 yards short of the green.  From the fairway it is very difficult to tell that there is any room between the bunker and the green.  While it may seem like it should not be in play, don't tell that to my playing partners.

[Mark Saltzman]

Hole 17: Par 3, 219 yards.

Mr. Mingay points out in his Club History that 17 plays "with the prevailing wind," but on the day I played it was straight into a 20 MPH wind and 45 degrees.  Driver was the club of choice.  The hole is open in the front allowing a player to run the ball on the green.  The green, other than pure length, is the hole's main defence.  With two distinct ridges essentially splitting the green into three segments, anyone on the wrong part of putting surface will struggle to two-putt.



Hole 18: Par 4, 433 yards.

The tee shot on 18 is without a doubt the most open on the course.  One of the only holes that does not have any fairway bunkers in play off the tee. 

[Jeff_Mingay]

Nice job, Mark. Enjoyed your photos and accurate commentary.

Most of the fairway bunkers you mentioned were not in Ross' original plan (at least not in those exact locations). Fairway bunkers at 1, 3 (right), 10, 13, 14 (left), 15 and 16 were added to the course during the 1970s and 80s (many by Arthur Hills and Assoc.). Hepner kept them in place, but they were remodeled obviously. And they all work well. Fairway bunkers at the 9th hole were restored as part of Bruce's plan, as per Ross' original scheme.

Essex is indeed an exceptional flat land course. It's all about a smart routing and interesting, varied greens that are, at the same time, very reasonably pitched and contoured. Many (troublesome and non-indigenous) trees have come down over recent years, but the native stuff out there, bordering the holes, add very much to the pleasant nature of the course.   

[Matt Bosela]

Great job with the tour, Mark.

I haven't had the pleasure of seeing Essex yet but it is certainly on my must-play list.  The architecture looks very strong.

[George Freeman]

Mark,

Great photo tour.  Thanks for posting.

Essex is a wonderful place.  I got a chance to play it a couple years ago and would recommend a round there to anyone (super easy trip from metro Detroit).

From the cool first green, to the great bunkering on the second, the spine in the green on #3, etc etc.  The good stuff just keeps coming.  Based on some before/after photos, the renovation/restoration was really successful.  

I played it mid-summer, and with full canopies on the trees, some of the holes do play a little tight.  But for a course with so many, it really doesn't feel like it/feel too tight.

The only holes I thought felt out of place were the two water holes.  It wasn't that the holes were out of character, just the actual water.  I don't think the pond is original.

Regardless, Essex is a great place to spend an afternoon and I would imagine a great place to call home!

[Derek Dirksen]

Thanks for the great photos.  I like the bunkering.  Very deceptive!!!

[George Freeman]

Hole 14: Par 4, 422 yards



I wish cameras could adequately capture the slope in the green.  There are several 'rolls' in the green that make this one of the most interesting (and surprisingly difficult) greens I have ever seen.

This was my favorite green on the course.  I remember marveling at how cool and unique the contours of this green were.  The pictures don't come close to capturing it.

And I forgot to mention in my first post: Other people have stated this, but Essex is such a fine example of interesting/strategic architecture on an almost pancake flat site.

[Tom_Doak]

George:

The pond is not original, but I believe it had to do with irrigation storage, so there was no way Bruce could convince them to take it out.

I haven't played the course again since Bruce did all the work, but I think it's a fine course.  It used to make the top 100 in the world lists when I first started compiling them, because all of the pros who played in the Canadian Open there back in the 1970's [Crenshaw, Floyd, Pate] thought very highly of the course.

[Jeff_Mingay]

George,

The pond at #8 is original. It was the irrigation reservoir from day one, as per Ross' plan. The pond between the 11th and 13th holes was installed during the 1970s to provide additional capacity. I've never been a big fan of that pond, either (there used to be another drainage swale between those holes, with another 3-4 bunker up the left side of the 13th). But it is functional. And, filling it in would be a massive undertaking.

Good call on the 14th green as well. It is an incredible putting surface, featuring random little heaves and rolls, here and there. The 8th is a bit similar, too, if not as dramatic. Indeed. Essex shows what a fine routing and a world-class collection of greens can provide on pancake flat ground. Other than the greens, construction work is incredibly minimal throughout the rest of the property. Roseland, which is owned by the city of Windsor, is another excellent example of the same; designed by Mr. Ross some three years before Essex, in 1926.

[Chris Roselle]

Thanks for the wonderful tour Mark.  Last year Essex G & CC was the host of the Williamson Cup, which is a 36-hole, stroke play event featuring competition among four-man teams from 11 state and regional golf associations from Delaware, Pennsylvania, Michigan, New York, Ontario, Quebec and Washington, D.C.  The four players we sent to represent the Golf Association of Philadelphia loved the course and the membership.

[George Freeman]

Tom & Jeff, thanks for the info.

I have a copy of the book on the club's history (written by Jeff).  I'll see if I can scan a few of the old pictures tonight and include them on this thread.

[Ed Oden]

Mark, thanks for the tour and your commentary.  Very well done.

[Sean_A]

Mark

I am gonna take a flyer and say the bunker scheme is largely not Ross.  Too many are very predictably placed. 

This course reminds me a bunch of a Hawtree/Taylor design from back in the day, but with a better set of greens.  Essex certainly looks worth a go.  Thanks Mark.

Ciao